My Dad, the Private Eye: The Falling Star

CHAPTER 17

The next day, Dad went back to work on Mantis Attack 4. He did actually have a plan in that he knew what he was going to do. But he didn't know how he was going to do it.

Everybody was crowded onto the hotel set, the one where Patty Delaroy died. It was safe, now that they had fixed the second floor balcony. Blight and his crew were behind the camera, ready to shoot Sareena Vacarra at the bottom of the stairs. She was made up beautifully, and she and Blight exchanged sexy smiles as they got ready to roll.

Dad stood amongst the crowd of extras. He was incredibly nervous, but he was trying to remain composed – which was why I was on the phone with him. He wore a small Bluetooth earbud, and I was saying to him, "You can do it, Dad. You cracked the case. You're a real private eye!"

Dad whispered, "Thanks, honey," and he took a few deep breaths.

"Places, people!" yelled the A.D. "Roll camera!"

"Mantis Attack 4, scene 117, take one," said a crew guy.

"And action!" screamed Blight.

All the extras started to walk around the hotel lobby as if they were guests. All except for Dad, that is. He just stood there watching Sareena and the camera crew.

"Don't you realize it's coming?" Sareena pleaded to the extras. "It's there! Right out there!" she wailed, running up the stairs and pointing out the repaired second story window. "Run for your lives!"

"Cut!" Blight yelled. "Sareena, baby, you were fantastic. But I need it once more for camera."

"Fantastic?" I said in Dad's ear. "That was worse overacting than that security guard's demo tape." Dad tried not to smirk.

As Sareena walked back down the stairs, Blight whispered to the A.D. and pointed right at Dad who was still standing awkwardly in the middle of the set, staring at the camera and Sareena. The A.D. walked up to Dad and said, "This your first time on a set, buddy? Walk around like everybody else. You can't look at the camera."

"Oh, uh, sure. Sorry," Dad said, not too convincingly.

The A.D. shook his head and returned to Blight and the crew. Sareena stood on her mark.

"Roll camera!"

"Mantis Attack 4, scene 117, take two!"

"And action!"

The extras mingled, as before. And Dad just stood and stared, as before.

"Don't you realize it's coming? It's there! Right out there!" Sareena ran up the stairs to the back window. "Run for your lives!"

"Cut!" Blight pointed angrily at Dad. "Get that guy off my set!"

The frustrated A.D. walked up to Dad and grabbed him by the arm. "You're outta here, buddy."

But Dad yanked his arm away. "Get your hands off of me!"

This surprised everybody on the set, and they all stopped and looked at Dad. What's with this guy?, no doubt they all wondered. I think Dad was even wondering that himself since he still didn't know exactly how he was going to confront Blight about Patty.

As for me at the end of the phone line, I listened intently to the unfolding drama. It was like watching a thriller – what was going to happen next?

As Dad faced off with the A.D., off to the side, the 2nd A.D. spoke softly into her walkie-talkie: "Somebody call security."

Blight got out of his director's chair and walked up to Dad. "You're too dumb to even be an extra!" he bellowed. All the other extras turned and stared at Blight. "Uh... no offence, everybody. I'm just saying, it's pretty easy to just walk around a set."