Take Two (32 page)

Good, great, fine.
It was the way Keith and Lisa would describe most high school kids in their relationships with their parents.
How are you? Good. What about your friends? Great. And your classes? Fine. Good, great, fine.
They’d always been grateful that they shared a deeper connection with Andi, that she felt compelled to tell Lisa every detail
of her high school life. But now … Keith lowered his coffee cup and stared out the window into the gathering darkness. “What
if this is worse than it seems?”

“I’ve been on her Facebook. She doesn’t have a single picture of this Taz guy anywhere. And all the comments on her wall are
from high school friends or Bailey Flanigan.”

“I’m not sure that’s proof.” Keith still had a strong feeling something wasn’t right. “She knows we’re on her Facebook.”

“True.” Lisa looked more worried than before. “Maybe we should fly out and talk to her?”

Keith thought about that. “I’m not sure if she’d open up to both of us. Maybe you and she can take a day together before the
film festival, take the car and go to the beach. You know, create an environment for conversation.”

Lisa nodded. “I like that. We have to make time to talk.” She thought for a few seconds. “I’m really not that worried. Andi
knows the truth as well as anyone on that campus.”

“That’s what I keep telling myself.” Keith pushed back his fears and concerns. Andi was a good girl. She knew the Bible, and
right from wrong. Whoever this guy was, it couldn’t be too serious. Andi was way too smart and levelheaded to fall that fast
for a boy who didn’t share her beliefs. At least that’s what Keith had convinced himself. He let the subject pass. “I told
you about NTM, right? We still haven’t got anything in writing with them.”

“Doesn’t that worry Luke?”

“He’s suspicious, same as me. But for now we’re pressing ahead with
The Last Letter
. The studio agreed to a four-hundred-screen theatrical release, but they’re willing to triple that if the movie does well
at the festival.”

“That’s a miracle, really.” She set her mug down on the counter and folded her arms. “Has Chase got a commitment from Kelly
yet about the festival?”

“Last time I talked to him, she was planning to stay home. Same as before.” The past month had been rocky for their friends,
but Chase was committed to talking with Kelly, getting her to open up about her feelings. “She’s seeing a doctor next week,
a therapist. In case she’s dealing with depression.”

Lisa made a frustrated sound. “She doesn’t need a doctor to tell her she’s depressed. That’s been obvious since Christmas.”
She threw her hands into the air, then dropped them. “Her husband’s gone half the time, their finances are shaky, and Molly’s
still struggling to recover from her broken arm. That’s enough to make the happiest person on earth depressed.”

“She needs more time with God.”

“Definitely.” Lisa sounded defensive for her friend. “That’s true with most of us, and especially for people battling depression.
But she might need some kind of bridge between where she’s at and where she needs to be with God.”

“Bridge?”

“Right. Like an antidepressant.” Lisa softened her tone. “Depression is truly a chemical imbalance in the brain. Sometimes
medicine is the only way to set life right again.”

Keith didn’t want to argue about the issue. “Kelly needs help, we can agree on that.”

They were quiet for a long moment, drinking their coffee, lost in their own thoughts. “A reviewer from
Variety
screened
The Last Letter
this past week. Loved it, absolutely raved about it. The story will run in a few weeks.”

“Really?” Lisa’s face lit up. “I’m so proud of you, Keith. I love you so much. Have I told you that lately?”

He slid back down to the floor, set his mug in the sink, and crossed to her. “All the time.” He put his arms around her waist
and pulled her close. “That’s why I’m the most blessed man ever.”

“I don’t know about that. But I’m proud of you because you deserve it. You and Chase have worked hard, and now it’s all about
to pay off.” She kissed him, clearly enjoying their closeness. “Tell me about the review.”

“They compared the screenplay to something from Arthur Miller.” He raised a brow and couldn’t resist a single amazed chuckle.
“Not only that, but they likened Jake Olson to a young Marlon Brando.”

Lisa stared at him. Then she brought her hand to her mouth, a joyous laugh escaping through her fingers. “Are you serious?
Variety
hates everyone.”

