Not Wanted in Hollywood (6 page)

Sitting in a booth at a diner in the
warehouse district I had a good look at Amber. Without the
dominatrix outfit and the stripper persona I could tell she was a
bit older than I had originally thought. Her blonde hair tumbled
around her face. She had the fresh faced prettiness that you could
see in any number of young girls who came to LA. There was a
hardness there as well.

“How long have you been in LA?” I asked.

“
I was born
here,” Amber said keeping her eyes on the mug of coffee she was
holding.

“Do you have family?” I asked.

She nodded.

“Do you want me to call any of them for
you?”

Amber shook her head emphatically.
Unfortunately I had got that response from a lot of the girls when
we had discussed any family they might have.

“
Do you want
to talk about it?” I asked.

Amber finally looked up at me. “Lots of guys
come in to the club looking at picking up strippers. It’s kind of a
thing they can show off to their buddies about. You learn to just
not get involved because it always ends with some form of
humiliation. It’s like they forget that we’re actually women.
Alistair just talked to me. I honestly thought he was different. I
should have known better. I’m just so stupid.”

“
You’re not
stupid. Just because Alistair is being a jerk, it isn’t on you.
Trust me that damage was done way before you came on the scene. It
has nothing to do with you so don’t think for a moment that it
does,” I said. “Believe me when I say you can do better, I mean you
can really do better.”

I knew I was
being emphatic but if Alistair ever got his head out of his butt
long enough for him to find a woman to commit to long term, I was
going to have to send flowers, because that was a position that
I
really did not wish on anybody. Amber
shrugged and I could tell she was not convinced. A sudden thought
struck me.

“Did Alistair talk to you about what this
film would do for you?” I asked.

“He said that the second producers got a look
at me on the screen, with what he could do, that I would be
knocking back acting jobs. He said I was a natural.”

I had to fight the instinct to get out of the
booth, find Alistair and kick him hard. Anyone who thinks the
casting couch no longer exists in Hollywood is completely deluded.
While there were young people desperate for a chance at stardom,
there would always be someone eager to take advantage of them. It
looked like Alistair had played upon Amber’s dream of getting away
from the club and into a better life.

“What are you going to do now?” I asked
quietly

“Go back to the club, keep working until I
can get out I guess.” Amber shrugged and I couldn’t help feeling
sorry for the way her shoulders slumped.

“With Hammy dead, the club could be closing
permanently.” I hoped I was being gentle enough.

“
Hammy’s wife
is going to take over. As far as I know she plans to open it in a
day or two and keep right on going,” Amber said.

I choked on
my coffee. “Hammy had a wife?” How was that possible? No man who
treated women like that should be allowed to marry. There had to be
a rule.

“
They’ve been
married forever, but I think they were separated,” said Amber. “Far
as I know Hammy hadn’t seen his wife for years. The cops notified
her of the death last night.”

“How do you know this?” I asked.

“She got hold of the roster of the girls and
has been calling us to make sure we don’t move on to other clubs
before she can open up again.” Amber shrugged again.

I had to admit I admired the business acumen
Hammy’s wife had. No point in letting the unsavory murder of your
husband get in the way of running a business.

“So are you planning to stay at the club?” I
asked.

“
I don’t have
much choice now do I?” said Amber despondently.

Back at the office I thought about what Amber
had said. Finding Alistair standing behind Hugh as they ran through
some footage
, I marveled at his complete
lack of awareness that the way he treated people was
wrong.

“Did you know that Hammy was married?” I
asked Alistair as I sat down.

“To a woman?” asked Alistair.

“
I believe
so,” I said. “Seems she’s taking over the club now that Hammy is no
longer with us.”

Alistair’s
brow
furrowed. “I need more time with
this shoot. I’m going to have to speak to her to see if she’ll
extend the contract that we had with Hammy.”

Even before I came back to the office I knew
what he would want. A part of me hated the fact that I was right
and even worse that I was prepared.

“I have her details here if you want to get
in touch with her.”

Alistair clapped his hands together. “This is
why you are the best assistant I’ve ever had. At first glance you
didn’t look like much but you have a brain and you use it. I must
say, originally I didn’t have high hopes but you’ve really
surprised me. Contact the woman and see about our permissions to
continue filming.”

After he walked back into his office I turned
to Hugh. “He just insulted me along with that compliment didn’t
he?”

Hugh nodded.

“There are seminars where they teach that
skill to guys who are desperate to pick up women don’t they?”

Hugh nodded
again, keeping his eyes firmly on the screen in front of
him.

“When did the world get so messed up?” I
asked. Hugh didn’t bother to answer what was obviously a rhetorical
question.

I was still
thinking that as I stood at the door of Denise Pollard. Why was I
having to approach this woman, less than twenty four hours after
the death of her husband, to get permission to continue filming in
the strip club that she was taking over? When the door opened I
could feel my eyes widen in surprise. Whatever I had expected from
Hammy Pollard’s wife, this was not it. Denise Pollard looked like
my grandmother. She looked much older than I was expecting. Her
hair was an iron gray and was scraped back severely from her face.
Her eyes were a brilliant blue and I could see the spark of
intelligence in them. She was a large woman and the shapeless dress
she wore did not hide this.

“What can I do for you?” she asked a little
tentatively, obviously concerned by the stranger knocking at her
door.

I rushed to reassure her. “Mrs Pollard, my
name is Trudie Eyre. I was working at your husband’s club.”

Denise
raked me from head to toe and she frowned. “I’m
sorry, I didn’t see your name on the employee list. You don’t look
like someone who would work at Hammy’s.”

