action hero! Oh.” He stopped when he saw Declan in full uniform. “Hello, Sheriff Stone. Is there something we can help you with?”
Declan turned and cleared his throat. The softness in his eyes disappeared as he reached out a hand to shake the director’s.
“Just stopped by to make sure the situation last night didn’t interfere too much with your production,” he said. “I apologize for putting Finn in harm’s way. If there’s anything I can do to—”
“Nonsense,” Nolan said with a wide grin, moving around to clap me on the shoulder. He seemed to be full of energy every time I saw him, like he had trouble sitting still and wanted to be off to the next thing. “You did us a solid. The media coverage alone is worth thousands. We can’t thank you enough for allowing our boy here to be a part of a truly heroic moment. Thanks to your department for making sure he came through it unharmed, and I’m doubly glad you and your deputy were unscathed. That poor girl. Hopefully she’s alright as well?”
Declan nodded and gave Nolan some platitudes about the young woman’s condition, but I could see the tightness in his jaw as he spoke. He didn’t love this. And he was in good company, because I absolutely hated it.
Nolan glad-handed Declan out the door with polite apologies that our “very important” interview had to cut his visit short. After one precious moment of eye contact with the strong, dependable sheriff, he was gone.
I followed Nolan to the media tent where everything was set up for the interview. A few minutes before we were scheduled to start, he turned to me to say, “Now’s the time to capitalize on the fact you’re doing your own stunts. After what happened last night, it will really add to the excitement and danger. I’m impressed with how seriously you took your prep work, Finn. Arranging for the ride-along like that was smart thinking, and your being there when the most exciting action in Aster Valley happened… well, you can’t say there’s not a little Chip Clover luck in you for real, right?”
His nearby assistant smiled and winked at me at his stupid-ass statement, and Shelly, the show runner, thought it was hysterical. I wanted to remind him that being present for any drunken shooting wasn’t good luck. It was bad. But then again, I did consider not getting shot last night to be a stroke of luck, so maybe he had a point.
The interview started before I had a chance to respond. While Nolan greeted the energetic interviewer on the screen, I concentrated on keeping an open smile on my face while I talked myself through a centering mantra.
I am the rock, and the rock is fearless.
“Finn,” the reporter said after the standard greetings were over, “we have reports of a deranged gunman threatening you last night in an armed standoff. Can you tell us how you managed to subdue him?”
I blinked at the screen and felt my polite smile falter. “I… I didn’t subdue him. The man was apprehended by the Rockley County Sheriff’s Department. The sheriff and his deputy are the real heroes.”
She gave me the kind of look that said she thought I was being deliberately humble. “Come on now. We’ve seen the photos of you standing next to the suspect while he’s being loaded into the vehicle. It’s clear you were more involved in the takedown than you want to take credit for. Why don’t you take us through the event minute by minute?”
I hadn’t gotten close to Gene Stanner until after he’d been handcuffed and read his rights. If I was photographed anywhere near him, it was because I shadowed Declan like a hungry tick right after everything had happened.
“I…” I was at a loss for words. “I didn’t…” My media training kicked in, and I remembered who I was. I was an Emmy Award–winning actor who’d been interviewed like this hundreds of times. “I’d rather talk about this production and how proud I am to be bringing Nolan’s vision to life. We’ve been on location this week here in the Rocky Mountains, and I can’t imagine a more beautiful setting for filming. Crystobell and Logan have already shot some amazing scenes, and I’m especially excited for the chance to get dirty on the side of the mountain when we shoot the climbing scenes.”
Before the interviewer had the chance to bring me back around to last night’s incident, Nolan jumped in.