Page 112 of Love like the (Real) Reel Thing
She looked vaguely like the reporter from the summer solstice party, Jess thought. The same one who’d been quizzing Robert that day outside Ted’s Store. But she couldn’t be sure.
“Do you recognise anyone else from the press?” she asked.
“I don’t think so,” Deb said. “I just know her because she’s been hounding me since I got down here.”
“Excuse me, Deb – I want to see if I can get a better look at her. I don’t think the press are supposed to be in here.”
She made her way over to Mel and stood behind her while the cameras were rolling.
“Cut!” Doug stepped away from the camera. “That was great, guys, thank you!Afric, I just want to go from the last bit where you see Spencer coming up the street.”
“Mel?” Jess reached out and touched her arm. She turned, frowning.
“Jess, how can I help?”
“I just have a quick question. Are there members of the press here today?”
“Absolutely not.” Mel pursed her lips. “We’ve only a few days left – no press allowed until we’re done.”
“Right, thanks.”
Jess took out her phone and took a few photos of the set before discreetly zooming in on the woman. She waited a moment, silently willing her to take off her hat. Maybe she should go over there and talk to her – at least she’d know for sure. Just as she went to move, the woman slid her sunglasses up onto the peak of her cap, and Jess snapped a couple of photos. Before she could take any more, the woman looked straight over at her, before turning quickly away and walking towards the rear of the castle.
Jess hurried back to her office and opened the file on her laptop containing the original, uncut footage that Shauna had given her for the promotional video. Scrolling through, she found the picture of the full movie crew and scanned it carefully, moving the mouse to zoom in on the five ADs. Taking out her phone, she compared the images with the photos she’d just taken of the woman in the baseball hat. She wasn’t one of the ADs.
She studied the photo on her phone, certain now that she was a reporter. And she’d been getting past security. They didn’t have a leak – they had a spy.
But even if a young female reporter – dressed like one of the ADs – could escape notice on the far side of a busy outdoor set, it would be a lot more difficult to blend in inside the castle. Which meant she had to know Linford well.
A chill ran through her. She’d been using one particular tunnel – it was the only thing that made sense. And if that were the case, someone had shown her how.
Jess stood. Time to take one last walk around the Whispering Gallery.
CHAPTER 58
The Great Hall was empty when Jess went in. The set was still in place, but she figured they’d leave it to the final day to dismantle it. She walked to the far end of the room and stepped in behind the fake wall to the hidden staircase that led to the gallery.
There was a rustling noise and she turned to look around but there was nobody there. Quietly, she climbed the circular staircase. There was that noise again – only slightly louder.
“Hello?”
There was a click that Jess could have sworn was a door closing. She followed the curve of the gallery as it widened out over the hall before getting narrower again. She was alone.
But she was certain somebody else had been here just moments beforehand.Let it go, Jess. It’s not your problem. Nobody got hurt.
The entrance to the tunnel was somewhere down this end of the gallery, she knew. Heart thumping, Jess ran her hand slowly along the polished panelling. Unlike the panelling around the fireplace in the Lady Linford Suite, all of it seemed the same. She looked a bit closer. That could be the entrance there. It was afew feet from the ground, but slightly wider than the rest of the panelling. She pushed it and when nothing happened she tried to tug it towards her, but there was nothing to hold on to – it seemed flush to the wall.
She thought for a moment, then tapped around it, searching carefully. Slightly frustrated, she banged on the panel right beside it and, to her shock, the entrance slid open.
It’s dangerous, Jess.No, that was just what Robert had told Anthony. Because she’d lay bets that somebody had just gone in. She peered into the darkness.
“Hello? Anyone in there?”
She pulled out her phone and flicked on the light. This was such a bad idea – if it was a horror movie, she’d be shouting at the screen right now.Except it’s a romcom called An Irish Inheritance.She tried to laugh, but she felt a bit sick. This looked a lot smaller than the Lady Linford tunnel. Why would she even think about doing anything so crazy? No, she couldn’t do it. Could she? Shit, here went nothing.
Crouching over, she crawled inside, keeping the door open behind her and the light from her phone on. The air was stale and musty, and she felt her skin become clammy, her chest tightening, forcing her to shallow-breathe. The floor was rough stone and felt almost damp, although Jess guessed it was just cold. She didn’t have to do this – she could just crawl backwards into the safety of the gallery. Instead, she forced herself to keep going, her heart beating in her throat as she inched along.
After another couple of minutes she stopped. How much further? It couldn’t be that far – not when it only opened into the castle grounds.
