Phil and Elpie watched her as she parked herself on the couch in the lounge. Phil shot Elpie a quick glance.
“I think Dillie is off her meds a little,” Elpie said.
“Dillie, why do you have your suitcase with you?” Elpie asked.
“My sister is picking me up today. We’re going to Denver for the weekend,” Dillie said. Elpie turned to Phil.
“Her sister passed away five years ago,” Elpie said. Phil nodded. He walked over to Dillie and sat down beside her.
“The weatherman is calling for snow today, Miss Dillie. She might not make it,” Phil said.
“That’s OK. She’s from Kalispell. She knows how to drive in snow,” Dillie said.
“Miss Dillie, have you had breakfast yet?” Elpie said.
“No, not yet. Is it time?” Dillie said. Phil stood up and turned to Elpie.
“Why don’t you get someone to take her to the dining room and make sure she’s had a meal, then check her meds,” Phil said. Elpie nodded.
“I’m heading back to the office. Let me know if you need anything,” Phil said to Elpie. Then he leaned over and gave Dillie’s hand a gentle squeeze and moved on.
Chapter 17
At dinner, Finney reviewed with Annie the hectic schedule for the actual day of the Golden Globes ceremony.
“I know this is your first time, so just get ready for a crazy day tomorrow,” Finney said. “We’ve got an appointment tomorrow morning to get your nails and hair done. Then in the afternoon we’ll do one final fitting of your gown in your suite. Someone from Gucci’s will be here to make sure everything fits, and be sure you look sensational. When you’re on the red carpet and the reporters ask you who you are wearing, Gucci’s wants to be sure you’re showing off their gown to its best.”
“What table are we going to be at?” Annie said.
“I’ve got the seating chart right here,” Finney said. “You’ll be on the main floor. There’s a whole table reserved for Rangeland people. Your show got two nominations – best actress and best supporting actor – so you qualify for a table close to the podium.”
“Who are we sitting next to?” Annie asked.
“Nobody special – at the table next to you is Spielberg, Tom Hanks, Kurt Russell and Goldie Hawn.” Annie rolled her eyes.
“What am I doing here? Who do I think I am?”
“Hey,” Finney said. “They put their pants on the same as you, one leg at a time.”
“I’m not going to win.”
“You never know. You better have your speech ready, just in case.”
“What do I say?”
“Just keep it short?”
“How short?”
“Well, Hitchcock did it in five words – ‘Thank you very much indeed’. William Holden did it in four words – ‘Thank you, thank you.’ But the prize goes to Patty Duke, who boiled it down into two words – ‘Thank you’. I guess you could just say ‘Thanks’ and set the new record at one word.” Annie laughed.
“That’ll be me,” Annie said.
“You’re going to be invited to a lot of parties afterwards.”
“Which one do I go to?”
“There’s a dozen of them - Variety, Netflix, Amazon, Disney, take your pick.”
“What am I going to do if Phil doesn’t make it? I can’t do this by myself.”
“If he doesn’t show, I’ll be your huckleberry.” Annie’s cell phone rang. She checked the caller ID.
“It’s Clay Devons,” she said. “Shall I take it?”
“NO,” Finney said. Annie pushed the ‘talk’ button anyway.
“This is Annie.”
“Annie, this is Clay. I’m in the lobby. Do you have a minute to chat?” Annie turned to Finney and put her phone on mute.
“He’s here in the lobby – he wants to talk.”
“What am I going to do with you?” Finney said. She gave Annie a quick hug and left the table. Annie put the phone back to her ear.
“I’m in the dining room. Just come on back.”
Annie signaled the waiter to clear the table of dinner plates, then pulled a pocket mirror out of her purse and checked her makeup.
“Good enough,” she thought. She eyed the restaurant entrance until she saw Clay enter. Clay pulled up a chair beside her. Charm oozed from him. Annie could feel it.
“You look terrific,” Clay said. “You ready for tomorrow?”
“Is anybody?” Annie sighed.
