Chapter 7
876 Words
Calista had no clue what was going on, her heart hammering right up in her throat.
"Dad? What's wrong? Don't scare me like this, Dad!" she cried.
Just then, doctors and nurses streamed into the room in a rush, barking, "The patient is in critical condition. All family members must leave immediately!"
Immediately after, Calista and Emrys were pushed out of the ward.
Standing outside the door, Calista's mind went blank.
She stared dazedly at the grave, harried faces of the medical staff rushing around inside. All the faint joy she'd felt moments earlier vanished into thin air, leaving nothing but cold dread in its place.
At that moment, Emrys reached out and gave her shoulder a gentle, reassuring pat. "It'll be okay," he said softly.
"This is all my fault. I never should have come here today," he added.
Calista knew exactly what he meant.
The second Emrys had come to the Ellery family home, Aldric had doted on him like he was his own flesh and blood, even openly saying he planned to hand the entire Ellery family empire over to him. That had made Gideon, the old man's biological son, loathe Emrys with every fiber of his being.
But none of this was actually Emrys's fault.
Calista forced a wobbly smile. "It's not your fault, Uncle Emrys..." she said.
She wanted to say more, but the memory of their conversation the day before stopped her cold, and she fell silent.
Thankfully, after emergency treatment, Gideon pulled through and was out of danger.
The heavy stone hanging over Calista's heart finally lifted.
She stayed at the hospital with Gideon all night, and got called into the company first thing the next morning.
That was when she found out her agent had landed her a brand deal, plus an opportunity to audition for Degree Zero, a new film from a well-known director.
The role she was up for was a villainess, but the character had a sharp, unique charm that made it highly sought-after. Tons of actresses were already chomping at the bit to land it.
Calista hadn't trained at a formal acting academy, so if she wanted to beat out the competition, she'd have to put in two hundred percent effort.
For the next few weeks, she threw herself completely into polishing her acting skills.
Finally, audition day arrived.
Calista showed up at the set bright and early, and absolutely nailed her performance. The director nodded approvingly again and again, almost ready to give her the role on the spot.
"Great work, Calista. The part is yours," the director said.
Calista let out a long, shaky breath of relief.
Landing this role would put 800,000 dollars in her pocket. It was barely a drop in the bucket next to her family's massive debt, but it would at least tide her over for now.
But just as she turned to leave, she ran straight into Elara.
What was even more surprising was that Elara was the film's female lead.
Their eyes locked, and a cold, bad feeling twisted in Calista's gut out of nowhere.
The next second, Elara said sharply, "Replace her."
Calista's brows snapped together, and she snapped back, furious and confused. "Why?" she demanded.
She'd already moved out of Emrys's house, and she'd earned this role fair and square with her own hard work.
Why on earth was Elara targeting her like this?
Elara didn't bother answering. She just cast Calista a single, scathing look of contempt, then spun on her heel and headed back to her trailer.
The on-site staff exchanged awkward, unsure glances. In the end, all they could tell Calista was to go home and wait for further notice.
She was seething with frustration, but she didn't dare kick up a fuss for fear of killing her shot and losing the role for good.
After tossing the idea back and forth in her head, Calista finally decided to go to Emrys, hoping he could help her out.
The door lock passcode of the Calder Villa hadn't been changed. Calista stepped into the entryway and stared at the familiar decor she hadn't seen in ages, a tangled mess of emotions welling up in her chest.
She'd thrown every last ounce of her energy into making money these past weeks, and she hadn't so much as texted or called Emrys in ages.
She wondered how he'd been holding up...
She was still lost in thought when her phone blared to life.
Calista picked up, only to hear her agent's voice come through the line. "The Degree Zero team has officially decided not to cast you," her agent said.
Her stomach dropped straight through the floor.
She'd figured this would happen the second Elara opened her mouth back at the audition, but she'd still clung to a tiny sliver of hope that things might turn around.
"Is this Elara's call, or the director's?" she asked.
If it was only Elara calling the shots, there might still be a way to fix this.
The next second, her agent replied, "It's the film's investor, Emrys Calder's decision!"
Calista went completely still, her mind going blank.
Right at that moment, the entryway door behind her clicked open again.
She turned around and saw Emrys standing there.
- Writer
