There was a quick knock on the door and then Angie’s head popped in; "Mind if I come in?"
 
 

"Angie! God, do you know what I am thinking about right now?" Lucinda asked, falling to a couch and flipping her feet over the end. Her script lay on her chest, twisted and tattered.
 
 

"Ah, the scene coming up? The one where you get sliced and diced?" Angie asked, kidding her.
 
 

Lucinda smiled and threw the script in the floor; "You know, after all the publicity of Tomb Raiders, I really thought the choices of movies for me would be great! I mean, there I was on Entertainment Tonight…for God’s sake…! Now, I’m back to this!"
 
 

"Hey, you’re working, don’t knock it, Luce! Rol and I haven’t worked since…" and Angie began to realize it had been over a month. Even then, it had been not full time and this mini vacation was suppose to have been a chance for Rollie to get some hard job offers. So far, the only thing they had gotten a chance at was hard time in jail.
 
 

Lucinda sat up and hugged Angie who looked into her eyes, touching her arm slightly;
 
 

"Okay, so what did you tell Vanduran? Are you going to marry him or what?" Angie asked, making a face.
 
 

"Ohhh, see- this is what I am all messed up about…I know it’s not normal to delay like this…I know that it means bad things, like I don’t love him enough or something…" Luce began, twisting her hair nervously in her hands.
 
 

"It doesn’t mean anything unless you want it to," Angie told her with a calming voice, "I mean, what did you think at the moment he asked you?"
 
 

Lucinda’s eyes went upward, recalling the moment;
 
 

"Well, I was shocked…he was so serious and well, jeez, we were eating hamburgers at Lookout Point…not at Tavern on the Green…and well, I was a hag- it was late…"
 
 

"Listen to yourself…you’re not in New York, you here, in LA. Yes, it was late, but Luce, you’ve never looked like a hag, even when you’ve been up all night…sounds like a lot of excuses to me," Angie told her, flatly.
 
 

Lucinda frowned and then looked at Angie pensively;
 
 

"How did you know with Rollie?"
 
 

"Huh?"
 
 

"How’d you know that you wanted to marry him?"
 
 

Angie was thinking back to that miserable prison cell where they had been held and how Rollie had just popped the question to her in the middle of a very horrible experience. She suddenly smiled then and looked straight into Lucinda’s eyes.
 
 

"Luce, I don’t think there was a time I didn’t want to marry him, since I was eleven years old…"
 
 

"Cheating! Come on, tell me what it is, how you know?"
 
 

"I couldn’t be without him…I wanted to be with him, beside him, grow old with him, have children with him, have challenges with him, know defeat with him and well, have the rest of time to just love him…" Angie’s eyes glistened slightly as she thought with remorse about her jealous suspicions that morning.
 
 

"Oh God…"
 
 

"What?"
 
 

"See, all of that scares me to death…"
 
 

"If it scares you, maybe it’s not the time…"
 
 

"I’d be that way with anyone…"
 
 

"Why did you marry Michael then?"
 
 

"Uh, well, I was swept up in his charisma and well, he was very smooth."
 
 

"And Vanduran, he doesn’t have charisma and he is what? Rough around the edges?" Angie asked, shaking her head.
 
 

"Oh no! Marvin is so sweet and well, he’s tender and gentle and dedicated and so smart! He just isn’t the man I have always fallen for, you know-"
 
 

"Maybe that’s good. The other men didn’t stay around, Luce."
 
 

"Yeah…but then, hey- he won’t leave New York…and me, what about my career?"
 
 

"What about it? You did it for years in New York? And why can’t you do a movie now and then elsewhere? Other couples do it, uh- Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward have been married for centuries…look at them?"
 
 

"Jeez, Angie, like they have a real movie agenda these days!"
 
 

"Look, the answer to your question is right there, in your own heart," Angie told her, pointing to the middle of her chest.
 
 

"Yeah, but right now, it won’t talk to me…" Lucinda replied, moping as a knock on the door interrupted them.
 
 

"Ms. Scott, you’re wanted on the set in five…" shouted the voice through the door.
 
 

"Great…look at my script…"
 
 

"What do you need that for, you’re being diced up into tiny little pieces…" Angie reminded her, laughing.
 
 

"Angie? Tell me something…what do you think of Marvin?"
 
 

Angie stood up, putting her hands in her suit jacket pockets. Lucinda still sat on her couch, looking up at her for guidance.
 
