Chapter 423 She Was Actually Gabriel's People?
At exactly nine PM, a sleek black Bentley rolled onto the set.
Everyone was hustling to wrap things up, so nobody really noticed the car pulling in. Naturally, no one clocked that Gabriel had just shown up.
Danielle had already caught some Z's at the Harriman Group, so she was wide awake, chilling in the car, and watching cartoons on Gabriel's phone.
Gabriel stepped out. The night air was cool and breezy, so he didn't bother asking Danielle to get out. He just cracked the front window a couple of inches to let some air in.
During wrap-up, the set was buzzing, especially the props team, who were all hands on deck.
Gabriel made his way towards Jessica's RV. Before he got there, he overheard some props team members grumbling, "To me, we gotta steer clear of Jessica's business from now on. No matter how big Mr. Nelson is, he ain't got nothing on the Harriman Group. Now that we know Jessica's Gabriel's wife, if anything goes wrong with the props, Carl's gonna throw us under the bus."
"Totally. Mr. Nelson's barely been around since filming started. He probably doesn't even know we've been messing with Jessica's props. We gotta drop this; we can't handle more drama. Jessica's become the crew's golden girl. If anything goes south, we're toast."
"If we get caught, we're all screwed!"
"Who would've thought Jessica's background was so messy? We thought she was in deep trouble with Mr. Nelson, but turns out..."
Gabriel paused and shot a glance at the griping crew members lugging props off the set.
Jessica's assistant had mentioned the crap Jessica had been dealing with on set—janky props, freezing cold water in winter, and all sorts of "mistakes."
When Sam saw Gabriel stroll into the studio again, he was initially shocked, but then it clicked, given the buzz about Jessica and Gabriel's relationship.
"Mr. Harriman, here to pick up Jessica? She just wrapped."
Gabriel walked into the studio. The camera gear was already packed up, though the place was still a mess with stuff scattered everywhere.
Ignoring the crew hustling around, he spoke in a cold, detached tone, "Who's in charge of prop safety?"
"Mr. Harriman, this is..." Sam's face went pale as he suddenly remembered all the times Jessica had been screwed over by the props team.
Even though they’d warned the props team a bunch of times to be careful, everyone knew the unspoken rules of the biz. There was always some friction between Jessica and the Nelson Group, leading to deliberate screw-ups with the props. These unspoken rules were well-known but usually ignored as long as no one got seriously hurt.
The Nelson Group’s props were top-notch, and their long-term partnership meant everyone just turned a blind eye. Even Jessica knew the deal. The entertainment industry had its dark corners, and everyone was just trying to get by. The rule was to suck it up as much as possible.
Sam quickly explained, "The Nelson Group handles all this. Most of the props in the industry are tied to them. Even the props team members are set up by the Nelson Group to help with the shoot."
Gabriel raised his hand to stop a crew member lugging a rain machine. He glanced at the spare water on the cart and ran his hand over it. The water was warm, perfect for not showing steam on camera and not too cold.
But the water Jessica had used before was ice-cold.
It seemed like a small thing, but it was like using needles to avoid visible wounds on a prisoner’s body, just to fool others.
Gabriel pulled his hand back and shot a cold look at Sam.
"I don't want to get involved in the Nelson Group's film industry dealings. But you gotta make sure Jessica’s safe, both physically and mentally, while she’s working here. No passing the buck to the prop provider. Before the shoot wraps, I don’t want Jessica dealing with any so-called unspoken rules while she’s busting her ass."
Sam’s face turned awkward. After a few seconds of staring into Gabriel’s icy eyes, he nodded and said, "Got it. Mr. Harriman, you can count on it."
After taking off her makeup, Jessica checked her phone and saw a voice message from Danielle, sent using Gabriel’s phone.
She realized they’d been on set for a while.
Probably because Danielle had the phone, Gabriel hadn’t told her specifically. Jessica had been hanging out in the RV for so long, and now it was almost half-past nine.
She quickly changed clothes and stepped out of the RV. As soon as she did, she noticed most of the crew had already left. Across from her, the black Bentley was gleaming under the starlight.
"Jessica, are you..." Zoey poked her head out of the RV, about to ask if Jessica was heading back to Star Tower with them tonight. But when she saw Mr. Harriman’s car, she immediately shut up, pulling her head back in with a grin.
Within seconds, Lynn’s head also popped out from the RV door, glanced in that direction, and was then yanked back in by Zoey.
