#Emily Warfield

[autumncottageattic]

The Man in the Moon is a 1991 American coming of age drama film. It stars Reese Witherspoon in her film debut, Sam Waterston, Tess Harper, Emily Warfield, and Jason London.

Part II

[whatjaswatched]

I haven’t been able to stop thinking about this film.

I can’t believe it was Reese Witherspoon’s debut she was phenomenal in this.

[cathygeha]

REVIEW

A Duke in Winter

A Historical Romance Collection

 Ten novella length historical romances by ten authors gives the reader the chance to read authors already or yet to be read for the first time. With half of the stories read so far, I eagerly look forward to reading the rest after I post this review.

 As with any collection of stories, some will appeal more than others and yet at least one or more will no doubt be just what you needed to read in that moment that you sit down to do so. You can see how others live, what motivates them, how your life differs from theirs, try on a character or two to see if any are ones you could play the part of, and perhaps meet an author that will see you looking for their work again.

 Emily Royal’s THE TAMING OF THE DUKE has a side bet instigated that sees a fake courting become real but not without a bit of drama. A spinster will meet her match and so will the duke that begins a fake courtship with her.

 Anna St. Claire’s’ ONCE UPON A WINTER’S TALE is a bit darker tale of a love left behind with fear the motivating force but driven also by the desire of one man for an heir.

 Sandra Sookoo’s MUCH ADO ABOUT A STORME sees the matriarch of the Storme family, now widowed, finding a second chance at love.

 Elizabeth Keysian’s THE TEMPESTUOUS DUKE is almost Gothic in feel with a young woman washed ashore after a capsizing faced with two brothers that are at odds with one another due to what happened in the past. A Talking parrot, wonderful canine, and a mystery to solve are only part of the story.

 Caroline Warfield’s THE SIXTH HENRY might have been my favorite with a bit of a Capulet’s and Montagues feuding families feel to it but…this couple lands in a better situation than poor Romeo and Juliet. This story made me think about how difficult it would be to step into the shoes of a Duke without having training to do so.

 Did I enjoy the stories I read – yes

Will I read the authors again in the future – yes

 Thank you to NetGalley and Dragonblade Publishing for the ARC – This is my honest review.

 4 – 5 stars

       BLURB

 “It was a dark and snowy night…” Winter has come and the holiday seasons have arrived. ‘Tis the season to be jolly for most, but beneath the joyous celebrations lurks moody, dark, and seductive dukes that make England’s most famous bard’s brooding lords look like charm boys. But this isn’t a tortured Danish prince or a tormented king with three conniving daughters. This is… A Duke In Winter. Ten of your favorite historical romance authors have come together for this wintery collection to set your pulse racing. Melt the snow a little with this collection of sexy tales of moody dukes and the women hot enough to warm them. Indulge in the most unexpected of winter romantic tales! This set includes USA Today and Bestselling authors: Emily Royal Anna St. Claire Elizabeth Keysian Caroline Warfield Elizabeth Ellen Carter Ruth A. Casie C.H. Admirand Charlotte Wren Sandra Sookoo Anna Markland

[aliciameade]

Darkness at Dawn - Ch. 1

Title: Darkness at Dawn Author: aliciameade Rating: M/E Pairing: Stephanie Smothers/Emily Nelson Summary: Even Bonnie & Clyde met their fate eventually.

Set five years after "Baby."

Also on AO3

“Smooch, honey, can you get the door?”

“Bro, stop calling me that!”

“Letting him answer the door unsupervised? What if it’s a stranger here to abduct him?” Emily whispers in her ear conspiratorially. She pitches her voice toward the living room where their messy-haired pre-teen sons have been playing Fortnite for the past hour. “Connor, she’ll stop calling you ‘Smooch’ if you stop calling us ‘bro’!”

They’re making dinner—well, Stephanie is making dinner; Emily is observing over a shared martini. “He’s twelve and we know everyone in this village. It’s probably just Helen dropping off tomatoes from her garden. She mentioned she’d be stopping by soon.”

