Page 46 of Sensing Selma
Then again, she was a grown woman capable of making her own decisions, as bad as those decisions often seemed.Twenty years old was an age where anyone would feel invincible and excited for whatever the world brings.That’s what Damen was...something challenging, exciting.Nothing serious, of course.
I’d quietly begun to delve into the movie production’s finances, happy to see that the previous accountant, Penny, had done a wonderful job of leaving everything easy to follow. I simply had to pick it all up where she’d left off and for the past week, I’d been familiarizing myself with the way Keely worked.
I looked at the budget and compared it to the one from the previous movie and the movie before that. Although the budget for each movie grew, I was amazed by how much Keely could get done with so little money.
Her crew was very well paid, so she wasn’t saving there. The cast only had one or two major names, taking up much of the budget, but the remainder of the cast were unknowns, leaving Keely to negotiate fair and reasonable rates.
A knock at the door suddenly pulled me from the paperwork.
“Yes?”I called out.
“It’s me, honey. Your mother.”
Smiling, I rose to open the door, pleased to see her.
“I know you’re busy working, dear, but I was hoping to go out to get some fresh air. The view from my bedroom window is spectacular, but nothing compares to going out there and breathing it all in. Keely and her crew seem to be preparing to film something out in the garden so I can’t go there. I’ve not gone beyond the garden, not to the right or left of the manor, nor have I seen the grounds outside. I’m loath to go out there alone and was hoping you were due to take a little break to come walk with your mother.”
“Sure, Mother. The fresh air would do me good as well,” I said as I went back to my desk to put a few things away. “Let’s go out front. I’ve not seen much of the grounds from that angle myself.”
I wheeled her to the elevator, and we went down to the main floor and out through the front door.
“This morning I sat and watched them shoot an outdoor scene,” Mother said as I wheeled her down the ramp and onward down the drive. “That Keely girl really knows her stuff. So impressive.”
“She’s been doing this for a while now,” I said, enjoying the tranquil stroll. “I believe this is her fifth movie.”
“No wonder she’s so sure of herself.”
After a long moment of peaceful silence, she chuckled.
“What has you so amused suddenly?”
“I might have a bit of a surprise for you,” she said with girlish excitement.
“Oh? And what would that be?”
“I’m not quite ready to share it with you yet.”
I smiled and played along. “You can’t do that, Mother. You can’t tell me that you have a surprise but not tell me what it is. Or at least give me a little hint.”
“Oh, I don’t know...”
“Come on, Mother. Just a hint.”
“I’ll give you a hint. I think you’ll be very impressed.”
“Is that all you’re going to tell me?”
“That’s all for now, dear. And don’t try to draw another hint out of me. My lips are sealed.”
I laughed, happy to see her so lively.She had certainly aroused my curiosity. Still, I let the matter drop.
We arrived at a narrow path that veered off from the drive. Of very small, crushed gravel, it looked smooth enough and I decided to try turning the wheelchair onto it. Though not as smooth as the asphalt drive, it was still pleasant enough.
“Oh,” Mother let out. “Will you look at that.”
Indeed. A series of trees were trimmed to look like a variety of animals; a koala, a parrot, a fox.
“This is what your father wanted to do,” she said, her voice breaking slightly.
