Closing his laptop, Jesse picked up his phone and gazed out the window toward the pool.
He’d miss this view. And Chloe. During filming he’d started to dismantle the borders of his heart. Maybe it was time to let someone in. Someone like her.
When he left, everything clear became cloudy. Except for one thing.
“Jesse?” A soft knock sounded against the door. “Raymond Daschle here. You got a minute?”
Jesse invited him in, but the mega director motioned for Jesse to follow.
“Walk with me. I’m expecting a call from Hong Kong on the landline.”
They talked college basketball through the gourmet kitchen, past the marble and crystal foyer, and into Raymond’s hardwoodand leather office. He motioned for Jesse to take a seat, then paused at the wet bar. “Care for a drink? Soda, water?”
“Diet Coke?” He surveyed the space. One Jesse wouldn’t mind having himself one day. It spoke of success and comfort. As if great ideas could be born here.
Opposite the windows overlooking the valley was a stone-and-beam fireplace with a family crest of some kind over the mantel.
“Is that your family’s?” Jesse pointed, rising to see the image closer. The design was a white-and-black crest with a golden star, a warrior’s helmet, and a shield of crosses.
“Yes, it belonged to my grandfather. But I cannot tell you more. Isn’t it sad how we lose our heritage after one or two generations? But who am I talking to? A man who wrote a movie based on an old family love letter.” Raymond handed him a cold bottle and a glass of ice, taking a cold cola can for himself. “So you walked off.” He perched on the corner of his desk.
“I did... yep. I keep wondering if this is a bad dream and I’ll wake up any minute.” Jesse poured the caramel-colored drink over the ice in the glass, the fizzle filling his temporary silence. “How much damage have I done to my career?”
Raymond shrugged. “Can’t say. Depends on Zarzour.”
Jesse gulped the cool drink, the carbonation scratching his dry throat. “My agent said I shot myself in the head and the foot.”
Raymond laughed. “Agents... love to exaggerate. But don’t give up. When you finish your next script, let me have a look. You’ve got a friend in me, Jesse. And in Jeremiah.”
Jesse regarded him for a moment. “Why are you so nice to me? You don’t owe me anything.”
“I pride myself on recognizing talent when I see it. But when a man walks out on a project because he refused to kill off my daughter, I fall a little bit in love.” Raymond chuckled, raising his Coke can.
“She begged me to make the changes. Said it didn’t matter to her but—”
“It did, and you recognized it.” Raymond stared absently toward the window and the scene of LA nestled in the valley. “You saw more in her than I did. Her own father, not sticking up for her when she was a kid because I didn’t think it mattered. She was cute, freckly, round. Not fat, round. She wanted to be in acting so badly we let her, but I didn’t mind the rejections because I thought I was keeping her from being caught up in the business, the hype. Then I cast her as a kid with cancer and...” He cleared his throat. “If I had known...”
“How could you?”
“I have few regrets, but that is one of them. And that mess with Haden. I never liked him, but she was twenty-six, a grown woman... I didn’t think I should interfere.”
“I regret walking off the set. I feel like I let her down some. I should’ve made the changes.” He sipped his drink, laughing low. “On my way home I came up with a great idea for the end. It would’ve saved time and moneyandallowed Esther-slash-Chloe to live. And I think Jeremiah and Greg would’ve gone for it.”
“What was this keen idea?”
“Simple. After the battle scene, fade away, leaving the viewer to wonder,Did she live?Then show Hamilton and Esther on the farm X number of years later with their children. Like an epilogue. There is some fun B-roll of Chloe running out of the barn, declaring a rooster is trying to kill her.”
Raymond arched his brow. “You’re right, that is a good idea. And would’ve worked.”
“Yeah, but I walked out. Don’t have a right to say anything now. Besides, it’s too late. Greg Zarzour hit me like a truck. Didn’t give me time to think. He wanted Esther’s dying to be an emotional manipulator. Grab the heart of the viewer. No matter it had nothing to do with the rest of the story.” Jesse poured more soda into the glass of ice. “I hated what he did to my script, but more for what he did to Esther and Chloe. Jeremiah promised her, I promised her, that she’d live in this role. Esther’s death was never, ever on the table.”
“Let me tell you something about my Chloe. She’s tough. A rebounder. Taken her share of disappointments and...” He shook his head, releasing a small laugh accented with irony. “Become a better woman. Most actresses would’ve quit. But not my girl. She’s genuine. She believes in her craft as a way to communicate, tell stories, and change lives. She expects no advantage because we’re her parents. She earns her jobs and her accolades. She has an amazing eye for details and photography. She’ll be a better director than me one day. After Haden, she found faith, which made her all the more... beautiful. Strong.” Raymond moved to the chair adjacent Jesse. “But you know what you did more than anyone in this town? Stood up for my girl—and I’m grateful.”
Jesse felt Raymond’s confession, the swirl of an imperfect father wanting to do what’s right by his daughter.
“She deserved it.”
“Are you in love with her?”
