Queen and bandit, p.23
Queen and Bandit, page 23
“I hate that it went away so quickly,” Gracie said.
“It didn’t go away,” Evelyn said. “The men may not have suffered the way they should have, but the women haven’t forgotten. Adora hasn’t forgotten. The article was proof that none of us have to suffer alone. And it inspired a lot of us to look out for each other.”
Gracie smiled at the mention of Adora. “I have to admit, I underestimated her.”
“Hell, we all did. Her name is Adora Bell, for Pete’s sake.”
Gracie laughed.
A month after their Grand Canyon excursion, Evelyn got a call from Adora’s agent. She’d been cast in a new noir mystery movie. They were desperate to cast Adora as the femme fatale, but she had a caveat: she would only take the role if they auditioned Evelyn to play the owner of a night club that the detective character frequented. Apparently the tactic worked. They not only called her to read, and Evelyn fell in love with the character. The director offered her the role before she even left the building.
Her career was getting back on track. Olympus was already getting rave reviews, and most of the critics were singling out her performance for praise. Adora’s agent, seeing the press for her current movie and seeing how she was snatched up for the new one, jumped at the chance to sign her.
Gracie’s career was also going well. She was still at the Mercury, and her ‘failed’ excursion into entertainment reporting meant that Swain was keeping her on the ‘boring’ stuff: politics, both local and national. She made the front page more often than not, and people were starting to take notice of her byline. In her spare time, she was working on a novel. She wasn’t serious about it. She wasn’t even sure she was going to try publishing it. But she thought it was a fun way to keep her brain engaged between articles. Evelyn certainly seemed to like what she’d read of it, although she said the male lead needed to be a woman, and the two women characters needed to have sexier scenes together.
“Write what you know, darling,” Evelyn told her.
“The Queen would never sully herself for a lowly bandit,” Gracie insisted.
Evelyn shrugged. “Depends on how sexy the bandit looks in suspenders.”
Gracie found a parking spot a block away from the theater hosting the premiere. Evelyn checked her makeup and hair in the mirror, then took Gracie’s hand.
“You’re not offended by walking, are you? You know I love... well, I’ve grown to love this car. But it’s not exactly the sort of thing I want to arrive in. Do you understand?”
“Sure,” Gracie said. “I don’t like the idea of handing off the keys to a valet anyway. You’re the one who has to walk a block in high heels.”
Evelyn waved off her concern. “I’ve done worse for longer. Just give me something to lean on and I’ll be fine.”
Gracie nodded. “At your service, Miss Wade.”
“Thank you, Mr. Simon.”
“Then what are we waiting for? Your public awaits.”
Gracie slipped her glasses on, tucked her hair behind her ears, and winked at Evelyn before she got out of the car.
***
They made love after the premiere. Evelyn roleplayed as Artemis, and Gracie played the doomed sailor who washed ashore on the island. With all the fun and games, they hadn’t fallen asleep until almost two in the morning. More accurately, Gracie fell asleep. Evelyn was still too buzzed from the night and excitement for the next day. She slipped out of bed, wrapped herself in the sheet she’d used as Artemis’ chiton, and went downstairs. She left all the lights off and went out onto the back porch, sinking onto the chaise lounge and leaning back until she could see the stars.
There were still going to be directors, producers, and actors who preyed on women in the industry. Her interview hadn’t created a horde of pitchfork-wielding villagers that ran them out of town. But the villagers had at least been woken up. Adora wasn’t the only actress who had been in touch with her, and she knew there were others who were adding names to the list Evelyn had started. Men you should never be alone in a room with. Men whose party invitations should always be turned down. Women had always watched out for each other to a degree, but it had always run the risk of being labeled gossip, sour grapes, or subtle manipulation of a competitor. Now it was public record. Now there was evidence, and those warnings would be taken seriously.
“Hey.”
Evelyn looked over the top of her head. An upside-down version of Gracie in boxer shorts and a tank top lurched out of the house and dropped heavily onto the lounge next to Evelyn.
“You didn’t have to come down here,” Evelyn said, playing with Gracie’s hair.
“I sleep with you,” Gracie murmured, already half asleep.
