Page 35 of Romance Is Dead

Something was definitely wrong with Audrey.

It was the next morning, and we had started filming one of the longest sequences in the movie.

The three college students who remained — me, Teddy, and Chloe — were preparing to make their first attempt to defeat the witch.

They’d ultimately fail, of course, and Chloe’s poor character would meet her demise via a spell that mummified her from the inside out.

It was pretty gnarly and would mark the end of act two, with only two of the main cast left.

It was a complex scene, but the plan was to start with a few simple shots: my character fetching the potion from where we’d hidden it under the sink, Teddy rigging together a makeshift shelter from the kitchen table and chairs, and Chloe pouring salt around the perimeter to create a circle of protection in preparation for Audrey, as the witch, to arrive and wage her attack.

Even before we started filming, no one seemed to want to be there.

Teddy was distracted, screwing up the blocking twice by grabbing the wrong set of chairs.

Chloe’s energy was muted, with none of the verve she usually brought to set.

Even the crew were dragging their feet, needing multiple reminders of the time as they prepped the set.

Natasha, especially, looked haggard from her long meetings with reps from the production company late at night. Dark circles ringed her eyes, and her usually perky hair was lying flat and greasy. Her energy seemed sapped — the only time she spoke was to snap at people.

I didn’t blame anyone for feeling off. In the days since Brent’s death, the vibes on set had only gotten stranger.

Darker. Members of the cast and crew alike were constantly on edge, suspicious.

The strange noises in the house had grown more frequent: odd groans and scurrying in the walls.

Things had gone missing from my trailer — a chunky gold ring here, a marked-up script there — enough for me to notice but not be sure whether they were taken or just misplaced.

I couldn’t shake the feeling that someone was lurking around, unseen and undetected. And even though the police still hadn’t found hard evidence to the contrary, no one believed Brent’s death had been an accident, and more and more were starting to whisper about Trevor, too.

So, everything considered, I understood why Natasha was out of sorts. But my empathy dissipated once cameras started rolling.

First, she accused me of closing the kitchen cabinet too aggressively after retrieving the potion.

Then she made Chloe reshoot her portion of the scene, claiming the salt circle wasn’t smooth enough.

She completely unloaded on Teddy, yelling at him for not stacking the chairs on the table in the precise way she wanted.

And Audrey couldn’t even creep in the background without reprimand.

Apparently, she needed to “lurk with more energy.”

By the time we wrapped, we were all in rotten moods, and I felt bad that Chloe and Audrey had to come back after lunch while the rest of us had the afternoon off.

Relieved to get out of the house and away from its oppressive vibe, Mara and I set up a picnic on the lawn, inviting the others to join us.

Nobody wanted to eat at the designated tables, with the image of Brent collapsing and asphyxiating to death still potent in our minds.

The weather was gorgeous — sunny but crisp with a slight breeze rustling the leaves — and we stayed even after Chloe and Audrey returned to set to continue filming their scene.

We sipped warm apple cider out of our thermoses, decompressing after the stressful morning. Teddy hooked one arm around my bent leg, anchoring me tight against him as he lazily rubbed my calf. The gesture was subtle but intimate, making me feel safe and noticed in a supremely cozy way.

Unfortunately, Mara noticed, too. She immediately clocked our entwined limbs, a smirk slowly spreading across her face.

“Wow, you sure ate your food fast, Teddy,” she said, despite the fact that we’d all finished our lunches at least fifteen minutes ago. “Do you. . . like eating?”

I narrowed my eyes, knowing exactly where she was going with this.

Teddy, however, was nonplussed. “Sure, I guess so.”

“Interesting. What would you say. . . is your favorite thing to eat?”

This was getting ridiculous.

“You mean my favorite food?” Teddy asked.

“Sure, something like that.” Mara winked exaggeratedly. “I was thinking maybe it was — ”

Before she could finish her thought, a barrage of shouting came from the house, loud enough to make us stop and listen.

I was thanking the powers that be for the interruption when the yelling continued, getting louder until the front door banged open.

It was Chloe, tearing out the front door.

Audrey came next, grabbing at Chloe’s sweater and yanking at the fabric, trying to pull Chloe back into the house.

Chloe fought back, prying at Audrey’s fingers as she scrambled to get away.

They nearly sent Scott, who was just trying to transport a crate of props into the house, tumbling over the railing as they grappled on the porch.

