BELLA BRONWYN CHAD DALE EDWARD ETHAN FEMALE JEN JILL JR LILY MADDIE MALE MALE_EMPLOYEE MOM PROTESTORS RACHEL TRAINER WORKER TRAINER Jump! Okay come here. Let’s go. LILY Good morning Bella. BELLA Morning Nana... How did you sleep? LILY Just great, thank you. BELLA Good, there’s tea for you. LILY Oh, thank you. BELLA And I'm going to go check on the new recruits and give them some food. LILY Okay, see you in a bit. BELLA Sounds good. BELLA Okay. Where-- Finnigan! Come over here, this one’s for you. LILY Bella, would you like to say goodbye to Cupcake? She’s going home with her new family today. BELLA Yes, of course I would! Oh Cupcake, we are gonna miss you. Good luck guys. Give us a call if you need anything, okay? Gotta run, Maddie’s back. LILY Okay sure. Here’s your little cupcake. BELLA Hey Maddie. What do we have here? MADDIE Hey Bella, special delivery. BELLA Oh, look at you girl. What's your name? MADDIE Indie, as in independence. BELLA Aww. Hi Indie. I’m Bella, it’s very nice to meet you. Is she a police dog? MADDIE Military. Just came in from Kandahar. BELLA Oh, well then you have training. Okay, come on out. Hey, hey. Sit. Good girl! Do you want a cookie? All right, let’s go have some fun, huh? Yeah. BELLA Wow, she’s got a lot of energy. MADDIE Yeah, you think so? BELLA Did she ever see combat? MADDIE Yes, but her file’s gone AWOL. Still tracking it down. BELLA Okay, there we go. Will you get her settled? I just have to organize everything for the, uh-- luncheon. MADDIE Yeah. BELLA Okay. Bye Indie, nice to meet you. Okay, you stay here. MADDIE Ready? Ready? BELLA Hi! CHAD Hey! Sorry we’re late. BELLA That’s okay! CHAD Smoothie emergency at the juice bar. BELLA Oh no, is everything okay? Did the machine break down? CHAD Uh, ran out of strawberries. BELLA Oh, well everyone is absolutely loving your juices. CHAD Well, except for this little guy right here. BELLA Well sir, just so you know, the dog refreshment center is right over there. CHAD Thanks, see you in a bit. BELLA Thanks. Yeah, sounds good. BELLA Hello. JR Hi. BELLA I don’t believe we’ve met. JR I’m Jr. BELLA Bella, hi. It’s nice to meet you. JR You too. BELLA Are you here for an adoption? JR No, I think I’m a little old for that. BELLA I meant a dog. JR Ah. BELLA Uh, well we’re just about to start the luncheon and talk about sponsorships and adoptions, if you would like to stay? JR Sure. Yeah, why not. BELLA Okay, well help yourself to some food, fresh juices. BELLA Hi everyone. Thank you so much for coming. As most of you know, this rescue center was started 25 years ago by my grandmother, Lily. Oh, and it appears our newest guest has arrived. This is Indie. She just arrived this morning from Kandahar and we are so happy to have her. And thanks to all of you, we’re gonna be able to give Indie a new life. I also wanted to extend a very special thank you to Stockard Pet Foods. They have continued their generous support and have been with us since the beginning. So, thank you Stockard! All right, well enjoy the afternoon. Let me know if you need anything. And thank you again for coming. BELLA Hey. MADDIE So sorry about that. We were just walking past. I don’t know why she decided to crash the party. BELLA That’s okay. MADDIE Looks like she made a new friend though. Who was that? I didn’t recognize him. BELLA Oh. Uh yeah, I don’t know. He said his name was JR? Did you scare him away? MADDIE Here, I’ll take her back to the kennel. BELLA Okay. MADDIE Okay, come on. JR It’s open! DALE Welcome back. JR Dale, it’s good to see you. DALE You as well. How long has it been? JR Almost ten years. DALE Does it feel good to be back? JR It feels good not to have to shave for a while. DALE How long are you staying? JR My next tour is in for 45 days, so I’ve got a leave until then. DALE Well, that’s great. JR I spoke with Rachel Montgomery earlier, how are things going with the closing? DALE Good. JR What’s next for you? DALE Rachel asked me to stay on to continue running the company. JR Well, after twenty years you know the business better than anyone else. DALE I better get back to work. Good to have you back. LILY Here’s your goodnight cookie. Night, night. BELLA Are you ever going to stop tucking them in for the night? LILY Oh, no! Because they deserve all the love I can give them. BELLA Nothing makes me happier than when they go to their forever homes, getting all the love and care they need. LILY You’re a doll, you know that? I love you, hunny. BELLA I love you too. LILY Good night sweetie, I’ll see you in the morning, okay? Good night kids! BELLA Sleep tight. You’re not feeling this, are you? All right, you can come hang out with me. What do you think? All right, whoa! All righty. BELLA Okay. What’s wrong girl? You don’t seem very happy. Wanna bunk with me tonight? Okay, let’s go. LILY Good morning. BELLA Morning! Your tea. Just give me two seconds. MADDIE Hi! BELLA Muffins, and I will take her from you. Oh my gosh. LILY Here she is. BELLA Maddie. You need a suitcase for those. MADDIE How’s Indie doing? BELLA Uh, she’s a little uneasy. Have you had any luck finding her file? MADDIE No, but I’ve requested it. BELLA Okay. Yeah, I think it would be helpful if we can find out a bit more about her past. LILY Well meanwhile, she’ll be just fine here with us, won’t she? MADDIE Yes. BELLA Just don’t get too attached, Nana. You know the rules. You made them. LILY I know. I know, but she’s such a lovely girl. BELLA Maddie, do you mind if I give you this little munchkin? MADDIE Hi. BELLA Hey Miss Indie, do you want to go for a walk? Does that sound fun? Come on. Let’s go this way. BELLA All right, let’s go. BELLA ... we regret to inform you that Stockard Pet Food -- BELLA -will not renew its annual support of Bella's Rescue Center as of the date of this letter... LILY What? Well, this is unbelievable. And it’s so abrupt. It doesn’t make any sense. BELLA And Dorothy was your best friend. She would be appalled that this is happening. LILY Yeah, she would. She loved this place. BELLA But she died two years ago Nana, and no one has so much as mentioned stopping the funding. They could have at least given us a little bit of notice. LILY Yeah. BELLA You know what, I’m gonna go over there and see if I can figure this out. LILY All right, good. BELLA Okay. LILY You want to take this with you? BELLA Yeah, thanks. I’ll be