Chapter 7: Resolution

My wife took a picture of me, one evening two days after the broken window. In the picture I'm sitting on the edge of our bed, my head hanging and my arms limp across my knees. She took it in black and white, and had it developed. When the prints came back, she framed one and placed it in my office, with a handwritten caption.

"If doing the right thing was easy, then everyone would do it. I love you."

I watched with pride as Laney staggered under the weight of one of the boxes. She was fiercely independent, and had insisted on carrying all of the boxes from her room herself. By contrast, Sam had added his boxes to the stacks in the main room and then quickly gotten lost. Mandy went searching for him as I took a breather, leaning against the lift gate and chugging some Gatorade. Laney dropped her box and smiled at me before hurrying back into her room for the next one. I took a look up and down the road, and met a few curious stares, but the people quickly looked away.

"Assholes," I muttered.

When Laney came out carrying her rocking chair, I jumped to help her. She didn't protest this time, and when we got it in place on the lift she took a seat in it.

"Daddy, is the new house gonna be as nice as this one?"

"It's gonna be even nicer, kiddo. You'll see."

"Are there gonna be kids there to play with?"

"Sure there are, hon. You'll make lots of friends. A pretty girl like you will be beating them off with sticks."

She just smiled at me. Mandy rounded the corner a moment later, Sam in tow, and waved to me. I waved back with a smile, and finished off my Gatorade. I started to raise the lift gate, and Laney jumped out of the chair, glaring at me. I gave her my best innocent face, and she rolled her eyes.

When the last box was packed, and the gate was firmly shut, we all stood on the lawn and looked at the place we had called home for the past three years. There were a whole houseful of memories there, and we wanted to make sure we took every one with us. Finally I rounded everyone up and got them loaded into the SUV. I would tow Mandy's car behind the truck as we made our way to Los Angeles. As I pulled out of the driveway, I saw those same eyes watching the action. I honked the horn good and loud, and when I felt I had all their attention, I raised my middle finger high to the sky. I navigated the truck out of the drive and down the access road. I hung a left at the main street, and we were on our way.

I watched as the miles rolled by, and wished that I had at least one of the kids riding with me. The big old truck handled just fine, and even had AC and a decent stereo, but I wanted to spend some time with the kids. They had held up remarkably well under the stress of the whole situation, and I wanted to make sure they knew how much Mandy and I appreciated it. After the brick incident, Mandy and I were paranoid about the safety of the kids. It had been sheer luck that we had been on the far side of the room when the window exploded. If we had been any nearer, there would have been some pretty nasty injuries. We had called the cops, but had been told that there really wasn't anything they could do.

None of us wanted to leave our home, but it wasn't possible for me to quit my job at this point. It was also impossible to feel totally safe there ever again, with the whole neighborhood knowing what I did for a living. In the end, Mandy and I had both agreed that the best way to salvage something positive from this was to move to LA. I'd be close to all the major studios, and could come home every night. A whirlwind of chaos landed on the house and stayed there for the better part of two weeks. Now we were on a way to our new home, a house that had been bought with little more than a realtor's recommendation and a few blurry digital photos. None of us knew what to expect, but Mandy and I were keeping a bright face on things, and the kids were going along with it for now.

As the miles rolled by, I started to leave behind all the anger and fear that the neighbors had created. By the time we hit the first refueling point, the kids both wanted to ride with me. I promised that there would be no 'easy listening' on the radio, and won their hearts. My wife gave me a mock scowl, and I gave her puppy-dog eyes in return. The kids bounded into the cab, and we headed out. As we were leaving the truck stop, my cell phone rang.

"Hello?"

"Mac, you cocksucker. You couldn't even come say good fucking bye?"

"Dave... we said goodbye. Remember? Last night? You and me, shutting down the bar? You're the reason I had to do this crap with a bad hangover."

"Whatever, pussy. You still coulda come by. I can't fucking believe you're moving to La La land."

"Tell me about it, man. It's gonna be insane."

"Listen... when you get there and get settled, give me call. I wanna drive down for a weekend."

"You're welcome any time, man. Just come on down, we'd love to have you."

"I bet you would... especially that hot piece of ass you call a wife. Which reminds me... how're my kids?"

"Kids are doing great, Dave. Here kids, say Hi to Uncle Dave."

Their joyous chorus had Dave still cursing when I put the phone back to my ear. I grinned and waited for him to wind down.

"Very funny, fucker. Be careful out there in that big-assed truck, Mac. And call me when you get settled, will ya?"

"You know it. Bye, sweetheart."

"Bye, asshole."

The next few weeks were a period of adjustment for us all. We got the kids enrolled in school, and set them loose on the neighborhood. The house we moved into was the largest in our subdivision, and within a week it was full of kids at almost all hours. The pool, in particular, held an irresistible draw for the neighbors. It was a few feet short of Olympic-sized, and had a tremendous view. The master bedroom had a large balcony, which overlooked the pool, and I sat out there for the sunset as often as I could.

I hit the ground running, getting in touch with my contacts at the studios, who were thrilled to learn that I was so close. They all had projects to pitch, but I told them that I wasn't going to get back to work until the family was all settled. They emailed their ideas, but it went unchecked as we worked, painting and decorating. We had a minor crisis when Mandy declared that the sofa set didn't match the crown molding in the den... But luckily we all managed to survive.

Friday night, the third in the new house, was declared a family only night. I fired up the barbecue and started churning out hot dogs and hamburgers. We all sat in lawn chairs next to the pool and watched the sun set together, then turned on the pool lights and had a twilight swim. As bedtime drew close, Mandy gave me a hug.

"It's been so nice to have you here with us, and not working, Mac. I know you gotta get back to it tomorrow, but thank you for taking the time to make this so smooth."

"Nothing else in the world I'd rather do, hon."

I drew her in for a kiss, and she threw her arms around my neck. I closed my eyes, enjoying the feel of her body against mine, our breaths synchronizing.

"Get a room, you two!"

Laney's words were punctuated by a loud giggle as she ran for the patio door. Mandy giggled and looked at me. I grinned at her and pulled her close for another kiss.

When I popped up my email the next morning, I knew I was in for a long day. Hundreds of messages poured in, and I started to sift through them. I was looking for a small job, that would film fairly close to our new home, but something to get my feet wet again. When I broke for lunch, I hadn't even gotten done sorting them. By the time dinner rolled around, I had made my choice. I called the studio and gave them a preliminary quote. I got instant approval and was told that the talent would be available Monday afternoon at their studio. Just like that, I was back in business.