by Dave Warner
'You should be thoroughly ashamed of yourself, young lady,' she upbraided Sarah-Jane after being told the full story.
'I know. I'm so terribly sorry, I really am.'
It was nearly an hour before the rescue crew arrived by helicopter and four wheel drive, only to be told they were no longer needed. Joel Gold flew in by helicopter shortly after the rescue crew had gone. Mr Gold was shocked to learn Sarah-Jane and Charlotte had both nearly perished. Sarah-Jane seized Joel Gold by the hand.
'Please, Mr Gold, I never meant for anybody to get hurt.'
Especially not yourself, thought Leila, who was eavesdropping on the private conversation while the others took themselves off a respectable distance to enjoy the picnic hamper Mr Gold had brought with him.
'Not only could you have been killed yourself, Charlotte could have been killed.'
'I know. I'm so sorry.' Sarah-Jane was in tears.
'You owe that girl your life.'
'I know that.'
'Then there are the police. Wasting their time and resources.'
'Will they charge me with something?'
'I've got them to forego charges on the grounds you do charity work to help raise money.'
'Anything, you name it.'
Sarah-Jane was blubbering. In spite of their rivalry Leila did feel a little sympathy for her. Let's face it, she herself had made a few mistakes. That all-night party at Venice Beach when she'd had too much red cordial and wound up putting her hooves through a shop window. She'd been trying to show JLo how to do a real salsa. Then there was that other time at the promotional trip to the chocolate factory when she'd got her head stuck in the candy dispenser and they'd had to get the fire-department guys to free her.
Mr Gold had not finished admonishing Sarah-Jane. 'And what about the time delay you've caused on the movie? You know how much you've cost the studio? That's coming straight from your pay!'
'Fine.'
Elsewhere Todd and Charlotte were making short work of the picnic hamper. Miss Strudworth heaped praise on them both.
'Magnificent work. Quick thinking.'
'It was Charlotte. I didn't do much at all.'
As usual, Todd made little of his contribution.
Mr Gold advanced with Sarah-Jane.
'Sarah-Jane has something to say,' he announced.
Sarah-Jane's confidence, bordering on arrogance, had been squashed flat.
'I owe you guys my life. If there's ever anything I can do for you, please let me. I am so sorry for what I put you all through. And Charlotte, thank you for tracking me down and risking your life.'
Mr Gold nodded as if that response had passed muster.
'The media know nothing of this and I would implore you all to keep quiet about it, even though I can't stop you from talking. If you did say something it might torpedo the movie, though, and then we're all sunk.'
'I think I can safely say it stays here,' said Strudworth. Charlotte and Todd nodded.
Mr Gold rubbed his hands together. 'Very well. Let's put this behind us and make a really great movie. Charlotte, I'm going to see you and Todd get lifetime passes to Excelsior Theme Parks worldwide.'
Charlotte wasn't too sure she'd take him up on that. The last trip was still fresh in her mind.
'And I'm also going to see you both get special credits on the movie.'
Todd grinned. 'Wow, my name on screen.'
'Right now, though, we had best be getting back to work.'
Sarah-Jane was flying back with Mr Gold but Leila was happy to be sharing the float with Warrior again on the way back to L.A. They had worked pretty darn well as a team.
As Charlotte was preparing her for the float, Sarah-Jane came up to them. 'Charlotte, you're really cool. Maybe we could hang out together sometime?'
'I guess,' said Charlotte, not sure what she and Sarah-Jane would have in common.
'And Leila, I know you and I have had our differences but I really appreciate you getting me out of trouble.'
Sarah-Jane kissed her. 'I'll see you guys on set tomorrow,' she said, before leaving for the helicopter.
'Maybe she's getting some sense knocked into her after all,' said Leila, watching as it took off.
By the time they got back to Los Angeles, Charlotte was exhausted but it was Todd's last night in town and though it wasn't his first trip to L.A., he was keen for some sightseeing. In the trailer, Leila was full of suggestions.
