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Two hours feels like a short lived reprieve after the night they've had. Ryland feels a gentle shake to his shoulder. He groans and tries to nestle in further. It’s way too soon.
“I know, I know but you need to wake up,” he hears Tom say. “Wardrobe crew will be here anytime now.”
Ryland groggily separates himself from Tom's side. He goes to stretch and immediately regrets it, grimacing at the pain in his abdomen and ribs. He's hardly well-rested, but he feels better than he did before this short break. It hasn’t erased the aches and pains of the night previous. Those are still stubbornly present, but he does feel a little less stressed. His head feels a bit more clear. Once he allows him freedom, Tom changes into an honestly pretty plain outfit by his standards.
“Is that my shirt?” Ryland asks.
Tom looks down, “‘I had potential’ hmmm so it is.”
The mundanity of it makes Ryland snort. It's just so odd considering the circumstances.
“It might look better on you than me,” Ryland compliments in an offhanded way.
“That's impossible, you look good in everything,” Tom pauses and gives Ryland a once over, before closing the distance between them. He reaches down and helps Ryland up to standing. “As much as I'd like nothing more than to keep wooing you, we need to get out of here.”
They take five or so minutes to pack up what little they have and set the room back the way it was. Ryland pulls on his hoodie, putting the hood up, and laces his sneakers before following Tom to the door. Tom peeks through as he cracks it open. The coast must be clear. He grabs hold of Ryland's hand and leads them out.
“We should find Dan or Jody,” Ryland proposes. “See if they've heard from Colt. They could help us deal with Gail too.”
“Good idea,” Tom agrees.
Ryland takes over, heading in the direction of Jody’s trailer. Their route ends up being a bit less direct as they try their best to avoid people. On more than one occasion Tom pulls him back to duck behind a piece of equipment, canopy or trailer.
When he hears Dressler’s voice Ryland freezes. Dread fills him. Fear makes his limbs lock. Tom calls his name not once or twice, but three times and snaps him out of it. He can hear Dressler getting closer, demanding voice asking where Tom or Ryland or Dan are to various people as he approaches. Tom tilts his head to the right to indicate a direction and gives Ryland's hand a squeeze. As they go to hide, Ryland trips. He loses his grip on Tom's hand and falls. Fudge. His knees impact the ground.
“Agh,” he chokes out. Dressler is just around the corner, based on the sound of his voice as he accosts another member of the crew or cast. Ryland feels panic rise inside him. They are about to be caught. All due to Ryland’s lack of coordination. Tom immediately turns around grabbing Ryland from behind at his upper body to help him up. They book it and duck into the stunt crew's canopy behind a road box, breathing labored.
Ryland tries to cover up the sound of his breathing by covering his mouth with his hands. His heart is hammering in his chest. It feels so loud. Tom snakes an arm around his shoulders and pulls him closer. Ryland realizes then that he isn’t the only one with an elevated pulse.
Ryland jumps when a female stunt performer peers over the box. He recognizes her as Iggy's double. They haven't interacted a lot, but she's always been friendly. She definitely recognizes them.
“Watchya doin’ down there, boys?” She asks.
Ryland looks at her anxiously about to stutter out an answer as Dressler enters the canopy and starts asking after them. She takes a quick glance at them curled up behind the road box. Ryland doesn’t know what she picks up on from the sight, but she must figure out it's anything but good. She turns her body and takes a step forward. She creates a barrier while sipping her coffee casually. When Dressler approaches her, she holds her ground. Declines ever seeing them.
She waits a minute after Dressler clears out to turn back to them, “That guy is a piece-ah-work, huh?” she points in the direction Dressler left in. “So, what’s the deal?”
“We’re just trying to find Dan or get to Jody’s trailer,” Tom responds.
“Haven’t seen Dan yet, though he might be hiding too if that guy’s lurking around for him,” she says. “To be honest I'm kinda surprised to see ya here with what happened with Colt.”
