took a seat in the wingback chair. We tagged along behind him. I had a feeling something was amiss.
“So, I have some news.” Rex shifted in the chair.
“Oh?” Scott and I settled on the sofa across from him.
“Actually, I have two pieces of news.” He drew in a deep breath and exhaled slowly. “First, Mark is gone.”
“Oh, right, I know. He’s got a doctor’s appointment or something.” I reached to brush a piece of lint off the arm of the sofa.
Rex shook his head. “No, I mean he’s gone. I let him go. He won’t be coming back . . . at all.”
My breath caught in my throat. “R-really?”
“Are you serious?” Scott asked. From the look on his face, I could tell he didn’t quite believe this.
Rex nodded. “Yes. I called him Saturday morning, so we’ve known for a couple of days now that he wouldn’t be back.”
I had to wonder who “we” was. Network executives, likely. But why?
My reaction to losing Mark as a director surprised me. We’d never been very close, and he certainly wasn’t the type to make friends. In fact, he’d frustrated me on at least a dozen occasions with his on-again, off-again ideas. Still, there was something about the ornery fellow that I’d grown used to.
I pondered this for a moment before responding. “I . . . I don’t know what to say, Rex. I really don’t.”
“No need to say anything, I guess,” he said. “It’s not like talking about it can bring him back. And I can assure you this is the right thing for the show. It’s a step in the right direction.”
Scott shook his head. “Rex, I know you and Mark didn’t always agree on how things should proceed, but there’s got to be more to it than that. What’s really going on?”
Rex cleared his throat, and I could read the anxiety in his eyes. “If you really want to know, the advertisers are worried about the slip in the polls. One of them actually threatened to pull their ads.”
“No way.” Scott shook his head. “That’s crazy.”
“It’s true,” Rex said. “And I don’t doubt for a minute they’ll do it if we slip one more point. So it’s critical to keep the show in the best possible slot.”
“I just don’t understand,” I said. “It’s not like we’re truly dropping in the polls. We’re just down from three to four. Big deal. The viewers are fickle. Next week we’ll be back up again. And it will keep shifting over time. That’s the way the game is played.”
“The studio execs are under the impression that we need some fresh blood. Someone with a firm plan who isn’t afraid of moving the show forward. So I, um . . . I’ve been looking.”
“And?” Scott looked worried.
“I found a gal. She’s young—just thirty—but she’s got an impressive résumé. Very impressive.”
“What’s her name?” I asked. “Do we know her?”
He nodded. “Tia Morales.”
I rolled the name around on my tongue. Sounded familiar, but I couldn’t place it. Then again, there were so many directors and producers around these days, it was getting harder and harder to keep up.
“What has she directed?” I asked.
“Give Me Liberty.”
“Wow.” Great nighttime drama about life in the military. I’d gotten addicted to it a couple of seasons back. The stories were incredibly powerful, and the actors weren’t shabby either. “That show was up for an Emmy,” I said.
“Yes, but when they didn’t win, it fizzled out after just two seasons,” Scott threw in.
“Not even two full seasons,” I reminded him. Hollywood could be a tough town. You were in one day, out the next.
“I know all of that,” Rex said. “Trust me when I say I’ve done my homework. I wouldn’t bring someone aboard who wasn’t qualified.”
Scott did not look convinced. Not that I blamed him, exactly. The show had been through enough ups and downs over the years. Seemed every time we turned around, we encountered another change. Hadn’t Rex just joined the team a month ago? And
“So, I have some news.” Rex shifted in the chair.
“Oh?” Scott and I settled on the sofa across from him.
“Actually, I have two pieces of news.” He drew in a deep breath and exhaled slowly. “First, Mark is gone.”
“Oh, right, I know. He’s got a doctor’s appointment or something.” I reached to brush a piece of lint off the arm of the sofa.
Rex shook his head. “No, I mean he’s gone. I let him go. He won’t be coming back . . . at all.”
My breath caught in my throat. “R-really?”
“Are you serious?” Scott asked. From the look on his face, I could tell he didn’t quite believe this.
Rex nodded. “Yes. I called him Saturday morning, so we’ve known for a couple of days now that he wouldn’t be back.”
I had to wonder who “we” was. Network executives, likely. But why?
My reaction to losing Mark as a director surprised me. We’d never been very close, and he certainly wasn’t the type to make friends. In fact, he’d frustrated me on at least a dozen occasions with his on-again, off-again ideas. Still, there was something about the ornery fellow that I’d grown used to.
I pondered this for a moment before responding. “I . . . I don’t know what to say, Rex. I really don’t.”
“No need to say anything, I guess,” he said. “It’s not like talking about it can bring him back. And I can assure you this is the right thing for the show. It’s a step in the right direction.”
Scott shook his head. “Rex, I know you and Mark didn’t always agree on how things should proceed, but there’s got to be more to it than that. What’s really going on?”
Rex cleared his throat, and I could read the anxiety in his eyes. “If you really want to know, the advertisers are worried about the slip in the polls. One of them actually threatened to pull their ads.”
“No way.” Scott shook his head. “That’s crazy.”
“It’s true,” Rex said. “And I don’t doubt for a minute they’ll do it if we slip one more point. So it’s critical to keep the show in the best possible slot.”
“I just don’t understand,” I said. “It’s not like we’re truly dropping in the polls. We’re just down from three to four. Big deal. The viewers are fickle. Next week we’ll be back up again. And it will keep shifting over time. That’s the way the game is played.”
“The studio execs are under the impression that we need some fresh blood. Someone with a firm plan who isn’t afraid of moving the show forward. So I, um . . . I’ve been looking.”
“And?” Scott looked worried.
“I found a gal. She’s young—just thirty—but she’s got an impressive résumé. Very impressive.”
“What’s her name?” I asked. “Do we know her?”
He nodded. “Tia Morales.”
I rolled the name around on my tongue. Sounded familiar, but I couldn’t place it. Then again, there were so many directors and producers around these days, it was getting harder and harder to keep up.
“What has she directed?” I asked.
“Give Me Liberty.”
“Wow.” Great nighttime drama about life in the military. I’d gotten addicted to it a couple of seasons back. The stories were incredibly powerful, and the actors weren’t shabby either. “That show was up for an Emmy,” I said.
“Yes, but when they didn’t win, it fizzled out after just two seasons,” Scott threw in.
“Not even two full seasons,” I reminded him. Hollywood could be a tough town. You were in one day, out the next.
“I know all of that,” Rex said. “Trust me when I say I’ve done my homework. I wouldn’t bring someone aboard who wasn’t qualified.”
Scott did not look convinced. Not that I blamed him, exactly. The show had been through enough ups and downs over the years. Seemed every time we turned around, we encountered another change. Hadn’t Rex just joined the team a month ago? And
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