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It was a little after nine p.m. when Mason pulled up at Jade Solomon’s place. Jade was almost exactly the same age as Mason, and although they’d both grown up feeling conflicted about Barney and reading Goosebumps under the covers, Mason was aware they might as well have been from different species. Jade was one of those rare birds with plumage sought the world over. Mason was more along the lines of a wood louse, or some other beetle too numerous to count. Jade was a billionaire’s granddaughter who’d grown up with houses in Gstaad for the skiing and Saint-Tropez for the beach. Mason was a psychologist’s granddaughter who’d grown up in a house filled with books and parents who kept asking her how she felt about that. However, Mason was surprised to find Jade easy to talk to, even if it turned out she knew very little.

Jade’s apartment was a giant duplex loft downtown, and probably cost more per month than Mason made in a year, but it was casually decorated and comfortable. Jade Solomon was wearing pajamas when she came to the door and stayed in them. They were very nice pajamas, and she had the shiny coat and wet nose that only pampered good health and lack of financial insecurity can bring, but it was hardly her fault her family was rich. At least, not any more than it was Mason’s fault that her family were all psychiatrists.

“When you called, you said you needed to ask me some questions? That it would be helpful to Julia Mann, who I love . She’s an icon,” Jade said, reaching for her cup of tea. “Is this about the movie? Are you press? You didn’t say you were press, so I guess not.”

“No, I’m not press. I work for Julia. We’re investigating the death of Tony Eckenridge.”

Jade’s eyes grew large and moist. “Tony was such a wonderful man. It’s such a loss to the world.” A tear actually started sliding down her cheek, adorably, and she let it. “He was so super nice to me both times we met. I’ll never, never, never forget him.” She paused, sighed, counted to three, then wiped her cheek. “I thought Julia Mann killed him, but I guess not.”

“Nope,” Mason said. “Or, if she did, she’s going to a lot of trouble to find herself.”

If Jade got the semi-joke, she gave no indication. She just looked at Mason and waited to hear her name. Her posture was magnificent.

“Can you tell me what the argument was about, between Jason Reed and Tony?”

“Am I allowed to?”

Mason frowned. “Why wouldn’t you be?”

“I don’t know.” Jade sipped her tea. “Sometimes the lawyers tell me not to talk about stuff, you know, after it happened. Or I’ll read a script and they’ll tell me not to talk about it. Or I’ll sleep with someone and have to keep it quiet.” Mason suddenly wondered if she was as guileless as she appeared; she had a successful career and presumably had her wits about her. She started silently despairing of her own generation but pressed on regardless.

“Yes, it’s fine to talk about it.”

“It really wasn’t that big of a deal. Tony had me in a movie he was making, but I was pretty much done with my shooting, right? And Jason wanted me for something else and Tony wouldn’t release me. Jason’s thing was at Netflix, which is, you know, the coolest shit right now. Then Tony spoke to someone at Netflix because, you know, he knew everyone, and the streaming thing went away, like, overnight. Jason was pretty steamed. But then Tony died and Christine called Jason about directing The Codex , and Jason got his Netflix thing back on track and everything’s fine now.” She smiled. “ The Codex is going to be fun. The remake of a classic is an excellent next step for me.”

“How come?”

“Well, I’m following my ten-year plan, and I’m already two years ahead of schedule.”

Mason was ready to bite. “What’s your ten-year plan?”

Jade looked surprised. “Well, I started out on TV, on a Disney show. Then I did an edgy indie film where I played a drug addict, to show range. Then I did a rom-com where I played the sassy best friend, to show comedy chops and character and that I didn’t need to be the lead to shine. Then I did a supernatural TV miniseries to remind people I was flexible and to pay for this apartment.” She pussycat smiled. “I won an Emmy. Then I did the lead in a big-budget tragedy where I got to die at the end. And last year I did a movie where I played a gutsy but troubled lawyer who saved little children from a big corporation.” She shrugged. “Action movie is next, and classic movie remake is bonus points. Two more years and I’ll have my first Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress, and two more after that I’ll be mentioned frequently in contention for Best Actress.” She tipped her head to one side. “Everyone knows this; it’s a pretty standard ten-year plan.”