“Oh um the whole murder thing?” Ryland asks, nervously. Tom grasps his hand a little tighter.
“Well yeah, but also the whole explosion in the harbor,” she responds. Ryland has no idea what she’s talking about. It must show because she tilts her head questioningly. “Ya don’t know?”
Ryland really doesn’t like where this is going but he presses for more anyway, “Know what?”
She looks conflicted and shifts awkwardly. She says nothing and takes another sip from her cup.
“Tell me,” Ryland demands, before realizing and softening it a bit. “Please?”
“Colt died last night in the harbor. Huge fiery explosion. It was all over the news. Sorry I’m the one telling ya,” She says it softly and sympathetically. As tears spring to Ryland’s eyes she steps away, trying to give him some privacy.
Ryland turns to Tom. His heart aches with despair. Colt is dead? That can't be. Impossible. He feels Tom pull him somehow closer before he even realizes he’s crying. His breathing comes in gasps. His whole body shaking.
“Tom… This can’t be real,” Ryland pleads. “H-he can’t be dead.”
Tom’s silence weighs heavy in the air. It’s devastating. This feels like a nightmare. Ryland tries to cover up his sobs with his hand. Tries to quiet them so they don’t get found because of the noise. Failing that he bites down on the knuckles of his right hand. It takes Tom only a minute to notice before he is trying to extricate the hand from his teeth.
“You’re going to hurt yourself,” Tom says as he grasps Ryland’s hand. “Colt wouldn’t die like that. You’re right. He’s too stubborn. Until there’s a body there’s still hope.”
It’s a morbid thought, but comforting still. Ryland blinks back a few tears. He needs to pull himself together. For Colt. Deep breaths. Clenched fists. His eyes sting with unshed tears. It takes him a few minutes longer to calm himself to a point where he feels ready to keep going. Tom’s hand squeezing his shoulder helps. It's grounding and comforting. His breathing is still shaky but it’s the best he can do for now. He feels a bit fragile, emotionally. He tells himself that he can break down fully later if it turns out to be true. At this point they need to proceed as if Colt is still alive. It's better than accepting the alternative.
They sneak out from behind the road box. The female stunt performer turns back toward them and walks over.
“A couple of the guys are misdirecting Dressler and his guys to the other side of the set. You should hopefully be able to get to Jody’s trailer without many more issues,” she tells them still with an apologetic tone to her voice. She winces when she notices Ryland’s tearful expression.
Ryland feels guilty for a moment. It's not her fault that he didn’t know. That she ended up the one telling him such terrible news. He gives her a weak smile and thanks her for her help.
“Let's go,” Tom grabs his hand once more as they make their exit.
A knock on the trailer door makes Colt and Jody scramble. He has just finished getting her up to speed on everything that has happened. There were a few points he struggled with. He is still trying to figure out where Tom stands in all this. There's also the question if Ryland made it away safely. In a way he is counting on Tom to have taken care of Ryland. It's in direct conflict with the part that still doesn't know if Tom can be trusted. At least fully. What he does know is that Tom clearly cares for Ryland. He hopes that outweighs anything else. Regardless if he sees Tom he fully intends to give him a piece of his mind.
The costume he's wearing proves to be too bulky to fit through the tiny bathroom door. Colt ends up hiding in the bedroom.
Colt listens as she answers the door.
“Oh thank god,” she sounds relieved.
There's a moment of silence. It's broken by a voice Colt doesn't expect.
“You gonna let us in?” Tom's voice carries through the trailer. “We’re kinda trying to be discreet here.”
“Yeah. Yeah…” Colt is already rounding the corner as Jody replies. He spots Ryland first standing next to Tom. Their shoulders are touching fingers loosely entwined.
“Colt?” Ryland gasps. Colt strides past him. He’ll hug him in a second but he has something else he’s wanted to do for a while now that’s far overdue. He rears back and punches Tom right in the cheek. Tom stumbles away holding his face. It's not that hard of a punch. He just wants to hurt him a little bit.
