Vicious Boys by Nora Cobb
Chapter Sixteen
Vicki
She’s changed a lot from the time we first met. Talia sits on the couch in my suite after class, absorbed in her phone. Her funky look has morphed into something more polished and a lot harder. Her hair is darker and her waistline smaller. The black clothing may not be as expensive as the other kids’, but it’s trendy. I sigh, thinking she looks like a poor man’s Rosemonde as Talia spends more of her time with Rhys and less of it with Theo. I wonder if she’s made a pact with Rhys. It’s the latest thing, selling your soul.
“So, how does it work?” I ask while handing her a cup of strong black coffee. It’s after five, but Talia doesn’t drink weak tea.
“What work?” she asks, not lifting her eyes from her phone.
I shoot her an offended look. “Theo is dating Rhys. But you spend more time with Rhys than Theo.”
She shrugs her shoulders. “Are you asking for advice?” Talia puts her phone in her purse. “Rhys barely goes to class. He spends his time on casting calls, and I drive him. He’s determined to stay here after his visa expires, and his dismal grades won’t help him accomplish that.”
I’m not clear on their muddled relationship, but Talia has never brought up any of mine until now. I sit down in the armchair, taking a break from my film homework to talk with her in private. I can’t concentrate, thinking about what happened to Luna. And despite everyone’s efforts, nothing is being done. At least, not fast enough for me.
We don’t kid ourselves about our current relationship. Maybe we could have been friends, but that’s too little, too late. We’re not meeting to reminisce. That playtime shit is over. It’s business now. Talia’s found her calling, and it has nothing to do with knit bombs and activism. Her power tool of choice is collecting dirty information on people. And she’s been eyeing Silas’ binders since she learned that they existed.
I eye her as hard as she watches me. “I’d rather talk with Theo,” I tell her frankly, “but he’d have the good sense to talk me out of what I’m about to do. By the way, why did you leak the link to Luna’s pictures?”
She raises a scornful eyebrow. “She didn’t invite me to her party. And now, I’m on all the guest lists.” She shrugs her shoulders when she sees the stunned look on my face.
“That’s so fucking petty,” I reply, “Who the fuck are you? You used to be cool.”
“And you used to hate Silas,” she replies and then sips her coffee. Talia makes a face at the mug and places it down. “When you first arrived, Vicki, you wanted to take them down. Stop the bullying. Run Redwood. Now, you just want to fuck all the cool boys.”
“You’ve become a coldhearted bully,” I narrow my eyes on this girl I once liked.
She shakes her head. “No, I figured out a way to stop the bullies. I flipped the game so they know that they can be picked off too.”
Maybe this is a bad idea. I want to help Luna, but can I trust Talia to help? She linked Luna’s pictures to her private thread, but honestly, these kids devour porn. Someone would’ve found them eventually. I’m making plenty of excuses. I either have to do something or not.
“You know what? This was a bad idea,” I reply harshly, wondering if I can just tell Talia to get out, without consequences. “Let’s forget about it.”
“I’m sorry about Luna,” Talia speaks to the point. “I misjudged her, and people took it badly. It cost me, being petty.”
“You mean Dom came down hard on you,” I smirk, getting up and facing the door. “I guess there’s always someone higher you have to answer to.”
“It would help if I was in Silas’ good graces.” Talia reaches into her purse and hands me her phone. “Did you see this?”
She’s not stupid. Talia holds onto her phone tight when I try to tug it out of her hands to read the screen. It’s a picture of Rosemonde in gym clothes and dark glasses, walking behind Alex Richards from the Mighty Titan franchise. I stare at Talia, and she smiles as I sit back down. Alex Richards is already signed to star in the detective series being developed for the BBC. The buzz over him is so loud it’s deafening.
“I don’t get it.” I let go of her phone. “Why do you want to be on Silas’ good side?”
Talia takes a sniff of her coffee and has the nerve to ask for tea. I guess she’s planning to stay awhile. “Rosemonde is smart, and though she broke up with Silas, she didn’t burn that bridge. At some point, Silas will get his comeback. I heard you went to the Hollywood Bowl together.” I shoot her a dirty look as I wait for the water to boil. “Anyway, I’d like him to trust me so we can stay in touch.”
“You want to get your hand on his binders,” I tell her while I pour hot water over a tea bag. “I don’t think Luna will want your help.”
Talia flattens her lips into a thin line. “Well, then you should want to help her yourself since no one is higher than the four of you. Think about it. Does she really have a case unless some else comes forward?”
I almost burn my hand on the tea as the hot liquid sloshes over the cup. There are others. And Mel Vaughn and the Evanses know it. They exploited Silas when he was too young to question the adults around him. The things I read in his notes made me sick. I hate them for what they did to Luna and Silas. But if I tell on them, Silas may never trust me again. I want to do whatever I can for Luna, but at what cost?
“How much do you really know?” I ask Talia. “I have a hard time believing you never got a peek inside those binders.”
Talia picks up the cup of tea, reconsiders it, and then places it down. “I have my sources,” she winks. “They give me the mild stuff. By the way, I did a little digging into that live stream. There was a watermark in the corner; I’m sure you noticed it. Did you know the agency Luna went to is a front for the Evans Talent Agency?” Talia smiles. “No, you didn’t. I can tell by the expression on your pretty face.”
I did know, but I didn’t realize Talia knew. “Who’s your source?”
She won’t answer.