back in a bit, okay? LILY Okay. JR How are sales coming along? DALE Lots of people are stocking up before the changeover. JR Good, good. DALE In fact, I had a big customer coming in at about 5:00, so I should get back to my office. JR Sure, I need to get back to the house anyway. Good to see you again. DALE Same here. BELLA Jr? It is Jr, right? JR Bella. Yes, hi. BELLA Do you work here? JR No... No, I don’t. It’s-- was my parents company. BELLA Oh, so you’re JR Stockard? Stockard Pet Foods. JR Yes, I am. BELLA Well, now I know why you ran off so quickly and didn’t fully introduce yourself. Why did you come in the first place? JR Lily was my mom’s best friend. I wanted to say hi. BELLA Really? JR Yes, I haven’t been back here in ten years and since I just sold the company, I thought it would be nice to drop in, say hello. BELLA You thought it would be nice? Were you planning on breaking the bad news to my grandmother in person? JR I’m sorry, but I don’t have any idea what you’re talking about. BELLA Then why did you run off so quickly? JR Because you thanked Stockard. I don’t own the company anymore. Or at least, I won’t in a few weeks. I didn’t know what to say. BELLA Well, you could have said that you’re leaving us high and dry with no notice. JR High and dry? JR I don't know anything about this. BELLA Well, surely your parents would have told you something. JR My mom loved the center. She loved dogs more than people. That’s all I know. BELLA You can’t expect us to just pick up the pieces in five minutes, JR. That’s unreasonable. JR I’ll look into it, I’ll call my lawyer. I just don’t know if there’s that much I can do. BELLA This is gonna be devastating for my nana. RACHEL Hello Jr. Who's this? BELLA Hi. RACHEL Rachel Montgomerie. BELLA Bella Channing. I run the dog rescue center next door. JR Rachel owns a line of pet food stores and she’s bought Stockard. BELLA Oh. JR Would you excuse me? I’m very sorry, I have to get back to the house. Will you tell Lily I’ll come by? Thanks. Rachel. BELLA Oh, Rachel... Um, I don’t know if this is a good time, but maybe we could talk. I got this notice from Stockard Pet Foods this morning, do you know anything about it? RACHEL Of course, I practically own the place now. Just a couple more weeks and a few of documents away. BELLA Well, maybe-- maybe you could come by, I could show you around. Convince you to reconsider? RACHEL I’m so sorry, Bella. It’s just not part of the business plan. In fact, I’m planning to knock the entire place down. BELLA Wh-- what? You can’t do that. RACHEL Well, why not? I own it. At least, I will soon. BELLA Uh, no... My grandmother owns it and she would never sell it to you or anyone. RACHEL I’m so sorry to disappoint you, but your shelter and the house are on Stockard property. I’m sure your grandmother must be aware of this. And as soon as I get possession, I’m going to have to get you to move. Oh, that reminds me, I have something for you. Um, here you go. LILY Oh, how’d it go? BELLA We have sixty days to get out. LILY What? BELLA Yeah. LILY Oh, come on! Well this is nonsense! We bought this land from George and Dorothy 25 years ago. They severed off 10 acres. We spent our life savings buying this land. And then we built the house and the shelter. We own it outright. BELLA Then, why are they saying that Stockard owns it? LILY Oh, I don’t know. BELLA If the land was legally severed and you paid for it, then it’s yours. So you would have to have a sales agreement and a proof of the severance, right? LILY Well, yes, I’ve seen the document. BELLA Do you have any idea where it might be? LILY No, but it has to be in this house because your grandfather saved everything. He never threw anything away. BELLA Okay then-- then we’ll just have to look for it. LILY Maybe we should call Edward Colvin. He’s a very nice man. He’s the Stockard’s lawyer. I’m sure he has a copy. BELLA Yeah, that’s a very good idea, Nana. Very good idea. LILY Let’s go. JR How could Stockard own the rescue center? JR It-- it just, it doesn’t make any sense. RACHEL Well, it’s clear as day. It was built on Stockard property so your parents owned it. JR Yes, but it has to be a mistake. My parents never said that they owned it. In fact, they always referred to it specifically as Lily’s place. RACHEL Well, I guess it was Lily’s place if she ran the shelter, but for all we know, your parents built it. Lily has no claim to something that was never hers. JR So what happens now? You’ve already cut off their sponsorship and now they find out they don’t even own the place. RACHEL I’m not a heartless woman. I gave them sixty days’ notice to vacate. That should be enough time. JR Sixty days? You realize it's a dog rescue center, right? That’s-- Rachel, that’s completely unreasonable. RACHEL Look, JR. I love dogs as much as anyone. But Stockard owns it, and I’ve purchased Stockard. JR Yeah. BELLA Thanks for seeing me-- BELLA -- on such short notice, Mr. Colvin. EDWARD Oh, anything for your grandmother. BELLA She tells me that you represent the Stockard family. EDWARD I do. Unfortunately, I wasn’t their lawyer when this transaction occurred. But after your call, I did a search at the land registry. And oddly enough, there are no records whatsoever of any severance or sale of the property. BELLA How is that possible? EDWARD I have no answer for you, Bella. BELLA Does that mean there’s nothing we can do? EDWARD Well, unless we can find Lily’s copy of the document, not much. Of course, you could always take it to court. BELLA Hmm. That would cost a lot of money, wouldn’t it? EDWARD Possibly. BELLA And I have a feeling Rachel Montgomery would fight us every step of the way. Well, I guess the best bet is to search through my grandfather’s old storage boxes then. EDWARD I’m very sorry that you have to deal with this. And please give my very best regards to your grandmother. I’ll come by the center someday soon and say hello. BELLA I’m sure she’d really love that. Well, thank you again for seeing me. EDWARD You’re quite welcome. LILY Oh, I have no interest in -- LILY going to court. It would cost a fortune anyway. BELLA I know, we’ll just focus on sponsorships and we will get through this. LILY Yeah, and Pooches in the Park is coming up and that’s always a big success, right? BELLA Yeah. We’ll just have to make it a little extra this year. LILY