I was undecided whether that statement was a
compliment or not.

“
No,” I said
quickly. “I didn’t work for Hammy. I’m not sure if one of the other
girls told you but Hammy was working on a project with the
filmmaker Alistair Hopkins.”

Denise
nodded. “One of the girls did mention it but I
have to tell you, I’ve had a lot to deal with today. I really
hadn’t even thought about that kind of thing.”

I smiled hoping to appear non-threatening. “I
was wondering if I would be able to come in and have a talk with
you. Alistair is very keen to continue his project at the club and
we were hoping we would be able to come to some accommodation.”

Denise
Pollard studied me for a moment. She opened the
door wider to let me in and I stepped through.

“
I’m sorry if
I seem inhospitable,” she said as she led me down the hallway.
“I’ve learned to be suspicious of people. It’s not an easy habit to
break.”

“
It’s smart
to be wary,” I said.

“
I was just
putting on some tea,” Denise said. “Would you like
some?”

“
I’d love it,
thank you.” I smiled at the way Denise reminded me of my Grandma
Rita.

“
Just take a
seat in here,” she said, indicating the main room. “I’ll be right
out.”

I stepped
into the living room and was surprised at the large piano that
dominated the space. On top of the piano I found photos in frames.
I found one with Denise when she was young standing next to a much
younger version of Hammy Pollard in a white mini dress.

“
Our wedding
day,” Denise said sadly from behind me.

“
I’m sorry,”
I said, as I put the photo back. “I didn’t mean to pry.”

She handed me a cup of tea. “It was a long
time ago.” She pulled out another photo. “This one is when I used
to work at Hammy’s club.”

I took the
photo and looked at it. In it was Denise in one of the skimpy
costumes that I had become used to seeing on the dancers at the
club. She was posed on a pole, her strength and flexibility obvious
to see. I could see why Hammy had been taken with her. In her
younger days Denise had been beautiful.

Glancing up
at Denise I saw her frown as she patted her hair. “Time has not
been kind to me. That photo was taken a lifetime ago.”

I put the photo down and took a sip of
tea.

“How did you meet Hammy?” I asked.

“
Would you
believe at church?” Denise said.

I stopped myself from choking on the tea. I
had to admit that the thought of Hammy Pollard in a church was a
bit of a stretch.

“
His mother
was still alive back then. He doted on that woman. She never knew
that he owned a strip club. He managed to keep it from her and
convinced her that he was an accountant. He even did her taxes for
her. How she didn’t fall foul of the IRS is a miracle to me,
because he had no idea what he was doing, but his mother had to
believe it. I was new in LA, wanting to be an actress of course,
like every young girl who came here. I went to church, because that
was how I was raised, and I met Hammy. I didn’t know what he did at
first, but when my big break didn’t come and I was running out of
money, he came to me with an offer. He thought I had the right look
to be one of his girls. He timed it perfectly. I trusted him and
I’d reached the point where I was desperate. Before I knew what was
happening I was on stage. Soon after I was the headline act. I
thought Hammy was in love with me and I was devoted to him. He
swept me off my feet and proposed. I found out later that he only
married me because his mother was dying and it was her final wish
that he be married before she died. After she died I was considered
surplus to requirements. He left me six months later.”

“
I’m sorry,”
I said awkwardly.

“
Don’t be,”
she said. “Everything works out for a reason. I stopped working at
the club. I was fortunate and got a job at the church. It gave me a
purpose.”

“
You never
divorced Hammy?” I ventured.

Denise
shook her head. “No, Hammy didn’t believe in
divorce and like he said, he was never going to marry again. Having
a wife gave him a ready excuse if any of the girls got a bit
clingy.”

Hammy really had been a prince among men. The
more I knew about him the more surprised I was that somebody hadn’t
killed him years ago.

“So you are now the owner of the club. Why
would Hammy leave it to you?”

Denise
smiled. “There was no one else to leave it to.
Hammy always said that he would change his will if there was
someone he cared about enough to change it for. It looks like he
never found anyone.”

“Is there any reason why you aren’t going to
sell it immediately?” I asked.

There must
have been a strange look on my face because Denise smiled at me. “I
have not had an easy time since Hammy left me. This may be my one
and only chance to make something out of my life. I worked in the
bar, I know how it was run. Despite what Hammy believed about all
his girls, I was a lot smarter than he thought I was. I know Hammy
had pretty much run the place into the ground. I think I can build
it up again.”

I was
impressed. She may not look like I imagined a strip club owner
would look, but she was determined.

“
Some of the
girls have told me about the man you work for,” Denise said
thoughtfully.

I had to stop myself from cringing. Nothing
that those girls had said about Alistair was going to be in his
favor.

“
The girls
are not particularly fond of him,” said Denise.

That was a mild way of putting it.

“
But he
brings money to the table,” she mused.

I nodded,
letting her go ahead with her one sided negotiation.

“
I think that
I will let him continue with his filming, temporarily,” Denise
continued. “However I will be watching very carefully. If I find
that he is in any way acting inappropriately with my girls, I will
be forced to reevaluate my stance.”

I nodded
again. “Thank you,” I said as I held out my hand.

She grasped it strongly. I could see the
excitement in her eyes. She looked like someone who had found a
project and was going to grasp hold of it with both hands. I had a
feeling that Alistair wasn’t going to know what hit him.

After giving
Denise,
Alistair’s card and extracting a promise that as soon as the police
gave her control of the club, she would contact us, I realized that
I hadn’t had a chance to eat and swung into a diner. As I sat down
in a booth my phone rang.