Chapter 138: Lost Vera and Confused Rachel

[Chapter 138: Lost Vera and Confused Rachel]

"Haha, walking in and seeing a beautiful lady really brightens up the mood!" a loud voice announced.

It was Harvey. He had a tough-looking face and staggered over, giving a forced smile that revealed he was in a bad mood. Honestly, with his look, he was always the villain in any scenario.

"Hello, Harvey!"

"Sir!"

Everyone greeted him cautiously; it was obvious Harvey was not someone to mess with.

He nodded and fixed his gaze on Rachel. In a hoarse voice, he said unpleasantly, "Congratulations, Miss Weisz."

Rachel was puzzled and replied uncertainly, "Are you talking about Wrong Turn? I've been attending quite a few public events because of it lately. I even got a Best Supporting Actress award at some unknown Santa Monica Horror Film Festival."

Harvey snorted, and it was unclear whether it was a laugh or sneer. He turned his head and asked, "Is Good Will Hunting not yet in full production? That was a project Charlie really cared about. Luckily, it's under Miramax!"

"We're in the final preparations now. Filming will start in January after the new year, shooting for a month before pausing for the Oscars until April, then continuing. The total filming and production time is expected to be three months. We have plenty of time for marketing and promotion!" Lawrence reported.

Harvey nodded, and when he learned what Charlie had been up to recently, feelings of envy and frustration nearly exploded inside him. His first move was to find Roy Disney, trying to convince Disney's current head to snatch something away from Charlie. But Roy refused and instead told Harvey he planned for Corleone to own a certain stake in Horror Theme Park company -- not much, but enough.

The goal was to compensate for the distribution and merchandising rights for the Wrong Turn series and encourage Corleone Studios to produce more excellent sequels promoting the Horror Theme Park.

Hearing this made Harvey even more agitated. If it had been someone else, he thought he might've thrown a punch!

But Roy and Charlie -- there was nothing he could do.

Thinking about Good Will Hunting, the project they had taken from Charlie, which he seemed to like a lot, gave Harvey a bit of consolation. So he came to inspect, hoping it would bring him huge profits next year.

Lawrence's report pleased Harvey, who nodded and felt a bit better. He contemplated asking Charlie for a senior position in Lion Corleone Studios.

He asked casually, "Which role are you casting now?"

"One of the protagonist Will's classmates, a small role with three scenes. Vera Farmiga fits quite well..."

Lawrence was halfway through when Harvey suddenly looked up and interrupted, "What was that actress's name?"

"Vera Farmiga," Lawrence repeated, confused.

Rachel's expression turned odd.

Harvey said sternly, "I don't think she's suitable. Find someone else!"

The damned shameless bastard acting like my film project is a playground! One Rachel isn't enough; now he wants another? Does he want me to support all his women?

This guy's appetite was insatiable, soon to be drained by all these fame-hungry actresses.

Harvey didn't know Charlie and Vera had broken up.

He fumed, eyes blazing, his anger spilling over into how he looked at Rachel.

...

A minute later, Vera came out looking innocent and puzzled. Her interview had gone smoothly, and both the director and casting director had praised her.

What went wrong?

Vera saw Harvey, Lawrence, and Spike, but none spoke to her, only turning to Rachel.

"Is it you?"

"Not me!"

"I don't understand why you're interfering with my work," Gus Van Sant, the director, chased after them. Wearing a plaid shirt, he waved his hands unhappily.

Harvey, while typically harsh with unknown actresses, was reasonable otherwise. He especially treated talented and profitable people fairly; otherwise, his first meeting with Charlie wouldn't have been a bargaining exchange.

"Sorry, Gus, this is my issue. I'm considering we already have a well-known young actress, Rachel, who even in a cameo role takes up much of the salary," Harvey improvised.

But Gus complained a bit longer before saying, "Alright, since you're here, let's talk about the awards season."

While the big shots discussed matters, no one paid much attention to Rachel and Vera.

It was tough for Vera, fresh to the business, both embarrassed and angry but unsure what to do. She glared at Rachel, then took a deep breath and left the studio to meet with her agent.

...

"Hey, Miss Farmiga!" With the audition over and nothing to do, Rachel decided to find Vera and watch a little drama. She jogged to catch up, "I swear, your audition failure has nothing to do with me!"

Vera didn't buy it for a second; she thought Rachel was a venomous woman full of scheming and ruthless ambition.

Earlier that day, Vera had seen some of Charlie's recent actions.

Honestly, the glossy photos of him from a professional shoot published in The Washington Post made Vera miss the bastard.

She reminisced about their short time together. From looks to physique, professional skills, personality, even stamina, he left a strong impression.

A young and extremely successful man, which made Vera place all the blame of their breakup on Rachel.

She was lucky Rachel shielded her from the worst of Charlie's shameless side.

Ignoring Rachel, Vera quickly left the studio, telling her agent Mike about what happened.

Mike wasn't too disappointed and comforted her, "Don't worry, Vera, CAA has other options for you. Mr. Patrick Whitesell and I have talked; you're one of our priority talents. Hi, Miss Weisz!"

Rachel came out as well, nodded to Mike, then pouted at Vera, "Anyway, it's not my problem. I'm not interested in dealing with an unknown actress!"

Vera wanted to rip that man-stealing woman's mouth apart.

But Rachel said her piece and smugly turned away to drive to the Burbank Haas Building, ready to claim credit from Charlie.

On the way, she suddenly felt confused.

That shameless bastard was getting stronger and stronger. Where did he find those partners? Why cooperate with that damn guy?

As a powerful movie company boss, when would she be able to see him fall to rock bottom?

And she couldn't find any dirt to use against him or resort to violence for revenge.

But that guy was so cautious; if he found out, he would ruthlessly retaliate!

*****

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