Poppy was understandably frustrated, too. The Desert Flowers Detective Agency got a few mentions in the press as having been key in exposing Hal Greenwood. A few journalists even picked up on Poppy’s personal connection back in the 1980s and wrote breathlessly about her forty-year struggle to find the killer of her dear friends, the original three victims, even though in reality, Poppy only knew one just in passing.
Poppy and Matt had both been surprised when they received phone calls from Trent’s assistant director asking them to report to the Joshua Tree set at 5:00 AM for makeup and hair so they could shoot their final scene. They had assumed the film would be inevitably delayed once more after Hal’s arrest and impending arraignment. But the investors had decided otherwise. They refused to be deterred any longer. They had already lost millions from the initial production shutdown after Danika’s death; they were not going to lose another cent. A meeting was hastily called, and in a unanimous decision, the production was placed under the guiding hand of Hal’s loyal sidekick, Greta Van Damm. In an e-mail to the cast and crew, Greta trumpeted that the production would move full steam ahead and finish on time and on budget, or rather the revised budget with an additional two million to cover the costly delays and overruns.
“Hey, I’m going to go say good-bye to Joselyn before we head home. Meet you in your trailer?” Matt said to Poppy.
“Fine,” Poppy answered.
Matt hustled off and Poppy fixed her attention on Trent. He was busy flagging down Greta, who appeared to be on the phone with her office back in LA.
Poppy started approaching Trent. She didn’t know what she was going to say, but she knew she should at least thank him for believing in her, fighting to cast her in the part when there was a lot of pressure on him to use a bigger name. She just hoped she had not disappointed the up-and-coming director. As she moved toward them, Greta finally got off her call and Trent was suddenly in her face, aggressively wagging a finger at her.
Greta appeared slightly stunned, slowly backing away from him, a distasteful, annoyed look on her face. Poppy stopped a few feet away from them, and was able to overhear bits of their conversation.
“I was in her trailer giving her direction on an upcoming scene and that’s when Joselyn noticed him staring at us through the window. He must have been using an apple box to stand on so he could get a good view!” Trent spat out angrily.
Greta dismissively mimed air quotes with her fingers and sneered, “Direction?”
“Yeah, we are shooting a movie and she is my leading lady! That’s what I do. Give direction!” Trent huffed.
Greta folded her arms and smirked skeptically. “Yes, you’ve proven time and time again you’re a hands-on director.”
“What the hell is that supposed to mean?”
“You know what it means, Trent. I don’t have to explain it to you.”
Trent swatted away an annoying fly buzzing around him and then focused on Greta again. “Look, it doesn’t matter what we were actually doing. That doesn’t give your creepy son the right to play Peeping Tom. This shoot has had enough problems and you certainly don’t need your new star slapping you with a lawsuit.”
The word lawsuit finally got Greta’s attention. “I’ll talk to him, okay?”
“Thank you,” Trent sighed.
Greta stalked off, clearly rattled.
Trent watched her go and Poppy stepped forward. “Trent?”
The director spun around and growled, “What?”
His pinched face softened a bit at the sight of his former childhood crush.
Poppy smiled. “I know it’s been a bumpy ride, but I appreciate all you’ve done, giving me this chance . . .”
“You were great. We were lucky to have you. You really classed up my movie,” he said, slightly rushed. He gave her a quick peck on the cheek and was about to move on.
Poppy stepped in front of him, blocking his hasty exit. “I couldn’t help but overhear. I didn’t know Greta had a son.”
“Yeah, she strong-armed me into hiring him. I only agreed because I figured if I gave her a win, she’d have to cave on some of my casting choices, like you, for instance, so I guess it all worked out in the end.”
“What does her son do on the set?” Poppy asked, looking around.
Trent raised an eyebrow. “It’s Timothy.”
Poppy stumbled back, floored. “The PA?”
“Yes. I thought you knew.”
“No, I-I had no idea. . . .”
“Have you ever really talked to him? He’s a strange bird, that one. I got a weird vibe from him on the day he started. And now it turns out he’s a pervert just like his dad.”
“His dad? Who is his father?”
Trent glanced around to make sure Greta was nowhere in sight, then leaned in closer. “Well, nobody knows for sure, but there has been a rumor going around that Hal Greenwood is the father.”
Poppy let out an audible gasp.
Trent nodded knowingly. “I heard a few in the know call him ‘Little Hal.’ ”
Chapter 48
Armed with this startling, disturbing, potentially game-changing new information, Poppy knew she had to catch Greta before she left the set back to LA. A grip packing up some cables pointed Poppy in the direction of the base camp parking lot where he had last seen Greta heading. Poppy made a mad dash in hot pursuit, but was stopped in her tracks at the sight of Iris and Violet lumbering toward her, Violet wildly waving at her and shouting, “Poppy! Poppy!”
“What are you two doing here?” Poppy asked, utterly confused.
“The last time I was here with Wyatt, watching the car chase scene, which of course ended so badly for Matt, anyway I met that handsome helicopter pilot . . .”
“Roy Heller,” Iris almost sang, clearly smitten.
“Yes, Roy,” Violet sighed.
“He is a very attractive man,” Iris cooed, as much as Iris was capable of cooing.
“He most certainly is, that