Yeah. LILY Are you still looking for birds? JR Yes, I was. LILY I remember when you built that birdhouse. Oh, she likes you. JR How are you? Yeah. Hi. LILY Oh hunny, good to see you. JR Oh, it’s good to see you too. LILY Oh, how long has it been? JR Far too long. LILY I miss your mom every day. JR So do I. And I’m really, really sorry to hear about what’s happening with the center. She never would have let something like this happen and, Lily, if I had known... LILY Oh, it’s not your fault JR. Honestly. JR Well, if there’s anything I can do, please just let me know... BELLA Uh, well as a matter of fact, there might be. JR Oh. LILY I’ll tell you what, I’ll walk Indie and I’ll let you two talk, okay? Come on, sweetie. Don’t be a stranger, Jr. JR I promise I won’t. BELLA Do you think maybe we could start over? JR I think that would be nice. Uh, you hungry? You want to get something to eat or some coffee. BELLA Yeah, I know a really nice place really close by. JR Okay. BELLA Okay. JR It’s funny how I grew up right next to the center, but I never really understood its value. To me it was just a park with lots of cute dogs and puppies. BELLA Did you ever come over to see it? JR Yeah, I was there practically every day. My parents worked a lot, so the grounds became a playground and the dogs were my best friends. Your grandmother became like a second mother to me. BELLA Yeah, she’s amazing. I used to come out here every summer growing up. I couldn’t wait for school to be out. You know, I’m surprised we never met. JR Well, I would go stay with my grandparents in Cambridge during the summers and then after high school, I left. BELLA Did you not like it here? Small town life. JR No, no. It wasn’t that. My dad died ten years ago and my mom didn’t really want to stay here any longer. So we packed up and moved back to Cambridge and she handed management of the company to Dale. I think she held onto the business though hoping that one day I might come back and run it. BELLA And you didn’t want to do that? JR I wanted to see the world, so I went to military college and joined the army. BELLA Oh, are you still with the military? JR Yeah, I’m stationed in Belgium. I came back here with an extended leave to deal with the sale. BELLA Wow. Is it hard? Selling, I mean. JR I always knew this day would come, but it does feel different now that it’s actually here. But how about you? Where are you from? BELLA Uh, I grew up in Vancouver. JR A big city girl? BELLA No, not really. I’m a country bumpkin at heart. And I lived for coming out here as a kid. Who wouldn’t want to play with puppies all day? JR I agree. BELLA And then after I graduated from high school, I went to university to study dance. JR Do you still dance? BELLA No, shortly after I graduated I got injured so I had to stop dancing. JR I’m sorry to hear that. BELLA It’s okay. I thought about my life long and hard after that, and, uh-- I decided that this was where I need to be. So I packed up all my stuff, said goodbye to my parents, and here I am four years later. JR Any regrets? BELLA Uh-uh. Not one. JR Even despite the current situation? BELLA It’s a-- it’s a minor setback. I’ll sort it out. I owe it to my Nana. JR What can I do to help? BELLA Well, Nana said the she and my grandpa bought the property from your parents 25 years ago. It was legally severed and there was a document to prove it, but they can’t find any record of that or the sale. Is there any way your parents would have kept a copy of it? JR I don’t know, but I’ll definitely look. I’ll see if I can find it. BELLA Thank you. LILY Well, how did your talk with JR go? BELLA Oh yeah, it went well. Um, it was actually really nice, he said he’s going to see if he can find a copy of the severance for us. LILY Well you know, I am sure his parents or someone at the company must have had a copy. BELLA Yeah, well in the meantime, we have a lot of boxes to go through. MADDIE And we’ll get through it. LILY I know we will. BELLA Yeah. LILY And thank you. But right now I’m more worried about getting more sponsorships for the dogs so we can keep going. BELLA Well, we could always start a company selling your dog treats. All the dogs love them. LILY You know what, I am not a standing in the kitchen baking cookies kind of a gal, Bella. BELLA Says the woman who does it almost every single day. LILY Well, that’s because I love my puppies. Last I checked, you weren’t a puppy. MADDIE Oh, but they smell so good. BELLA Oh, I talked to Jill today. LILY Who, Jill from the Tv station? BELLA Yeah, she loves the rescue program and she’s going to give us some coverage for the fundraiser. Oh! Well, never a dull moment. MADDIE Come here, we’ll take them back. BELLA Thank you. MADDIE Oh my goodness. Oh, I’m going to miss this place. BELLA Hey, don’t say that. We’re going to find this document and we’re gonna sort this out. Okay? JR Hello? Hey! BELLA Wow, someone is happy to see you. JR How are you? Nice to see you. BELLA She’s a special one. JR Yeah, well I have some good news. I spoke to Dale, and he was able to release some funds for your upcoming Pooches in the Park. BELLA Oh wow, thanks, Jr. We weren’t expecting that. LILY Yeah-- whoa, ten thousand dollars? JR, this is way more than usual. JR It was the full amount left in the sponsorship account for the year. Hopefully it helps. LILY Oh, it helps more than I can say. Thank you. JR You’re welcome. I’m also going to talk to Rachel because I think I can get her to agree to a six month extension for you. BELLA Wow, that would be amazing. I mean, if nothing else, it would give us time to get all of the dogs housed and relocate if we need to. JR Well, I’ll talk to my contacts and I’ll see if I can drum up some sponsorship support. BELLA I take it you haven’t had any luck finding that severance document yet? JR No. Not yet, but I’m working on it. BELLA Hey, do you want to help me getting these little munchkins back to the kennels? MADDIE Yes. JR Yes, of course. I very much do. MADDIE For you! Oh my goodness. JR For me? Hello! BELLA Come on, yeah. JR Oh buddy, hello. BELLA Say goodbye to Nana. JR All right. BELLA Bye bye, Nana. LILY I love you. MADDIE Okay, say your goodbyes. JR Bye Lily. MADDIE Goodbye. JR Let’s go. Wow, this has changed quite a bit since the last time I saw it. It’s nicer than most of the places I’ve lived lately. You have a lot of military dogs. BELLA Yeah, military and police. We’ll take any dog, but especially the working dogs. A lot of them are traumatized so we try to make this as much like home as possible. There you go. JR Well, these dogs work hard. That’s all they know. BELLA You seem familiar with them. JR Yeah, on some of my assignments I’ve worked alongside K-9 units. BELLA Then you understand them. A lot of them are lost when they get here. JR Well, they’re lucky to have someone like you. BELLA That’s why keeping the shelter open is so important. Closing it’s not an option, I’m gonna do whatever I have to to keep it open. JR They even watch Tv? BELLA Cat videos. JR No baseball? BELLA Not yet. Hey Jen, can you keep an eye on the puppies? JEN Sure! BELLA Thanks. Bye cutie. