The Last Don - Mario Puzo [214]
Deere kissed Liza on both cheeks. “I saw you in New York,” he said. “Marvelous performance.” He paused for a moment and said, “I hope you’ll take the part in my new movie. Melo thinks it will be your breakthrough on film.”
Liza gave him a cold smile. “I have to see the script,” she said. Deere felt that flash of resentment he always felt. She was getting the break of her life and she wanted to see a fucking script. He could see Melo smiling with amusement.
“Of course,” Deere said. “But believe me I would not send you a script that was not worthy of your talent.”
Melo, never as ardent a lover as he was a businessman, said, “Liza, we can guarantee you the leading female role in an A feature. The script is not a sacred text as in the theater. It can be changed to please you.”
Liza gave him a slightly warmer smile. She said, “You believe that crap too? Stage plays are rewritten. What do you think we do when we try them out of town?”
Before they could answer, Jim Losey and Dante Clericuzio entered the apartment. Deere rushed over to greet them and introduce them to the others at the party.
Losey and Dante were an almost comical pair. Losey, tall, handsome, impeccably tailored—full shirt and tie, despite the intense July heat of Vegas. And Dante beside him, his hugely muscled body bulging out of a T-shirt, his brightly jeweled Renaissance cap crowning his black ropy hair, and so short. All the others in the room, experts in make-believe worlds, knew these two were not make-believe, despite their weirdness. Their faces were too blank and cold. That could not be duplicated with shadows.
Losey immediately addressed Athena and told her how he looked forward to seeing her in Messalina. He abandoned his intimidating style and was almost fawning. Women had always found him charming, could Athena be an exception?
Dante helped himself to a drink and sat on the sofa. No one came near him except Claudia. They had not seen each other more than three times over the years, all they had in common were childhood memories. Claudia kissed him on the cheek. When they were children he had tormented her, but she always remembered him with a certain fondness.
Dante reached up to give her a hug. “Cugina, you look beautiful. If you looked like that when we were kids I would never have beaten you up so much.”
Claudia plucked his Renaissance hat from his head. “Cross told me about your hats. They make you look cute.” She put the hat on her head. “Even the Pope doesn’t have a hat this cute.”
“And he has a lot of hats,” Dante said. “Now who would have thought you’d become such a big wheel in the movie business.”
“What do you do these days?” Claudia asked.
“I run a meat company,” Dante said. “We supply the hotels.” He smiled, then asked, “Listen, could you introduce me to your beautiful star?”
Claudia brought him over to Athena, who was still cornered by Jim Losey putting on his charm. Athena smiled at Dante’s Renaissance hat. Dante made himself look disarmingly comical.
Losey continued on with his flattery. “I know your movie will be great,” he told her. “After the wrap party maybe you’ll let me be your bodyguard back to the Villa, then we can have a drink together.” He was playing the good cop role.
Athena was at her best refusing an advance. She smiled at him sweetly. “I’d love to,” she said. “But I’m only going to stay a half hour at the party and I wouldn’t want you to miss it. I have to catch an early plane tomorrow, then I fly to France. I simply have too many things to do.”
Dante was admiring her. He could see she loathed Losey and that she was afraid of him. But she had made Losey think he could somehow have a shot at her.
“I can fly with you to L.A.,” Losey said. “What time is your flight?”
“You are nice,” Athena said. “But it’s a small private charter and all the