'How about the Viper Club?'
'We're not old enough.'
'Right.' There was a long pause. 'The Whiskey!'
'Leila, it's another club.' Leila was nodding.
'Okay, hold your horses.' She sniggered at her joke. 'Just get Fernando to drive you around in the limo. Go up to the hills, drink in the stars. Then down to Santa Monica, get some sand between your toes. And hook up the float.'
'What?'
'You don't think you're going without me?'
'You have to work tomorrow.'
'You forget, rust never sleeps.'
'What does that mean?'
'I don't know but it sounds groovy. Now hook up the trailer and stick one of those radio mikes on my neck and tune it to the car's radio frequency. I'll give you the full Hollywood experience. And get a file under those nails. There's so much dirt you could plant a garden.'
After a quick shower, Charlotte did as she was told. It was easier than arguing with Leila. Miss Strudworth had decided to rest after the long day so it was just Charlotte and Fernando in front and Leila in the float as they cruised to the hotel where Todd was staying. A voice like a tour guide burst through the cabin.
'The Rendezvous Hotel. One of the most famous in Los Angeles . . .'
'What's that?' asked a surprised Fernando.
It was Leila, that's what it was. Charlotte couldn't say that, of course.
'It's an interactive voice guide.'
'Huh, amazing what they can do these days.'
'. . . The Rendezvous was the scene of the infamous milk bath in 1926 where Hollywood starlet Mimi Moccopone bathed in the foyer in a tub of milk to win publicity for her new film – Anthony and Cleopatra. The stunt was repeated many years later by that crazy actor, Leila. She didn't do it for publicity but on a dare from her friend Paris.'
Charlotte searched for a way to turn off the speakers but couldn't find one. They pulled to the kerb where Todd was waiting with hot dogs.
'Thought you might want to eat?' he said as he climbed in and offered a delicious-looking hot dog.
'Yum. Do I ever.'
'What about the horse in the back?' came Leila's voice.
'What's that?' Todd looked around.
'Just a little trick of mine. Don't worry. Fernando, could you take us through Beverly Hills?'
'Of course, Miss Charlotte.'
There wasn't much you could see from the road of the actual houses hidden behind hedges and gates but Leila compensated.
'This is the home of Meredith Dunlop, who starred opposite Russell Raven in New Jersey Jerk. Apparently after a brief romantic liaison Raven and Dunlop fought, resulting in Raven cutting off her hair with a hedge trimmer. It was a blessing in disguise for Dunlop when Leila, the amazing wonder horse, suggested from a stall of the Four Seasons ladies toilet that Dunlop should do a film of The Cancer Dancer, which resulted in Dunlop receiving an Academy Award nomination as a bald dancer undergoing chemotherapy.'
Todd was laughing. 'You really do have an imagination, Charlotte. Is that some tape you made?'
''Fraid so,' said Charlotte as Leila talked them through numerous similar dwellings.
From Beverly Hills they swung west to Santa Monica.
Charlotte was excited when Fernando parked close to the ocean. She and Todd stepped from the car into the warm night.
She sniffed. 'What's that funny smell?'
Todd sniffed, confused. 'I can't smell anything weird.'
Charlotte sniffed again. 'It's kind of salty.'
'I think you mean the ocean,' said Todd.
'So that's what it smells like.'
'Haven't you smelled the ocean before?'
Charlotte shook her head. 'This is as close to the ocean as I've ever been.'
Todd laughed. 'Then we had better go for a paddle.'
They opened the float and Charlotte brought out Leila.
'Thought you were going to leave me in there,' she whispered. 'Love Santa Monica. Used to gallop with Pierce Brosnan pre-breakfast.'
They walked down to the beach and Charlotte took off her shoes. She was wearing her one and only summer dress, but that didn't stop her edging to the ocean, excited but afraid.
'Come on, Charlotte.'
Todd put out his hand and she took it and allowed herself to be led into the surf, up to her ankles. The water was cold and made her giggle. She was just beginning to relax when Leila galloped past and did a big lunge into the ocean, spraying her with sea water.