“I guess not,” Clay said. “But I got a prediction – tomorrow night you are going to own this town.”
“Oh, please,” Annie blushed.
“Have you given some thought to our little talk yesterday?”
“I told you I would have an answer tomorrow,” Annie said.
“Well, I had a meeting with Paramount today about ‘Tripoli’ and they want to get the cast nailed down.”
“Really?”
“I’m telling you, the female lead in this picture is going to be bigger than Scarlett in Gone with the Wind.”
“Did you mention my name?”
“Just in passing, but I can’t really pitch you if I don’t represent you.” He gently took her hand in his. “So, have you made any decisions? I think we could work really well together.” Annie suddenly felt slimy. Clay inched a little closer.
“Why don’t we go upstairs, maybe have a drink,” Clay said. The thought put her stomach in a knot.
“Not tonight. Give me one more day,” Annie said. “That was the deal.” Clay politely lifted his hand off of Annie’s.
“Absolutely. This is life-changing. Take another day. We’ll see each other tomorrow night. We can talk then,” Clay said. Annie nodded in agreement.
“Sleep tight,” Clay said, and excused himself. Annie breathed a sigh of relief. She went to her room and climbed into bed, then grabbed her cell phone and dialed.
“I’m glad you called,” Phil said. “I’ve been missing you.”
“How’d the inspection survey go today?” Annie said.
“Deficiency-free two years in a row,” Phil said.
“That is great news,” Annie said. “You should be very proud.”
“I am, but it was a team effort,” Phil said. Annie quickly changed topics.
“You are coming tomorrow,” Annie said. “I need you with me.”
“That’s the plan, but they’re calling for snow tomorrow,” Phil said.
“Don’t you even think about it,” Annie said. Then she got quiet.
“You still there?” Phil said.
“Phil, I got a question I need you to answer.”
“Ok.”
“We’ve been together for two years. Why haven’t you proposed to me?”
“I was going to propose right before you took off for South Carolina to make that movie. I’m just scared its always going to be that way.” Phil said. “We were such a great team at The Sanctuary.”
“I know,” Annie said.
“And I want to have kids,” Phil said. “But I don’t see how that’s going to happen any time soon.”
“We can work that out,” Annie said. “This acting thing could just be a flash in the pan. Just be here tomorrow night. I need you. I’ll meet you half way for whatever we need to do to make things work out between us,” Annie said. “So, tell me you’re coming.”
“I’ll be there.”
“Do you have your tuxedo?”
“Yes, I picked it up from the rental shop this afternoon.”
“How does it look?”
“Like James Bond at the casino.”
“Really?”
“Yes, I actually look dangerous,” Phil said. Annie laughed.
“Wow. That sounds hot. Ok. Go back to sleep,” Annie said.
“Thank you.”
“So, you’ll be there?”
“Annie,” Phil said, losing his patience.
“Just promise me,” Annie said.
“There’s only two possible places I’ll be tomorrow – the red
carpet or the morgue,” Phil said.
Chapter 18
On the morning of January 9, Phil got an early start on the day. He knew he had to catch the 1:00 flight out of Billings, so he really only had about a half day to be productive in the facility. He checked the weather report – snow expected later on in the afternoon. So, his flight should leave on time. He packed his travel clothes in a carry-on bag, with his tuxedo and dress shirt carefully folded to minimize wrinkles. He scooped up his Golden Globe ID badge from the dresser and set it on top everything else, then zipped up the bag. After one last sip of coffee, he hand-washed the mug, walked out the front door, and tossed the carry-on in the back seat of his car. He showed up to The Sanctuary around 8:00 a.m. and spotted Tina at the reception desk in the lobby, orienting the new receptionist to her duties.
“Morning, Tina,” Phil said.
“Good morning, Mr. Branson,” Tina said. “I’d like to introduce you to the new receptionist. This is Ashley Childers.” Phil paused to give the new girl a welcome handshake. Ashley looked to be in her early 20s, trim, shoulder length blonde hair, with a very perky smile.