 

"Luce, I think Marv…Captain Vanduran is a dedicated man. He is the direct opposite of you…and I think that is good, each of you balances the other. He is a very determined man and very concrete whereas, you are uh, whimsical at times and abstract. I think each of you loves the other’s strengths. You would always be cared for….you would always bolster his insecurities…"
 
 

"Wow, you sound like a shrink!"
 
 

Angie rolled her eyes and put her hands on Lucinda’s shoulders, pushing down on her slightly;
 
 

"Luce, he is a great guy! Think of it this way- if he was gone tomorrow, would you feel complete and able to go on with your life without him?"
 
 

"I’ve done it before…"
 
 

"No, hey, you don’t get it…maybe it is best that you say no…"
 
 

"Wait!"
 
 

Angie turned around to leave and waved her hand as she opened the door.
 
 

"I need to call Sarah Gatti, I want to talk to Aidan…" Angie told her, without looking back.

Angie found Rollie with Captain Vanduran and Mark Rappaport. They were busy watching Rappaport put the finishing touches on the pieces of a "hacked up" woman, Lucinda’s character in this horror movie.
 
 

"So here you are…" Angie said, smiling putting her arm around Rollie’s waist as she smiled at Vanduran.
 
 

"Hey sweetie, looked at Lucinda all chopped up, whatcha think?" Rollie said, his eyes darting back and forth as Rappaport smiled and picked up half of Lucinda's replicated face, sans half a brain and dripping blood and bone chips.
 
 

"Looks just like how I left her," Angie replied, as Vanduran turned ashen and Angie touched his arm slightly.
 
 

"No, just kidding…she’s jittery- you know, the scene and all…" Angie added as he sighed.
 
 

"I thought she was telling you about us, what I asked her…" Marvin Vanduran replied, as Rollie suddenly turned around from what Rappaport was doing and looked at his wife as well.
 
 

And men thought women were gossipy, Angie thought with glee as she moistened her lips;
 
 

"Well, strangely enough, that came up as well…" Angie said, her voice rising slightly at the end.
 
 

"It isn’t good, I can tell," Vanduran said, flatly and turned away for a moment, seeing that Lucinda was heading for the set.
 
 

"No! It’s just that she is so stressed out right now. The arrest and well, the movie and she is thinking about a lot of things, the past…" Angie replied, quickly trying to save some shred of hope for him.
 
 

"I’m a little older than Rick…I can’t fight a dead guy…and well, that Michael creep, I think I have him beat, hands down," Vanduran was thinking out loud as if it was a contest.
 
 

"Captain, you just have to let Lucinda fight her demons for a little bit. She’s got a great heart! Maybe, just back off a bit…" Rollie said, candidly as Angie groaned.
 
 

"What?" Rollie asked as she gave him the look of ‘you idiot’, to his face.
 
 

Vanduran had turned pale and Rollie realized now that he had just told Vanduran he was too pushy. Angie’s face said it all, foot in mouth…
 
 

"I think I might go back to New York, tomorrow…" Vanduran suddenly said, hands on hips as he looked into space, his mind reeling with Rollie’s suggestion.
 
 

"No! I didn’t mean…" Rollie began.
 
 

"You’re right, Tyler…I am crowding her…I have been way too fast and controlling. She’s a free spirit. I have caused her nothing but stress!"
 
 

He turned toward the sound stage door as Rollie looked at Angie, waiting for the lecture. But, it didn’t come.
 
 

"Well?"
 
 

"Well what?" she asked, picking up the cell phone from her purse.
 
 

"Aren’t you going to tell me that I screwed up?"
 
 

"Nope."
 
 

"Huh?"
 
 

"Good, I say good riddance…"
 
 

"What?"
 
 

"He was way too stuffy for her…"
 
 

"I don’t believe it!"
 
 

"Believe it…"
 
 

He started to protest further, but she suddenly smiled as she connected with the Gatti’s.
 
 

Rollie looked at the door as it shut and then back toward the set. Lucinda hadn’t noticed that Vanduran had left. He really didn’t get what Angie was up to, either. He wondered if she was still upset about Taia and whether Bastion was his son. He thought about the boy and that night with Taia. It had been two former lovers trying to catch the glow of something that could never be rekindled, he thought, as he watched his wife’s face light up. She was talking to Aidan and laughing. Her laughter was like his favorite music in the world and he hung on everything she said to their son.
 
 

"Hey, he wants to say hi!" she suddenly said, handing him the phone.
 
 

"Sure he does…he doesn’t even know my name…" Rollie remarked, making a face.
 
