A/N: Yay, the first chapter of the redo is now up. Hopefully it won't be as cheesy. I don't own King Kong, blah blah blah. I own Elle and the side story going on. Enjoy.

Despite the lies that you're making
Your love is mine for the taking
My love is just waiting
To turn your tears to roses
I will be the one that's gonna hold you
I will be the one that you run to
My love is a burning, consuming fire
No, You'll never be alone
When darkness comes I'll light the night with stars
Hear my whispers in the dark
- "Whispers in the Dark"- Skillet

Elle Denham looked up as her brother came out of the screening room where her brother and a few film producers were in. For starters, she didn't want to be sitting outside- she didn't want to be sitting anywhere near the building. The cutthroat business of film was Carl's thing, not hers. She also wasn't thrilled with how her brother acted where film was concerned. The rare moments where he seemed like he was a decent guy were gone during those moments. All the same, Carl had asked her to come for "moral support", he called it, and for some reason, unknown to her, she agreed. She flinched when she heard Carl throw some names and insults around and flinched. Typical. Now there Carl was in front of her and Carl's assistant, Preston, looking concerned. "Well? What's happening?" She inquired, crossing her legs.

Carl just looked at her briefly before turning to the table that had a glass of water on it. "Gimme that, quick." he ordered.

Elle glanced at the glass, frowning. Now what did he do? "Who'd you piss off now? All of them?"She took it and handed it to him all the same.

Preston looked between them, stopping at Elle. "What do you know that I don't?"

Elle beamed and touched Preston's cheek. She liked the young man, she honestly did. Sometimes she wished that he was her little brother as opposed to Carl. Preston actually gave a damn about people's feelings and there was a constant air of innocence about him. "A lot when it comes to Carl, Sweetheart. This is an old tool of the trade-"

"From the film business." Carl cut her off.

"He means from when we were kids and wanted to hear what our parents were arguing about." Elle corrected.

"That too. Now, shush!" Carl dumped the contents of the glass into a nearby plant, then pressed the glass to the door, and then pressed his ear against it. A few seconds later, Carl looked taken aback. He turned to his companions. "Move it. Now. Go go go!" he ordered, grabbing his bags.

Elle groaned. That was the third time Carl dragged her and Preston somewhere, only to make them run in a week. "What'd they say now? Exhile you from the business?"

"Just about, sis." Carl replied, then shoved a bunch of film cans into her and Preston's arms and ran outside. Preston and Elle exchanged looks before hurrying after him. When they got outside he started giving orders, taking huge steps as he made his way across the busy city street. "I want the cast and crew on the ship within the hour."

"An hour?" Elle blurted in disbelief. What kind of time was that to get on a ship and go? "Carl are you nuts? What did those guys back there say?" She demanded, running to catch up with him.

Carl ignored her, as he always did when she acted maternal.

"Yeah. Carl, you can't do this!" Preston shook his head. That was another thing Elle loved about the young man- he had his head screwed on right- he knew what was insane and what was reasonable… and how to tell them apart.

"Tell 'em the studio's pressured us into an early departure." Carl replied.

"It's not ethical!" Preston added to his objection.

"That's not all it's not." Elle deadpanned, crossing her arms over her chest and arching an eyebrow, only to have Preston push her forward lightly, only so they could keep up with the annoyed director.

"What are they gonna do? Sue me? They can get in line! I'm not going to let them kill my film." Carl told them.

Elle sighed again, continuing to bound after her brother on the busy street. She was annoyed she was actually getting used to these quick escapes. Ever since her father died she had spent most of her time with her brother- and unfortunately that was a good few years now.

Preston passed her to talk to Carl. "You realize none of the camera equipment is on board. We have no permits ... no visas ..." Preston began the long list of what Carl had failed to get in time.

" That's why I have you, Preston." Carl replied.

"We have no insurance, no foreign currency - in fact, we have no currency of any kind-"

"We don't have- Carl you FAILED to tell me that part. We're broke and you're doing a shoot?" Elle growled. Hell, she knew it was stupid getting financially supported by her brother, even slightly. Being a librarian seemed to get trumped by director's assistant, after all.

Carl ignored her yet again, hailing a taxi. "Get in there!" He barked once it had pulled up to the curb. He herded them close to it, then pushed them most of the way in. Preston and Elle winced when they felt themselves being sandwiched into it once Carl climbed in.

"Who's gonna pay for the ship?" Preston asked.

Elle pinched the bridge of her nose. This isn't going to end well. As if on cue, one of the men who Carl had been talking to inside the building they had been in practically tackled the cab, taking hold of the open window. "Oh god" Elle hid her face and shook her head, embarrassed. The men were hounding Carl and Carl alone, but now that they saw her and Preston with Carl, they'd be hounded as well.

"Get out of there!" the man yelled, trying to get a fistful of Carl's jacket.

Carl started winding the window shut.

The man let out a yell of pain when it closed on his hand. He barely managed to get his hand out from the window's path before it closed.

"Step on it!" Carl barked to the driver as he sealed the window completely.

Elle shook her head when she heard the man who they had just gotten rid of yelling. Why did she have to be related to Carl? If she hadn't her life would've been so much better… well, maybe she didn't have to go that far, but… would've been less… on the criminal side. It would only be minutes before the producer would call the cops on Carl- that's how it always was.

"Don't worry Preston - I've had a lot of practice at this: I'm real good at crapping the crappers." He smirked, almost maniacally.