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. JR I think it’s even nicer -- JR I think it’s even nicer here now than I remember. BELLA Yeah, well my Nana and Grandpa put every penny they had into building this place. Nana still does. LILY Well, good news. We just got a check from Solomon Construction, and Mr. Solomon is bringing his rescue pup to Pooches in the Park. BELLA Oh, that’s great. And what about Mr. Doshi? LILY He’s in too. BELLA Oh, amazing. JR Sounds like you’re off to a good start. BELLA Mm-hmm. Yeah, well we need as many sponsorships as we can get. LILY Oh, it’s Mr. Colvin. JR Well, I’m going to head out, go for a quick run and when I get back I’ll see if I can get a few more too. BELLA Thank you. TRAINER Come on, over here! JR If you want, I can take her with me. I’m sure she could use a run too. BELLA Uh, well, I actually have a family coming by today that I was thinking of introducing her to. JR Oh. BELLA But there’s, uh-- there’s a lot of other dogs they can meet. JR Great. BELLA I’ll come by and pick her up later? JR Sounds good. Indie, let’s go! BELLA Bye, Indie. JR Bye! BELLA Pickles is really sweet, but we have a dog named Willow. We’re gonna bring her in to see how he responds. MOM Yeah. BELLA She’s so calm. Isn’t she beautiful? MOM Oh. Yeah, she is. I want to make sure we find a dog that Ethan can feel comfortable with. BELLA Oh, of course. I completely understand. We do have a lot of dogs that are well trained, but there’s one military dog who might be perfect. She’s really sweet. MOM Is she available to see today? BELLA Unfortunately no, but she’ll be back tomorrow. In the meantime, let’s see how he and Willow do. They seem to like each other. JR Yes, Bella’s Rescue Center... that’s great, how’s tomorrow? Say 11:00 a.m.? Excellent, we’ll see you then. Thank you. BELLA Hey Indie! Oh my goodness, I thought you would have wanted to send her back by now. JR No, she was great on our run and then since we got back, I’ve been talking on the phone and she’s mostly been sleeping on my boots. I think she might like them more than she likes me. BELLA Well, as long as she’s not chewing them, we’re fine. JR I’ve made some appointments for tomorrow. There seems to be a lot of support with sponsorships. BELLA Oh, that’s perfect. Yeah, I was gonna head back and make some calls too. JR Do you want to stay and have a quick glass of iced tea? I just made a fresh batch. BELLA Oh sure. Yeah, I would love that. Come on Indie, let’s go. JR Hey girl. BELLA It’s beautiful here. JR I didn’t appreciate it when I was a kid, and then coming back I realized just how lucky I was. BELLA Mmm. Can I ask, why did it take you so long to come back? JR Well, I think after my father died, I was a little lost and everything here reminded me of him. So I just didn’t want to accept the fact that he was gone. BELLA I can’t even imagine. JR But joining the military was one of the best thing that ever happened to me. At first, I was probably running away, but in the end I really found a purpose. BELLA That’s all you can hope for, isn’t it? Finding your purpose in life. JR How about you? Have you found yours? BELLA Yeah, I think I have. I wasn’t sure about it at first, but when I came back after my injury and started working with the dogs, I just realized how much I love it. JR I admire what you do. BELLA Thank you. Well, should we get going? I have some phone calls to make and a few hundred boxes to go through. JR Yeah, yeah. Yeah, I have a few to go through as well. And I-- I really hope that we can find those documents. BELLA Me too. JR Well maybe we could do this again sometime? I’ll be here for a little while longer. BELLA I’d love that. All right Indie, come on. Bye. JR Bye. BELLA Come on, Indie. Okay. RACHEL Hello, Bella right? From the dog place next door? BELLA Uh, yes. Rachel. From the rescue center next door. RACHEL Right. Well, I’ll let you get on your way. I have some business to do with JR. BELLA Right. RACHEL Excuse me. RACHEL Hi, I was hungry. I thought you might like to join me. JR I wasn’t expecting you today, Rachel. RACHEL Oh, I was in the area. I thought I’d drop by. JR Is there something important that you’d like to discuss? You could have called. RACHEL Uh, yeah, and there’s one small matter we need to discuss. JR Okay. RACHEL There’s a certain check that was written earlier. JR Rachel, that was already noted in the sale agreement and you should know I intend to honor any commitments that were made. It’s really no concern of yours. RACHEL You didn’t have to give it. JR I absolutely did. RACHEL I just don’t want any hiccups with the closing. JR Well, I think if you would consider giving them a six month extension, goodwill would go a long way. RACHEL I’ll think about it. BELLA How did the adoptions go today? LILY Oh, well, Maddie made two placements. And I talked to the Veteran’s Affairs and there’s an injured soldier just recently returned from Afghanistan. And she’s coming tomorrow with her family. BELLA Oh, well might be a good fit for Indie. LILY Oh you’re going to miss her, aren’t you? BELLA Yeah, I am. LILY She’s a sweet one. We got a lot of sweet dogs here, don’t we? Yes, I know sweetheart. It’s going to be really tough letting them all go. BELLA Yeah well, it’s always hard saying goodbye to them, but we can’t give up on the center. You own this place fair and square. All we have to do is prove it. LILY Well, it might be best if we don’t take anymore incomings. We just can’t afford it. And besides, what are we going to do with all of them when we have to leave? What are we going