 

Angie smiled proudly as she watched Rollie’s face as he told his son hello. She waited, hoping that Aidan would say it again, what she had heard on the phone just a second before. She didn’t have to wait long.
 
 

"That’s right, Aidan…dada…! Did you hear him, Angie? He’s finally saying it!" Rollie declared, grinning from ear to ear.
 
 

She nodded as he then spoke with Sarah and wanted details on any other accomplishments. Angie walked over to the set, standing on the camera side, just behind Charles Boyd as he sat down, rubbing his hand through his thinning hair.
 
 

"Angela Ramirez…uh, Tyler, we meet again…" he greeted her, smiling slightly as she nodded.
 
 

"Hello, Mr. Boyd. I see you’re wrapping this movie up…" Angie remarked.
 
 

"Yep, three more days and it will be in the can," he replied, shaking his head.
 
 

"Hope it does well," Angie told him, putting her thumb up as she started to go back toward Rollie.
 
 

"You know, your father use to do that, put that thumb up like that.." Boyd told her, a puzzled look on his face.
 
 

"Oh, sorry- habit, I guess," she replied, not realizing she had done it or that her father had done it.
 
 

"No, not a problem, in fact- it’s sorta comforting. Your father was a great man, Angela. I was sorry when I heard he had been killed."
 
 

"Yeah…I miss him terribly," she replied, her voice softened as she thought about her father.
 
 

"So your husband, Rollie Tyler- he’s looking for work?"
 
 

"Yep, we are open for business!"
 
 

"I just might know someone who is getting ready to start a nice little film…" Boyd said, thinking to himself as he shuffled some paper on his clipboard. He looked up at the camera position just as the boom man knocked over the top of a wall piece, sending clumps of plaster onto the set flooring.
 
 

"Damn it! Harrison! We want the set to stay intact until we tear it up, you got it? First we kill everyone, then we tear it down!" he yelled, jumping up from his seat as Angie stepped back. His bellowing voice reminded her of a normal day in the film business. She smiled and touched his shoulder.
 
 

"Thanks, Mr. Boyd. I’d appreciate any work coming our way."
 
 

"Jeez, idiots! Yeah, Tyler F/X! You can count on it," he replied and then went back to jumping down the man’s throat as he walked right in front of Lucinda who was getting finally prep by makeup.
 
 

"What are you so pissed off about?" he growled at her.
 
 

"My life is chaos!" she replied, barking back.
 
 

"Good, that’s the way it’s suppose to be!" he told her, glaring at her as she clenched her fists and got ready for a fight.
 
 

"Get that son of a bitch, maniacal killer china-man out here, my actress is ready for her close up!" he yelled, grinning.
 
 

Angie folded her arms across her chest as Rollie joined her, putting his arm around her shoulder. The Chinese actor who portrayed the serial killer walked into the camera shot as Boyd stepped back, Lucinda still seething, her chest heaving with pent up anger.
 
 

The clapboard operator snapped the clapper, shouting the scene number and Boyd shouted; "And action!"
 
 

"I want to go home and just take that little boy in my arms!" Rollie whispered to Angie who smiled and leaned into him.
 
 

"Soon…isn’t he a genius…?" Angie asked, smiling at him, knowing that Rollie was beaming with pride.
 
 

"I can just see him…setting up his first computer program at age two…" Rollie said, continuing his dream thoughts.
 
 

"Yeah…more like, knocking over blocks and saying "boom boom"…" Angie remarked.
 
 

"Wow, Luce is just remarkable…!" Angie added, as the slasher moved to make his first cut. She looked over her shoulder to see Rappaport working at his control board as the arterial blood tubing pulsated inside Lucinda’s dress collar and shot out a volley of blood red fluid.
 
 

"And cut!" Boyd yelled, as a scurry of people surrounded Lucinda and were waiting on Boyd’s decision on whether that scene was finished. Boyd was looking through the fresh cut scene, watching as Rappaport joined him for the replay.
 
 

"Nice bleeder, and she looked so freakin’ mad!" Boyd remarked and smiled at Lucinda who was getting cleaned up by makeup.
 
 

"Okay, that’s a wrap…one take marvel!" he then yelled out to everyone.
 
 

Lucinda stormed off the set. She walked past Rollie and Angie and went instantly to her trailer.
 
 

"Now’s not a good time to bring up that Vanduran left…" Angie told Rollie, who clenched his jaw.
 
 

"You’re right…besides, think I want to tag down my elusive father and get the rest of this Taia story out of him."
 