“Well, Ashley, welcome aboard. You’ve got some big shoes to fill, but you’re in good hands with Tina.”
“Thanks. It’s a lot to take in, but it’s pretty exciting. I think I’m going to like it a lot,” Ashley said.
“By the way,” Tina said to Phil, “Annie called this morning to make sure I remind you to leave for the airport no later than 11:30,” Tina said.
“I’m just going to make a few rounds, then I’m on my way,” Phil said. Tina nodded and returned to Ashley to explain the phone system. Phil went to his desk and saw a note to stop by Elpie Shackley’s office in assisted living. He made an about-face and walked down the hallway. He found Elpie at the nursing station making notes in a resident file.
“Morning, Elpie,” Phil said. “I got a note to see you.”
“Morning, Mr. Branson. I just wanted to let you know one of our short-term rehab patients in the nursing wing is going home today, in case you wanted to say good bye.”
“What’s her name?”
“It’s a ‘he’,” Elpie said. “His name is Charlie Davis – Vietnam vet.”
“I don’t think I’ve met him. Has he been here long?”
“He’s been here for six weeks, rehabbing a broken leg.”
“What room is he in? I’ll stop by,” Phil said.
“He’s in the nursing rehab wing, room 26,” Elpie said. Phil nodded. He turned and walked through the corridor separating the assisted living from the nursing wing, and found room 26. He knocked on the door.
“Come in,” a voice called from inside. Phil let himself in the room. It was a private suite specifically designed for short-term rehab patients, with a flat screen TV mounted on the wall, carpeted floors, closet, writing desk, and a spacious bathroom. Charlie Davis stood beside his bed folding clothes and placing them in his suitcase. Despite his age, he appeared remarkably fit, with a shock of silver hair and distinguished bearing.
“Mr. Davis, I’m Phil Branson, Executive Director of The Sanctuary. I hear you’re going home today.” Charlie stopped his laundry chore to shake hands.
“Just call me Charlie. So, you’re the post commander here,” Charlie said.
“That’s right. You know, I’ve only had one other resident ever use that term to describe my job – ‘post commander’ – he was a Marine Colonel. Joe Henjum. Did you ever meet him?”
“Absolutely. We met at a Montana Vietnam Vet reunion a couple years ago.”
“You heard he passed away about a year ago?”
“I did – read about it in the paper,” Charlie said.
“Anyway, how was your stay here? They tell me you broke a leg.” Charlie rubbed his right leg.
“Just being careless. I fell off my ladder cleaning out my rain gutters. I feel pretty stupid about it,” Charlie said.
“How does the leg feel now?” Phil said.
“Still a little tender, but your rehab folks did a fine job, and I can walk on it now.” He pointed at the wheelchair sitting beside the bed. “I’m just using this ‘go-kart convertible’ to get out of here faster.” Phil scanned the room at some of the memorabilia Charlie brought with him to make the room cozy. He spotted framed pictures on the nightstand. One in particular captured Charlie posing next to his A4-C Skyhawk. He picked it up for a closer look.
“So, was this you in your glory days?” Phil said.
“Yeah, that’s when I was invincible, right up until the day I got shot down over Cambodia.”
“Shot down over Cambodia? That couldn’t have been healthy,” Phil said.
“It cost me a year and a half of my life, and I lost the girl of my dreams. The ultimate one-two punch.” Phil noticed a framed picture of Charlie and his wife on the nightstand.
“Isn’t that your wife?” Phil asked.
“Yeah, but I didn’t marry her until I retired from the military.”
“Well, who was it that you lost?”
“My soulmate. The kind of stuff that sonnets are written about.”
“What happened?”
“Long story,” Charlie said. Phil checked his watch.
“How about the 100-yard dash version.” Phil said. “I’ve got some romance issues of my own right now. I’d love to hear how you handled yours – if you can boil it down.”