Her response surprises even herself. She’s spent the better part of the past six years working on her anxiety and propensity to helicopter-parent her children. Life is slow in Santorini. Stephanie—Alyson Reid, as the town knows her—is the proud owner of the bakery she began working part-time after she got a new identity and flew halfway around the world from Connecticut to start a new life in Greece.

After she killed her wife’s troubled, secret twin sister and set up Emily’s then-husband Sean for the murder of his wife. It had been surprisingly easy—the framing, not the killing. She’d sown a few seeds of suspicion with the detective working the case. Emily confided that he had been cheating. Emily asked for a divorce. Sean had a dark side, and Emily was afraid of him. So afraid that Emily had signed over her assets to her best friend Stephanie Smothers to ensure her son Nicky would be taken care of should anything ever happen to her. A pillar of Warfield, Stephanie’s testimony at Sean’s trial was the final nail in their old lives’ coffins.

She and Emily just celebrated their third wedding anniversary a few weeks ago. They’d gotten married on the coast of the island of Lesbos, an idea Emily had come up with over a second bottle of wine that had made herself laugh so much that Stephanie had no choice but to agree. They’d sailed there as a family, something they were both proud of being able to do on their own. They took their vows at sunset, the only guests were their sons and two people Emily had bribed with a hundred Euros each to be their witnesses, and they’d found the officiant by asking around.

After their honeymoon in Portugal, Stephanie changed the name on her passport for the third time in her life: first from her maiden name to Stephanie Smothers, to Alyson Barrett, and finally to Alyson Reid, Dillon Reid’s new wife. Dillon Reid, formerly known as Emily Nelson, formerly known as Claudia, formerly known as Hope McLanden. Brothers Connor and Devon Reid, formerly known as Miles Smothers and Nicky Townsend.

They’ve lived a dozen lives.

The boys don’t remember much about their past, and they’ve forgotten their old names. Stephanie still calls her son ‘Smooch’ because that’s never had to change. She didn’t have to abandon Smooch.

She and Emily tend to stick to pet names most of the time as well; it’s easier that way. More natural, at least when they’re around other people.

Behind closed doors, in the privacy of their home, away from even their children, an old name might slip out now and then, especially during a thoughtless moment brought on by passion.

Though Emily’s rarely called her anything more than ‘Baby’ since the day they met.

“Proud of you for taking off the training wheels.” She feels Emily’s hand catch her chin and turn her face to kiss her soundly despite Stephanie actively chopping a zucchini.

She smiles into the kiss and it makes the part of her still a bit tender from their morning start to ache. “What time’s your game tomorrow?” she asks when they part.

Dillon Reid is the head coach of the secondary school’s boys’ soccer—football—team. She’s always been good at getting men of all ages to do what she says. 

“9:30, so I’ll probably be gone before you’re awake. Warm-up’s at 8:00.”

Tomorrow is Saturday and Stephanie’s only day off from the bakery. Thankfully, as the boss, she doesn’t have to be there before dawn like her employees need to be to bake off the day’s inventory, but she makes a point to be on-site almost every day. She loves her team and she loves her customers, and she’s gotten pretty darn good at speaking Greek with the immersion in the culture.

“Okay, we’ll meet you there. Wanna go to Apollo’s afterward for lunch?”

Emily groans. “That place is such a tourist trap. I don’t know why you love it so much.”

“Because it’s the only place on this island that knows how to make an American cheeseburger. Pleeeeease?” she pouts, knowing she’ll get her way.

“Fine,” Emily says with an eye roll. “I’m getting onion rings.”

“Uh, Mom?” Connor’s voice is strained as it floats through the living room to the kitchen and Stephanie drops the knife onto the cutting board. “Mom!”

“What? What is it?” she says, rushing into the other room. She hears Emily follow and before she’s finished processing the two men wearing dark suits standing in their doorway, her son looking back at her, eyes wide, Emily’s stepped in front of her.

“Emily Nelson?” the man asks.