“If you don’t tell me, then you might as well get the fuck out,” I tell her.
She tilts her head to the side as if she’s considering it, and then she replies, “Silas used to let Rhys read the binders for laughs. They used to talk about you. Rhys thought you probably did drugs. He wasn’t surprised when you stole that baggie, but Silas was furious. Did you ever give it back?”
I scramble out of the chair and rush into my bedroom. The pages I photographed on my phone are destructive. The things that Mel Vaughn has done could land him in jail. Silas was only a minor when they took him to parties to entertain the guests. I squeeze my eyes shut, and I feel a sharp pain shoot through me. Except for the incident at his house, I have no proof except for what Silas has written.
I almost drop my phone when Talia walks into my bedroom. “I have to go, Vicki. I have other lives to—”
I give her a sharp look, daring her to finish that sentence. “My brother has proof that the Evanses use their talent and modeling agency as a front that is 80 percent porn and 20 percent legit. I also know that Mel Vaughn drugs unsuspecting women because I was one. Go ahead and spill it, and then we’ll both be damned.”
“Only if I decide not to keep your secret,” she replies. “I have another website that I started; it’s a paid site that digs deeper. Your name won’t be mentioned. I promised.”
“Is your word worth anything anymore?” I ask her as she opens the front door.
Talia waves as she leaves. “As much as yours will be.”
***
“Probation again?” I stare at Jagan as if he has the wrong person in his office. “Are you kidding me? I’m passing my classes like a champ.”
“Your grade point average is to be envied,” he said flatly. “But studios aren’t interested in expository English compositions.”
We meet Monday after school, and he’s no longer talking in airy-fairy, white rabbit rhymes, at least while we are alone. Jagan is all business now that he’s interested in jump-starting my career. Initially, I had assumed he would only be interested in actors. But he patiently explained that actors need award-winning projects to star in.
“This is about something else?” I ask the question while stating it.
I’m not about to confess that I told Talia about the modeling scam. As far as I know, that dirt is still under wraps. Mentally, I scroll through my life as if I’m a drowning man, gasping for the last breath. Jagan already knew about Luna, and even my dad didn’t blame me for that. If anything, he praised me for not backing down. I stare hard at Jagan as if the answer is written on his forehead.
Jagan rubs his eyes as if he can’t take anymore. “I’ll give you a hint. If you don’t make it in film, you should try out as a pitcher for the LA Dodgers.”
My face flushes as I instantly recall that glass I threw at Mel Vaughn’s head. Somehow, I look sheepish as Jagan’s stern gaze softens. At least he didn’t make me sit in that straight-backed chair in front of his desk. I would’ve confessed the secrets I shared with Talia if my ass was in that hard chair.
“Vicki, you can’t brawl at the Hollywood Bowl like a feral cat, and especially not during a dinner in honor of Sir Colin Gibbs.”
“Technically it happened after dessert.” I learn quickly that Jagan doesn’t like to be corrected.
Jagan sighs as he stretches his arms along the back of the couch. He’s dressed in a white linen shirt and funky cargo pants with Birkenstock sandals. His shirt collar is slightly open, so his sterling silver and turquoise necklace is on display. Jagan’s boho taste costs a lot of money, and he’s not going to waste time training me to act.
“I know Mel Vaughn is scum,” he says, “Everyone knows it except for you foolish kids. You think you’re going to change the man by confronting him head-on?”
I can’t believe how unfair this is. Could Jagan not know? “He’s responsible for what happened to Luna. And he drugged me.”
“And you’re friends with his son.” Jagan sighs, rubbing his shaggy hair off his forehead. I’m proud that I threw that glass, but watching a frustrated Jagan makes me feel like a dumbass. Or a foolish kid.
“Vicki, everyone should be angry about what happened not only to Luna but also to you. No one should be tolerant in these circumstances. But losing control isn’t going to win people over, no matter how much they might agree with you.”
“So, how should I have handled it?”
He folds his hands. “Go into the woods, find a spiderweb, and meditate on it.”
I glare at him. “Jagan, please, I don’t want to hear the peace, love, and kindness speech. Why should I behave while everyone else is acting like an asshole? Why can’t I be bad and get away with it like everyone else?”
I’m winded from my verbal tantrum, and Jagan waits until I catch my breath. He walks over to his desk and turns his laptop around so I can see the screen. He taps a few keys, and an ambient nature video comes on of a spider making a web. I collapse against the couch. My entire body goes limp, and that is the only reason why I don’t scream. Surprisingly, a sense of peace descends over me as I watch with Jagan. My gaze follows the spider’s path as it constructs its web thread by thread in perfect symmetry.
“Vicki, sometimes you have to be patient while you build a network that can do the things you want efficiently. Think of your father. He works with technology. Does he do his own programming?” Jagan shakes his head, answering his own question. “Vaughn knows people, so you network with better people. Who do you socialize with at Redwood? Other than the boys?”
Sitting there, I stare at him as if I have just woken up.
He nods his head slowly while he judges my choices. “And what’s going to happen when you graduate? Which boy are you going to choose?”
I swallow hard before I answer. “Why do I have to choose?” I ask.
Jagan presses his lips together. “Are you going to let them choose? I wouldn’t recommend that.”
I don’t dare tell him what I really want. At least not today. It may not matter in the end. When Talia exposes the dirt on the Evanses and Mel Vaughn, I fear nobody will be talking to me.
