Chapter 86 Something Fishy in the Water
Andrea climbed the ladder to take her position on the boat. Lance and the extras were headed that direction as well. He looked like a handsome rogue pirate, and she could imagine a lot of women would love seeing him in his pirate costume, though Case was the only man she had eyes for. He smiled at her and climbed up the ladder. “How are you, Andrea?” Lance asked.
“Good. How are you?”
“I’m okay, but I’m not the one about to be pushed into the water.”
“Very true,” Andrea noted, giving a nervous giggle. “I’m sure it’ll be fine.”
“Oh, yeah, it will be. Who’s down there to keep you safe? George? Stan?”
“No, it’s a diver I’ve never heard of before. His name is Sven.”
“Sven?” Lance’s eyebrows knit together. “I don’t believe I’ve ever worked with him.”
“Me neither. I’m sure he’s competent, though.”
“Sure, sure,” Lance nodded. “The company wouldn’t send someone who wasn’t completely certified to keep you safe.”
Andrea agreed, and as everyone else got into place, she listened to Cam’s directions from the ground across from the vat. Once she knew the blocking and was certain she and Lance were on the same page, they started the first take.
“Give it up, Isabella!” Lance spat at her in the low rumbling voice of his character. “I know now that you’re a traitor!”
“Me?” Andrea said, defiantly, her chest puffed out. “You’re the one who’s gone against the crown!”
“You pretended to love me, only to get to my treasure!”
“No, I pretended to love you only to get—my revenge!” Andrea pulled her sword, and she and Lance did the few choreographed steps to the sword fight.
“You know you’re not stronger than me!” Lance shouted. “And… my band of pirates will never let you escape.”
Andrea’s character looked panicked, not sure what she was supposed to do. Then, the pirate rogue took advantage of the situation, knocking her sword from her hand and demanding, “Marry me, or die, Isabella!”
“I’d rather die!” Andrea shouted, her face in his.
“That can be arranged easily enough!” Lance shoved her, hard, and Andrea went flying backward, tipping over the edge of the faux pirate ship.
She took a deep breath as the water rose up to meet her. She’d fallen head first, which wasn’t what she’d been hoping for. Her skirts were tangled around her pant legs, and her boots seemed so heavy as she hit the frigid water and immediately plunged all the way to the bottom in a tangle of fabric, her hair blooming up around her head like a lotus flower. The breath in her lungs seemed to freeze from the low temperatures the second her body hit the water.
A camera was mounted under the water on the base of the ship, but it would only pick her up in a certain area of the vat. If she went astray or too low, it wouldn’t film her. She was supposed to struggle in the water for a few moments and then go down and swim under the ship. It wasn’t nearly as long as it would’ve been if it was a full ship, and she could see Sven lurking in the shadows as her lungs began to burn for air. She came back up so that Lance could say his line, pushing her skirts down and trying to straighten them out of her way as she did so.
Andrea crested the surface of the water and inhaled deeply. The cold water had her body shivering already, and she’d only been in it a few seconds.
“I hope you’re eaten by sharks!”
Isabella had no line here, as she was preoccupied with survival, but she glared at Lance before she sucked in a deep breath and began to swim underneath the pirate ship. Another camera would pick her up once she hit the center of the vessel, so before she got there, she needed to straighten herself out so she didn’t look freezing or scared—which is how she felt, but it wouldn’t represent her character.
Kicking hard, she swam for the place on the other side of the ship where she could come up for air and then hopefully hear the word cut. Later, they’d film her washing up on shore, but that would be a different day, a different faux body of water, and a fake beach. For now, she just needed to get out from under the ship before she ran out of air. At least Sven was there to help if she needed it.
By the time she made it beneath the boat, her upper body was on fire. She came out on the other side, and sucked in a deep breath.
“Perfect! Cut” Cam shouted as Andrea grabbed hold of the ladder that would take her out of the vat. She knew perfect didn’t mean they wouldn’t do it again, though. The weight of the water in her skirts was so heavy, it was a struggle to pull herself out, but she managed, ready to change and get filming again so she could get this over with.
“Nice job,” Cam was saying as one of the stage hands wrapped a towel around her. Lance was there with her now, having climbed down from the ship. “Next time, let’s see if we can work it so you’re not falling head first, though. I have some ideas. Andrea, go get changed. Lance, come with me.”
“Girl! You were awesome,” Stephon said as Andrea waded her way over to change and get restyled for another take. It was going to be a long day.
“Th—thanks.” Andrea’s teeth were chattering.
“Come on, girl. Let’s get you warmed up and dried out!” Stephon ushered her over to Nevaeh and her assistants who were ready to help her get into her new costume.
“What was it like, falling into that giant bucket of water?” Stephon asked.
“Honestly? Terrifying,” Andrea admitted.
He gave her a sympathetic smile. “At least Sven is down there to keep you from drowning.”
“Yes, at least there’s that.” But as Andrea went to change into her new costume, thinking of Sven didn’t make her feel any better.
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