Chapter Fourteen
Carrie did a good job of whisking me back to the unit base via a frankly unnecessary trip to the medic tent without having to face too many people.
‘Ugh!’ I burst out, sipping the hot chocolate she seemed to have conjured out of thin air. I was wrapped in blankets and sitting in front of a space heater in my trailer as everyone else figured out what we should do next.
Carrie grimaced. ‘I’m sorry, pal. But we’re lucky, it could have been worse. And you really did give him a good talking-to! I’d be surprised if he did it again in a hurry.’
‘He’d better not. I honestly thought he’d grown out of it by now, but—’
We were interrupted by a knock at the door, and before I could even tell them to come in, the door swung open. ‘Darling! And Carrie! So nice to see you!’ She swooped down first on Carrie then on me.
‘Mum.’ I held my arms out to hug her so she didn’t feel too rejected when I asked, ‘What are you doing here?’
‘Oh, well, I didn’t have much on so I thought I would swing by while you were on location! See you in action! But I didn’t quite expect that much action.’
‘Neither did I.’
‘I’ll leave you to it, figure out what the plan is,’ Carrie said, making a hasty getaway from the trailer as my mum narrowed her eyes.
‘Aren’t you happy to see me?’
‘Of course I am, it’s just, you know, slightly bad timing,’ I said delicately. ‘This isn’t exactly me at my best, is it?’
‘Too bloody right it’s not,’ she said, shaking her head.
‘What’s that supposed to mean?’
‘I know you two don’t see eye to eye about most things, that’s nothing new. But you have to be able to work together, and sometimes that’s going to mean you taking the high road when he’s messing around.’
‘Messing around?!’ I asked, incredulously.
‘Emily, darling, you are his colleague. I know he can be hard work, but it’s not your place to talk to him like that. His parents are the producers!’
‘And you think that means he should just get away with everything?’
‘No, I don’t! But it’s not up to you! You talk about him like he’s a naughty schoolboy, and sometimes you talk to him like that as well!’
I exhaled so hard it felt like I was going to breathe fire. But she was right, and I knew it. ‘Fine.’
She folded her arms across her chest. ‘Darling. You’ve been at war with him since day one of the first film.
A lot of it I understand, but some of it I don’t.
All I’m saying is, make life a bit easier on yourself, eh?
Not everything is your responsibility. There’s a whole team out there getting this film made.
You shouldn’t have been put at risk today, no way.
’ She shook her head resolutely, and then she softened.
‘But I can’t have you working yourself up like this over someone as silly as Josh Sacco.
You’re my little girl, I just want what’s best for you. ’
‘And sometimes you have good advice,’ I said, finally smiling.
‘Only sometimes?’ she asked, but then Carrie was back with a respectful knock on the trailer door.
‘Martin’s just going to use one of the takes you guys already did . . . I think the vibes are too chaotic now to go again and the light is becoming a problem, so you’re done and we’re back at Smithdown tomorrow.’
I let out a little snort of disapproval.
I hated the idea of just making do: I wanted every take to be the best it could be.
But I wasn’t the boss, Martin was, and he thought we had a take we could use, so I had to let it go.
And maybe I had to let things go with Josh as well.
Of course he hadn’t pushed me into the river on purpose.
After we wrapped for the day, I didn’t want to be on my own, spending the evening stewing in my own irritation at both Josh and myself. In a way it was good that my mum had chosen today to drop by, so we could get dinner together and maybe take my mind off the whole thing.
‘Thank you for coming, Mum,’ I said, stabbing a salad leaf with my fork that evening. ‘It’s actually really nice to see you.’
‘I can be around more if you like?’ she offered, but I shook my head. ‘I know you don’t need a chaperone anymore . . . I thought you might be annoyed at me for coming by the set.’
‘Of course I’m not annoyed.’ I kept my tone gentle but remembered how unwelcome my parents’ presence felt on that first day on set when I just wanted some time to myself.
‘I’m just . . . trying to figure out my life as an adult, I guess.
It’s not about pushing you away, it’s about giving myself the space to find things out for myself. Does that make sense?’
Mum nodded. ‘We’re always here for you, darling.’
‘How’s Dad?’
At that, my mum’s expression changed, just for a second, a little flicker. ‘Oh, he’s fine, you know, just busy!’ She waved her hand in a way that was just that little bit too casual.
‘All good I hope?’
‘I assume so, he just seems a bit overwhelmed with work stuff, you know how it can be when he gets busy.’
‘Are you sure?’
‘I’m sure, darling! Don’t grill me like that!’ She laughed, and everything seemed normal again. ’So, are you going to bury the hatchet with Josh tomorrow?’
‘I’ll sort it out, nothing I can’t handle.’
‘Darling.’ She put her hand on top of mine on the table. ‘You’re Emily Montgomery. There’s nothing you can’t handle.’