The Best Movie Actor In Hollywood!

Chapter 626

Under the cover of night, Brown trailed Matthew at a discreet distance. The moment he spotted the Israeli actress, he immediately slowed his pace, instinctively stepping aside. As a bodyguard, he knew his boss’s habits and understood that this was his cue to keep his distance.

The pair stopped near a large truck on the edge of the encampment, and from his vantage point, Brown simply observed.

Brown wasn't worried. Matthew never left his sight, and he was both vigilant and agile enough to be virtually unmatched in hand-to-hand combat.

“What are they doing over there?” Gal Gadot wondered aloud. “Fixing a tire in the middle of the night?”

Matthew shook his head. “To keep paparazzi from sneaking onto the set, Jack makes the full-time crew wear standard-issue coveralls and ID badges every day.”

Gadot craned her neck to get a better look, then quickly pulled back, whispering, “They’re taking the tire off, but it looks like they’re loading something inside it.”

Hearing this, Matthew peeked out. Two Latino men were jacking up a van and removing a tire. One of them pulled a square object, about the size of a child's fist, from a black bag beside them. In the dim light, he could just make out that it was wrapped in plastic tape.

Suddenly, another man appeared from the front of the vehicle. “Are you done yet?” he demanded in a low voice. “Hurry up!”

Although it was dark and unlikely they had been spotted, Matthew instinctively flinched back. A moment later, however, he saw that the newcomer was wearing the crew’s standard coveralls.

“Hurry it up!” the low, raspy voice urged again. “The patrol is due to pass through here in about ten minutes, by my count!”“Don’t worry,” another voice said. “It’ll be fine.”

A different voice chimed in. “Are you sure no one’s going to check the convoy on the way back to L.A.?”

The raspy voice answered, “No way! Absolutely not. This is a major Hollywood production! A film with state tax credits in California. No cop is ever going to pull it over.”

The voice dropped even lower. “You have to understand, this is Matthew Horner’s movie! The LAPD wouldn’t dare pull his convoy over for no reason. He’s furious with them. Two years ago, someone stole underwear from his house, and the case is still unsolved. Horner has been putting pressure on the department ever since. They say the top brass practically hides whenever they see him coming.”

“Stolen underwear?” Gal Gadot couldn’t suppress a quiet laugh.

“Shh,” Matthew whispered, turning to her with a gesture to be quiet.

Gadot knew this was no time for laughter. She quickly clapped a hand over her mouth, but her shoulders still shook with suppressed giggles.

Matthew risked another cautious glance. The two men seemed to be fitting one of the square packages behind the tire.

Right beside him, Gal Gadot peeked out as well, her head very close to his as she looked toward the truck.

The man who had approached the others earlier suddenly snapped his head in their direction.

Instantly, they both ducked back into the shadows.

“They’re...” Gadot began in a low voice. “What are they doing?”

Matthew, who had been in Hollywood long enough to recognize this kind of scene from a mile away, said quietly, “If I’m not mistaken, they’re using the crew’s van to transport drugs.”

A spark of excitement lit up Gadot’s eyes. “So they’re drug traffickers?”

“Looks like it.” Matthew’s expression was cautious.

Gal Gadot was suddenly energized. “So, is it time for the Hollywood hero to make his entrance?”

Matthew didn't follow. “What?”

Gadot leaned closer and whispered, “Let’s take them down!”

She made a quick gesture. “I’ll slip around and take the guy in front. You handle the two changing the tire.”

Without waiting for a response, she added confidently, “Don’t worry. I was involved in plenty of operations during my military service.”

Matthew warned her, “This is no joke! They could be armed!”

What drug trafficker in Mexico wasn't armed? Shooting at Mexican police was practically a pastime for them; shootouts with special forces were hardly uncommon.

He grabbed one of Gadot’s hands, stopping the Israeli ex-soldier from charging toward the men.

Peeking out again to confirm the men were still preoccupied, Matthew decided to contact Brown. Unable to use his radio, he pressed a button on the collar of his shirt.

A moment later, Brown emerged from the darkness. Matthew quickly gave him a silent gesture, and the bodyguard softened his footsteps.