Emily doesn’t respond. The arm she’s wrapped around Stephanie in a reverse embrace tightens.

“Stephanie Smothers?”

“Bro, what?” Devon says from the floor where he is still playing their video game. “You got the wrong house.”

“Devon,” Emily admonishes.

Stephanie’s heart is in her throat. She feels she might pass out and leans into Emily’s strong frame, wrapping her arms around her waist. She breathes in her perfume. She thinks about the game they’re going to miss tomorrow. About Emily and their sons proposing to her in the very spot they’re standing now asking her to be a family. How they thought they had been so careful.

“Boys, I need you to go upstairs, please,” she says urgently, hoping the fear she’s feeling isn’t as evident in her voice as it sounds to herself. She hears Devon pause the video game and the shuffling of the boys grabbing their phones and chargers and has an even worse realization than she’d already had.

She steps out from behind Emily just in time for Connor—forever her little curly-haired Miles—to pass and she wraps him in a hug that makes him groan and protest until he seems to understand something serious is going on and he hugs her back. He’s as tall as she is now. “Listen to me, sweetheart,” she whispers in his ear. “You know the safe in my closet?” She feels him nod. “The combination is your birthday. There’s a red envelope inside. Call Helen. Ask her to come over. Give her the envelope. Do you understand?”

“Yeah. What’s going on?”

“I’ll explain when I can. Everything I did, I did so we could be happy. Remember that I love you.” She kisses his forehead and chokes back a sob before he can notice the tears in her eyes. “Upstairs.”

She can hear Emily whispering to Devon as well and then the boys stop and switch to hug their other mother, and they disappear upstairs.

She and Emily are now alone in their living room, two men at the open door, each holding a thick packet of folded paperwork.

“I’m Detective Inspector William Gareau. This is Sergeant Mark Gibson. We are agents of INTERPOL. Do you know why we’re here?”

Emily’s hand intertwines with Stephanie’s. Neither responds.

The men step forward, crossing the threshold into their home, their sanctuary, and that’s when Stephanie realizes it’s not just two men—half a dozen black-uniformed officers follow, flooding into the house and flanking them, surrounding them. Nowhere to go.

The Detective Inspector unfolds the papers in his hand. The officers in the room move. She’s pulled away from Emily, fingers slipping out of her grip as her hands are pulled behind her back. As cold steel clicks around her wrists.

“Stephanie Ann Smothers and Emily Claudia Nelson: I'm arresting you for the murder of Faith Margaret McLanden, having taken place in the State of Connecticut, the country of the United States of America, insurance fraud, money laundering, kidnapping, conspiracy, perjury, and false identification. You do not have to say anything, but it may harm your defense if you do not mention when questioned something you later rely on in court. Anything you do say may be given in evidence. Do you understand?”

She’s not sure she’s able to speak. She’s dizzy. The room is spinning.

“It’s going to be okay, baby,” is the last thing she hears before her ears start ringing and her world goes dark.

[tutuprincesse]

Radix Protégé Predictions

Mini Top 6: Lucia, Brooklyn Ward, Ruby Taylor, Madisyn Amos, Skye Harrell, Everleigh

Mini Top 13: Addyson Paul, Isabella Dyer, Melina Blitz, Tova Thompson, Mika Takase, Mila Renae, Mya Lanigan

Mini Top 23: Katy Lawrence, Lelani Leighton Brandt, Ava Guttmann, Chacha, Shale, Kate Matthews, Harper Cruz, Tenley Anthony, Chloe Tarwater

Junior Top 6: Tayah, Roxie, Helena, Addison Price, Kinsley Oykhman, Victoria Martinez

Junior Top 17: Piper Perusse, Elizabeth Ling, Leighton Curry, Carrigan Paylor, Emily Polis, Lucy Mae Dunn, Isabella Piedrahita, Francesca Jen, Sarahi Lopez-Prieto, Greta Wagner, Claire Gestring

Junior Top 32: Winter Eberts, Sydney Ko, Sabina Vess, Brooklyn Ladia, Khloe Kwon, Joah Moore, Katie Grace Dong, Quinn Briscoe, Serenity Lindemann

Teen Top 6: Kira Chan, Vivienne Mitchell, Mya Tuaileva, Lexi Godwin, Leila Winker, Sloane Dawson

Senior Top 5: Emily Madden, Emma Mather, Izzy Warfield, Keagan, Sabine Nehls

[carmodance]

who from mdc is graduating this year?