 

"Just that? What about what happened in New York with Michael and Elena and Lindquist…he’s got a lot of explaining to do!" Angie reminded him.
 
 

"I need to tie him to a tree for about three days in the hot sun…" Rollie replied, popping his knuckles.
 
 

"He’d probably have some sort of little knife that he would use to cut himself free or have a buddy get him free or better yet, smile and get a nice tan without a care in the world," Angie told him, fuming.
 
 

"He always lands on his feet, doesn’t he?"
 
 

"Yep…"
 
 

"Come on then, what do you say, we go back to Luce’s house and just relax. I’ll check to see if he’s called and we can take in some local scenery."
 
 

"Sounds good…I could use some sun and a bit of ocean breeze."
 
 

"Um, yeah- been awhile since I’ve seen you in a nice little bikini…"
 
 

"And it will be a long time before you do…Rollie. You forget, my bikini days are over. Remember that wonderful scar?"
 
 

"Love scar…who cares..and your days are not over, my dear. You’ve got a splendid body…"
 
 

"Says you…"
 
 

"And I, is all that matters…" he replied, winking. They walked away, Rollie still holding on to her, his arm wrapped around her shoulder.

Dingo Tyler had just made his way into Anaheim. Taia would be waiting for him just inside the Disneyland parking lot. Getting his signals crossed was worrying him.
 
 

"She did say Daisy Duck…." He murmured out loud as he rolled around the parking lots, nearly missing a trainload of tourists catching a ride to the gateway.
 
 

Finally, he spotted her, waving slightly, Bastion in front of her. He parked the BMW beside her car and walked up to her, smiling.
 
 

"Good, thought I would never find you," he said, sighing.
 
 

"Do you think Rollie suspects anything?"
 
 

"No, he’s still trying to do the math on Bastion," Dingo replied, grinning down at the boy who was tugging on his mother’s arm.
 
 

"Come on, let’s go. I’m going to relax today if it kills me," he told her as she smiled then, putting her arm through his as they walked up to the train and got on board.
 
 

"Remember, you have parked in Daisy Duck parking lot, remember your name…" the voice over the speaker told the arriving passengers.

Vanduran wasn’t at the bungalow when they returned. Angie stood out on the small deck that faced the canal and watched the sights and sounds of Venice. It was a mecca for all types, she thought as she watched people skating, painting, doing aerobics on the pier and just having a lot of fun. It was warm on the deck and she sat down, relaxing.
 
 

By the time Rollie walked out on the deck, she had fallen asleep. He looked around a bit, shaking his head. Crazy bunch of nuts, he thought as he surveyed the scenery. He just didn’t think he could ever live in a place like this. He missed New York City. It was all so California! He looked down at his sleeping wife in the chaise lounge. She had pulled off her jacket, pulled her blouse out of her waistband and had unbuttoned the top three buttons. She was stockingless, her shoes kicked off by the door.
 
 

His finger traced the pulse throb in her neck and rested then on her collarbone. He knelt beside the chaise and kissed her cheek.
 
 

"Hey," she said, opening her eyes and stretching.
 
 

"Sorry, didn’t mean to wake you, sweetie…"
 
 

"No, just resting my eyes, jet lag, I guess. So, we going to the beach?"
 
 

"Yeah, if you want…"
 
 

"I want…"
 
 

"Okay, come on and change…let’s see what this dang place, Malibu is all about?" he said, using a Texan drawl.
 
 

He helped her up, picking up her shoes and followed her to the Morrison bedroom. They had decided to call it that, like a rock and roll Bed and Breakfast type, set up as a joke between themselves.
 
 

Angie was pulling off her blouse, flipping open her suitcase looking for the black mallet she had brought with her for swimming. Rollie was digging through his suitcase, clothes flying out and lying about the floor.
 
 

"Hey, did you see the notches in the side of this old waterbed?" he asked, stooping to its side and tracing the scratch marks on it.
 
 

Angie looked over to see what he was talking about, her clothing removed and having stepped into one side of the bathing suit.
 
 

"Hmmm," she said, shrugging her shoulders as Rollie suddenly looked up, seeing her bent over in front of him.
 
 

"Guess ole’ Jimmy kept score, huh?" Rollie remarked, grinning but his eyes fell to her breasts free in front of him
 
 

"Crazy druggie," Angie responded and followed her husband’s new focus, "What?"
 
 

"Call me crazy but the beach can wait!" he said, his voice almost guttural.
 
 

"Rollie!"
 
 

"Come on baby, light my fire…"