both of them pondered the same question: What the hell are you doing here?
"Okay, you first," Shane finally said.
"I'm in showbiz now." Nicky smiled. "I guess I always was in the business of show. Hey, what's a street-corner hustle if it's not a good performance? I'm not selling bets on the nags anymore either. . . . My bets are all at the box office--on movies, which we bullshitters in the cinematic arts always refer to as 'film.' "
"You're in the movie business?" Shane said, finding that hard to believe.
"Yep, producer. Got my own company, Cine-Roma Productions. We're in preproduction on a film right now. I've also got a big development deal with Farrell over at Paramount, on a novel I bought called Savages in the Midst."
"The sequel to Gorillas in the Mist?"
"Midst . . . Midst, with a d, Shane. Like in our midst . . . like that. It's about the meat-eaters in showbiz, and a girl from Illinois who's looking to be a star, and about savages in suits who ravage her body and, eventually, her soul. We could cast the fucking thing off this party's guest list. Farrell is talking Gwyneth, but I'm not so sure. I'm thinking more like J-Lo. Do it a little harder edged. Make the statement seem integral . . . amp up the verisimilitude."
"The what?"
"Verisimilitude--means the appearance of truth. You have to learn these words, and some Yiddish, if you wanna be a player." He put his hands in the pockets of his ridiculous multicolored suit, rocked back on his Cuban heels, and regarded Shane. "Now you."
"Huh? Oh . . . Just Alexa and Farrell's fiancee, Nora Bishop, are old friends. Nora used to be Alexa's baby-sitter when she was a kid."
"I like mine better." Nicky smiled.
"Me too," Shane admitted.
"Listen, bubee, seeing you here might be fortuitous."
"Yeah?" Shane looked puzzled. "How's that?"
"I was thinking of calling you last week. Isn't that a mitzva? Haven't seen you in four years, thinking about calling you . . . kaboom, here you are. That's what we in the biz call--"
"Verisimilitude?"
"With a dose of righteous karma." He smiled. "Shane, I'm looking for a girl who's dropped out of sight. This is silly really, but I bet you could pull this off for me. Her name is Carol White. She's perfect for a part in this movie I'm casting."
"Savages in the Midst."
"No, the other one, the one I'm doing at my shop . . . at Cine-Roma. This film I'm talking about already has a green light--what we call a firm go. The girl I'm looking for, Carol White, is perfect for the part of Cherri, which is a showy little role . . . the lead character's best friend. Carol has this ethereal quality, which is a word we use in film meaning translucent, delicate, refined . . . very hard to find these qualities in a young actress. Okay, so here's my problem. She used to do some low-budget stuff around town and some TV, shit like that, and then she kinda disappeared. I checked with SAG, and they got no current address on her. I think she may have even dropped out of the business altogether. I don't know who her current agent is."
"I can promise you, I'm not representing her," Shane said.
"I was thinking you could maybe go into the police computer. Carol White . . . ten little keys that spell 'Big Break.' If she's had a traffic ticket or owns a car, you could get her address, then I give her the part that kick-starts and totally redefines a career. When they do the E! Celebrity Profile on her five years from now, she's gonna be up there saying, 'I owe it all to an L . A . cop, and a helluva guy, Shane Scully.' "
"Listen, Nicky. You probably haven't heard, but I've been on a medical leave of absence for almost a year. I don't go back on the job until next week. So I don't really have any way into the police computer right now. They change the access codes all the time. So mine's not even current anymore. I mean, as much as I'd like to help and all that . . ."
"Right." Nicky smiled but stopped tipping back on his stacked heels. "Hey, listen, I was
"Okay, you first," Shane finally said.
"I'm in showbiz now." Nicky smiled. "I guess I always was in the business of show. Hey, what's a street-corner hustle if it's not a good performance? I'm not selling bets on the nags anymore either. . . . My bets are all at the box office--on movies, which we bullshitters in the cinematic arts always refer to as 'film.' "
"You're in the movie business?" Shane said, finding that hard to believe.
"Yep, producer. Got my own company, Cine-Roma Productions. We're in preproduction on a film right now. I've also got a big development deal with Farrell over at Paramount, on a novel I bought called Savages in the Midst."
"The sequel to Gorillas in the Mist?"
"Midst . . . Midst, with a d, Shane. Like in our midst . . . like that. It's about the meat-eaters in showbiz, and a girl from Illinois who's looking to be a star, and about savages in suits who ravage her body and, eventually, her soul. We could cast the fucking thing off this party's guest list. Farrell is talking Gwyneth, but I'm not so sure. I'm thinking more like J-Lo. Do it a little harder edged. Make the statement seem integral . . . amp up the verisimilitude."
"The what?"
"Verisimilitude--means the appearance of truth. You have to learn these words, and some Yiddish, if you wanna be a player." He put his hands in the pockets of his ridiculous multicolored suit, rocked back on his Cuban heels, and regarded Shane. "Now you."
"Huh? Oh . . . Just Alexa and Farrell's fiancee, Nora Bishop, are old friends. Nora used to be Alexa's baby-sitter when she was a kid."
"I like mine better." Nicky smiled.
"Me too," Shane admitted.
"Listen, bubee, seeing you here might be fortuitous."
"Yeah?" Shane looked puzzled. "How's that?"
"I was thinking of calling you last week. Isn't that a mitzva? Haven't seen you in four years, thinking about calling you . . . kaboom, here you are. That's what we in the biz call--"
"Verisimilitude?"
"With a dose of righteous karma." He smiled. "Shane, I'm looking for a girl who's dropped out of sight. This is silly really, but I bet you could pull this off for me. Her name is Carol White. She's perfect for a part in this movie I'm casting."
"Savages in the Midst."
"No, the other one, the one I'm doing at my shop . . . at Cine-Roma. This film I'm talking about already has a green light--what we call a firm go. The girl I'm looking for, Carol White, is perfect for the part of Cherri, which is a showy little role . . . the lead character's best friend. Carol has this ethereal quality, which is a word we use in film meaning translucent, delicate, refined . . . very hard to find these qualities in a young actress. Okay, so here's my problem. She used to do some low-budget stuff around town and some TV, shit like that, and then she kinda disappeared. I checked with SAG, and they got no current address on her. I think she may have even dropped out of the business altogether. I don't know who her current agent is."
"I can promise you, I'm not representing her," Shane said.
"I was thinking you could maybe go into the police computer. Carol White . . . ten little keys that spell 'Big Break.' If she's had a traffic ticket or owns a car, you could get her address, then I give her the part that kick-starts and totally redefines a career. When they do the E! Celebrity Profile on her five years from now, she's gonna be up there saying, 'I owe it all to an L . A . cop, and a helluva guy, Shane Scully.' "
"Listen, Nicky. You probably haven't heard, but I've been on a medical leave of absence for almost a year. I don't go back on the job until next week. So I don't really have any way into the police computer right now. They change the access codes all the time. So mine's not even current anymore. I mean, as much as I'd like to help and all that . . ."
"Right." Nicky smiled but stopped tipping back on his stacked heels. "Hey, listen, I was
Similar Books
Light Errant
Chaz Brenchley
Off Kilter
Glen Robins
Lost Causes
Ken McClure
Shifting Dreams
Elizabeth Hunter
Sister Girls 2
Angel M. Hunter
The Villa
Rosanna Ley
Matecumbe
James A. Michener
Once Upon A Wedding Night
Sophie Jordan
Playland
John Gregory Dunne