Page 67 of Camera Stays On
Asher
EVERYONE LOOKED AROUND the room at each other, taking in Andi’s entrance. Darius and Mick were frozen in place, crouched near Bea. Juliet and Gavin on the other couch exchanged nervous glances, and I stood to go to her but paused when I heard someone coming.
Sawyer came up behind Andi, holding the gun up with his finger on the trigger.
“That’s right. We’re not leaving until this movie is done.”
I stepped forward.
His words settled for only a second before Darius bolted up. “The hell it is. Stop pointing that gun at her. Haven’t you done enough?”
Sawyer swung the gun and pointed it at him. “It was an accident. Say it was an accident.”
Darius stared at him for a long moment, but put his hands up and sat down. “Fine, it was an accident. What are we doing then?”
“Get into costume, then bring the clothes you’re in now back down.”
“This is all we have,” Juliet protested. “You burned everything else!”
“And? You don’t need them to film.”
“What about when we’re not filming?” My pulse raced as I argued with the man with the gun.
“It’s a found footage. Camera stays on.”
“What?” Mick asked.
“Consider yourself method from this moment forward. Until I say we’re wrapped, we’re in character.”
No one spoke as we took in his orders.
I studied my brother, trying to figure out a way to get that gun out of his hand. Sawyer was a good shot. We used to go hunting with our dad when we were kids. He always got the first stag, and it was always a clean shot. I had to get the gun from him. The knife in my pocket wouldn’t do shit if he was aimed and ready.
We’d already made that mistake once—trying to disarm him without a plan.
“Sawyer, why are you in a suit?” I asked, slowly. “You’re directing, right?”
“With Lux gone, I’m doing some rearranging. You’ve been recast.” He glared at me, then turned to everyone else. “Everyone go get changed. We have a movie to make,” he ordered.
Andi’s hands covered her face as she sobbed quietly. I went to her, keeping my eyes on my brother. As I put my arms around her and pulled her into my chest, everyone else got up one by one and filed out silently, but I refused to move. She looked up at me, and my lips twitched. There was so much I wanted to say, but nothing I could with Sawyer so close.
Sawyer’s arm dropped, though he never took his finger off the trigger.
“You can let her go, Ash. She doesn’t need your comfort.” He tugged on his suit jacket. It was then that I actually looked at him. He’d shaved his face and slicked back his hair with gel. He was rather put together for our current situation. I realized then why I was having such an uncomfortable reaction to his appearance. He was dressed exactly as he’d been the day of his and Andi’s wedding. “I’m here.”
I stared at him in disbelief. “What?”
Sawyer came over to us. Putting a hand on Andi’s shoulder, we both froze. She was so stiff her shoulders shook as her head came up, her eyes wet and full of terror as she stared at Sawyer. I couldn’t breathe, my fingers slowly loosening from her waist, not wanting to move too fast and trigger him to fire the gun. I kept my gaze locked on him, preparing to slap the weapon from his hand. As if waiting for the exact moment Andi and his eyes locked, he yanked her from my arms, tossing her back. She hit the coffee table and cried out as the wood cracked and splintered, and she fell to the floor.
My body reacted before my brain, and I shoved my brother out of the way to drop to my knees and help her. Tears streamed down her face as she rolled, trying to get off her bad side. I lifted her to sitting and shook my head.
“What is your problem?”
“The script has changed. I’m Ethan. You’ll be playing a different role now,” he said, ignoring my question. Taking her hand, I helped her stand, and put my hand around her waist protectively, Sawyer be damned.
Andi’s breathing was loud and ragged as she tried to steady herself. Sawyer’s eyes were trained on my hand at her waist.
“And what role is that?” I asked, trying to pull his focus to my face. “Shouldn’t you recast Andi too? She’s injured.”
