Defying Fate: The Unstoppable Eileen

 noveldrama

Calvert was gobsmacked.

He didn't have time to think, blurting out, "Save her, for God's sake!"

Eileen quipped, "That'll be cash upfront, right?"

Calvert rushed, "Yes, yes, yes!"

What's fifty grand? Aurora's fee for a single movie was at least several million. Fifty grand to save her life, it's a no-brainer!

Eileen rolled her eyes and told Hobson, "Fetch some water, will you?"

"I'll help," Calvert offered eagerly.

Eileen shot him a glance, saying, "Don't think your help's going to get you a discount. If you want to offer some help, hurry up and bring a lot. The quicker the better."

Then she turned to Egbert, "You stay put. You're a premium caretaker, not included in the fifty grand."

Egbert, standing aside and taking a damp cloth from her hands, chuckled, "Caretaker?"

Eileen frowned, "Just don't go!"

Egbert replied softly, "Alright, I won't."

With a bunch of bottled water in their arms, Hobson and Calvert hurried to fetch water.

Calvert thought they were heading to the shore, but they ended up at a mountain spring.

He exclaimed, "There's fresh water here?"

Hobson filled the bottles, explaining, "Ms. Lopez said the crew's tough, but they wouldn't strand us without water. Plus, the wildlife needs to drink too, right?"

Calvert realized that if he had known about the fresh water sooner, Aurora wouldn't have gotten so sick.

He was about to drink from his cupped hands when Hobson stopped him, "Ms. Lopez warned us, wild water's got parasites. We gotta boil it first!" Startled, Calvert dumped the water and helped fill the bottles.

On their way back, they stumbled upon a snake!

Calvert froze, ready to bolt, but Hobson held him still, "Ms. Lopez mentioned these snakes are practically blind. Stand still, and it'll move on. We've seen them near camp."

Calvert, reassured, stayed put and soon the snake slithered away.

They hurried back to camp and handed the water to Eileen.

Outside the tent, Calvert overheard Eileen instructing Sylvia on cooling Aurora down with physical methods and herbal rubs. Aurora was getting better.

Calvert's heart finally eased when he heard she was out of danger.

Suddenly, the rumble of the production crew's helicopter filled the air.

Eileen glanced up as the helicopter hovered, doors open, ladder dropped, but nobody descended.

Sylvia emerged, supporting a now conscious Aurora.

Everyone caught sight of Aurora. But then, silence.

"What's up?" Aurora looked puzzled, turning to Calvert, "Why that look?"

Calvert hesitated, his voice awkward, "Your face..." Why's it green? But Calvert didn't finished his words.

Aurora touched her cheek, confused.

Eileen commented nonchalantly, "Making a fuss over nothing. It's just the herbs, they haven't soaked in yet."

Calvert was taken aback. Then the assistant director's voice came through a drone, "Ms. Lopez! Don't you hold our staff hostage!"

Eileen raised an eyebrow, leaning against a tree, "I never said I would."

Still wary, the assistant director demanded, "Swear it!"

Eileen replied coldly, "Ridiculous. What do I care if Aurora lives or dies?"

After a pause, a medic finally descended, looking cautious and carrying a first aid kit and a personal alarm. He warned Eileen, "Stay back!" Eileen rolled her eyes, ignoring him.

The medic, reassured by Eileen's indifference, retreated to Aurora's side, and after a quick check, reported, "She seems fine overall, but she does have a bit of body odor..."

Aurora froze, giving the medic a disbelieving look before automatically retorting, "I don't have body odor."

The medic continued to the assistant director, "She's refusing to acknowledge the body odor; seems fully alert though..."

"What do you mean refusing to acknowledge? I really don't have body odor!" Aurora asserted, her patience wearing thin.

Eileen chuckled mischievously, whispering to Egbert, "I slipped some stinkweed into her clothes."

Egbert was taken aback, but then he affectionately ruffled her hair, "You're a handful."

Proudly, Eileen puffed out her chest.

Aurora continued to dispute the body odor issue with the medic— a matter of dignity for an actress.

The nurse was clearly vexed as he furrowed his brow and said, “Ms. Bell, please stop interrupting me. I'm trying to explain your condition to you, and you should know that coming down here to get you was quite risky!"

As he spoke, his gaze suddenly sharpened towards Eileen, who was whispering something to Egbert.

Eileen rolled her eyes, speechless.

Aurora went silent. Ultimately, Aurora boarded the helicopter with the medical staff, but she never uttered a word of thanks to Eileen.

Due to the cramped space on the chopper, they couldn't fit Calvert, so the crew said they'd come back for him later.

Calvert raised no objections.

Eileen watched the helicopter fly away without saying anything. After a while, she turned to the drone and said, "I saved your guest from a life- threatening situation. You owe me a thank you, don't you?"

The assistant director was taken aback before he grabbed the walkie-talkie and said, "...Thank you, Ms. Lopez."

Eileen, swinging her leg nonchalantly, said, "That's it?"

The assistant director immediately sensed trouble, "What else do you want?"

Eileen started ticking off on her fingers, "First off, the water I used to cool down Aurora came from a natural source extracted from the unique sand layers in the Northern part of Southeast Asia's Usha Archipelago, formed from a massive river system's sediment over twenty million years. This water is precious and rare, rich in minerals, and consuming it long-term can replenish a person's nutritional elements."

The assistant director was speechless.

What? Wasn't that water just from the stream in the valley?

Eileen continued, "Secondly, the herbal remedy I used to clean Aurora is known as 'Eldwood Herb,' hailed as the 'heavenly grass' among mortals. So, you can imagine how rare and extraordinary this herb is."

The assistant director rolled his eyes.

Huh? Weren't those herbs just picked from the makeshift outhouse on the hillside?

By now, Eileen had her hands on her hips, staring up at the drone with a brazen look, "I won't ask for much else. Just lend me that helicopter for a spin. I want to touch the sky."