THE TOWERS FAMILY SAGA
        EPISODE 22
The dining table was just
a card table Robert found
in the closet. There were
no linens, no silver, and
certainly no crystal to
catch the light. Barbara
and Tyler arrived
carrying bags of takeout,
their laughter filling
the small hallway before
they even reached the
door. 'It's a bit of a
squeeze,' Barbara said,
kissing her father's
cheek as she navigated
the boxes. Tyler set the
cartons down and looked
at the man who used to
run billion-dollar
boardrooms. 'Nice view
of the oaks, Robert. It's
better than the smog we
see downtown.' They sat
shoulder to shoulder, a
closeness that would have
been impossible at the
estate. The twenty-foot
mahogany table was gone,
and with it, the twenty-
foot gap between their
hearts. 'So,' Robert
said, poking at a plastic
container. 'Let's
practice the rule. Who
has a truth that won't
fit in a mansion?'
Barbara looked at Tyler,
then back at her father.
'I?m glad the money is
gone, Dad. I really am.'
The room went still, the
only sound the hum of the
fridge. 'I don't have to
wonder if people like me
or if they just like my
trust fund anymore.'
Robert reached out and
took his daughter?s hand.
'Me too, Barb. Me too.'
Virginia watched them
from across the table.
She saw the grease under
Tyler's fingernails and
the fatigue in Robert's
sunken, tired eyes. But
she also saw the way
they were leaning into
each other now. 'I spent
forty years protecting
your inheritance,' Robert
said, his voice thick
with emotion. 'And I
never realized that the
money was the wall
between us.' Tyler
laughed softly, opening
a soda bottle. 'We?re a
lot tougher than you
gave us credit for,
Robert.' 'I see that
now,' Robert admitted,
taking a bite of food.
The radical honesty pact
was supposed to be a
business tool, but it had
become the family's
anchor. As they ate, the
neighbors' music thudded
through the thin shared
wall. Nobody complained.
They just sat together,
four people and a cat
named Bella, finding the
home they had missed
inside the house they
had lost. The card table
wobbled, but nobody
tried to fix it. It was
real, and for now, that
was enough.

  My books and screenplays:
 www.boomlakeproductions.com
    Turquoise Software
    solartoys@yahoo.com