I believe:

Izzy warfield

kaya walsh

emily madden

emma mather

Im sure others I just dont know them

[daily-dyllan]

Mather Protégé Scholarships

Mini RU

Carrera Prera

Ava Foley

Mini Winner

Leighton Brandt

Junior RU

Elizabeth Ling

Audrey Mata

Ashlyn Ollestad

Junior Winner

Alexis Kathol

Teen RU

Jonathan Archer

Helena Galdino

Sophya Lopez-Prieto

Emerson McDougall

Teen Winner

Aleah Crew

Maya Sano

Kennedy Shen

Sofia Sawaya

Senior RU

Melanie Moreno

Makenna Miller

Jade Park

Josiah Rodriguez

Kennedi Sandidge

Siena Snure

Senior Winner

Mandy Boaz

Emily Madden

Emma Mather

Izzy Warfield

[sonyclasica]

AARON COPLAND

COPLAND CONDUCTS COPLAND

Las grabaciones completas para Columbia del "Decano de los compositores americanos".

Consíguelo AQUÍ

El "decano de los compositores americanos" era un intérprete formidable de su música. Gramophone calificó a Aaron Copland de "espléndido defensor de sus propias partituras", y poco después de su muerte, en 1990, el New York Times escribió: "Las interpretaciones de los compositores no siempre son definitivas, pero Copland era un director y pianista fino y comunicativo, y Columbia lo grabó con orquestas y solistas de primera categoría. ... En todos los sentidos, estas grabaciones deben considerarse el corazón de la discografía del compositor".

Como pianista dotado, Copland participó en las primeras grabaciones de su música, allá por los años 30, así como en muchas otras que siguieron a lo largo de casi tres décadas. Aunque hasta 1950 no dirigió por primera vez en un estudio, más tarde tomó la batuta con creciente frecuencia. Una vez le dijo a la coreógrafa Agnes de Mille: "No creo que vaya a componer nunca nada más. Me lo estoy pasando muy bien dirigiendo".

Sony Classical ya ha publicado muchas de sus grabaciones de CBS/Columbia en CD, incluido un importante set de 5 discos en 2013, pero esta nueva colección de 20 discos supone la primera recopilación integral de las interpretaciones autorizadas de Aaron Copland, con las seis primeras grabaciones del compositor por primera vez en CD a través de Sony Classical.

Columbia grabó aquí las piezas más antiguas en 1935: Copland interpretando las difíciles Variaciones para piano de 1930, una de sus obras maestras más complejas, y acompañado por el solista y líder de cuarteto de origen ruso Jacques Gordon en dos piezas para violín y piano. "Gordon toca la punzante Americana de la Serenata al Ukelele, la segunda de las piezas... con un brío desenfrenado", escribió MusicWeb International. Y para esta "lectura evocadora y poderosamente declamatoria" (MusicWeb International) de su trío para piano Vitebsk, se unió al violinista Ivor Karman, que tocó en el estreno, y al violonchelista David Freed.

Avancemos hasta la década de 1960. Ahora con el Cuarteto Juilliard, Copland volvió a grabar Vitebsk, junto con su Cuarteto y Sexteto para piano. Fue compañero de Isaac Stern en la Sonata para violín y, con Leonard Bernstein y la Filarmónica de Nueva York, grabó "una interpretación maravillosa y sin duda históricamente importante" de su Concierto para piano. Así escribió el biógrafo definitivo de Copland, Howard Pollack, que continúa diciendo: "Copland interpreta la parte solista con un ímpetu inigualable, y Bernstein transmite el toque urbano de la música -que puede haber servido de base para sus propios paisajes de ciudad- con un gusto inimitable".

