Chapter 125

"Hello," an accented voice said when Adam answered. "This is Vaclav Nagy from Budapest Casting Company. I'm trying to reach Derrick Driller."

"Speaking," Adam said.

"Ah, good, good," Nagy said. "I assume you've been told of the cancellation of the scheduled shoot there Saturday."

"I have, Mr. Nagy," Adam said. "I hope the fact that Anya Kovec wanted to work with me didn't create a problem."

"It created a problem for RapidFire, not for BCC," Nagy said congenially. "I just wanted to assure you we plan to ensure that not only is Anya compensated for the canceled shoot but that you are paid in full, as well. I have done business in Porn Valley since 1985. Anya's contract is clear. She has the right to choose her costar. RapidFire knew this when they signed it. The fact they didn't expect her to do it doesn't mean they can simply cancel the shoot when she does. I just wanted to ask you to allow my attorneys to handle this."

Adam stammered a bit before he replied.

"Honestly, if Anya gets paid, I'll call it a win," he said. "I'm not worried about it. I took the job because she asked me to. If they will agree to pay her what they said they would, you can offer to drop any claim I might have. Is that acceptable to you?"

"Well, I suppose," the man said. "But I would prefer to have them pay both of you. This is not the last time BCC will come to L.A. this year. We will be back in December, too. I do not want this to get out of hand. I prefer to deal with it from the outset. That is my way, I suppose. I understand from my agent there that your group is responsible for making certain this wasn't a completely wasted trip. I have come to understand from Anya and one of the other girls, that, uh, Five Friends Casting is your business. Do not undersell yourself. I have to tell you, I have heard far more positive comments in the past two days than I usually hear in two years about trips to L.A. Well, the working part of it. The women really enjoy the atmosphere. If I understand correctly, the young women from my agency have worked solely with the gentleman from yours."

"Uh, maybe," Adam said. "We do a lot of work with some of the companies where your stars were scheduled. When they got in a bind with male talent, they called to see if we would help out. They've been good to us, so we agreed. If it were another company – RapidFire, for instance – we probably wouldn't have. Honestly, when the calls started to come in and we agreed, we didn't know who we would be working with. We just knew Daystar and Dazzle and Goldwall needed something and we could help."

"A good working relationship with a studio is very beneficial," Nagy replied. "We used to do that here but then the industry changed. Now we have trouble placing people like Anya. If she wasn't a big name for other things, we could never get her a job here. Ekaterina is an example. She has no real chance to get a big following. She is not a name over here and sadly, she never will be. She had to take jobs doing unsavory things to make a living before she came here. I was very happy to see her get to go to L.A. I am even happier that she is going to be allowed to remain there on a work visa. The young woman I spoke to earlier said that you would make sure that Ekaterina succeeds in life even if she doesn't make it in the industry."

"We'll try," Adam said.

"From what I have heard from my agent, who is my daughter and I trust her, BCC will see a huge benefit from the 'strike, '" Nagy said, chuckling slightly. "Every year I have sent a contingent over there we have had problems. We always have at least one girl and usually more who are unable to fulfill the second portion of the shoots. The men of your industry introduce them to a sort of life they wish they could live here. Budapest and Prague have night clubs, but it is unlike what you have there.

"Two years ago, one of the women died from an overdose of drugs. Four years ago, one disappeared for several days. We found her hospitalized, beaten and raped by people I am positive were associated with her shoot that day. We do not work with that company any longer. This time we have none of that. The women are all accounted for. They all had a good first shoot. They are excited about what they will do next. Your gentlemen treated them well and with respect. It is unusual for them to be treated well by anyone who isn't affiliated with BCC."

Adam wondered how well BCC would treat them if they weren't seeing a profit from the girls but he didn't say anything.

"Anya said there is another shoot this week with two American stars," Nagy continued. "That is a big deal for her. The women in L.A. are hesitant to work with Europeans. I realize that every scene we do takes one away from them. But they come here to work. They go to Prague and to Montreal. It is what I wanted to discuss with you. Would your group like to work here in the future?"