to do with us? We have to have a place to live. BELLA I know. Let’s just get through Pooches in the Park first. We’ll raise as much money as we can. And then, if we can’t find the severance papers, we’ll just find the perfect place. LILY You keep me going, you know, with your positive attitude. You never give up. BELLA Well, I just don’t want you to worry. We’ve got this. Right, Cash? TRAINER Jump! And left. JR Good morning. BELLA Oh, hey! Come on in. JR Thank you. You’re dedicated to these dogs. BELLA Yeah. Well, I love them, all of them. JR I see that. BELLA Have you ever had a dog? JR Yeah. Yeah, I had a few when I was a kid. And then every time a new dog came in to the rescue center, I wanted to adopt it. BELLA Do you miss having one? JR You know, I didn’t think I did. But coming back here, how do you not fall in love. BELLA Yeah, I know. JR Listen, I’m about to head into town for my meetings and I was wondering if I could bring Indie along with me? BELLA Oh, um... Yeah, I don’t know if that’s the best idea. She’s just so new here and she hasn’t really been adequately socialized yet. JR I think she would be a great ambassador for the center. Plus she’d really help with my pitch meetings. And I think she really likes hanging out with me. BELLA And you like hanging out with her? JR She’s okay. We understand each other. BELLA Mm-hmm. Just don’t get too attached, okay? You’re leaving in a month. Then what? JR I won’t get attached. I promise. BELLA What about her? She needs to be adopted as soon as possible. JR Well, I’m confident she’ll find a home. BELLA Well, I have a family coming back to meet her at two o’clock today. And there’s a solider coming in as well. She just got back from Afghanistan and Nana and I think that Indie might be the perfect fit for her. JR I don’t know if I’ll be back by 2:00, I will certainly try. I’ll do my best. BELLA You wouldn’t be considering delaying getting back, now would you? JR Me? No, never. BELLA Okay. I will see you around 2:00. JR All right. Bye now. Indie! Yes, say bye! BELLA She doesn’t even miss me! JR Good girl! Come on. Go find Ed! Yes! EDWARD Hello! Well, she’s a beautiful dog. JR Yeah. EDWARD She a soldier like yourself? JR Retired, but she’s not mine. Just tagging along today. A suitable ambassador though, I hope. EDWARD Yeah. Good to see you JR, it’s been a long time. JR Yeah, it sure has. EDWARD Well, I’m glad you could make it home in time for the closing. You know, a lot of winding down to do between the house and the business. I’m sure you’ll be relieved to have it all done. JR You know, I thought I would be, but going through everything, it’s just starting to bring back a lot of memories. And it’s been really wonderful seeing Lily. EDWARD Mmm. Well, have you met Bella yet? JR Yeah. I’ve never met anyone quite like her. She just has so much determination and -- EDWARD That’s her, yeah. Tough time for her right now though, she came by to see me a couple of days ago about the severance. JR Yeah, it’s a bit of a disaster. You didn’t happen to find anything helpful in the closing documents? EDWARD No, nothing. JR So is there anything I can do at this point? EDWARD Well, you sold the place Jr. Without physical proof of that severance, the rescue center and the house belong to Stockard. There’s nothing that you or I or anyone can do about it. JR All right. Well, let me know if I need to come in and sign anything else. EDWARD Sure will, yeah. And listen, if you need any help further down the line, just shout all right? JR Well, there is one thing actually. Bella’s annual fundraiser is coming up next week. She’s going to need to raise additional funds this year. EDWARD Pooches in the Park. JR That’s right. You think you could be a sponsor? It really would mean a lot. EDWARD Oh, absolutely, of course. Yeah, and I’ll get the word out. Yeah, there’s still a few people in this town who owe me a favor or two. JR That’s great, perfect. EDWARD What’s this one’s name? JR This is Indie. EDWARD Indie! Come and see me, come here. JR Go say hi. EDWARD Come here, sweetie. Oh, you’re a beautiful girl. BELLA Here you go, Ethan. It’s one of our Bella’s Rescue Center t-shirts. ETHAN Thank you. BELLA You’re welcome. MOM I think Ethan has made his decision. BELLA I think so too, it makes me so happy. It makes everything we do here worthwhile. Here you go. And I’ll get Maddie to set up the paperwork and that way you can head home with her today. MOM Thanks! Hi, how are we doing? Let’s take her home. JR You want- you want to take her back? Okay. JR Hey, I’m so sorry. We lost track of time. I lost track of time. BELLA It’s okay, I actually think your timing’s perfect. Everyone’s already made their choices. WORKER And here we have Tundra. JR Well great, okay. I guess we keep Indie for another day then. BELLA Yeah, but I did warn you not to get too attached. JR I’m not getting attached, I promise. But are you free for a little while? BELLA Yeah, why? What’s up? JR I just wanted to talk to you about something. BELLA Okay. JR And I got snacks, so I hope you’re hungry. BELLA Oh, I like snacks. JR So I spoke with my lawyer today, Edward Colvin. He mentioned that you came by. BELLA Uh, yeah. Is there anything new with the severance? JR No, nothing. Sorry Bella. I was really hoping that he would have something for us. Not the case. BELLA Well, I guess we’ll just have to keep looking then. JR I guess so. BELLA Isn’t it funny how when you’re looking for something, it’s always the last thing you find? JR Yes, I’ve found that. BELLA Yeah, and it was always was right in front of you. JR Well, that happened to you. You came back here and you found what you were looking for. BELLA Yeah, I guess so. And what I was really looking for was a picnic by the water, and here we are. How did you know? JR Just a lucky guess. BELLA Oh, well we should cheers. To... to luck and to finding what we’re looking for. JR Well, can I offer you a glass of Bridal Falls’ finest water? BELLA Oh, well does it go well with the cheese? JR Exquisitely. BELLA Oh, I forgot to tell you, I got a new sponsorship from Victoire Champagne. And the Guinness World Record holder for the most bottles of champagnes sabered in a minute is going to come sabre some champagne for us. JR Well, that is extremely impressive. How did you manage that? BELLA Yeah well, the holder of the Guinness