Mason stared at her. She didn’t even have a ten-day plan. Back on the beam. “Can you tell me about the accident you had, the one with Christine?”

“Oh, it was terrible.” Jade showed Mason her jawline. “Look, I have a scar.”

There was absolutely no scar, but Mason made sympathetic noises.

“Christine must have been high or something, I guess. She just lost control of the car and we drove right into that cranky guy in the Prius. He wasn’t nice at all. And then we had to wait AGES at the hospital, and Cody was being so sweet but it was still pretty boring.”

“Were you with Christine?”

“No, she was in another area. Maybe for older people?” Mason looked carefully at her, but she was not making a joke. “Cody stayed with me, of course.” Jade leaned forward. “He loves me, you know.”

“Oh yeah?”

“Yes. He said I was a piece of work.” She smiled. “He’s very shy about it, though. I asked him to rub my feet while we were waiting and he said he couldn’t. Or wouldn’t, I can’t remember. I understood. It’s like that with men, sometimes. They get flustered and need to stay away from me.”

“Huh.” Mason raised her eyebrows. “Just too much sex appeal to take?”

“I guess.” Jade turned up her palms. “They’re all super friendly at first, but after a few days they just get overwhelmed.” Her glossy hair swung about her shoulders, her slender neck as elegant as the proverbial swan, or maybe a goose. Despite the ten-year plan, Mason was starting to feel a little sorry for her.

“I see.” Mason looked at her notebook. “So, what time did you leave the hospital?”

“No idea. They wouldn’t let us use our phones, which was nuts, but there was a photographer there. You can ask him.”

“Did you recognize him?”

Jade shook her beautiful head. “He had a camera in front of his face.”

“Good point. Thanks.”

The actress’s eyes widened; she’d had a thought. “Do you think Julia Mann would talk to me about the movie? About the character?” She looked hopeful. “I could bring gluten-free cupcakes.”

Mason thought about it. It was so tempting. But in the end she shook her head.

“I think she might find it challenging to talk to the actress who’s going to play the part that made her famous, you know?”

“Because she’ll be worried I’ll do it better?”

“Yes,” said Mason. “You know what actresses are like.”

“Oh yes,” said Jade, nodding. “Because I am one, you mean?”

“Yes,” said Mason slowly. “So, how steamed did Jason Reed get? When Tony derailed his Netflix thing?”

“Oh, really mad. He said he was going to kill Tony, and for a minute I thought he meant it, you know, because he was really red-faced and everything. But then he took a Xanax and calmed down.”

“That’ll do it.”

“I guess.” Jade suddenly giggled. “It’s so funny when people get mad, don’t you think? I never get mad. As Jane Austen said, ‘ Angry people are not always wise .’?” She stood up, her cotton pajamas looking like couture on her five foot ten of perfection. “I decided a couple of years ago to read Time magazine’s hundred greatest novels of all time, and Jane Austen is a total banger. Have you heard of her?”

“Little bit,” replied Mason, and watched the other woman walk off into the kitchen. She really needed to work on her prejudices. And maybe her pride, while she was at it.

“Hey,” called the actress, “you want some Lucky Charms?”

As she stepped out of Jade’s apartment, Mason was surprised by how quiet it was. This section of the city was sparsely inhabited, and several of the streetlights were long broken and very low on the city’s list for repair. She could hear music from a bar somewhere close, and smell the back-of-the-throat bite of human urine. Ah, the beauty of downtown Los Angeles, the city where even angels need to pee. Beneath her boots, broken auto glass gathered into long cracks and gullies in the sidewalk, making her think of flying into town at night, the lit streets and freeways like rivers of diamond headlights and ruby brake lights. Mason found herself smiling at the conversation she’d just concluded. She and Jade had started talking about movies they both liked, agreeing on The Princess Bride and agreeing to differ on Spice World , following which Jade had enthusiastically invited Mason to go out sometime. Literally one of the world’s most famous faces, but Mason had ended up really liking her. Maybe not always the sharpest knife in the drawer, but very sweet, startlingly well-read and apparently lacking in the friends department. Befriending a movie star hadn’t been on her bingo card for this year, but there you go.