“You goddamn asshole,” Colt growls as he goes to grab Tom by the front of his shirt. “I should beat the shit outta you.”
Ryland pushes Colt’s arm away and steps between them, “Save it for later.”
Suddenly, Ryland wraps his arms around him. Colt almost loses his balance at the force of it. Colt returns the embrace, hard. He wishes more than anything right now that he wasn’t wearing this costume so he could get closer. Ryland stiffens and hisses through his teeth. Colt almost lets go at the sound. He had no way of knowing how and where Ryland might be injured, just that he clearly had taken a few hits. His torso must be a bit tender to elicit that noise.
Ryland stops him from retreating, “Not yet”
Colt doesn’t attempt to back off again. He just keeps his grip a little looser. He can feel Ryland take a couple of deep breaths. He can imagine the smell is not pleasant, but Ryland doesn’t pull away. He hasn’t had an opportunity to clean up. It’s been a long time since they’ve hugged. It’s something they’ve taken for granted. Something Colt has taken for granted. They almost lost each other again after just getting back on favorable terms. Colt doesn’t want to let go. This reunion feels long overdue even if it's only been a single night since they saw each other.
“I just found out you died a few minutes ago,” Ryland mutters.
“Well here I am very clearly not dead,” Colt jokes. “I wasn’t about to let those guys get me.”
Jody clears her throat, “This is all well and good, but I think we have some planning to do.”
Colt sighs. She’s right.
As they separate Colt notices the lack of blood on Ryland. His face is cleaned and the cut near his temple has been bandaged. He looks at Tom over Ryland’s shoulder and raises a brow. Tom just shrugs and waves a hand in a casual gesture. Colt’s not about to thank him for anything, but he can appreciate that Tom took care of Ryland. Tom’s the reason they are in this mess after all.
Colt can feel the tension as they all sit around the table in Jody’s trailer. Colt sits in the rolling chair from Jody’s desk as the rest of them scoot into the bench seats. The costume he’s wearing a bit too bulky to allow him to sit on the bench. He knows he’s part of the reason that tense feeling exists. The other being Tom. They just need to function for a little while. It doesn’t stop him from sending glares in Tom’s direction as he begins to peel off the outer layers of his disguise. Ryland tries to get him to stop with a judgmental look and a poke to the ribs. Colt jumps and squawks in surprise. Jody rolls her eyes and pulls out her phone. They use Jody’s phone to locate Tom’s with the “Find my phone” app. It’s not necessarily accurate or perfectly precise, but its last known location appears to be Gail’s trailer. It gives them a starting point. It's the best shot they have.
They need to distract Gail long enough that one of them can get in there and hopefully find it. Colt aims a meaningful look at Tom then at the mock up of the set.
“Let’s finish the movie,” Colt gestures to Tom. “You can do your big monologue. She can’t pull anything in front of all those people. While she’s focused on you and keeping up appearances, Ryland can sneak into her trailer.”
“What if the phone isn’t actually there?” Ryland frets.
“Maybe Tom can get her talking while he’s mic’d up.” Colt suggests. “It could work if all else fails.”
“How do you expect her to trust me? She isn’t going to tell me anything.” Tom gives Colt a pointed look.
Ryland looks thoughtful. “Tell her I broke up with you. Give her a sob story. That you’re ready to cooperate? You can figure it out. Sell me out if you have to.”
“So Jody does business as usual. Ryland sneaks around and I trick Gail,” Tom tilts his head resting his chin on his hand. He shifts his gaze to Colt. “What’re you doing then?”
“I’m going to keep security out of the way,” Like it’s that simple. Colt looks over to Jody. “Can we get stunt set to prepare some traps in the valley?”
“What are you thinking?” Jody asks, suspicious.
“I’m thinking a car chase could be in order and having a bit of cover and a few surprises might be nice. Plus your film needs a good ending. We could still do the car jump. Kill two birds with one stone,” Colt smirks.
“The film is hardly a priority,” Jody toys with one of the small cars attached to a stick on the set mock up. Twirling it a bit.