Elle groaned, hitting her head on the back of her seat. He could say that again. Hell, that being said, most of her family could be some of those said 'crappers.'

After a while Carl and Preston started making a list of what they needed- needed fast, at that.

"Two dozen of Mr. Walker's finest…" Carl added to the growing by the moment list. "Red label, 80 proof- packed in a crate marked "lemonade"" He considered more for the list, then stopped at another realization. "Tell Maureen – she doesn't have six hours to put on her face. If she wants to be in this picture, she's gotta be on that boat!" he said.

"She doesn't want to be in this picture." Preston said, looking up.

Elle winced yet again as Carl gave him a blank stare.

"Maureen pulled out." Preston explained.

"She pulled out?" Carl asked.

"Yesterday. I told you." Preston said.

Elle sighed. There we go. He won't remember that at all. Setbacks don't exist in Carl's world. She tilted her head and waited for his reply, itching to hear what he came up with for an excuse this time around.

"You said we were shooting in Singapore, right? That's what you told her?" Carl asked.

"But we're not shooting in Singapore." Preston pointed out.

Elle wanted to hug him. His innocence was coming through again. The boy couldn't lie. He was too much of a sweetheart sometimes.

"God damn it, Preston! All you had to do is look her in the eye and lie." Carl argued. "I gotta get to a phone ... talk to Harlow's people."

"He's unavailable." Preston frowned.

"Myrna Loy? Clara Bow? Mae West?" Carl went through a list of names.

"Mae West? Good luck getting her into a size four!" Preston argued.

Carl turned to Elle with a thoughtful grin.

Elle stared at him, wondering just what he was plotting- that was, until all the pirces got put together and she realized what he was silently getting at. "Oh no! No way. Not me" Elle shook her head. She wasn't going to become an actress for a single film and deal with Carl bossing her around… simply directing, as he put it. She got enough of that off camera.

"But sis-"

"No!" Elle spat. "Do your own dirty work! Plenty of fish in the sea for that! Plenty of bimbos, for that matter!"

Carl didn't seem at all phased by the last bit. He just seemed to register she declined. "Fine. Still gotta find a girl, then…"

"You gotta get a girl who'll fit Maureen's costumes." Preston interjected.

"Fay's a size four!" Carl said, pointing at Preston.

"Yes she is, but she is doing a picture with RKO." Preston frowned and said matter of factly, as if anyone, especially Carl, should've known.

"Cooper huh? I might have known." Carl muttered.

Elle scoffed. He and Cooper had a rivalry of a good many years going. No matter what, anyone that Cooper used in films was permanently off Carl's possible actors and actresses list. She had a feeling that someday, that would come back to bite him."Stop, will ya?" Carl asked the driver as they pulled to familiar ground- the intersection that joined the block with Elle and Preston's apartments as well as Carl's, then someone else's apartment that Elle really didn't want to think about. The cab stopped, and the three of them piled out. Carl was off like a rocket in one direction, once again. Elle and Preston looked at each other, shrugged and followed him. They barely realized he was talking to them until they got about two blocks down and Carl turned to address them.

Preston didn't seem interested in what Carl said. He was Hell-bent on attempting to show Carl how illogical his plan was. "We gotta delay the shoot – shut production down ... We can't sail tonight!" Preston pointed out.

"Not an option." Carl shook his head before continuing on, weaving his way through the crowd of people on the sidewalk.

Preston and Elle exchanged looks before they sighed. "Carl!" they yelled, waiting for some of the crowd to disperse before they continued after him.

"I said I'd find a girl, and I will!" Carl turned to them. "For God sake, Preston - think like a winner. Call Jack ... I need that Goddamn screenplay!" he turned. "Defeat is always momentary." He said. "Elle I need you to make sure Bruce is coming. Hopefully he's loyal enough not to stiff me."

Elle groaned. There was that name she refused to think about before. Bruce "Playbot" Baxter. The guy was in love with her and wouldn't quit with his advances, no matter how much she denied him. Even slapping him didn't work. She had tried… three times. She had settled for ignoring him or shooting him sarcastic remarks any chance she got. To her annoyance, it only encouraged him "How am I supposed to do that? Why am I the one doing it?"

"Because he likes ya, and that's exactly how you're gonna do it."

"What?" Elle tossed her hands out in defeat. How they could be siblings and she never knew how his mind worked, she would never know.

"Keep him interested. Flirt." Carl shrugged.

"What? No way!" Elle shook her head. "The least I need lately is him coming onto me."

"Sis. Do this one thing for me, please? It's not so bad." Carl whined.

Elle laughed. "One thing? Ha, Carl I do EVERYTHING for you, and has he ever invaded your personal space and tried to show off? I doubt that. My bottom line is no."

"…I'll leave you alone for a month. No contact, no favors, no nothin'."

Elle turned to him. "A month?"

Carl grinned that sly fox grin again. He thought he had her. "A month."

Elle pretended to consider it. She knew a month in Carl terms was about a week and a day… if that. She knew in the back of her head he would respect what he said. Maybe not even a week, but at least a couple of days. Even two days without him calling to ask for a favor was nice. "Fine. Deal. I'll get him."

"That's why I love you, sis." Carl replied with a smile.

Elle sent the plastic smile he had right back at him. "I'll be half an hour, getting there, then getting to the docks."

Carl nodded. "Good. See ya then." And with that, he was gone.

Elle looked at Preston, who sent her a sympathetic look before trotting after Carl. She turned on her heels and headed for the more expensive area of the city. "Well, won't this be an adventure…"