“That’s easy. I only got one bit of advice, and I tell it to everyone,” Charlie said. “If you’ve got someone dear to your heart, hang on tight and don’t let go.”
“Fair enough. How did you lose yours?” Phil said. Charlie looked at his watch.
“Pull up a chair. I haven’t told this story for a while.”
“I’m listening,” Phil said, as he sat down on the bed. Charlie took a seat in his wheelchair.
“It was 50 years ago – May of 1971,” Charlie began. “I was on leave in Hawaii when I met this girl. She was two of the three girls in every man’s life.”
“What three girls are you talking about?”
“The one you wanted to marry, the one you should have married, and the one you actually married. Those three.”
“I see, and she was the first two?” Phil said.
“Roger that. Her name was Diane. Diane Haley. The one I wanted to marry and the one I should have married.”
“Ok. Go on.”
“I was on leave in Hawaii when I found this girl – we fit together like two puzzle pieces. I was going to marry her when the Navy called me back to the ship for an urgent mission.”
“Was it an order?”
“It was a request. I could have said no. They had other pilots. But it would have looked bad. So, I agreed. I should have never left Honolulu.”
“I hear ya’,” Phil said.
“My squadron launched off the deck of the USS Enterprise. Our target was a jungle road and supply camp in Cambodia that fed military supplies to the Viet Cong. Each of my team took their turn launching their rockets and escaping before ground fire began. I made the final run. But just as I launched my rockets, the enemy laid down a barrage of fire that hit my Skyhawk.”
“What did you do?” Phil said.
“I climbed, hoping I could limp back to a safe landing zone. But in less than two minutes my oil pressure went to zero, and then the engine quit – right in the middle of Cambodia. Pretty much a death sentence.”
“How’d you make it out?” Phil said.
“I stayed in the jet gliding just long enough to find a good place to punch out. I calculated I was about 100 miles west of Da Nang in the mountains of central Cambodia. My team radioed my crash coordinates to a rescue team in Thailand, and I’m told they combed the area for about five hours looking for me. When the rescue planes starting taking ground fire, they had to call off the search, and I was on my own.”
“What did you do then?” Phil said.
“Let’s just say the next 18 months were not my best. The Viet Cong were determined to
capture me. They put hundreds of men on the ground and combed the region until they caught me. I figured I was a dead man, and thought of my sweetheart back in Hawaii waiting for me, how she would get that dreaded telegram. But for some reason they wanted to torment me for a while. In the night I escaped, and was caught again, then escaped again. I lived in the jungle for months, scavenging food from villages by night and hiding by day.”
“How did you finally get out?” Phil said.
“I was getting too weak from starvation to walk, so I decided to wait until the monsoon season when the rivers would be swollen and I could maybe build some kind of raft and float down a river that would hopefully take me to Thailand. I lashed some rotted-out logs together and floated down that liquid super highway for days, weeks, I don’t even remember. When the river opened to a wide valley, I angled my little raft to shore to look for food or maybe a village. I remember seeing a C-130 flare-ship pass overhead. I must have staggered into the open field and waved. I guess they spotted me, because later that day a rescue helicopter landed in that field and picked me up. I was in pretty bad shape. The doctors told me later that I only weighed about 110 pounds when I arrived at the hospital in Da Nang. They confirmed my identity, and the local doctors notified the US Navy to remove my name from the ‘MIA’ list. I stayed there for a few months until I was strong enough to be transferred to Honolulu.”
“So, what about this girl of yours, Diane?” Phil said. “Was she still waiting for you?” Charlie choked down a surge of heart ache. As he shared with Phil his memories, he revisited in his own mind the painful discovery about Diane.
v
As soon as Charlie landed in Honolulu, he took a taxi to Diane’s apartment building. During the entire ride, his heart pounded with excitement and anticipation at this long-overdue reunion. He knew Diane must have suffered agonizing heartache over his 18-month disappearance, but could hardly wait to see the look of unspeakable joy on her face when she opened her door to see him alive and well.
The Sanctuary II: Lost and Found Page 12