La primera grabación de Copland como director fue la del Concierto para clarinete en 1950, con su dedicatario Benny Goodman y la Orquesta Sinfónica de Columbia. Es la primera vez que se publica en CD. En el nuevo set podrás compararlo con su célebre versión estéreo de 1963. Otra interpretación clásica de principios de los 60 es Old American Songs, con el barítono William Warfield y Copland al piano. También hay versiones mono y estéreo de los 12 Poemas de Emily Dickinson, con Copland acompañando a la mezzo Martha Lipton en 1950 y a la soprano Adele Addison en 1964.

En el caso de la obra más apreciada de Copland, el ballet Appalachian Spring que compuso en 1944 para Martha Graham, hay aún más versiones para disfrutar y comparar. En 1959, dirigió la Orquesta Sinfónica de Boston en lo que muchos siguen considerando la grabación definitiva de la suite de concierto para orquesta completa: "La interpretación tiene una atractiva amplitud y calidez de humanidad, ayudada por la resonancia de la Sala Sinfónica: el clímax con sacudidores es maravillosamente expresivo" (Penguin Guide). RCA Victor la acopló con la suite de The Tender Land, la única ópera de Copland, que más tarde grabó con más detalle (en una versión abreviada de una hora de duración) con la Filarmónica de Nueva York. Ese lanzamiento de 1966, también incluido aquí, le valió un Grammy®.

Luego, en 1973, con la Orquesta de Cámara de Columbia, Copland grabó la partitura original completa del ballet Appalachian Spring para conjunto de cámara. Le sigue aquí un bonus track: el ensayo que también la acompañó en LP. Tres años antes había vuelto a grabar la suite en su partitura de concierto completa con la Orquesta Sinfónica de Londres, con la que disfrutó de una feliz y productiva alianza tanto en la plataforma de conciertos como en el estudio.

Sus otras grabaciones con la LSO incluyen la evocadora Quiet City, así como obras tan importantes, pero menos conocidas como la neoclásica Short Symphony, una "notable síntesis de lo culto y lo vernáculo". ... Una representación singularmente 'completa' de su inventor" (el crítico Michael Steinberg), así como la Sinfonía de la Danza, las Variaciones Orquestales, las Declaraciones para Orquesta y la Oda Sinfónica. Está claro que a Copland le gustaba dirigir orquestas inglesas. Eligió la Philharmonia para grabar su Tercera Sinfonía y suites de sus célebres partituras cinematográficas.

Aaron Copland no solo creó algunas de las composiciones más originales, influyentes y atractivas de la historia de la música estadounidense. Grabaciones que ilustran exactamente cómo quería que fueran estas piezas: un nuevo e inestimable legado de 20 CD de interpretaciones auténticas, el "corazón de la discografía del compositor".

CONTENIDO DEL SET:

DISC 1:

Copland: Concerto for Clarinet, Strings & Harp with Benny Goodman (1950)

Copland: Piano Quartet

Copland: Piano Variations (1930)

Copland: Nocturne (1928)

Copland: Vitebsk, Study on a Jewish Theme for Piano Trio

Copland: Ukulele Serenade

DISC 2:

Copland: Old American Songs with William Warfield (1951/53)

Copland: Twelve Poems of Emily Dickinson with Martha Lipton

DISC 3:

Copland: Appalachian Spring (Ballet for Martha)    

Copland: The Tender Land: Suite    

DISC 4:

Copland: Concerto for Clarinet, Strings & Harp with Benny Goodman (1963)

Copland: Old American Songs with William Warfield (1962)  

DISC 5:

Copland: Piano Concerto    

Copland: Music for the Theatre (Suite in 5 Parts for Small Orchestra)

DISC 6:

Copland: The Tender Land (Opera in Three Acts)    

DISC 7:

Copland: Music for a Great City    

Copland: Statements for Orchestra    

DISC 8:

