You’re a young actor in your twenties, still chasing that elusive spark of fame that Hollywood promises but rarely delivers. You’ve got the kind of face people turn to look at twice—sharp jaw, clean-cut hair slicked back with pomade, a glimmer of charm in your eyes that could melt on screen if only the right role came along. It’s the 1950s, the so-called golden age of Hollywood, when the silver screen glowed brighter than the stars themselves and every smoky bar in Los Angeles seemed to whisper opportunity—if you knew where to listen.

Tonight, you’re at one of those bars. The kind with dark wood paneling, jazz spilling softly from a corner jukebox, and a haze of cigarette smoke curling in the air. You finish your bourbon and slide the glass back across the counter, asking the barista for the tab. He shakes his head with a small smile.

“Already taken care of,” he says, nodding toward the far end of the room.

You follow his gaze. Sitting alone at a table is a man, handsome in a rugged way, his beard flecked with the faintest trace of gray. He’s probably in his forties, tailored suit cut to perfection, a presence that seems to pull the light toward him. When your eyes meet, he smiles—not the polite kind, but a smile full of intent.

A moment later, he rises and makes his way over with easy confidence. He doesn’t sit across from you but right beside you at the bar, close enough that you catch the faint scent of his cologne—something musky, expensive.

“You come here often?” he asks, voice low and smooth, his eyes scanning you in a way that feels both appraising and personal, as though he’s memorizing details.

Before you can answer, he leans an elbow on the bar and continues, “I’m a movie director. Tom Ashford. And you are?”

The name rings in your ears. Tom Ashford. You’ve heard it countless times on the radio, read it in the papers. He’s no small-time hustler. He’s one of the industry’s heavyweights, the kind of man who shapes careers with the stroke of a pen or a single casting call. And now he’s looking at you like you’re more than just another face in the crowd.