World Record is a good friend of mine. JR Well, we’ll be able to cheers with the real thing then. BELLA Yes, we will. And it definitely only if it goes well with cheese. BELLA Okay. Well that’s 24 boxes down and 200 more to go. MADDIE Hey, good news though. We got four more sponsors today. BELLA Oh amazing! MADDIE No commitment of dollars yet, but I’m working on it. BELLA That’s great. Yeah, I’m going to head downtown to see Chad soon. His partner Jeremy works in real estate. MADDIE Oh, that’s great. BELLA Yeah. MADDIE And what about JR? How are things going there? BELLA No luck yet. MADDIE Bella, I’m not talking about storage boxes and finding a certain document. BELLA Everything’s fine. MADDIE Uh-huh. BELLA Okay, what is this ‘uh-huh’ about? MADDIE Well, you know, just a certain very handsome young man who just happens to be available. BELLA Don’t go there. MADDIE Why not? BELLA Because. Okay, you’re right, he is very handsome, but he’s definitely not available. MADDIE Says who? BELLA Says me. MADDIE Oh. BELLA He’s going to be leaving in a month, we’re never going to see him again. Okay, I have to go. MADDIE So not used to seeing you with a boyfriend. BELLA He’s not my boyfriend! He’s not my boyfriend. BELLA Hey Chad. CHAD Hey Bella, the usual? BELLA Oh, yeah. Thanks! CHAD Bronwyn, Berry Blaster? BRONWYN Coming up. BELLA Oh, and I brought some more posters. CHAD Oh, great! BELLA Do you have a minute? CHAD Yeah, of course. Anything for you, Bella. BELLA So we need to make the fundraiser a huge success this year. I don’t know if you’ve heard the news. CHAD Yeah, dropped by yesterday. He told me about the severance problem. BELLA I didn’t realize you knew JR. CHAD Yeah, friends from high school. BELLA Oh? What was he like back then? CHAD Pretty much the same. Except then, he couldn’t wait to leave and now we can’t get rid of him. EDWARD Lily. LILY Ed! Oh for goodness sake! Oh, it’s so good to see you. EDWARD Oh, it’s been years. Look, I apologize for dropping in unannounced, but I was talking to JR and Bella, and they were telling me what happened. I-- I’m so sorry. LILY Oh Ed, you don’t have to be sorry. It’s not your fault. EDWARD I was really kind of hoping that I’d be able to find something to help you. LILY I mean, if we can’t find it, I guess we’ll just have to make the best of it and move on. EDWARD Time to retire, perhaps? LILY Who me? Oh good heavens no. Oh no, no, no, no. Anyway, rescue dogs don’t care about how old you are or what you look like. They just like lots of care and lots of love, so I’m good. EDWARD Well, look I really should get going. I have a-- I’ve got a meeting later on with some people who might be interested in bringing in a sponsorship or two. LILY Oh awesome, thank you! I really appreciate it. Thank you so much. EDWARD You’re very welcome. LILY Oh! EDWARD Great seeing you. LILY You too. Oh, uh-- Ed, I’m just going to have a cup of coffee. Would you like to join me? I mean, if you have time, of course. EDWARD Oh, well, that would be great. LILY Great! EDWARD Yeah. LILY Okay. EDWARD Perfect. LILY Come on in then. EDWARD Thank you! LILY Well, there you are. How did everything go today? BELLA Oh, good. I talked to Chad and he’s going to ask Jeremy to look at some places in case we need to find one. LILY Great, great. BELLA Yeah. How was your day? LILY Well, um-- Ed dropped by today. BELLA Ed? LILY Edward Colvin. And he is working on some really big sponsors for us. BELLA Oh, wow. That’s amazing. LILY Why do I get the feeling something’s wrong. BELLA Oh, no, no. I’m just-- I’m just a little worried about Indie. That’s all. LILY Well, why? She seems to be settling in very well. BELLA I know. I just think it might break her heart when JR leaves. LILY Indie’s heart or yours? JR Hi Lily. LILY Oh, hi! JR Hi. Hi, how’s it going? BELLA Good. Yeah, good. JR I-- I was just wondering if maybe you wanted to go grab dinner with me? Honestly, I’m getting a little tired of going through all these boxes and then just ordering takeout. BELLA Well, um-- well maybe you could have dinner here with us. LILY Oh no, don’t look at me. I’m not cooking dinner for you guys. I’ve got leftovers. For one! BELLA Okay, well... Uh-- I guess we’re having dinner then. JR Great, no complaints here. BELLA Do you mind if I just take a couple minutes and change? Because I’m covered in dog hair. JR No, no, no. Take your time. I’ve got someone to keep me company. BELLA Okay. JR So Rescuing police and military dogs JR That’s pretty specific work. BELLA It was inspired by my grandfather. He served in Vietnam and he was in charge of a canine unit there. When he came home, he was really lost. Nana said he was a shell of the man that he’d been. JR So the dogs saved him? BELLA Yeah, I guess so. And originally it just started with him bring home homeless dogs, but Nana said they really calmed him and gave him a sense of purpose. So they decided to set up the rescue. JR And named it after you. BELLA Well, of course. And when I was little, I told everyone I owned it. JR Well, now you do. BELLA Whatever is going to be left of it, yeah. JR Oh, you’ll still own it. It might just look a little bit different. BELLA I know, I know. I just-- I don’t want to let my nana down. This is hers and my grandpa’s legacy. JR And yours. BELLA Eventually, I hope. JR So what else is out there for you? Besides the rescue center and work? Any other big dreams for your future. BELLA Just to be happy, maybe start a family one day. But for now, my life is pretty full. JR No boyfriend, no love? Besides for the dogs, of course. BELLA Uh, no. No one. I had a boyfriend in university and I thought we were gonna have our happily ever after. But when we graduated, he decided he didn’t want the same thing so we went our separate ways. JR And what, that was it? You’re just done with love? BELLA What are you talking about? I have puppies. Who needs men. JR Sometimes you need people. You know, that special someone. BELLA It’s not that I’m against love, I just-- I just want to be careful. You know, I don’t want to give my heart to someone unless I know they’re the right person. BELLA This is my favorite place to sit. JR Well, it’s very nice. I can see why. BELLA So what about you? Do you have anyone special in your life? JR No. No, like you, I dated someone for a long time and I moved around a lot. Long distance