“Not us.” Keith caught her face in his hands and kissed her — a kiss of joy and celebration despite the concerns they shared
about Andi or Chase and Kelly. They were making movies for God, and if they were going to change the world with the power
of film, they first needed to convince the gatekeepers.

The
Variety
review was proof the Lord had gone before them.

That would hopefully remain true in the week ahead. He and Chase were flying out first thing in the morning. They wouldn’t
need their car for this next round of meetings. Ben Adams had arranged for a driver to take them around in his Bentley. “At
this level, it’s better to make an impression,” Ben had told them. In addition, they were staying at his place. Their car
would only be in the way.

“I’m going to check our airline reservations. Make sure everything’s in place.”

“It is.” Lisa’s words held a deeper meaning. “It’s more in place than either of us could begin to understand.”

Keith was still smiling when he rounded the corner to the computer. He sat down, moved the mouse, and waited for the screen
to come to life. It took just seconds to find their reservation and make sure there’d been no changes or scheduled delays.
Weather was great. Keith didn’t expect any trouble. He was about to sign off when he realized he hadn’t checked the news —
not in several days. It was always good to be aware of the issues as they headed into studio meetings.

He typed “
Foxnews.com” in the search line and hit the enter button. The connection was quick, and almost instantly a list of stories appeared on
his screen. One held the name of Brandon Paul.

“What?” he whispered to himself. Panic grabbed hold of his throat and tightened its grip. He desperately scanned the words,
trying to make sense of them.

“Brandon Paul Agrees to NTM Movie Deal,” the headline read.

Keith wanted to believe it was their movie the story was referring to, but it couldn’t be. Luke would’ve told them if the
studio had reached an agreement, if they were ready to make an announcement like this. He clicked the headline and the story
came to life. Keith could barely focus as he read.

Executives at NTM Studios announced today that Brandon Paul will star in an NTM original movie about a mentally challenged
boy whose love for music gives him wings. The story comes from an NTM original screenplay, and is expected to be filmed later
this year. “We are committed to maintaining and building our relationship with Brandon,” said Ace L. Rustin, NTM VP of Development.
“We’re in the process of negotiating a new five-year deal and doing everything we can to keep him in the NTM family.”

That was it, just a news brief. For anyone else checking the headlines at this hour, the story would be nothing more than
a bleep on the screen of Hollywood life. Brandon Paul in another movie. Ho-hum. But for Keith and Chase — for them it meant
that everything they’d worked on for the past six months was finished. Gone for good.

A fine layer of perspiration broke out across Keith’s brow and he hung his head, trying to catch his breath.

So that was it? Brandon had signed a deal to make a movie almost exactly like
Unlocked
, without telling them or their attorney or Stephanie? This was Luke Baxter’s worst nightmare coming true.

Keith gripped his knees. Were there no ethics in Hollywood whatsoever? He fought the desire to shout at the screen, to demand
that Fox News pull the story because it couldn’t be true. Brandon had promised them this movie.

But there it was in black and white. He lifted his eyes and let himself read the details one more time.

God, what’s happening? What does this mean? We were so close to making a name for us and for You.

He wanted to run outside and raise his voice to the heavens, begging God for some kind of understanding. Despite their lawyer’s
fears, Keith had told himself this couldn’t happen. Not with God on their side. But here they were.

He checked the time on the computer and saw it was after eight o’clock. Still early enough to call someone, but who? Should
his first contact be with Chase or Luke? He was reaching for the phone, still figuring out what to do and who to call, when
the phone rang.

He answered it on the first ring. “Hello?”

“Keith.” The voice on the other end was serious. Dire, even. “Ben Adams here.”

“Ben.” Keith stood and paced from the computer to the far wall of windows that overlooked the backyard. Had Ben seen the news
already? He decided to play ignorant, at least at first. “Our flight’s set for tomorrow. The meetings are all still in order.”

“I’m not calling about that.” Ben exhaled, and the sound rattled across the phone lines. “Have you seen the news?”

“Actually, I was just checking it. The NTM story was a complete shock.”

“For us too. I’ve got a call in to Luke Baxter. But the timing couldn’t be worse.”

