32

As Richard had on the plane on his way home catching up on some zzzzzs, Macy was busy on set.
After that day end the investor Mr Queens visited the set and Macy was brought a special meal from Grand Hotel, a new rumour had started.
Apparently, according to the know it alls, Macy was in a relationship with the said investor and that was why he came to back her up.
What they didn’t know was that Macy didn’t care. As long as you didn’t back up your claims with tangible evidence, all you were doing was just barking.
“Why don’t you look for a rich investor yourself so that you can be cast as a main lead in a movie,” May asked some extras she found gossiping about Macy and they all kept quiet.
This attitude of Macy and her assistant confused a lot of people and they really didn’t know what to make of it. Was it true or not.
But when it came to work, the new director was very impressed with Macy. Many a times she only needed one shot for every scene that was shot and if there was a retake, it wasn’t because of her.
It was either because of the others in the scene or if the director wanted to add more camera angles.
“You are the kind of a person every director needs. It seems like our shooting time will be cut with a month if we continue like this,” the director said all smiles.
He couldn’t believe his luck.
When the Armstrong kid called him and told him that he had a job for him, this new director, Martin, thought that it was at Imperial House.
He was surprised when he discovered that Imperial House didn’t even own the rights to the movie but who would refuse a good job anyway.
So, he took it albeit hesitantly because he didn’t want to take a job that he hadn’t planned for since the beginning and wasn’t a part of but he was being paid well.
But now, he was gkady he did. He got to work with some wonderful actors and actresses top on the list being Macy.
The only person who seemed to not want to work as hard as the others was this Angela.
Yes she was a renown actress but if she didn’t want to work hard, she should leave the set.
“… and I have no problem with replacing you and reshooting all the scenes you have done. We have saved a lot of time as it is,” director Martin yelled at Angela when she couldn’t get it right for the thirty second time.
“Don’t talk to her like this. Her father is an investor in the movie,” the assistant director said and Martin laughed.
“Oh, yes? Tell him to come fire me if he can,” Martin said and everyone kept quiet as they watched Angela walk off in a hump.
Since this director took over, Angela’s life became hard. Unlike the first one who was in cahoots with them to make Macy suffer, this one seemed to favour Macy.
He had even changed some scenes where the queen, played by Angela, made Karo, played by Macy, suffer.
They had been so minimised that if Karo was to suffer, it was the servant doing it and not Angela.
“We must make her suffer. We should look for a way to make her leave the shoot once and for all even if it’s to out her in the hospital,” Angela told her manager Julia once they were inside her trailer.
She could not believe her bad luck.
First, she had made everyone hate Macy including her parents and she was sent to Africa to go and suffer and probably die there.
Not only did she not suffer but she was able to finish schooling and send herself to China and even enter the entertainment industry despite herself being a black woman.
She came back and for a whole year, Angela had been able to make her never act in anything worth it.
But now, even after using her father, Macy was in the movie and she was doing much much better than her.
“I can’t have her continue. People might start comparing us and I can’t have her take my spotlight. I am the queen of DCs entertainment and she can’t be.
Do what you have to.
Just make sure she is out,” Angela lamented and Julia just sat there listening and already concorting an idea in her mind.
“Tomorrow, they are shooting a scene where the whites place a bomb inside the palace and it is Karo who finds it, right?
What if we switch the bomb with a real one and detonate it while she is holding it?” Julia suggests and Angela looks at her with a smile.
“Is it doable?” Angela asked seeing a light at the end of her dark tunnel that was created by the mere presence of Macy.
“Of course. I can call my boyfriend. He knows someone who knows someone,” Julia said with secrecy and a sly grin.
“Do it. Here is my credit card. Take as much as you need,” Angela said with a smile.
That day ended well and as they had planned, the bomb had been brought and Julia was able to bribe one of the people dealing with the props who exchanged the fake bomb with the real thing.
All scenes were shot and after the morning scenes had been competed, it was time for the evening scenes that needed a little darkness.