Copland: Twelve Poems of Emily Dickinson with Adele Addison

Copland: Las Agachadas    

Copland: In the Beginning    

Copland: Lark    

DISC 9:

Copland: Piano Quartet    

Copland: Sextet for Clarinet, Piano and String Quartet    

Copland: Vitebsk, Study on a Jewish Theme for Piano Trio    

DISC 10:

Copland: Short Symphony "Symphony No. 2"    

Copland: Dance Symphony    

DISC 11:

Copland: An Outdoor Overture    

Copland: Our Town Suite    

Copland: 2 Pieces for String Quartet (Instrumental)    

Copland: Quiet City    

DISC 12:

Copland: Billy the Kid Suite    

Copland: 4 Dance Episodes from Rodeo    

DISC 13:

Copland: Fanfare for the Common Man    

Copland: Lincoln Portrait    

Copland: Appalachian Spring    

DISC 14:

Copland: Symphonic Ode    

Copland: Preamble for a Solemn Occasion    

Copland: Orchestral Variations    

DISC 15:

Copland: Appalachian Spring    

Copland: Copland Rehearses Appalachian Spring    

DISC 16:

Copland: Sonata for Violin and Piano (1942/3) with Isaac Stern

Copland: Duo for Flute and Piano with Elaine Shaffer

Copland: Nonet for String Orchestra    

DISC 17:

Copland: Danzón Cubano    

Copland: 3 Latin American Sketches    

Copland: El Salón México    

Copland: Dance Panels    

DISC 18:

Copland: The Red Pony Suite    

Copland: John Henry    

Copland: Music for Movies    

Copland: Letter from Home    

Copland: Down a Country Lane    

DISC 19:

Copland: Symphony No. 3    

DISC 20:

Copland: Inscape ��  

Copland: Connotations    

[autumncottageattic]

The Man in the Moon is a 1991 American coming of age drama film. It stars Reese Witherspoon in her film debut, Sam Waterston, Tess Harper, Emily Warfield, and Jason London.

Part I

[artisticlegshake]

Senior Protege Prediction

Top 25ish:

Devin Mar, Ava La France, Georgia Ehrlich, Sage Kowalkowski, Peyton Martineau, Sarah Moore, AJ Storey, Makenna Taylor, Iliana Victor, Elle O’Donnell, Kayla Bennish, Rachel Leon, Mia Tassano, Bella Tagle, Destanye Diaz, Jackson Rolooff-Hafenbreadl, Easton Magliarditi, Perris Amento, Sam Fine, Emily Madden, Trinity Gray, Minda Li, Sophia Cobo, Emma Mather, Isabella Warfield

[pizzaefilme]

The Man in the Moon - 1991 - Dir. Robert Mulligan

[aliciameade]

Darkness at Dawn - Ch. 2

Title: Darkness at Dawn Author: aliciameade Rating: M/E Pairing: Stephanie Smothers/Emily Nelson Summary: Even Bonnie & Clyde met their fate eventually.

Set five years after "Baby."

Also on AO3

Stephanie has been to the Santorini police station in the past of her own volition to call upon their services for a minor inconvenience that Emily had, at that time, insisted she could handle herself. Stephanie won the debate, arguing that Emily punching the man who sideswiped Stephanie’s parked Vespa, breaking one of its mirrors, would bring unwanted attention from law enforcement.

She recognizes the female officer at the desk where she’s being booked. She’s handcuffed, hands behind her, Detective Summerville’s hand on her left arm as if she might flee, and one of the INTERPOL agents is waiting to her right. The officer speaks to her in Greek, a curious and judgmental eyebrow raised. Alyson and Dillon Reid are about to be the talk of the town.  

“Mrs. Reid, this is a surprise. Dillon was brought in yesterday. What in the world have you two gotten into?”

Stephanie knows Summerville can’t understand the language. She has no idea if the INTERPOL agent can. He had an accent when he spoke English in her home, one she can’t recall now to identify it.

