Даниэла Стил - Finding Ashley [calibre]

“No, I called you first.” She had reached out to her mother for comfort. But she’d had two mothers recently, and now she only had one, and had lost the one she knew best.

“If you can get a flight to Boston or New York, I’ll fly to Scotland with you. We’ll do this together, Michaela. I’m so sorry. She was a fantastic person.”

“Yes, she was.” Michaela had been orphaned twice now, which was more than anyone should have to deal with. Melissa wanted to be there for her. She knew what it felt like to lose the person you loved most. Michaela had David and her children, but Marla had been her mother for thirty-three years.

She barely had time to tell Norm what had happened when Michaela called back ten minutes later and David had called the airline for her. She was on a seven a.m. flight to Kennedy in New York, arriving at three p.m. local time, with the time difference. And they had a five p.m. British Air flight to Edinburgh, landing at six a.m. local time the next day. And he was going to book a car and driver to pick them up and take them to the town outside Edinburgh where Marla was. The producer had been on location with them and was going to meet them. They were going to take care of booking rooms for them at a hotel in Edinburgh. David had booked Melissa’s ticket on the flight to Scotland too, so there would be no confusion about the flight. Michaela handed him the phone, and he spoke to Melissa.

“I’ll pick Michaela up as she comes off her flight at JFK, on the way to baggage claim, we’ll go to British Air together to check in,” Melissa said.

“Thank you, Mel,” David said, and she could hear he’d been crying too. He loved his mother-in-law, despite her quirks and Old Hollywood glamour style. She wasn’t a typical mother, but had been a good friend to him.

Michaela got back on the phone, crying again. “I’ll meet you at JFK,” Melissa repeated. “Can you manage with carry-on? It will be faster. We’ll be tight to check in for the British flight.”

“David asked for VIP service when I get off the flight in New York. They’ll take us to the British Air terminal in one of those carts. The press is going to be all over us in Edinburgh, and when I get back.” Melissa hadn’t thought of that, but they had that burden to carry too. She, David, and her children. “It’s going to be on the news this morning.” Michaela sounded devastated. And as soon as she hung up, Melissa told Norm the full story, or all she knew. “I’m meeting her in New York, and flying to Scotland with her.” She looked at the clock on her bed table. It was two-thirty in the morning. “I have to meet her at three when she lands. I want to be out of here by eight a.m., in case there’s snow on the road, or it snows again. I’d rather get there early than late.”

“I’ll drive you,” Norm said. “I don’t want you driving down there alone.” It was Saturday, and he had the time. “I’ll stay at a hotel and come back tomorrow. How long do you think you’ll be there?”

“I have no idea. Long enough to go through the formalities, and fly the body back to L.A. I guess the production company will help us. I should be back in a few days.”

“Don’t forget your sister, she’s coming up today.”

“Oh my God. I would have forgotten.” She texted her that she had to leave for an emergency to help Michaela, so Hattie couldn’t come up. It was three in the morning by then, and they turned off the light to try to sleep for a few more hours. Melissa set the alarm for six a.m., and went to shower as soon as it rang.

They turned the TV on at seven, and it was all over the news. There were photographs of Marla on the screen, along with the two male stars who had died with her. They had been hired to replace the two who had been let go because of the recent sexual harassment scandals. A third actor had been hired at the last minute too, but he wasn’t working that night. The TV announcer said that the entire world would mourn Marla Moore. He said she had made over a hundred films, had won two Oscars, and was seventy-three years old. Her male co-star had just come back from his honeymoon, and the other had four children. They said that Marla was survived by a daughter, a son-in-law, and two grandchildren, but they didn’t mention their names.

Melissa and Norm were on the road in good time. It wasn’t snowing, but the wind was strong and she was glad that Norm was at the wheel. They’d been driving for an hour when Hattie called Melissa on her cell.

“What happened? I wanted to come to see you.” She hadn’t heard the news yet. They didn’t watch the morning news on TV at the convent.

“Marla Moore was killed in a helicopter crash in Scotland last night. It’s very sad. Michaela called me at two a.m., hysterical. I’m meeting her at JFK and flying to Scotland with her, to identify the body. They want a family member there, if possible. She’s in terrible shape, so I volunteered to go with her. David is staying with the kids.”

“When are you coming back?”

“As soon as we can. I’ll stay for the funeral in L.A. I guess it’ll be a huge mess with the press. I should be back here in a week.”

“I need to see you,” Hattie said, sounding tense.

“Why? Is something wrong?” Melissa didn’t like the tone of her sister’s voice.

“No. But I’ve made some decisions.” And she knew Melissa wouldn’t like them. They talked while Norm drove. “I wanted to tell you in person, but I don’t want to wait too long. I’m going to file now to be released from my vows,” she said in a calm voice. “And I’m joining a UN team in Africa. I’m leaving in about six weeks. They send over medical personnel. I don’t know where I’ll be assigned yet.” Melissa looked crestfallen when she heard the news.

“I wish you wouldn’t do that, file the papers now, I mean. Why can’t you wait and see how you feel?”

“I know how I feel. I want to be free now. I won’t be released for a year anyway. Mother Elizabeth says I can change my mind before that, but I know I won’t. And the job in Africa is exactly what I want to do.”

“Can’t you do it as a nun, while you wait to see if you’re sure?”

“I will be a nun for the next year.” She smiled that Melissa wanted her to stay in the order now, when she had been so vehemently against it nearly nineteen years before. “They won’t release me that fast.”

“And Africa, Hattie? Really? Can’t you do something like it here?”

“No. They have a fantastic program and this is what I want to do.”

“At least the UN is respectable, and they’ll probably take care of you.” Hattie didn’t tell her that there were still risks involved, but Melissa knew it anyway.

“I’ll come to see you when you get back. It’s nice of you to go,” Hattie said.

“She’s my daughter,” Melissa said quietly. “It’s the least I can do, and I’m her only mother now. She and Marla really loved each other.”

“You’re a good mom, Mel. You were to Robbie too.”

“Thank you, and just for the record, I hate your going to Africa again. I wish you wanted to be a hairdresser or a librarian, or an artist or something instead of risking your life in Africa.”

“This is what I want to do. I want to work with the kids.”

“Maybe you should have your own.”

“I thought about it, but these are the only kids I need. We all have children in our lives in different ways. You have Michaela now, and her children. It’s not Robbie, but I guess he wasn’t meant to stay, and Michaela’s kids will need you too, and so will she.”

“I can never measure up to Marla,” Melissa said sadly.

“You don’t need to. You’re you. You’re different people. I’m not sure Marla would have run to Kennedy to fly over with her. She had other things to do.”