'Thanks, Leila. My best dress!'
But it didn't matter because the whole thing was so amazing. The ocean was definitely a lot bigger than the waterhole at Darley's Crossing. After nearly an hour of frolicking, Todd bought them whopping ice-creams.
'Where to now?' said Todd as they munched.
'How about Griffith Park Observatory?' said Leila, so carried away with the ice-cream she forgot Todd didn't know she could speak. Fortunately Todd was looking away. He turned around to see who had made the comment and assumed it was an old woman, who had jogged past carrying weights.
'Not a bad idea,' said Todd. 'Have you been there?'
Charlotte explained that though they had filmed in the Botanical Gardens, she hadn't been to the Observatory.
Todd beamed. 'It's really great fun. You can look at planets and stars. It stays open till 10 pm.'
Charlotte put Leila back in the float and gave Fernando the destination but not before she had disconnected Leila's microphone.
'Don't you like the commentary?' she'd asked, offended.
'It's really good, Leila, but it's all about you.'
'Of course, that's why it's really good.'
'You should rest your voice. You have a big day tomorrow,' said Charlotte, slamming shut the back of the float.
It was only then that Leila realised she'd been conned.
'But I don't use my voice!' she yelled too late, as Fernando swung onto the freeway.
Though it was quite a distance from the beach, the traffic was light and Fernando seemed to have a few tricks up his sleeve so it didn't take all that long. When Charlotte went to get Leila from the float, all she got as a response was loud snoring. Obviously the strenuous day had taken its toll on Leila. She decided to leave her there.
Charlotte and Todd joined groups of people who were enjoying the balmy night looking through various telescopes at the stars and moon. Some of the telescopes were as big as Leila's mirror – and that was big! Charlotte gazed up at the moon and found herself thinking that this was the very same moon she had looked up at even as a small child on the other side of the planet, in Snake Hills. Knowing that her mother, when she was alive, would have stared at it too, probably many times in Charlotte's father's arms, made her feel happy and warm, a bit like cookies and hot chocolate, only better. It was a great way to end a wonderful night.
All the same, she would be pleased to get back to Australia and see her father again and tell him all about having beach sand between her toes.
Fernando dropped Todd back at his hotel. He was leaving the next day.
'Take care, Charlotte. I'll see you back at Thornton Downs.'
'I'll look forward to it.'
It was a pity Todd couldn't stay on but she was pleased to have been able to spend even a little time with him. Back at Mr Gold's, Leila woke when Charlotte opened the float.
'Are we at Griffith Park already? Fernando should try his luck in the Indy 500.'
'We've already been to Griffith Park.'
Leila didn't believe her.
'You were asleep,' said Charlotte
'Me? No way. I'm party girl numero uno.'
But once inside the trailer, party girl numero uno literally hit the hay and went right back to sleep.
'Big day?' asked Feathers.
'You might say that,' said Charlotte.
Feathers yawned. 'Let's hope that cat turns up before they run out of script to shoot.'
In her excitement Charlotte had forgotten all about Oscar and Honey. She might have saved Sarah-Jane but that didn't mean she had saved the film.
Chapter 14
The next two days on set went really well. Sarah-Jane was a model of good behaviour and Leila responded to match her co-star. Tommy Tempest shot every scene he wanted. Unfortunately Honey, despite visiting a number of psychologists, had been unable to overcome her depression and had written not a word more. What she had already written would be finished filming within the week. Joel Gold and Hector Martinez decided they would have to employ another writer but when Leila got to peek at the new writer's script that Feathers had appropriated from Mr Gold's trailer, she announced to Charlotte, 'It sucks bad. This is going to be a disaster.'
Charlotte and Sarah-Jane had formed quite a friendship and usually ate lunch together. Charlotte was surprised to hear that Sarah-Jane's parents hadn't come to Los Angeles to see how she was.
