Part 2Spoilers Told Me Who Daddy Is

Mrs. Higgins from down the hall heard my screaming and found us. She called the ambulance, and by some miracle, we made it to the ER in time.

The doctor said it was acute myocarditis. She survived the initial crash, but her immune system was decimated. She needed immediate, intensive care, or her heart would simply stop.

Mrs. Higgins emptied her meager checking account to cover the admission fee, but as she stared at the staggering string of zeroes on the estimated treatment invoice, the lines around her mouth deepened into canyons. I knew she couldn't afford this. We couldn't afford this.

While she stepped out to the cafeteria to buy me a juice box, I slipped out of the chaotic waiting room and walked through the sliding glass doors into the biting evening air.

I had to find him.

But I was four. How was I supposed to navigate Los Angeles to find a famous movie director? I stood on the edge of the roaring boulevard, entirely overwhelmed.

The floating words above me were panicking even harder than I was.

[Where is she going?! Does she even know where Vaughn is?]

[I know! The paparazzi just leaked photos! He's shooting 'The Endless Dark' at Blackwood Studios!]

[Someone tell Remi! It’s an hour drive! Does this baby even have money?!]

I reached into the pocket of my overalls. My fingers brushed against a crumpled twenty-dollar bill Camille had given me earlier for emergency snacks.

I mimicked the adults I'd seen on TV, stepping to the curb and thrusting my little arm into the air. A yellow cab pulled over.

The driver rolled down the window, looking around for an adult. "Where to, kiddo? Where’s your mom?"

I shoved the wrinkled twenty at him, reciting the location from the glowing text above. "Blackwood Studios, please. My daddy is waiting for me."

The driver looked at me, then at the twenty, and chuckled softly. "Listen, half-pint, twenty bucks isn't gonna get you all the way to Blackwood."

Tears pricked my eyes. My lip trembled.

[Help her! Oh my god, use his name!]

[Remi, don't cry! Tell him your dad is Vaughn Croft and he’ll tip him huge!]

I tipped my chin up, widening my eyes to their maximum, tear-filled capacity. "Please, sir. My daddy is the famous director, Vaughn Croft. If you take me to him, he’ll give you a hundred dollars. I promise."

The driver blinked, startled by the sheer conviction in my tiny voice. He sighed, unlocking the back door. "Alright, kid. Let's see if this Hollywood fairy tale is real."

Blackwood Studios was a sprawling, chaotic labyrinth. It was louder and dirtier than I had imagined, swarming with extras in intricate armor and grips hauling heavy lighting rigs.

The driver was kind enough to walk me past the main gate, asking a security guard where The Endless Dark was shooting before pointing me in the right direction.

I marched on my short legs through the maze of trailers and cables. The invisible text acted as my GPS.

[Turn left at the craft services table! See that massive white tent?]

[Look for the guy screaming behind the monitors! The one who looks like he wants to murder the lighting crew. That’s your dad!]

[Go get him, baby! We're rooting for you!]

I spotted him instantly.

He was wearing a dark baseball cap pulled low, a headset slung around his neck. He was aggressively gesturing at an actress, his brow furrowed so deeply he looked terrifying. He wasn't smiling like he was in the hidden photograph, but there was no mistaking that face.

The set was so loud no one noticed a small child slipping past the barricades.

I took a massive breath, filled my lungs, and screamed over the noise of the production.

"Daddy!"

It was as if someone had pulled the plug on the entire soundstage. The silence was instantaneous and deafening. Dozens of heads snapped in my direction.

The angry director froze. He slowly pulled the headset off, turning to look at me with profound irritation.

I didn't flinch. I held his dark, heavy gaze, and yelled it again, letting the raw terror of the day finally break my voice.

"Daddy! Mommy is dying! You have to give her the money to fix her heart!"

A pin drop could have echoed across the lot.