relationships are difficult. BELLA Yeah, I imagine it’s complicated being in the army. I don’t know where we would be without all of the sacrifices you make for our country. I really admire that. JR Well, I don’t consider it a sacrifice. I’m glad to do it. BELLA What about your future? Do you want to settle down? JR Yeah, I do. I’ve thought about it a lot actually since coming back here, realizing how much I miss my parents. What about your parents, where are they? BELLA They’re actually on a cruise right now. It’s the first trip they’ve ever taken together. They didn’t even have a honeymoon. JR Well, sounds like they’re proof that a fairy tale ending is possible. BELLA I should probably say good night. I have a Tv interview tomorrow for Pooches in the Park and Jill, the interviewer, she wants to set it up everything in the kennels so I kind of need to figure out what to do with that. JR Do you want any help with it? BELLA If you don’t mind moving furniture around and decorating with me, then... JR No, I don’t mind. I don’t mind at all. BELLA Okay, I would love the help. BELLA Please join my interview. JR Yes, I think this will work just fine. BELLA Welcome to Bella’s Beat, tell us about yourself. JR Hello, my name is JR Stockard and I like dogs. BELLA Yeah, you did great. JR JR here. Hi Edward. JILL Bella’s Rescue Center has been here for over 25 years and to date they have rescued and successfully adopted 1000 dogs. That’s quite an impressive record. BELLA Thank you. Our mission has always been to provide a home for dogs that have been abandoned. And over the last four years, we’ve expanded our services to include police and military dogs. JILL That’s admirable. And who do we have here with you today? BELLA Uh, this is Indie. She recently served in Kandahar. JILL A soldier? Is she available for adoption? BELLA Yes, she is actually. She’s settling in at the moment, we’re hoping to get her an adoption as soon as we can. But for now, she’s acting as our ambassador for Pooches in the Park, our annual fundraiser. JILL Okay! BELLA Thanks, Maddie. RACHEL This will be demolished as soon as we can secure the permits. RACHEL So just take that away. Our new building is going to sit right about here. FEMALE All right. RACHEL Did you get the new drawings? FEMALE Yeah. MALE I think you’re going to want to see this. RACHEL What is it? BELLA Pooches in the Park is our annual drive-- RACHEL Oh, it’s that dog woman. BELLA -- where we aim to find new sponsors and raise all of the finances that we need to keep the center open year-round. This year unfortunately we’ve experienced some unexpected challenges. RACHEL What is she trying to pull here? BELLA In the meantime, we need all the financial support that-- BELLA -- we can get in order to make sure that we can provide the basics for all the dogs we have here, including these two new puppies. JILL Hello! Okay. BELLA Come on in baby. BELLA On top of everything else, unfortunately we have to move. The company also owned the land that Bella’s Rescue Center is on, so we’ve been given notice to vacate. RACHEL Listen to her, she’s trying to stir up trouble. This is going to ruin me. I want her stopped. FEMALE Yeah. RACHEL Call the mayor, get him on the phone. Now! I want the permits to demolish that place. JILL If you want to help save Bella’s Rescue Center and these beautiful dogs, then go to our website now. JR Hey, you’ve reached Jr. You know what to do. RACHEL Jr, hi. It’s Rachel. I need to see you. Actually, it’s rather urgent. I’m at my office, okay? BELLA Ugh, Indie was the perfect ambassador. I was so proud of her. MADDIE We already have over 16 adoption applications. And our web site is blowing up. BELLA Ugh, wow. Well what would be really great is if we could get some more sponsorships. And I’m really hoping that JR can convince Rachel to give us six months more. MADDIE Mm-hmm, let’s hope. Any news on finding a new place? BELLA Uh, Chad and Jeremy are going to help, but we’ll worry about that after Pooches. Speaking of which, we have the meeting with the volunteers at 2:00, so we should probably head out soon. MALE EMPLOYEE Here’s your coffee, Mr. Stockard. JR Thank you. RACHEL What do you think? JR It’s uh-- it’s a different look. RACHEL I was hoping to take some time to talk about you, and us. JR Pardon me? RACHEL Not in a romantic way. Don’t be silly. JR Right. RACHEL I’m talking business. A partnership. Here. We would work well together. Building my business. Integrating Stockard employees with the new company, creating more jobs for the locals. JR First of all, I’m not interested. And secondly, I’m in the military. I’ll be out of here in a few weeks. RACHEL Well, long distance would be fine. You could set me up with all the Stockard contacts before you go. The mayor, local politicians. I want my permits approved, and I think you can help. JR Well, Rachel, I would be happy to help any way that I can, but I’ll need you to give Bella that extension. In writing. RACHEL Why are you so concerned about Bella? We’re doing her a favor. JR How so? RACHEL Well, you just think about my offer, please, and I will consider that extension. JR Hello? BELLA Okay, I’ll see you guys later. I’ve gotta go! JR Hello? Bella? BELLA You do know those are dog cookies. Right? All natural, healthy ingredients... but they’re dog cookies. JR Yes, of course I do... obviously. If it's not delicious, why would you give it to your dog? Do you have any milk? BELLA That’s not going to help, you know. JR That’s not my fault. There should be a warning on them. Dangerously delicious. BELLA So good your people will steal them. JR Yes, they will. Lily. LILY Hello. JR Hi. Hey Indie, hello. Thank you. Listen, I wanted to come by and let you know that I had an interesting call with Ed Colvin today. Now, are these human cookies? BELLA Yes, you’re good to go. JR Edward’s has been trying to track down the lawyers who represented my parents 25 years ago. He finally found the firm. Unfortunately, the lawyer that represented them passed away, but they sold the practice to a new lawyer. He’s reached out to her, got in touch and they have a meeting today. LILY Oh. BELLA Nana, this could be really good news. I mean, if she has files that prove the land was legally severed and you paid for it. LILY Well, I know I did. BELLA I know and I believe you, but if we can’t prove