America Tycoon: The Wolf of Showbiz

In the hospital, inside a ward.

Vogel regained consciousness, his right leg swollen and distended from the rattlesnake bite, the skin near the wound ulcerated, his lower leg turning a light brown.

That leg seemed no longer part of him; moving it was difficult.

All over his body, the discomfort was indescribable, a feeling worse than death.

"Uh...huh..." Vogel's heavy breathing startled the person beside him.

Pinto, the agent who had rushed over during the night, glanced at him and called for a doctor.

The doctor came in, examined him carefully, and said, "He's not in any danger of losing his life."

Vogel on the hospital bed breathed a sigh of relief; when he was bitten, he had feared he would die.

"Lucky that it wasn't after Martin Davis's life," he couldn't speak out loud, only muttering in his mind, "Lucky, someone had already removed the rattlesnake's venom sac in advance."

The doctor gestured for Pinto to step outside with him, as some things were not suitable to discuss in front of the patient.

Once outside the ward, Pinto asked, "How long does he need to recover? I mean, completely, to be able to work normally?"

"At least two months? Perhaps three to four months, these are not certainties, everyone's physiologies are different," the doctor, adjusting his glasses, said earnestly, "The snake that bit him is the tiger rattlesnake commonly found in the western United States and Mexico, which is also North America's most venomous rattlesnake.

He's quite lucky, that snake had very little venom in its sac, otherwise..."

The doctor pointed upward.

Pinto, who valued efficiency, said, "Doctor, please tell me the specifics."

The doctor picked up the medical record, glanced at it, and said, "When the patient was brought to the hospital, there was a small patch of skin and muscle near the wound that had ulcerated, but the nerve fibers have been damaged. After the wound heals, a large scar will remain, and the extent of the nerve damage will affect his normal walking."

Pinto grasped the key point in his words, "Will he become a cripple?"

"More or less," the doctor continued before finishing, "The toxin can also damage a person's kidney function. Based on our examination, it's very likely that the patient will suffer from kidney dysfunction in the future."

Pinto asked, "He won't be able to be a man?"

"If he's unlucky..." the doctor made a gesture, "It could be as you say."

Pinto nodded, "I understand, when can he be transferred back to the United States for treatment?"

The doctor replied, "It's best to observe for two days; in case the wound ulcerates and causes sepsis, it would be troublesome."

"Thank you, doctor." Pinto took out his mobile phone, looked up Vogel's family's phone number, and informed them of his condition.

He didn't go back into the ward but sat on the bench at the door, thinking with the mindset of an agent about the follow-up matters.

Negotiate with the crew on how to handle the aftermath, and if the negotiations aren't smooth, inform the actors' union, which will initiate an investigative procedure.

These are the responsibilities of an agent.

As for what comes next...

Once hindered by his legs and feet, becoming a star would be too difficult; he could only become a character actor.

Footsteps echoed from the corridor; Pinto saw the producer from the crew, Brad, and went over to shake hands, "How could something like this happen?"

Brad gestured towards the bench by the wall, suggesting they sit down and talk, "We regret that this happened."

Pinto said, "This isn't something that can be resolved with regrets."

Brad was all business, "Vogel has complex injuries and won't recover in the short term. I've already had the crew start the exit process and will pay his full salary of 80,000 US dollars."

"Is that it?" Pinto was dissatisfied but didn't want to fall out with a well-known producer in the industry over a promising actor, speaking still relatively peacefully, "The doctor said his recovery doesn't look promising, and the sequelae could last a lifetime."

Brad was official, "This was personal behavior after he got drunk. Two silly young men got drunk and insisted on dueling with a venomous snake. One had a bit of sense and a small heart, backed off and ran away at the last minute. Vogel? He insisted on challenging the snake and then got bitten."

He emphasized, "Another thing, everyone present can testify that it was Vogel who suggested the challenge with the rattlesnake, and it was also him who called the crew's vehicle, dragging others along."

Pinto said, "The crew brought people to Mexico, and now someone's been accidentally injured..."

Brad raised his hand to interrupt him, "The crew has paid Vogel's full insurance. We have notified the insurance company, and they will start an insurance investigation. Wait for the results from the insurance company."

"That's fine." No agent wants to antagonize a producer, and Pinto made it clear upfront, "If an actor has an accident, I'll routinely notify the union, and the actors' union might send someone over."

Brad was no longer as assertive as before, "I understand."

Before the actors' union had departed, the investigator from Firefighter's Fund Insurance Company had already arrived at Cabo San Lucas.

Bole, along with his assistant, conducted multiple investigations and inquiries before speaking separately with both Brad and Pinto.

After submitting his report, the decision to indemnify was left to the higher-ups.

Following protocol, Bole needed to routinely inform the concerned parties, especially from the actor's side.