“It is for me,” Colt grabs her hand. “You worked so hard on this, we have to try.”
Jody looks conflicted. Colt knows that she wants her film to be as epic as her vision. The situation has become muddied with all the extracurricular drama going on. It’s created a mountain of tasks for them to complete on top of an already large pile of work. A stunt like the car jump isn’t an easy thing to do. Add in clearing Colt’s name and all the tasks that requires and it makes for a complicated mess. Even so, she deserves to have her film. If they don’t try to do it now they may never get a chance. Colt doesn’t want to let her compromise her work.
“Fine, we’ll set that up, but if it doesn’t work out we aren’t going to force it,” Jody concedes. “Priority one is getting enough evidence to clear your name and pin down Gail.”
A knock on the trailer door causes all of them to freeze and go silent. Jody ushers Ryland, Tom and Colt back to the bedroom. She yells to whoever is out there that she’ll be “just a second.” She answers the door.
It’s Gail.
She tries to get Jody to give up on Metalstorm. Jody refuses. She tells Gail she has a plan for how to finish the movie. That she can put her grief on hold for the day. If Tom still doesn’t show up they can use VFX if needed to put his face on someone. She tells Gail that they need the big grand finale. Gail resists very little. As she exits she informs Jody that a chopper will be arriving in the afternoon and that she will be leaving at that time.
The whole time Colt can’t tell for sure, but it seems like Ryland is purposely placing himself between him and Tom. They can’t speak or even whisper if they want to avoid detection. It doesn’t stop some rather heated looks being shared between them. Tom smirks and pulls Ryland closer to him and kisses him on the temple. Colt rolls his eyes. Ryland pinches the bridge of his nose and exhales frustratedly while a blush creeps on his face. Trying to keep silent is a chore right now. As soon as Gail walks out Colt goes back to join Jody to ensure they’ve got the plan completely set.
At this time Jody is the only one of them that can walk about freely. She hands a radio off to Ryland taking her spare with her just in case. Her first goal is to go to wardrobe and retrieve Tom’s Space Cowboy costume and potentially something less cumbersome for Colt. The silence stretches awkwardly. Uncomfortably. Ryland shifts a bit and fiddles with the zipper on his hoodie.
“So… you two are still a thing,” Colt observes.
Ryland isn’t entirely sure, but that didn’t sound like a question. It's pretty obvious anyway. Colt looks at their joined hands. They’ve been touching on and off this whole time. Then at Tom’s shirt. Or rather Ryland’s shirt that Tom is wearing. They are not being subtle about it at all, especially Tom. He seems to be unable to go five minutes without some kind of physical contact. Ryland doesn’t mind.
Tom must be feeling a little petty. He lets go of Ryland’s hand and opts to hug him from behind instead, resting his chin on Ryland’s shoulder. Colt tries to look disinterested but Ryland can tell he is at least irritated. Possibly cusping on contempt.
“Yeah, we are,” Ryland confirms.
“Ryland,” Colt huffs with disappointment. “He killed Henry.”
“We talked about it,” Tom gestures between himself and Ryland. “I was going to turn myself in for it. Still planning to actually,” Tom pauses and sighs in irritation. “Gail threatened to have Ryland killed if I did.”
Colt narrows his eyes but keeps his attention on Ryland, “He almost killed me.”
“Again that was all Gail’s idea. If anything I saved you,” Tom argues.
Ryland feels incredibly awkward standing in the middle of this. Especially with Colt addressing him and Tom answering instead. Maybe they need to hash this out. He hopes it ends well. He knows they’ll never be perfect friends, but it’d be nice if they could at least be amicable. In a lot of ways they are actually pretty similar to one another. Tom just has a tendency to be more abrasive. Ryland could leave, go back in the bedroom and let them go at it. He thinks better of it. Best to stay and be ready to play ref if things get out of hand. He has no doubt that given the opportunity Colt might try for a more physical altercation. Plus he doesn’t mind Tom clinging on to him.