'They're both very busy lawyers,' said Sarah-Jane. 'They'll come to the red carpet opening, of course.' Sarah-Jane said it in a way that let Charlotte know she was disappointed in them. Charlotte could never imagine her father not coming to see her if she'd got herself in trouble or done something equally stupid. She thought about what he would be doing right then, probably on a cattle muster somewhere, sleeping under the stars. What a different world to this.
Sarah-Jane had also managed to sneak a peek at the work in progress.
'Awful,' was her comment. 'If we make it, it will be a failure and my career will be over. If we don't, we're stuck anyway. Where is that cat?'
Which was exactly what Charlotte had been pondering for some time too. Charlotte took herself into the trailer and made some notes. They read:
Somebody poses as window-cleaner to steal Oscar.
Why?
Annoyed at Honey? Everybody says she has no
enemies.
The cat was valuable?
If Oscar was valuable, it was a good reason to steal him. But how was he valuable? He was valuable to Honey but nobody had asked her for a ransom.
Charlotte thought long and hard about it. How else was Oscar valuable? Why Oscar?
And then it came to her.
There really was only one way in which Oscar was different to any other cat. Honey needed him to write. By stealing Oscar the thief put the movie in jeopardy. Charlotte felt she was onto something. She began to look at everything she knew about the film. Even before she had arrived, somebody had run into Tommy Tempest. His leg could have been broken. But they failed and Tommy was okay to continue so they switched to plan B – Oscar.
A shiver went through Charlotte when she thought about the next piece in the puzzle; the trip to the Excelsior Theme Park. Perhaps it was not an accident that she and Leila were nearly injured or killed? Maybe somebody wanted to stop the film so badly they didn't want to rely just on Honey not being able to write. Charlotte wrote two words on her pad and smiled at them, satisfied she was correct.
'Inside job?' chorused Feathers and Leila later in the trailer as they read what she had written.
'Exactly.' Charlotte went through her points. 'Only somebody close to the film could have been on the lot to run over Tommy. And not that many people would know where Honey Grace lived and how attached she was to Oscar. And as for us going to the theme park that night, there was probably only the immediate crew who would have known.'
'It definitely smells,' said Feathers. 'I think the kid has something.'
Leila had to concede it did make sense.
'The next question is who?' said Charlotte.
'Oh, I hope it's not Cons
uela,' moaned Leila. 'Her hands are divine.'
There was one thing that Charlotte wasn't clear about. 'Perhaps you guys can explain to me why somebody would want to stop the movie.'
'Money!' they chorused.
'But how? What money would anybody get?'
Leila looked at Feathers. 'You want to tell her or shall I?'
Feathers started in. 'Leila and Sarah-Jane are a huge franchise for the studio. The opposition studios are running scared this will be a big hit and sink their movies that come out at the same time. Apex Studios has another one of those animated movies about ants and bees where the loser bee becomes a hero; Neptune Studios is doing one of those things where a kid has a magic skateboard.'
'We're talking fifty million a movie,' put in Leila.
Charlotte got the drift. 'So they might pay somebody close to this movie to sabotage it?'
'Welcome to Hollywood,' said Feathers.
'So who is the "dirty rat"?' Leila put on a movie gangster voice.
The three sat in silence for a moment. Then Charlotte said, 'I suppose we can look for somebody who is suddenly flashing money around.'
'Or has a van,' said Feathers. 'If they were pretending to be a window cleaner . . .'
'Wait a second!' Leila's voice cracked loud in the trailer. 'Of course. Mac.'
Charlotte had to think hard who Mac was. 'The man with the beard?'
'Yeah, and bad guys always have beards, right? I should have known straight off.'
'Hate to disappoint you, Leila, but just because somebody has a beard doesn't mean they are bad.'
Leila had read up on a little Australian history.
'No? What about Ned Kelly? What about Osama Bin Laden?'
'What about Santa Claus?' cracked Feathers.
Leila got in a huff. 'It's not just the beard, you scaly-legged piece of ornithology. Mac happens to be a gambler with a bad habit.'