Page 79 of Living Hell

Cara tilted her head and her brow creased. “It was in the Hollywood Rag.” She grabbed her phone and turned it on. After a few swipes and taps, she held up the screen.

I.D. Needs Help. Assistant Tossed to The Curb.

I took the phone from her and tapped on the article. The post was filled with lies about my life and how I treated Cara. There was a picture of me grabbing her and she looked like she was flinching in pain or fear.

“I remember that picture. That’s when we were on the Hell Fire set. That paparazzi took a picture and you chased after him. Was this the article that started the whole thing about me being abusive?”

“No, but it’s from the same journalist. If you can call him that . . .” She rolled her eyes.

“What else has this guy written about me?” I clicked the link to his name and article after article—in every celebrity gossip website you could think of—popped up. Most were about me.

“It’s like this guy’s obsessed with me.” I tried to find his picture, but there weren’t any.

I knew the gossip writers would resort to hearsay, but they never targeted just one famous person. They would find out what they could about anyone. But this guy only dug up dirt on me or anyone I associated with. It was like he had it out for me.

“None of what’s written in these things are true. Why didn’t you ask me about it?”

“I wanted to but then the movie shut down and you came out here. When I got the phone call from the mayor, it solidified in my head that you wanted nothing to do with me.”

Keaghan Bailey. I wonder what garbage that man said about me.

“Never believe anything that man says. He’ll lie and cheat to get his way.”

I remember the one day he swore he changed. He had followed me home from school and asked me to the end of year dance. I repeatedly told him no, but the more he spoke the more I believed he had changed.

He opened up about the pressure he felt at home to be perfect and a scout was at his last game and he fumbled the ball, losing the game for the team.

I remember because I was at that game. It was the first time Tyler kissed me. It was halftime and the football team was milling around, a few players were talking to some people in the stands. Tyler pulled me to the side and kissed me. It was sweet in that high school sort of way.

I began to wonder if all the times Keaghan had teased me were just his immature and warped way of flirting. Maybe he saw Tyler kiss me and was a little jealous.

He seemed so sincere when he spoke to me that I felt bad and decided to go with him as long as others were going with us. I may have said yes, but I still didn’t fully trust him.

I never did go to the dance. Tyler lured me to our spot and that was the night we had sex. Everything changed that night, especially for Keaghan.

I heard he got drunk at the dance and did some stupid things with his dad’s car in the high school parking lot. He crashed it and broke his leg, ending his high school football career and any possible college scholarship.

“He sure did. Told me he had spoken with you and that you were asking about his assistant. He said you were in search of a new one and complaining about your current one. When I mentioned that I was your assistant, he seemed surprised. He said he thought I was your agent. That’s when he came up with the idea for you participating in the festival. That it might help your career and make me look like I was working hard to help you. That’s the only reason I mentioned it to Babette. I never would have stuck you on the float with that pervert if I had realized what type of guy he was. I wanted to cancel it immediately when we met him two weeks ago. He was so slimy.”

“I’m glad you told me.” I put my arm around her on the couch. She had her head down, and I knew Cara felt true guilt for going along with the mayor’s plan.

I knew why he did it—to get back at me for not going to the dance with him. I saw the comments on my vlog back then. He tried to disguise himself with the name EarnestK but I knew it was Keaghan. He would leave comments about how trashy I was and how I was in the principal’s office more than in class. He even hinted once that I went to the principal’s office so often because I was so easy.

“But you said you did this for Tyler. Why would Tyler need help?”

She was twisting her fingers together and wouldn’t look at me.

“Cara?”

“Fine. I mentioned to the mayor that Tyler ghosted you when you became pregnant. But I told him you lost the baby, so it’s not like the mayor thinks you’re hiding a kid from the world or anything.”

Cara was always so good at keeping my private life secret. I was surprised she revealed something so intimate to a stranger.

“Why would you say anything in the first place?”

She turned to look at me, shaking her head. “That wasn’t because I was mad at you. Please don’t think that I told him out of spite. The mayor kept mentioning how he was worried about you and Tyler. He mentioned that he went to high school with you both and remembered all the terrible things Tyler used to say about you. That he wanted to use you and you were too naïve to realize it. I was upset and told him how he did exactly that.”

Did Tyler really say those things? That couldn’t be right . . . Keaghan was making it up to mess with Cara.

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