Colt's concerns and arguments are valid. Ryland knows he must seem insane for sticking with Tom from an outside view like Colt's. If the roles were somehow reversed Ryland might feel the same way. Its the fact that Tom plans to take accountability that makes Ryland willing to overlook it. That and Tom was being coerced. Ryland isn't sure, but he thinks if someone he loved was on the line he might have made similar decisions.
“And I suppose my fall wasn’t you either?” That feels out of the blue. Ryland thinks Colt must have been letting that one fester for a while.
“What are you even talking about? What reason would he have for that?” Ryland interjects.
“We had a fight and then I had a workplace accident. Seems pretty connected to me,” Colt takes a step closer. Ryland wonders if he’s accidentally become a human shield for Tom. He’s certain the only reason Colt hasn’t manhandled Tom yet is because his body is in the way.
Ryland considers it for a second. It’s not an unfair assumption, but that’s what it is. An assumption. That’s not evidence.
“Correlation isn’t causation, Colt,” Ryland insists. Colt gives him a look as if what he just said was completely absurd.
“Did you really just try to ‘teacher’ me?” Colt makes air quotes on the word teacher. “No wait, nevermind that. He was by the control board, Ryland.”
“Do you want me to say it again?” Ryland tilts his head while raising a brow.
Tom removes himself from Ryland and steps in front. “Colt, I promise you that I did not do that. I don’t know how it happened, but it wasn’t me.”
They have what equates to a stare down. Ryland prepares himself to jump in. Colt focuses like he’s trying to tell if Tom is lying. Ryland knows that Tom has given Colt little reason to trust in anything he says. Ryland meets his brother’s eyes. Pleading with him.
Colt frowns, “Fine,” he crosses his arms. “I believe you.” Tom’s posture relaxes before Colt continues, “You’re still an asshole. I really wanna beat the shit outta you, but I can wait.”
“Well, thank you for your patience, I guess,” Tom returns sarcastically.
While they hash it out Ryland finds himself thinking about that day. It's one of his more vivid memories. Clearly something that Colt has been stuck on as well. It makes sense. It was a horrifying day. If the aftermath was bad for Ryland, he knows it was absolutely devastating for Colt. It really derailed Colt’s life. That Colt brought up the control board makes Ryland pause. Tom wasn’t the only one near there. His brows furrow. This is an equation that’s missing parts, but it's not impossible.
He comes back to the present when he feels a hand run through his hair, “There you are, lost you for a second there,” Tom says. “What’s got you thinking so hard?”
Colt stands off to the side, leaning against the trailer wall. Curiosity covers his features. Ryland looks between the two of them. It appears that neither is sporting any fresh bruises or abrasions. They must’ve been able to keep it strictly to words.
“Gail,” Ryland starts.
“I guess that makes sense, she's a huge problem,” Tom agrees.
“No no no, listen,” Ryland twists his fingers together a bit. “Gail was by the board that day too.”
Colt stands a bit straighter. Tom tilts his head. Something seems to come together for both of them. Ryland can see gears turning.
“You’re right but,” Colt pauses. “Why would she… What reason could she possibly have had?”
“I don’t know. It’s not actually evidence. Just like with your accusation of Tom. It’s plausible,” Ryland looks at Tom. Tom seems to understand instantly.
“I’ll see what I can find out, if anything” Tom bumps shoulders with Ryland then looks at Colt. “What’s one more thing on the list?”
Jody returns with two identical Space Cowboy costumes for Tom and Colt. They change on the spot, not caring about privacy. Maybe it’s a film or actor thing. Ryland doesn’t know. Colt goes to clean up a bit once he's fully dressed. Ryland goes over to Jody. She hands him her phone to use to help locate Tom’s. His number is already in it as well as the find my phone app logged in for his account. Tom and Jody exit. Jody will radio him as soon as she has eyes on Gail. When the call comes through, Ryland and Colt sneak their way to Gail’s trailer. It's go time.