“Hey!” Teddy yelled, as Mara and I stared.

Audrey started at the sound. Seeing us, she immediately let go of Chloe and hurried back into the house. Now alone, Chloe collapsed onto the porch swing, her arms wrapped around herself as she started to cry.

“What the fuck just happened?” Mara stared at Teddy and me, looking as shocked as I felt.

I said nothing, unable to move as I listened to the sad sounds of Chloe whimpering across the lawn.

This sudden display of violence, combined with the phone call the night before, didn’t make sense with the Audrey I’d known, who was always calm and polite and agreeable, even if she wasn’t terribly outgoing.

No one’s going to find out though, I promise , she’d said on the phone.

“Poor thing,” Mara said, tutting to herself. “I’m going to go see if she’s ok.” She put down her cider and stood to leave. As soon as she was out of earshot, I turned to Teddy.

“We have to figure out what’s going on with Audrey.”

He nodded. “When?”

I shivered, a feeling creeping in that if we didn’t figure out what was going on, there would be another victim. Soon.

“Tonight.”

“I think he’s coming,” Teddy whispered.

Trying not to be obvious, I tilted my head a few degrees so I could see the entrance of the hotel’s bar.

But instead of a grizzled older man, it was a visibly younger guy, of a completely different body type, who happened to be wearing a similar ball cap.

“Nope, not him. You see him every day — how do you not know who we’re looking for? ”

“He’s not the one I’m usually looking at.” Teddy raised an eyebrow and grinned at me suggestively.

I rolled my eyes, even though I was secretly pleased. “You’re ridiculous.”

After filming wrapped, Teddy and I had beat a hasty retreat back to the hotel.

We knew that most nights, Scott visited the bar for a single pint of beer before he retired for the evening.

As props master, Scott was constantly on set, shuttling props back and forth and consulting with the crew about what was needed the following day.

He was so omnipresent that he blended into the background — and he seemed to like it that way.

If anyone had overheard anything about what happened between Audrey and Chloe, it’d be him.

“Move over, I need a better view.” I switched to the opposite side of the booth, sliding in next to Teddy so I could watch for Scott. Clearly, Teddy wasn’t going to be very helpful.

“I was wondering why you were all the way over there.” He snaked an arm around my back, tucking me in close. “This is much better.”

Usually, I’d be paranoid about someone seeing us, but the booth was hidden away in a far corner and the place was vacant, the bartender focused on wiping down glasses across the room.

I closed my eyes, resting my head against his firm shoulder as I let myself be held.

He rubbed a thumb along my hip, the small gesture wiping away the stress of the day as our breathing synched.

It was nice, letting my guard down even for just a moment.

“I’ve wanted to get my hands on you all day,” Teddy whispered in my ear.

His hand snuck down the waistband of my leggings, fingertips stroking the soft skin of my leg.

A quiet sigh escaped my lips, and I buried my head in his shoulder to muffle the sound.

It was ridiculous, how quickly the slightest touch from him made my heart start to race. “Why’d you wait so long?” I murmured.

“Because I’m a stupid, stupid man.” Teddy shifted his hand, his fingers now grazing the crease of my inner thigh. The rest of the room seemed to dissolve as his touch dragged up and down, slowly. My blood simmered; every atom of my attention focused on the strokes creeping ever so slightly higher.

Across the room, Scott entered the bar.

I jumped, jolting to attention. I smacked Teddy’s arm and pointed, and when he saw the older man, he groaned.

“Great timing, Scott,” he grumbled, removing his hand from my pants.

“Truly.”

“Come to my room after this.” Teddy leaned in, his teeth lightly grazing my earlobe. “We can pick up where we left off.”

“Definitely. Yes.” I grinned, already counting down to the moment we finished with Scott and could escape to his room. But a moment later, Teddy cursed under his breath.

“Shit. My brother.” He ran a hand down his face. “I have to call him later.”

My heart sank. “Oh. Really?”

“Usually I’d reschedule, but I think something happened today. He was upset when he texted me earlier.” Teddy closed his eyes, his face falling. “Damn it, I’m so sorry.”

“It’s ok, really.” I rubbed his arm, trying to hide my disappointment. “Another time.”

“Scott really owes me now.”

“Well, hopefully he’ll repay us with information. Let’s go.”