La Pantera

Ch. 9 Running From The Devil

Song of Chapter: Path of Light by Moments of Clarity

The next day, Stevie emerged onto set with sunken eyes and a bitter demeanor. Matt watched her closely, wanting to get to the bottom of the whole Martin situation. He was curious as to why it made her upset to mention him, and he had a very good idea that the whole topic was the reason she looked upset right now. To be truthful, Martin was mostly the reason Stevie looked disheveled. But she had also just done a line an hour ago and coming down from that high was having an effect still on her mood. She was irritated more than usual and wanted to be left alone . Her intense gaze scanned the set around her as she ran a hand through her hair . She just wanted to film this scene and get it over with . Matt walked over next to her . "Hey, you okay? I didn't mean to upset you yesterday.", he said , looking at her in the eyes . She shrugged in response, "You didn't know , it's ok. I'm fine , I just didn't get sleep." Her words smoothly rolled off her tongue , the lie undetected by most . Matt would have believed her if he hadn't noticed her eyes. But he knew the signs of drug use from old friends he used to hang around back home in Mamaroneck. The sunken eyes and her pupils told him there was definitely a drug involved, he just had to figure out which one . "Mmh, interesting.", he replied casually, his face hiding his thoughts . He was going to figure out what was happening , just how though? He was the lead character, which meant constantly filming , and Stevie never really seemed to leave her trailer . Maybe at night I can snoop...I think she goes for a walk around then. She's gonna explain this sooner or later . , Matt thought to himself. No one lies to him and gets away with it , especially if it was someone he at least cared a bit for .

Day became night , which according to Matt's predictions, led to Stevie walking around. He waited till everyone wasn't around for the most part , and snuck over to her trailer , getting the door open . He shut the door and began sneaking around . He opened drawers , searched through boxes, but found nothing . "The hell?....there's no fuckin' way she's actin' like this sober.", he said to himself. There was no way someone could be so violent and malicious without being on something to fuel the behavior. He kicked the bed in frustration before hearing footsteps approach. "Shit.", he whispered , his eyes wide with fear . Unless he came up with a good excuse , Stevie was going to murder him for being in here. He frantically looked around before throwing his ring in a part of the room to make it seem he was "looking" for it. Stevie opened the door and looked shocked to see Matt. "Why are you in here?", she asked , her brow cocked as she slammed the door. "I think I left my ring in here from yesterday.", he said to her. "You could've asked me, instead of just invading my space .", she snapped. "I know, and I'm sorry.", he looked apologetic for the most part, before he began to search for his ring. Stevie sat on the bed eyeing him . "What's it look like?", she asked, trying to sound helpful. "It's a skull ring.", he answered while on the floor. He "found" it and smiled widely for effect. "Aha! Found it. I won't bother you anymore tonight.". He gave her a charming smile, to which she playfully rolled her eyes. A small smile was on her face as he left. When that door shut, she checked her one bag, opening a secret compartment where her drugs were. "He didn't find them....oh thank god.", she whispered to herself .

The next morning Stevie woke up earlier than usual. She had to get rid of the drugs now, before someone actually caught her. She stashed them all into one bag and ran to the bridge nearby as the sun began to rise. She looked around making sure no one was around before dropping it in the river . It sank to the bottom like a dead weight. She sighed in relief , feeling free for a temporary moment. But the reality of withdrawal began to seep in . How would she disguise her behavior? Just let them think what they want at this point Stevie.....you know the truth. They don't know shit, she thought to herself. Her fate was now sealed and she embraced it with a wild gleam in her eyes as she began to walk back to the filming grounds , her strides long and confident.