Keith waited, his heart racing.

“I met with my financial team today, and my accounts aren’t what they used to be.” His voice sounded tired, deeply discouraged.
“The whole market thing isn’t of interest to me, not on a day-to-day basis. I’ve tried to look the other way. But the market
crash has cost me half my net worth.”

Half?
Keith felt the floor beneath him shift. He gripped the windowsill and closed his eyes. Ben Adams was supposed to be worth
a billion dollars. That meant the change in the market had cost him, what? Five hundred million? Keith couldn’t begin to understand
what losing that kind of money might mean to a guy like Ben. “I’m … I’m sorry.”

“We all are. The fact is I planned to sell a portion of my stock portfolio to finance
Unlocked
. Now I can’t do that. No one would sell in this market.” He drew a steady breath. “For that reason, my advisor is warning
me not to invest in the film — and I guess that’s especially true now, since it looks like you’ve lost your star and your
studio.”

Keith blinked his eyes open and stared at the still-darkening sky. Was this really happening? Was he really having this conversation
with the man who had seemed so financially stable? “I guess I need to talk to Luke. The NTM announcement doesn’t make sense.”

“Either way, I have to pull out. Try to understand.” Ben seemed to gather himself somewhat. “I told my advisor I still wanted
to provide half the P&A budget for
The Last Letter
. He wasn’t happy about it, but he agreed.” There was a considerable silence. “These are the times that make a man, Keith.
Especially a man of God. You’ll be all right, and so will I. The markets will bounce back; I’ve seen it all before. But we
must cling to the Lord, otherwise we’ll lose more than our financial security. We’ll lose hope. And we can’t lose that.”

They talked for a few more minutes, though later Keith wouldn’t remember a word of it — nothing but the part about God and
His direction. When they hung up, Keith returned to the computer and dropped, entranced, to the chair. They’d lost the Brandon
Paul movie. They’d done everything they could. They had the actor and the author, the funding and the best lawyer in town.
But they’d still lost it.

He needed to talk to Luke and Chase and Stephanie Fitzgerald. He needed to know whether Brandon was behind this. And if so,
why he’d turned his back on them. But more than that, he needed to talk to the Lord.

With his face buried in his hands, he cried out to God about what had gone wrong and asked the Lord for wisdom and direction.
With no hint of an answer, he asked anyway. He begged for peace and clarity, and most of all he asked God how it was even
possible that they could lose everything they’d worked for — the promise the future held and the ability to influence a generation.

All in five crazy minutes.

T
HE GIRLS WERE BOTH IN BED
when the phone rang at Chase’s house. He was packing again, something he always seemed to be doing, but before he could answer
it Kelly must’ve picked it up in the kitchen. The call was probably for her anyway. Laurie Weeks had been in touch a lot lately,
making plans for a women’s conference coming to town in a few days.

But after a minute or so, he heard her footsteps. Not until the last few months had he understood how discouraged a person’s
footsteps could sound. He could’ve picked out Kelly’s in a room full of people.

“Chase.” Her voice held a flicker of concern. “It’s Keith. He doesn’t sound right.”

Chase frowned. Life in Hollywood and their roles as producers couldn’t have been any better. He couldn’t imagine why Keith
would call — unless a problem had come up with their flights. He took the phone and turned toward the bedroom window. “Hey,
what’s up?”

A long pause filled the phone line before Keith finally spoke. “It’s over, buddy.”

Chase’s heart hesitated, and then slammed into double time. “What do you mean, it’s over?”

“It’s over. We lost the Brandon Paul movie.”

Chase sucked in a quick breath, overcome by disbelief. “That’s crazy. Nothing’s changed. If NTM doesn’t want it we’ll take
it somewhere else. That’s what the meetings are for this week.”

“Get to your computer. Fox News will help you understand.” Keith sounded weary, defeated. There wasn’t even the hint of possibility
in his voice.

Kelly still watched from the doorway. Now as he passed her, she whispered to him. “What is it? What happened?”

He held up his hand and gave her a look that implored her to be patient. With the receiver covered, he mouthed in her direction,
“I’ll tell you in a minute.”