They’d set up a table with a podium. At the table, Bob was there to represent the studio along with Kitty, Roger, and myself. Bob got up and read a brief statement about the loss of Laurent Vance. When he was done, Nino stood.
“Mr. Dawson, would you mind if we asked you some questions?”
I walked them through the scene and the accident, leaving out the parts where he’d been a fool and responsible for his own death. I didn’t think it was right to express my opinion on the matter. Then the reporter from Miami got her turn.
“The Cuban community in Miami is upset about the President’s recent trip to Havana,” she said.
I just stared at her. Frank had taught me I shouldn’t be baited into making a comment without thinking it out first. Frankly, she’d made a statement and hadn’t asked a question. Something else that had me a little worried was I wasn’t in the United States right now. I was in Cuba, and I’d been warned not to make negative comments about Castro or Cuba while I was there. So, I waited her out.
“What are your views on that?” she asked, getting frustrated with my silence.
Frank had written me a quick blurb to use if I was asked anything potentially controversial about Cuba. It was time to use it.
“Ma’am, I don’t mean any disrespect, but I can’t answer your question. I’m a guest in this country and working as an actor. When I get home, I’ll be a high school student. I have neither the training nor the understanding of all the issues to be able to give you an informed and reasoned response. So I’m not in a position to answer that.
“I will say that I’ve enjoyed my stay here. The people of Cuba have been nothing but hospitable, and I feel privileged to have received the opportunity to visit this fine country.
“I also hate to say this, but I don’t think this is the time or place for this discussion. We all lost a colleague yesterday, and that should be our focus,” I said and saw Nino nod to me.
I’d argued that it didn’t sound like me; the ‘reasoned response’ line sounded like I was fifty. Frank assured me it was a good nonanswer and would get the interview back to being focused on Laurent and not my opinion. Once again, I was thankful I’d hired him.
Then she hit me with one I wasn’t prepared for.
“In your latest movie, The Secret Circle, there’s a scene that has caused some controversy. Some religious groups have protested the movie because it depicts witchcraft, and you reportedly had actual sex in one of the scenes.”
I just stared at her.
“What do you have to say?” she asked, getting impatient.
“I’m sorry; I thought you were making a statement. What is your question?” I asked, getting a chuckle from the other reporters.
“Did you actually have sex in the film? Is that clear enough for you?” she asked.
Everything in me screamed lie! Frank had always said the cover-up was what got you, so I ignored those screams. I also had a mom who was much better at getting the full story out of me than this hack.
“I’m assuming you’re talking about the scene between my character and Diana. Leah Johansen is a fantastic actress who helped me through that difficult scene. After filming it, I understand when actors say that romantic scenes are some of the hardest to do.
“And it’s not like you’re alone. Even if they clear the set, there’s the director, videographers, sound technicians, and in our case, the producer, all of whom remain there. On top of that, I’ve heard horror stories of an actor’s family or significant other being in the room while they shot.
“So you get an idea of how hard a scene like that is. Leah helped me every step of the way. We had to do several takes to get what they wanted on film. I’ve not seen the final product, but people have told me it came off as very realistic. That was all Leah,” I said and then stood up and stepped away from the microphones.
After the interview, Nino stopped me to find out if I’d heard anything from Adrienne. I had to tell him I hadn’t. I assured him I would let them know when she got back to me. Adrienne was either looking for something for them or wasn’t interested. She would let me know when she was ready.
◊◊◊
We took the elevator up to my suite, and I had Paul download his bodycam footage of the last question and response and sent it to Frank. It took him all of five minutes to call me.
“Well, shit. I guess I should have warned you that Leah has been asked about it several times. You’ve not been exposed to the American press, so I wasn’t worried. I suspect that by the time you get back, some other big story will dominate the news rather than whether you had sex.”
“Are we good with the answer I gave?” I asked.
“No, no, I mean, yes. You did great. I’m not sure I would’ve answered the same way, but you put the focus on the process. They’ve heard some of the same stories you have, and they’ll believe you didn’t really have a chance to do it,” Frank said.
“Can you get word to Leah so we keep our story straight?” I asked.
“I already sent it to her people. We’re all good.”
◊◊◊
Coach Conde had two more pitching prospects for this afternoon. It was a good distraction for me while the movie sorted itself out. They were both raw, and I had to eat dirt a few times when pitches got away. But it was good practice for me nonetheless.
I had fun when Coach Conde held practice for the team. He ran them through drills where they had a runner on, and I got to be that runner. I was able to show them that if you kept your head up and paid attention, you could pick up extra bases, and that extra bases turned into scores.
They were not used to my speed. Coach Conde had me show them some speed drills I’d picked up over time. I also showed them the proper footwork to get from point A to point B faster. It was the old story: Coach Conde had taught them how to do it, but it took hearing it from someone else to get them to listen.
After practice, Luis pulled me aside.
“We saw your interview on TV last night. Why didn’t you tell us you could speak Spanish?”
“It never really came up. Plus, you all speak English, and my Spanish isn’t that good,” I explained.
“You need to talk to my sister.”
I just shook my head.
“I know Sarita did something that caused you to quit seeing her, but she has it bad for you. Personally, I don’t see it, but I can’t handle her moping around all the time. Do me a favor and at least sit down with her and tell it’s over,” Luis begged.
“Let me think about it,” was all I could give him.
I really had no desire to ‘break up’ with his sister. Towards the end, I felt it was more of a business arrangement. What was the proper way of not seeing your ‘Cuban girlfriend’ anymore? I was almost positive it didn’t involve a lengthy conversation where you ended up feeling like a jerk.
The other problem was, what would I say? It was probably rude to tell her I didn’t want to date a jinetera. No probably about it, no girl would want to hear that. I’d told Luis that I wasn’t interested in dating a professional. Maybe I read it wrong, but money always seemed to be flying out of my pocket when I ‘dated’ Sarita. Then again, Uncle John always said that if you looked at something hard enough, you would find what you were looking for.
I guess I would’ve felt better about our relationship if I hadn’t heard Sarita talk about me to her friends the way she had. I knew she would never have said what she did if she knew I understood their conversation. The bottom line was she said it. I tried to imagine myself in Sarita’s shoes. For me, it was a character issue. I would never have made those kinds of remarks to my friends about a girl I was out with.
Something else that set off warnings was the ‘good Catholic girl’ image she and Luis had tried to fob off on me. Luis made it sound like she was the Virgin Mary. Maybe it had been Tony who said it, but they made it seem she was a good girl. I’m not the best role model for religion and chastity, but I don’t pretend to be anything I’m not, either.