She opts for a sheepish smile in response and answers the basic questions asked of her:  to confirm her height, weight, birthdate, name. Her answers are half true, half false. In this country, she is Alyson Reid. Stephanie Smothers is a missing woman. She hears Summerville grunt when she gives her false name, but it’s who she is here.

She’s fingerprinted and now remembers when she took Miles to the police station in Warfield when he was two, after the car accident, for them both to be fingerprinted so that in the event of a tragedy, their fingerprints would be in the system.

Stephanie Smothers will be found as soon as the computer finishes searching AFIS. She was always so prepared. 

She’s made to strip and is thoroughly searched and left to put on an orange jumpsuit two sizes too big with flip-flops that she’s expected to wear with socks. They take her watch, necklace, and earrings. They take her wedding ring.

A dozen other women are waiting in a line in a hallway when she’s deposited by a local police officer at the end of it. None of them are Emily, but Emily didn’t spend the night in the hospital. Emily has a head start.

They’re shuffled down one hallway and into another and she’s surprised by the destination. She had envisioned sharing a singular barred cell with another woman.

Instead, it’s a huge room divided into four Plexiglas holding cells, at least ten women in each. Nothing more than a built-in bench that wraps around the cell, a toilet-sink combination, and a single bed that she can immediately tell is always owned by whomever the most powerful person is.

Emily is not in her holding cell—she knew she wouldn’t be—and as soon as she’s uncuffed and pushed into it, she rushes to the far end of the pod to peer across the expanses. Emily shouldn’t be difficult to spot here; she never has been. Tall, blonde. 

She finally spots her in the cell directly across from her own. She’s sitting on its bed reading a book. Her hair’s been split into two braids sitting over her shoulders. Where did she get a book?

Stephanie smiles. It shouldn’t be attractive. She shouldn’t be thinking about such things right now, in jail for murder and a litany of other crimes. But her wife has been in jail for one day and she’s already the boss of her group and it is incredibly sexy.

She doesn’t bother knocking on the glass. It’s nothing but a cacophony of loud talking and yelling in her cell and she can see just as much chaos in Emily’s. She opts to wait. She’s in Emily’s line of sight if only she would look up from her book.

It doesn’t take long. Emily’s cell receives newcomers as well and she looks up, first at the door and the detainees, immediately saying something that Stephanie wishes she could hear. She’s about to return to her book when her eyes cross the room and find Stephanie.

Stephanie’s hand presses against the glass reflexively as if she can somehow reach Emily through it. Tears hit her cheeks and she opens her mouth to speak but doesn’t. She sees Emily rush to the glass; she’s saying something but Stephanie knows it’s not for her. It’s pointed, and she can imagine what she’s saying.

“Don’t fucking think about it,” in Greek. She’s heard Emily say it a hundred times, usually to men on the street, drunk American tourists.

Emily’s cot remains untouched as she presses her hand to the glass in her own pod. “I’m sorry,” she mouths. “I love you.”

“I love you, too,” Stephanie mouths in response.

She watches Emily tap her finger against her temple. Think. Be smart. She moves her finger in front of her lips. Shh. She taps her nonexistent wristwatch. Be patient.

Stephanie nods, wishing she knew what Emily possibly knew that she didn’t, to feel that all they need to do is be patient. She watches Emily retreat to her throne and returns to her own little piece of hell, searching for a place on the floor that is both away from the women who look like they’re considering strangling her and somewhat clean to wait until they decide to let her out to call her lawyer.

It’s a long week.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

When Stephanie finally gets in touch with her attorney, she learns that he is already at JFK Airport waiting to board his flight to Athens.

Emily’s attorney had contacted him already, so she was spared explaining the situation. She’s encouraged to be patient, that he will do everything he could to get her released on bond, and that she and Emily are scheduled to be transferred to the prison on the mainland, but getting a bond hearing will take time. That their case is complicated. That he’ll visit her in prison as soon as he can get through the excess bureaucracy that comes with her particular case compounded by the disorganization and corruption within the prison system there.