Downtown was as deserted as ever, unless you count rats and roaches as big as rats. However, appearances were deceptive, because as Mason pulled out her keys to open her car, someone grabbed her from behind and held a knife to her neck. She froze, mentally inventorying the contents of her wallet. Did she have enough cash on her to make this asshole walk away before stripping her of her credit cards?

“The Codex Curse is going to get you all. Stop digging around in buried history…” The voice was low but clear, and Mason felt the knife actually pierce her skin, which really fucking hurt. She was also intensely surprised. What she’d taken for a simple robbery, to be borne as stoically as every city resident bears this kind of thing, was actually far more personal. And personal hurts.

Truth be told, Mason had a black belt in Tae Kwon Do, but it had been nearly a decade since her sulky teenage self had attained it. However, the feeling of blood trickling down your neck and the awareness that it really was your exact neck that was the target of attack has a very galvanizing effect, and suddenly it all came back.

She stepped forward to throw the attacker off-balance, slipping slightly on the miniature ice cubes of broken glass underfoot. She dropped one knee to pull out of his grip, causing him to stumble but not completely release her. Mason stepped on his instep, which isn’t a traditional Tae Kwon Do move per se, but is very effective, and at the same time raised her arms, clasped her hands together and drove both elbows back into his groin. This made him let go, but also made him angrier. She realized he had a ski mask on, which was creepy, irritating and probably contributing to his bad mood.

Mason yelled, “911, fire!” as loudly as she could and kept yelling as the guy came at her again. This time she stepped forward into his run and flipped him over her back, his wrist tight in her hand, twisting. He hit the ground with a satisfying thud, and Mason waited to hear his wrist snap. Sadly, it turned out he’d also had martial arts training of some kind, and just slid his hand around to grab her wrist and throw her, too. She tried to roll with it, but her head hit the sidewalk with an audible crack, and for a moment she saw stars. Mason was starting to black out when she suddenly heard Jade Solomon’s voice in the distance. Or what sounded like Jade, but with a lot more certainty and conviction.

“I see you, motherfucker. I called the police and I’m filming you in hi-def, and this is the latest iPhone, which has incredible resolution and three cameras, so you better fucking run, you piece of shit!” which was quite the speech for someone who wasn’t a writer; a charming blend of Gen Z tech obsession and Tarantino-esque bravado. The attacker cursed and took one last blinding swing at Mason before taking off. Mason murmured a thank-you to Jade, which of course she couldn’t hear, then slipped into unconsciousness.

Mason came to as they were loading her into the ambulance. She was strapped in and wearing a cervical collar, but still struggled to sit up. Her jaw felt wrong and hurt like a bastard. She could smell rubbing alcohol and pee. She hoped it wasn’t her own, but wasn’t one hundred percent confident.

“Steady on.” The EMT leaned over and shone a light in her eyes. “You got quite a knock on the head, and we need to stabilize you till we get to the hospital. Lie down.” Her face was concerned but calm, as EMTs’ faces always are. Mason suddenly felt enormously grateful to be alive and also incredibly nauseous.

“I’m going to be sick,” she said sadly, and then was. Puking through a dislocated jaw? One star, would not recommend.

“Ew, gross,” said a voice somewhere to her right. Jade Solomon was sitting in the ambulance, still in her pajamas, but with the addition of a Prada puffer jacket, a slouchy cashmere beanie and Uggs. She looked like a billion bucks. Mason looked at the EMT, who smiled.

“We couldn’t stop her. She says she saved your life.”

Mason closed her eyes, waves of nausea overwhelming her as a mixture of pain and spent adrenaline coursed through her body. “She did,” she muttered, and blacked out again.

“See?” squealed Jade. “I told you!” She looked excited. “My agent is going to be so pleased!”

The EMT checked Mason’s blood pressure and then leaned over to Jade. “I’m such a fan,” she said. “Would you sign this sick bag?”