“Take a seat, and let me handle this,” Carson says, pointing over our heads at the waiting area. “Keep your head down and your mouth shut, Dillon.”
I glare at the dick. “Last I checked, you’re not my father and I’m a grown man who knows how to control himself. Go do your job and get my kids.” Sliding my arm around Vivien’s shoulders, I turn us around before I land one on his annoying face.
I still hate him, but he’s a damn good lawyer, and it made sense to retain his services rather than having to move all our business to a new firm. We sold most of the assets in Simon Lancaster’s portfolio to raise funds for the foundation Viv set up in the aftermath of Reeve’s death, and Carson ensured that everything went through smoothly.
The Reeve Lancaster Foundation for Child Actors now boasts tons of famous donors including actors, directors, producers, movie studios, and other personnel involved in Hollywood. Along with the funds we raised, there is a decent pool of money to execute Vivien’s vision for the foundation. Child advocacy consultants are the new norm on movie sets, with most of their salary being paid by the foundation.
The meeting Vivien is attending tomorrow afternoon is with the heads of most of the top studios in Hollywood to get their sign-off on the new governing rules for child actors which they have all agreed to support. It is the culmination of years of hard work to get to this point, and I am so proud of her.
She is truly making a difference.
Viv is ensuring child actors are kept safe and protected on movie sets with rules around the number of hours they can work per day. Guidelines are being implemented so that each actor is assigned a qualified tutor on set, ensuring their education doesn’t fall behind. A list of restrictions on promotion and other activities that expose them to the seedier side of the industry has been drawn up. The advocacy consultant has a team of experts to call on should additional support be required, like therapists, doctors, trainers, and a whole host of medical and health specialists to ensure all their needs are being catered to while on set.
Not every studio is on board, and there is still a lot of work to do, with fundraising being an important ongoing activity. Viv, with help from Ash, has built a team of people around her to help to manage the foundation, but her personal workload in recent months has been extreme, and I can tell she is struggling to cope right now.
This is the very last thing she needs, and I am going to knock those boys’ heads together when I get my hands on them.
We take seats on the hard, uncomfortable chairs in the waiting room, with Bobby and Leon flanking us, and settle down to wait.
Carson returns thirty minutes later with a surly Bodhi and a remorseful Easton in tow. Vivien rushes to hug the boys, and I want to slap sense into Bodhi when he stands there like a statue, refusing to hug his mother back. I don’t know how much more of this behavior I can tolerate.
He can rant and rave at me as much as he likes, but he sure as shit is not going to disrespect his mum.
These past few weeks have made me realize, all over again, how much of a little prick I was to my parents back in the day. I even called Mum to apologize again. I didn’t tell her how bad things are with Bodhi because I know she’ll worry and there isn’t much she can do from Ireland. She thinks it’s normal teenage bullshit we’re dealing with, and she even joked about karma biting me on the ass.
If only it were that simple.
“Are they being charged?” I ask Carson, in a low voice, as I watch Easton hug his mother, holding her for longer than usual to make up for his brother’s failing. Commendable as it is, that boy has got to stop taking on everyone else’s responsibility.
Carson shakes his head. “I wrote a check to cover the damages and secured an agreement from the Peltzes’ attorney that they won’t be pressing charges.”
“What did they do?”
“They were at the Peltz house attending a Halloween party. Apparently, they got into a fight over a young lady, and then others joined in. It got vicious, and someone called the police. There was a lot of damage to the bedroom and the upstairs hallway.” Carson leans in close, talking into my ear. “Bodhi resisted arrest and refused drug and alcohol testing. He’s lucky because he is clearly on something, and he smells like a brewery. If we hadn’t arrived when we did, they most likely would’ve gotten a warrant to take a blood and urine sample.”
I doubt much would’ve happened if it was confirmed he’s high and drunk, but he doesn’t need a record or the media spinning the bullshit they would if they discovered this truth. I can just imagine the headlines now and how they’d tie his behavior to Reeve’s and Saffron’s addictions.
“Thank you.” I mean it sincerely. Carson might be a pain in the ass to deal with, but he’s a shrewd, skillful pain in the ass.
He nods. “You know I value your family business, and I apologize if I was out of line earlier. You’re not always known for your restraint.”
“I know, but I’m not an imbecile either. You need to give me some credit.”
“Noted. You and Vivien should stop by the office soon. I’ll be retiring next summer, and my son is taking over the practice. I’d like to introduce you to him and start handling the transfer.”
I quirk a brow. “I thought you’d retire the day they carted your dead ass out on a stretcher.”
He chuckles. “So did I.” He clamps a hand on my shoulder. “But it was either that or get a divorce, and I love my wife. I think she has suffered enough. Besides, none of us are getting any younger.”
Isn’t that the truth.
“I will leave you to take these young men home. I trust they’ll have learned a lesson.”
That’s highly debatable in Bodhi’s case, but I don’t articulate the thought.
We walk in silence outside, all of us keeping our heads down and ignoring the larger throng of paps on the sidewalk as we make our way to the car.
“I’m sorry,” East says when I have pulled away from the curb.