Evelyn’s heart swelled. “Well, there’s no need for both of us to be uncomfortable. Come on. Let’s go back up to bed.”
“Okay...”
Evelyn thought she had just waited a second before she surrendered the soft cushion of the lounge, but the sunlight against her closed eyes told her that much more time had passed. She blinked up at the dawn sky and then kissed the top of Gracie’s head to wake her up.
“You fell asleep.”
“So’d you.” Gracie’s mouth was misshapen against Evelyn’s breast. “Heard you snorin’...”
Evelyn said, “I only fake snoring so you’ll think I’m asleep, then I can watch you sleep.”
“That’s awful,” Gracie said.
Evelyn patted Gracie’s arm. “Come on. We really do have to get up. I want to take a shower before we head out.”
“Shit. Me too.”
They untangled themselves from each other and got up, heading back inside. Over the course of the next hour, they showered and put together their outfits. Gracie wanted to be sure they’d gotten everything they would need.
It had been Evelyn’s idea to celebrate the premiere with another road trip. No plan, no real destination in mind, just the two of them in a car going somewhere. “We’ve gone on two road trips,” Evelyn pointed out, “and neither of the destinations turned out being the most memorable thing about them.”
“You loved the Grand Canyon,” Gracie had said.
“The Grand Canyon is phenomenal,” Evelyn admitted. “But that cabin...? Oh my God.”
Gracie had laughed and leaned across the breakfast table to kiss her.
The car had been inspected by a mechanic, the tank was full of gas, and two bags were sitting next to the front door, ready to go. While Evelyn was in the shower, Gracie went through the house to make sure everything was locked, shut down, or unplugged. When she was convinced the house wouldn’t burn down while they were gone, she put on her fedora and went out to do a walk-around on the car.
She was kicking the tires when Evelyn came out. She pulled the front door shut, gave the knob a firm shake to confirm it was locked, and joined Gracie in the driveway.
“So, have you made a decision about where we’re going?” Gracie asked.
Evelyn considered the question. “I’ve had enough of the desert, I think.”
Gracie rested her arms on top of the car. “North?”
“Hm.” Evelyn nodded. “North would be cold.”
“And trees.”
“Rain.”
Gracie arched an eyebrow. “Love the rain.”
Evelyn smiled. “North it is.” She patted the top of the car. “Hop in, my queen.”
“Whatever you say, Bandit.”
Gracie loaded the bags into the backseat. Evelyn slipped on a pair of sunglasses. With one last look up at the house, Gracie got behind the wheel. She already had a few ideas of where they could go. They couldn’t cross the Canadian border, so there was a definite point they couldn’t cross, but she didn’t mind. There were plenty of places in they could discover along they way. She’d heard great things about Seattle.
She backed out of the driveway and turned to take them out of Silver Lake, away from Los Angeles, into whatever the Pacific Northwest had in store for them.
About the Author
Geonn Cannon is the author of over fifty novels, including the Riley Parra series which was adapted into an Emmy-nominated webseries by Tello Films. He's also written two tie-in novels for the television series Stargate SG-1. He was the first male author to win a Golden Crown Literary Society Award for his novel Gemini, and he won a second for Dogs of War. Information about his other works and an archive of free stories can be found online at geonncannon.com.
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Until one night, a chance encounter in an alley, a damsel in distress. Max leaps into action and saves the stranger. She soon learns that the woman she saved is actress Renee Lamar. Renee, anxious and paranoid about security, offers to reward Max's chivalry with a job as her bodyguard.
Max has nothing to lose by agreeing, but soon discovers Renee might be her own worst enemy. Half a decade after leaving the ring, Max faces a new fight that can't be won with fists.
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Kelly soon finds herself at the center of a media firestorm when she inadvertently becomes the poster girl for the incident. The trauma of the fire is compounded by her personal house of cards collapsing. Her relationship begins showing its cracks at the same time long-buried family secrets rear their ugly heads. Attacked from all angles, Kelly starts thinking the only place she'll be safe is running headlong into the furnace.
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Table of Contents
Front Matter
Queen and Bandit
About the Author
More from the Author
Geonn Cannon, Queen and Bandit
