She shook her head vehemently. ‘No, I didn’t. Not once. Did he know it was me? Or was it the video that led you to me? I did tell the website people not to lie about where they got it from if it was going to get them into trouble.’
‘I recognised your words,’ I said. ‘The younger generation shouldn’t have to go through what we did…’
‘I just wanted him to come clean and admit what sort of man he is.’
Nathan looked at her sceptically. ‘Really? A man like Mike Mancuso was never going to admit to something like that, was he? What did you expect him to do?’
‘I don’t know. I just wanted him to know that we were on to him, and he couldn’t carry on that way anymore.’ Faith looked a bit vague, and I got the feeling she’d acted before she’d had a chance to really think it through. ‘I thought maybe he’d retire, or make some big thing of going into rehab for sex addiction or something. He could have controlled how it came out, made it look like he was really sorry. Hollywood can be very forgiving if you’re contrite enough, and rich enough. At least it would have meant people knew what he was like.’ She shook her head. ‘Maybe I was naive. I never wanted the video to come out, but when I realised what he’d done… I thought, maybe he thought Jeremy was behind it all, and when he realised it wasn’t him, I would be next. At least the news site had the decency to blur the poor boy’s face.’
‘Who is he?’ I asked.
‘He’s a fan. My Mile End character, Clara, has a big following amongst the gay community. It’s the clothes, you know. And the big heart. Anyway, he had a meeting with Mike about a role, but one of his friends worked in the hotel in London he always uses for his ‘casting’ sessions.’ Faith grimaced, as if the words had left a foul taste in her mouth. ‘His friend had heard rumours and he wanted to protect him, so he hid a camera in the room, and… Well, you saw what happened. He sent the tape to me because he was upset and he didn’t know what to do. He wanted Mike held to account but he’s a no one; nobody would take it seriously. And of course he wasn’t physically forced into doing it. I mean, technically it wasn’t rape, was it? So I sent it to Mike anonymously and told him that if he didn’t own up, I would leak it to the press. The gay community needs their own #MeToo moment.’
‘So how did you end up getting a hundred and forty thousand pounds from him?’ asked Nathan, clearly not buying her story. But I almost believed her.
Faith almost choked. ‘Is that how much he said he’d given me? Cheeky bugger! More like fifty thousand. Sounds to me like he’s been lining his own pocket in case it did come out.’
‘But you’re not denying you received some money?’
‘Oh no, although it didn’t come to me. It was never about money for me. He immediately offered me some to keep quiet, but I said no. He just kept coming back with higher and higher offers.’
‘For a man like Mancuso, it would always be about money, and it would never occur to him that someone might have different motives,’ I said. ‘He thought you were playing hardball, trying to get him to offer you more.’
‘And he did,’ she said. ‘He kept going until he got to an amount that I just couldn’t turn down. So I got him to pay it into a PayPal account that I’d set up under a charitable trust, and then I paid it into a couple of charities I’m a patron of—’
‘A women’s refuge and a rainbow youth centre?’ said Nathan. She nodded.
‘Yes. See, I’m hardly a criminal mastermind, am I? You’ve obviously been able to trace it already. I was only worried about Mike finding out. I knew he wouldn’t go to the police.’ She sighed. ‘It’s such a shame. I love this film. The script, the cast, everything. And it’ll all just stop now, won’t it?’
I nodded, thinking, It’s the end of the movie, and the end of the investigation, but is it also the end of me and Nathan?
We sat outside the food truck. It was starting to get late. Nancy had picked up the girls and taken them back to her house for tea, so I sat with Nathan waiting for Mum to get out of her costume. She’d been on set throughout the whole drama, along with Tony, and I didn’t have the heart to tell her that her acting debut probably wouldn’t make it onto the screen now.
Germaine scouted about in the grass, looking for scraps of food. The crew stood around in groups, some lethargic and depressed about the shoot being cancelled, others talking animatedly about the day’s events. Gino whistled cheerfully enough as he packed everything away, but there was none of his trademark singing; it would have been a little inappropriate.
Tony joined us. I smiled at him, knowing that I would never again see him in the Mr Darcy-esque outfit that had caused me so much hormonal bother – although to be honest, now that we’d kissed I didn’t think it would have quite the same effect on me anymore. I could look at him now and appreciate that he was a nice-looking bloke, but … he was my mate.
‘Proper shocking turn of events,’ he said. Nathan nodded.
‘I think you might’ve missed your shot at fame, mate,’ he said. Tony shrugged.
‘I’m getting used to missing chances,’ he said, with a rueful grin at me. I was glad Nathan didn’t notice. His phone rang.
‘Not another video, I hope,’ joked Tony. Nathan smiled tightly.
‘Nothing quite as exciting,’ he said, and declined the call. I could guess only too easily who the caller was…
‘What have
