Page 29 of Take Me Away
No personal message of support.
No I believe you, Isla.
Maybe he doesn’t because I never told him the truth. He was there on the third and final Vale movie and I never mentioned a word.
A tear slips down my face. This ache inside of me so strong, I don’t want to exist anymore if it means feeling it.
One hundred and eighty-six thousand likes.
I tap again. A comment: ‘Notice how Reid disappeared the MINUTE she needed support? Hollywood relationships are such a joke.’
Another: ‘They were just a PR couple anyway. Contract probably ended right on time lol.’
I check our text thread.
‘Miss you babe. Can’t wait for Cannes! ’
My attempted call six weeks ago: No answer.
His final text, three weeks ago: ‘My team thinks we should cool things off publicly for a bit. Call me when you’re ready to discuss next steps. This will blow over.’
I keep scrolling, masochism apparently my new hobby.
A rising actress I met at last year’s Golden Globes: ‘Grateful for the opportunities Marcus Vale gave me when no one else would. #NotMyExperience #TeamMarcus’
An A-list director I once worked with: ‘In this business, we need to be careful about accusations that can destroy careers. The timing feels convenient.’
Convenient. As if there’s ever a convenient time to blow up your life.
Comments pile on: ‘Waited ten years to speak up? Convenient now that her career was already fading.’
‘Another actress trying to stay relevant. Yawn.’
‘If it was so bad, why did she keep working with him? #FakeVictim’
‘Notice how she only spoke up after that younger actress? Riding coattails of a real victim.’
This one hurts because it’s not the truth. I went to her. I found her and asked, Are you okay? and in asking her, I realised, that I, in fact, was very much not okay.
‘She enabled him for a decade. She’s part of the problem.’
Each word slices deeper than the last.
I scroll faster, desperate now for someone – anyone – who might be on my side.
There. A small indie director I worked with on a passion project three years ago: ‘Worked with Isla. One of the most professional, kind people in the industry. This took courage.’
A women’s advocacy group: ‘The timing of speaking truth doesn’t invalidate the truth itself. #BelieveWomen #SupportIsla’
A former production assistant: ‘I witnessed Vale’s behaviour. Isla is telling the truth. #IStandWithIsla’
But these supportive voices are drowned in the flood of criticism, doubt, and outright hate.
The problem is, and it’s sitting like a boulder in my chest, that I haven’t spoken the whole truth. I’ve corroborated a truth. I’ve spoken out about elements of what happened.
But my own truth is locked so far and so deep inside of me and there’s a chance that if I let it out, I won’t survive it.
A new message flashes up. My agent, Richard: Call me ASAP. The Winter Brothers are willing to reconsider if you issue a clarification statement. We can fix this.