“Drug traffickers,” Matthew whispered. “They’re using a crew vehicle to move their product.”

Brown moved to the edge of their cover, peered out, then nodded, signaling that he understood. He turned back to Matthew and Gadot. “You two should go.”

For a bodyguard, the client’s safety was paramount.

Without a word, Matthew pulled Gadot back the way they came, agreeing that nothing was more important than his own life.

Fearing they might alert the traffickers, Gadot remained silent until they were a good distance away. “Are we really just going to walk away?” she finally asked.

Matthew, confident they were out of earshot, replied, “Don’t worry, they won’t get away from Brown. He’s already called in the rest of the security detail. They’re all elite counter-terrorism veterans; handling a few drug runners will be a piece of cake.”

Gadot gave a hint of a smile. “You really value your life, don’t you?”

“We only get one,” Matthew said calmly. “You have to know how to protect it.”

Someone like him, who’d had a unique brush with death, naturally placed enormous value on his own life.

“But it doesn’t make for much bravery,” Gal Gadot countered, shaking her head.

Matthew simply smiled. “I’m brave only when I have to be.”

Gadot pressed him. “And when is that?”

“Like when that guy looked our way but didn’t spot us in the dark,” Matthew’s voice remained calm. “If he had, I would have reacted. Maybe I would have even charged them.”

His first thought in that moment was that they could be traffickers or just migrants. Los Angeles was in Southern California, not far from the border, and people crossed it all the time—often armed.

He wasn’t foolish enough to think a bit of training would let him stop a bullet. If they had been spotted, he would have grabbed Gal Gadot and run for it.

“And what...” Gadot asked deliberately, “would you have done if I hadn’t listened to you?”

Matthew’s answer was somewhat evasive. “I wouldn’t have wanted to see you get hurt.”

Gadot was taken aback. “Really? Well, you failed.”

She held up her arm for him to see. “When you grabbed me, I thought you were going to break my hand.”

On her pale skin, the distinct red marks of his fingers were clearly visible, evidence of how hard he had gripped her.

“I’m sorry,” Matthew said sincerely. “I was afraid you’d be impulsive. This isn’t a game, and it’s not a movie.”

Gadot gave a slight nod. “I understand. You meant well.”

She paused for a moment before adding, “Thank you.”

In the heat of the moment, with her military training kicking in, she had been eager for action. But in hindsight, it was easy to see that Matthew had handled the situation with a steady hand.

Matthew smiled. “You’re welcome.”

His radio suddenly crackled to life. He lifted it, exchanged a few words with Brown, then turned to Gadot. “Let’s go. Brown and his team have them in custody.”

They soon returned to the truck to find three men bound securely on the ground, with a pair of Matthew’s bodyguards standing over them.

Some of the production heads, including Jack Beard, Justin Lin, and the crew’s chief of security, had been alerted and were already hurrying over.

Brown gave a concise summary. “Two of them are traffickers, smuggled in from Mexico. With the police in Southern California stepping up inspections lately, they contacted this Mexican laborer on our crew and tried to stash five pounds of cocaine in the van to get past the checkpoints.”

Matthew’s mouth twitched. Even without being an expert on narcotics, he knew five pounds was no small amount.

If they hadn’t been caught, and the police had discovered the drugs on the convoy’s return trip, it would have been a massive scandal.

Drug trafficking and drug use were two entirely different things.

“That’s not all,” Brown added, pointing to a pair of handguns on the ground. “We found these two Colts on them.”

Hearing this, Matthew let out a quiet sigh of relief. He had made the right call.

Gadot shot him a grateful glance.

When Brown finished, Justin Lin asked, “So what now?”

Jack Beard thought for a moment before saying, “Call the police. Let them handle it.”

Matthew nodded in agreement. “Calling the police is the best move.”

With the two of them in agreement, there was nothing left to discuss. The head of security had someone bring a satellite phone, made the call, and left the traffickers, drugs, and weapons for the police to handle upon their arrival.

The incident caused minimal disruption to the cast and crew, who continued to follow the established shooting schedule.