A Decision
Ella was sitting on the beach, waiting for Rome to come back from the trip he’d made up the mountain to call his mom where the reception was better. The tide was rolling in. It washed over her feet, up to her skirt, but she didn’t care. Living on the beach, one couldn’t be averse to water or sand. It was going to be everywhere, anyway, and that was fine with her.
The second she saw his face, she knew the call had not gone the way he’d wanted it to. His lips were pressed together in a defiant line, and his hands were fisted at his sides. She swallowed hard, knowing she could well see this as an opportunity to press him to stay here longer, but that wasn’t what he wanted. She didn’t want to be selfish, not when it meant so much to him to go back and prove he could handle his father.
Rome dropped down next to her on the sand, shaking his head slowly. She let him gather himself together before she even bothered to ask him anything. He would talk when he was ready.
It took several minutes, but he finally said. “I hate that old bastard. I wish he was dead.”
Whether he meant that or not, it didn’t matter. She reached over and put her hand on top of his in the sand. Again, she didn’t bother to say anything, only waited for him to be able to speak again.
“She said… he called off his thugs that were chasing us through Europe, but he’s still watching the US airports. Obviously, not all of them, and wearing that costume King gave me, I could probably walk right past them anyway. But that’s not the point. I shouldn’t have to be afraid of my own goddamn father.”
“You’re not afraid of him,” Ella said, her voice just above a whisper. “If you were afraid of him, you wouldn’t be thinking of going back at all.”
“True,” he said with a violent shrug. “I just don’t want to have to constantly be looking over my shoulder. And he refuses to talk to your father.” He shook his head again, his free hand scooping up the sand and crushing it. It spurted out between his fingers.
That didn’t surprise her either, sadly. She wondered if her own father would want to talk to Monty if it had been suggested to him. She was sure Aunt Gen would’ve told him to reach out, but he likely wouldn’t listen either. “What do you want to do?” she asked, doing her best to keep her own wishes out of the question.
“Maybe we should stay here longer,” he said with a shrug. “I know that’s what you want.”
“I want whatever you want.” She meant that, even though her preference was not the same as his. “What about movies that are being filmed overseas?”
He shook his head. “All of the auditions are in New York or LA if they’re US productions. And that’s what I want.”
She nodded. That made sense. “Then… we’ll have to go back.”
He looked up at her, trying to read her face. “How? Sneak in?”
“Why not? Bart did it.”
“He flew through Chicago.”
“We could do that, too, or someplace more obscure. Your dad can’t have eyes everywhere in all of the states in the entire country, can he?”
Shaking his head, Rome said, “No, but it’ll be impossible to tell which ones he’s at and which ones he’s not.”
“That’s okay.” she said. “We’ll put our costumes back on, fly into Dallas or someplace, and then rent a car and drive to LA. We can do that.”
“You’d be willing to do that?” His eyes brightened with the question.
“Sure. We’ve been on a hell of an adventure together all over, baby. I'm ready for another one.”
Rome’s smile broadened, and then he leaned in and kissed her. “Then… I guess we’re going home.”
Ella smiled back at him, even though on the inside, it was the last thing she wanted to do. She’d find a way to focus on the bright side. Maybe she’d like their new home. As long as her father didn't find out she was still alive, that was all that mattered.
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