"The incident is very clear; all origins stem from Mr. Vogel," Bole straightforwardly told Pinto, "Effective immediately, Firefighter's Fund will refuse to provide insurance for Mr. Vogel on any film set."

Pinto challenged, "Don't you think your decision is a bit hasty?"

Bole responded, "The decision is based on the company's investigation, and I'm merely notifying you as a formality."

Pinto realized that Vogel's future was bleak.

The Firefighter's Fund holds over eighty percent of the market share in various Hollywood production studios, and they refuse to provide insurance for an actor, the crew will definitely not use an actor without insurance.

Although there are other ways to operate, which production team would be willing to spend extra effort on an actor who doesn't have a strong market appeal? There are too many substitutes.

After helping Vogel bring over his family, Pinto still had business to attend to in Los Angeles, and he left Cabo San Lucas directly.

...

On "The Hills Have Eyes" crew's side, Martin made a routine explanation to the crew about the event itself.

There were numerous witnesses that day, and Blake Lively even volunteered to testify, stating that it was Vogel who initiated the drinking challenge with Martin and proposed the duel with the snake.

Thomas made a special trip from Los Angeles to visit the set and inquire about Martin's condition.

At this stage, his interests aligned with Martin's.

In the hotel bar, Thomas ordered two Paper Planes and said to Martin, "This is a masterpiece from Louise Mel, I didn't expect her to be a master at bartending."

Martin took a sip slowly, noting that each bartender's drinks tasted slightly different.

Bruce glanced at Martin; he and Kelly Gray were among the earliest to see the Paper Planes. Out of a desire to seize opportunities, Martin had traded away these intangible assets that couldn't be patented for money.

Martin put down his glass and joked appropriately, "You've come too late, the matter has already concluded."

Thomas felt a twinge of guilt for not being there at the crucial moment and almost causing a major error, and said, "I have other clients, too much work."

Martin retorted directly, "Do they have prospects like mine?"

Thomas changed his approach, "You need your space, you definitely don't like me following you around all day." He then swore, "Of my other clients, absolutely none of them are like you, and I won't sign any more clients who are like you."

Martin gently clinked glasses with him, "Don't forget, we're a golden duo."

Thomas took a sip of his drink, "Thank goodness, you are alright."

Martin said, "On two different sets, everyone knows I'm a pushover, there are a lot of people talking behind my back."

"You are a smart person, and smart people don't care about these things," Thomas, thinking of Martin's age, still felt he should remind him, "Don't do unnecessary things because of those around you who can only serve as stepping stones, because no matter what you do, they all want to see you fail."

He went on directly, "This was no accident. Vogel was previously higher on the priority list, and as soon as you surpassed him, he invited you to duel with a snake—there's obviously something wrong."

Martin revealed a bit, "So, I haven't had an accident."

Thomas realized the implication of his words, "I've said before, if there's trash blocking our way, we have to make sure to knock it down hard!"

Martin smiled but said no more.

Thomas took the red-eye flight back to Los Angeles that very night.

On the way back to his room, Bruce handed Martin a newspaper, "Take a look, it's quite interesting."

Martin noticed that on a prominent position on the newspaper, there were pictures of Paris and Kardashian.

Bruce reminded, "Lately, Kim has been frequently appearing as Paris's agent in media interviews, and gossip magazines began to rank her alongside Paris."

Martin asked, "Is she up to something again?"

Bruce said, "I just made contact with her."

Martin retorted, "It's you who's causing trouble."

"It has nothing to do with me," said Bruce. "The real troublemaker is Kim; I am just practicing on her."

...

In Los Angeles, inside a residence in Santa Monica, Paris and Kardashian had a fierce quarrel.

A few months ago, Paris's driving license was suspended due to reckless driving, and associated with her financial capability, the accompanying 45-day jail sentence was merely under house arrest.

Seeing her former bag-carrying assistant waving her banner and becoming frequently present in the media, Paris finally erupted.

Kim didn't expend much effort to infuriate Paris once again.

The latter, furious, picked up the car keys, got into her newly bought luxury car, left the house arrest location, and drove onto the street.

Kim didn't even make a call to the police; two LAPD patrol cars intercepted Paris's vehicle.

Paris crashed into one of them directly.

Four LAPD officers surrounded her car.

Paparazzi and freelancers who had been waiting for a long time swarmed and filmed frantically from the periphery.

They finally got the big news.

The Hilton family's princess left her surveillance residence unauthorized, again driving without a license; maybe this time she'll actually spend some time in jail?

The famous former bag-carrier's car parked not far behind, and she took out her phone, calling a chief editor at "Vanity Fair", "Paris is in trouble again, and it's a big deal this time, do you want to know more about it? I am open for an interview."

Over the past few months, Kim had achieved considerable fame riding on Paris's coattails, "I have exclusives that you might want to pay good money for, and I have contacted American Rumors too..."

Paris's reputation resonated further, and simultaneously, someone named Kardashian began spreading her fame across America.