Angela didn’t have any scene to shoot that evening but she stayed on for moral support as she put it.
But she and her manager Julia knew well. They stayed to witness Macy’s demise.
“Oh, it would make my year to watch her being reduced to smithereens. Did you make sure the prop guy knows which button to press?” Angela asked Julia who smiled sinisterly.
“Have I ever let you down?” Julia asked with a knowing smile.
“Never,” Angela said and the two fist bumped secretly as that looked to see that no one was looking their way or listening to them.
“Okay, Macy, position. Gerald, Three two, one… Action!” The director yelled and the man called Gerald walked stealthily as he held the bomb in his hands.
He was looking here and there and he sneaked into the palace and placed it in the kings chambers.
He had chosen a moment when the King’s voice could be heard as he addressed people. That meant that there was no one on these sides of the palace or so the man thought.
What he didn’t know was that Karo was there. She had been spying on them and she had heard them talk about assassinating the king so that the kingdom would be conquered easily without this man who fought the rule of the whites.
After the man left, Karo went to where he had hidden whatever it was and took it out.
It was a bomb.
“A bomb?” Karo exclaimed and looked at the timer.
“Oh, he has set it for two hours. How is clever. He wants our king to be asleep by then.
Well, not clever enough. Let’s see what you guys will do when your own weapon kills your own governor.
He is in his usual bar drinking with your white quotes there, isn’t he?” Karo talked to herself as she walked.
It was at that moment that the props guy pressed the remote he had been given.
The bomb Macy was holding wasn’t to detonate until she had planted it in the governor’s ship and the white governor was inside.
But as she walked talked to herself as usual doing a very perfect job of it in just one take and director was all smiles as he looked at the screen and some moments he would crane his neck to look at Macy, they heard an explosion.
It came from where the actors and actresses trailers were.
Everyone forgot what was happening and all eyes were on that side.
“What the fuck is happening?” The director yelled and he ran towards that side and everyone followed.
There was fire everywhere and Angela’s trailer was on fire.
“Oh my God! Oh my God! What the hell is happening?” Julia shouted as Angela stood there flabbergasted.
“What the…” call the police, “you,” the director pointed at a woman holding files with head phones on, ” call 911. Quickly,” the director instructed her and she did.
As she was calling the police, he took control of the situation. All were calm but no one could understand what was happening.
Macy was standing there with May and she was still holding the prop bomb in her hands since everyone forgot what they were doing immediately they heard the explosion.
After a while, they heard police sirens and the men and women in blue arrived with a bombs expert.
The man entered the trailer with protective gear and conversed with the director.
“Okay, everyone, take two days’ break. See you here on Thursday ready to start shooting from where we left,” the director said and Macy walked towards the director who was standing next to police officers.
“Director, I still have the prop and I can’t find the props guy,” Macy said as she stretched her arm with the fake bomb.
“What are you doing with that?” A police woman asked as she took it from Macy with emergency.
“It’s… it’s… it’s the prop I was shooting with. Is there a problem ma’am?” Macy asked innocently as she looked at the woman who was bent fiddling with some wires.
“Call the k9 unit number 356987. There are more than one real bombs here,” the woman officer said as she stood after detonating the bomb.
“What? When did the props turn into real bombs? You,” the director called his assistant, “get me the props director and his people now!” The director instructed looking worried.
Macy and May walked away but if anyone looked at them well, that could see those sinister smiles adorning their lips.
Angela and Julia stood on one side looking all beaten. They had planned everything so well that they couldn’t understand what went wrong.
Angela put her hands in her pocket looking for her phone to call her husband because she knew she had to get out of here and then she felt a paper in her jacket pocket.
She removed it and looked at it.
It was folded and she unfolded it then read it: next time, it will be with you inside.
She screamed and everyone turned to look at her.
She realised what she has done and came to, “a cockroach. Get it away from me Jules,” she jumped around while her manager pretended to swat away a roach and everyone else left them to their own devices.
Angela handed the paper to Julia who almost screamed too but held her mouth in time.
Did the hunter become the prey?