"What?" Adam asked.

"I have seen your web site for Five Friends," Nagy explained. "You have a great deal of talent there. If you and some of your cast came to Budapest, I would set you up with producers over here. I can almost guarantee that top-line talent would wish to work with you. Except for Anya, who needs ... well ... seasoning is the word, the girls we sent are not big names over here. They are known, yes. But they are not well known. It is a good thing for them to gain exposure in America because it is easier for them to succeed there.

"The industry is very limited here. There are language barriers. There are political barriers. There are personality barriers. Ekaterina and Irena are prime examples. Ekaterina is an ethnic Ukrainian whose family is from Russia. She faces too many issues to be accepted in either country. Irena is a Lithuanian of Polish ancestry. She too is marginalized in her own homeland and in the industry. We discriminate here. There are some producers who will not cast a Russian. There are some who won't work with a Polish Lithuanian. The Germans will not cast anyone who is not German, nor will the French cast someone who isn't French. In America, Ekaterina and Irena are just viewed as Europeans. They can build a bigger following there than they can here."

"Really?" Adam asked. "I'm surprised to hear that. We really don't have that issue here. I mean, sure, there are racial issues but not in the industry, not really. For every woman who won't work with an African-American there are a dozen who work solely with that group. Religion and place of birth rarely enter into it."

"We are still ruled in part by those things," Nagy recounted. "There are many hard feelings that still exist from the 70 years of oppression. There is also a sense of nationalism you don't find in the U.S. For example, Serbs are not going to buy a video from a Croat – unless it is to see them beaten. Ethnic Russians face the same problem. The people your age do not remember a time when Europe wasn't free. But the memories remain for men my age. There is no fondness for Russians – particularly in the current climate. I believe many in Russia wish to return to the days when they dominated Eastern and Central Europe."

"Damn," Adam said. Then he apologized for the profanity. He had little knowledge of even U.S. politics, let alone those 5,000 miles away. "I didn't realize. So you're saying Ekaterina's contract reads as it does because she wouldn't find work otherwise?"

"That is a sad but true statement," Nagy said. "Anya can get work even though she is not good at what she does. Ekaterina is a far better actress and performer than Anya. But she has to do what she must do. If she refused to perform certain acts, she would never be hired. So, if you wish to come here to work for a week or just to visit, please know that BCC will help you. I also want you to know that we here are pleased that our young women are working with Five Friends. If we can cast something else for Anya on Saturday, we wish for you to work with her again. I hope we can continue this relationship in December when our next tour comes over."

"I'm sure we would be happy to consider that," Adam answered. He hung up the phone, shaking his head as we entered the dining room. All eyes turned to face him.

"Saturday is off, at least for me," Adam said with a shrug. "I'm not sure how sincere the guy was but he said all the right things. He wants to make sure I get paid, too. Oh, and he wants us to come to Budapest to work on projects over there."

Sean dropped his fork.

"Seriously?" he wondered.

Adam shrugged again. He didn't see what the big deal was. It wasn't like they were going to pack their bags that very instant and head over.

"Yeah, his group is coming back in December and they want to make sure we can work with their starlets," Adam said. "He said if some of us want to head over there, he'd find jobs for us."

"International sex star," Mary giggled. Sean was more serious.

"I think you should," he said. "It will be good exposure for you, no pun intended. It would raise your profile and the profile of Five Friends. You know, I've been thinking of this since we spoke this morning. Five Friends could have offices in several countries. We could expand it to Europe. I think America and Europe is where most of the industry works. It's not going to do us any good to stop what happened to Kristi Clear over here if we don't stop it from happening to people like Ekaterina Federova over there."

Adam repeated the explanation Vaclav Nagy had given him on the nuances of Central and Eastern European society.

"But you're going to represent her over here, aren't you?" Rachelle wondered.