She already knows what the argument against releasing Emily and her on bond will be. They’ve changed their identities and fled internationally once; they have the know-how to do it again. She’s not hopeful.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Thiva Prison is a serious adjustment from the local jail in Santorini. The sights, sounds, and worst of all, smells overwhelm Stephanie’s senses. She has five cellmates, all of whom make clear they do not appreciate her presence and appreciate less her affinity for keeping her bunk tidy. For some reason, they find it irritating despite their bunks being relatively neat. They have no uniforms, and she sorts through the assortment of random clothing she’s been given; she assumes it’s been donated or salvaged. Most of it is too big.

She hasn’t seen her wife since their lengthy transport from their island home, separated at intake when they arrived at the prison. She assumes Emily’s been assigned to another section of the facility and spends her time observing the other inmates when they’re allowed out of their cells, but she never wanders farther than she’s required to go. She’s also watched a lot of prison reality shows and knows to take note of their cliques, their habits, who’s the alpha, and who the troublemakers are. She’s no fool; she’s an easy target in a place like this. Petite, pretty. Not a hardened criminal as many of the other women appear to be.

If only they knew she was there under suspicion of killing a woman by strangling her with a rope cinched around her neck in a meticulously premeditated murder before becoming an international fugitive.

She’s stir-crazy after a month and follows the line of her fellow inmates out of the prison and outside to the rec yard. She hasn’t had fresh air or sunlight since she set foot on the mainland and as soon as they’re in the yard, she heads for a makeshift walking track. There is no actual walking track; it’s just a dirt path worn into the field of weeds that circles much of the yard. There’s a fence at least 15 feet high surrounding the yard topped with razor wire, and beyond that, an even taller wall. There are watchtowers in every corner and a large one in the very center of the space. She can see the prison guards pacing them, sizable weapons in hand.

She works hard to keep her head down and not make eye contact with anyone. She has no friends here, no one to protect her, no one to help her, and she doesn’t yet know how an obvious American, even if she’s fluent in Greek, is going to escape becoming a target. The only thing that saves her from panicking is knowing that her boys are safe, even if Sean is likely doing everything he can to undo her adoption of Nicky and the guardianship she and Emily assigned to their neighbor Helen as a part of their emergency contingency plan. She wishes she could at least talk to him, to try to explain some of what was happening. He had adjusted so well to their new life and he and his brother had become close after a few rocky months of adolescent angst. 

And Miles, her darling Smooch... If Sean, or Detective Summerville, decide to rip apart everything she and Emily built in their new lives, if they manage to have the guardianship overturned…tears prick her eyes at the thought of Miles becoming a ward of the state.

“Yo!”

She manages to turn just in time for a basketball to miss her head and smack her shoulder. It falls to her feet and rolls a few meters to settle in a clump of weeds.

“Hey, throw it back before I come over there and beat the shit out of you.”

Stephanie’s heart is racing as she picks up the ball, first out of fear that she’s managed to disturb a group’s game, and then because it’s Emily’s smooth voice threatening her in Greek from across the yard.

She doesn’t react as she retrieves the ball and tosses it back to the basketball court, which is little more than a slab of cracked concrete and a single hoop. She meets Emily’s eyes and struggles to keep it together. She wants to run to her, to kiss her, or to cry, or both or all, but Emily’s cool stance, arms crossed, is enough of a message. They don’t know each other here.

“What block you in?”

“Uh, C-block.”

“If you come near our court again, I’ll find you there.” She mimics slicing her own throat, and while it’s barely noticeable, Stephanie catches it. She winks.

Stephanie puts her head down and hurries away, publicly threatened by a prison yard bully, privately elated that they finally found each other.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

[chalakeery]

The Man in the Moon (1991)

Director: Robert Mulligan

Starring - Reese Witherspoon, Jason London, Emily Warfield, Sam Waterston, and Tess Harper

[highonfilms]

The Man in the Moon (1991)

[allaboutreese-blog]

The Man in the Moon (1991)

[kopfkin0]

Reese Witherspoon, Emily Warfield and Jason London behind-the-scenes of The Man in the Moon (1991)