"Uh, that's not my call," Adam said. "Those decisions are left to Sarah, with input from the others. I liked Ekaterina and Anya well enough but the business end of it is left to them."

"What do you think?" Sarah asked.

"If she wants to stay in the business, I think we should offer," Adam said after a moment's thought. "I think we might be required to do it if we sponsor her visa. But either way, it sounds like she'll have a better life over here. Shelly, you saw the same things I saw. What do you say?"

"I said it already," Shelly said simply. "When I made those calls, I said what I intended to say. I don't care if she works for Five Friends or Subarctic or whatever. But we have to do whatever we can to make sure she doesn't have to live that sort of life. If we can turn Europe around, I think we should. But if it turns out we can only help out one person at a time, I think we're obligated to do that, too."

"I called Celina and she is working with Arthur to expedite the process," Sean said. "I thought it was a done deal. I didn't realize it was still being debated. She might have to go back with the group, but we can bring her back in a few weeks if she wants to come. It's all we can do right now. So, Adam, are you free tonight?"

"Well, cheap is probably a better description," Erin said. Adam rolled his eyes but told Sean he was available.

"I went over the accounting report today with one of my professors," Sean said. "He had some suggestions but he said we're on the right track. The idea about salaries instead of dividends was a big hit with him. Do you realize if we open up a series of mid-term certificates of deposit with 20 percent of the money, we will be able to pay our salaries and never touch the remaining principle? The same is true with the educational trust. We literally could set things up, see proportional benefits and still have the money. It was a good idea."

Adam didn't want to crow so he nodded.

"So, how did they like your surprise?" Walt asked.

"They haven't seen it yet," Adam said. "I was on the phone since we finished. I'll show them after supper."

"After we go over the report," Sean smiled. "Because I think you're going to be thanked well into the night."

The report only took a few minutes – thankfully. The girls would peek into the room every few seconds to see if they were finished yet. They knew Adam had been working on something in the workshop, but they didn't know what.

He made them close their eyes before they stepped into the room. The basement was set up with a laundry room at the base of the stairs, with a large bathing facility beside it. The bedroom, once a living room, took up almost two-thirds of the entire space.

There was astonished silence when the girls opened their eyes.

"Adam!" Allie said loudly, "you got Walt to make us a bed!"

"I made it," Adam said softly.

All eyes turned to him.

"You did?" Erin asked. "I mean, you know how to do this? This is awesome."

Adam explained his woodwork from high school and the tricks his father had taught him. That made it even more special to the girls.

"I wasn't able to get a mattress," Adam said. "I Googled custom mattresses and everything else I could think of. I got nothing even remotely in our price range. The cheapest one I could find was almost $6,000. Plus, well, I'm not sure how we'd get it down the stairs. This was hard enough."

"We'll figure it out if it becomes a problem," Sarah said. "I've been thinking we might just make custom sheets to fit over both mattresses."

"I can bring mine down!" Rebecca said, slapping her head. "I, well, the house is either going on the market or to Subarctic. I decided to live in L.A. permanently. I told my folks on Sunday."

"Bet that went well," Karlie said.

"They're happy for me," Rebecca said. "I mean, they're not crazy about the turn my life is taking but they can't argue with the results. I'm happy and I'm financially secure at age 20. They're financially secure but I think they're both miserable at 45. Honestly, I'm surprised they didn't get a divorce when I moved out. But they're still together even if they're apart most of the time. I'm going back up there Friday after class to pack up my things."

"I'll go with you," Erin offered.

"Me, too," Trinity said.

"I'd offer but I'm booked," Adam said. "Well, maybe I am. I'll know more later."

"All I'm taking right now is my clothes," Rebecca related. "We have enough kitchen stuff and bathroom stuff. The rest of the house is staying as is. When it's sold, I think it will get a better price if we include the authentic furnishings. Actually, I can see it returning to its roots. I think Subarctic – or I – will have an easy time selling it. It's pure profit whatever I do."