it, we’re kind of in trouble. LILY Well, all right. Well in the meantime while we’re waiting, we’re just going to have to dig a little deeper into those storage boxes and hope that we can find it. JR Well, I still have a lot more to go through back at the house and I’m gonna get back to it tonight. LILY Well thank you. Thank you. JR Oh, you’re very welcome. LILY Ah! I saw that! As soon as I walked in the door I knew you were a dog cookie stealer. JR Guilty. They’re delicious. Bye. Bye Indie! PROTESTORS Save Bella’s Rescue! Save Bella’s Rescue! Save Bella’s Rescue! RACHEL Have you contacted the Mayor yet? MALE Yes. RACHEL And? Are the permits ready? MALE Not yet, but they’re working on it. RACHEL Working on it? I don’t pay you to work on it. I pay you to get things done. FEMALE There’s a woman here to see you from the Tv station. And there’s protesters outside. RACHEL Protesters? What for? JILL To save Bella’s Rescue Center. I’m Jill from Bridal Falls Tv. RACHEL Yes, yes. I know who you are. I’m a very busy woman, but I do turn the Tv on occasionally. JILL That’s great because I wanted to get a comment from you. Our viewers were very upset seeing Bella on television... RACHEL Oh, Bella. Lovely woman. JILL I understand that you have given her notice to vacate. And very little notice at that. RACHEL Well, that was a misunderstanding. I mean, you know how these things can happen. All I can say is that we are here for Bella. I mean, we support the center and I will personally do everything in my power to help. JILL So you have the authority to fix this. RACHEL You will find that I’m a very reasonable and compassionate woman. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m also very busy. So thank you for dropping by, and could someone please help her out? JILL No problem, queen. I know how I came in. RACHEL Do you see why I need those permits? Fast. Make it happen. MALE All right. BELLA Oh, thank you for this. JR Of course. BELLA So how is everything going? JR No luck yet, but I still have a lot more boxes to go through. BELLA Oh, I meant for you. I’ve been taking up a lot of your time. JR Well, I’ve enjoyed every minute of it. Yeah, this is the most normal that my life has felt in a long time. BELLA Is it hard for you going through all of the storage boxes? I mean, there must be a lot of memories. JR Yeah, it is. I thought I could come here and just breeze through everything in a couple of days and never look back. BELLA Well, the past has a way of getting to you. JR Yes it does. I don’t think I realized that until I came back. BELLA Is that a good thing or a bad thing? JR It’s a good thing, definitely. BELLA Yeah, if you think about it, if you had never came back, you never would have discovered the dog cookies and a new diet. A whole new perspective on life. JR Exactly. Soon, I’m going to need one of those cozy little dog beds and settle right in. LILY So Ed -- LILY called. He’s going to drop by just-- right about now actually, so I better get in there and make some tea. BELLA Nana, am I sensing some excitement? Maybe a little bit of a crush? LILY What? Oh, don’t be so silly! I’m too old for a crush. BELLA Hey, no one’s ever too old for a crush. Besides, it has been five years. LILY I suppose it has. MADDIE Have you seen this? BELLA No, what? MADDIE People are protesting in front of Rachel’s office. They’re furious that we have to get out. They’re appealing to the mayor. BELLA What? LILY Okay, this is what we need. All right, I’m gonna go make some tea. BELLA Ed’s coming. MADDIE Right. BELLA Not Edward, Ed. MADDIE Ed. BELLA She has such a crush on him. BELLA That’s a lot of cookies. Are you planning on buttering him up? LILY Yeah, well- oh! Do you think? Well, I know that he has a sweet tooth. BELLA Oh really? LILY Oh, you! EDWARD Hello ladies. LILY Hi! Hello. Oh, are those for me? EDWARD Oh, these? No, no, I brought these for Indie. Yeah, and the other dogs too. Don’t want to make anybody jealous. There you go. LILY Oh, you are such a kidder. Oh those are beautiful, thank you! Oh my. BELLA We made sandwiches, I hope you’re hungry. EDWARD Oh, this looks wonderful! Thank you. BELLA Good. EDWARD Wow. So I got this from the lawyer I met with yesterday. She found some Stockard files, but this was the only thing in there pertaining to the severance. It’s just a rough, hand-drawn plan for the severance. BELLA So then there was an agreement. Or at least an intention. EDWARD Yes. BELLA Well, if she found this, maybe there’s other files. EDWARD Well, I did ask her to look and she will. BELLA Is there any chance we could do another search at city hall? EDWARD They already did, Bella. Unfortunately, there was a fire at the land registry office around the time this transaction occurred. A lot of documents were lost. LILY So there’s no hope of finding it? EDWARD Well, the lawyer is going to continue searching. BELLA Well, and we still have a lot to look through. And JR is looking. So we’ll find it. LILY Yeah, yeah. BELLA Do you mind if I take that over to show JR? EDWARD Oh, not at all. Yeah, I’ve spoken to him. It’s fine, yeah. There you go. BELLA Okay, I’ll take this over to him now. You two enjoy your lunch. LILY Oh, thank you. EDWARD Yes, thank you. LILY Um-- well, dig in. EDWARD Well! BELLA Come on. BELLA Hey! JR Hi. BELLA Packing up already? JR Um, just some additional files the lawyers need. Hi, hi boo boo. BELLA I guess I should have called. Edward just dropped by and I wanted to come over and show you the drawing. JR Yeah, he-- he called me about this. I guess it’s just up to us now to find it. BELLA Is everything okay? I can go. JR No, I got an email from my commanding officer. I’m being recalled. They’re, uh-- they’re sending me to Iraq. BELLA Iraq? Wow... Um, when do you go? JR Soon, possibly within the week. I have a call tomorrow morning and I’ll know more then. BELLA I, uh-- I knew you were leaving, I guess I just forgot. I thought we had more time. I-- I think part of me kind of hoped you’d stay. JR When I first got back here, all I could think about was leaving. The longer I’ve stayed, the longer it’s really felt like home. I guess I didn’t take your advice. Got attached. BELLA Yeah, but I didn’t really listen my own advice either. I’ve gotta go. JR Bella, please. Please don’t go. BELLA Jr, I don’t want to make a fool of myself. I’m not good at this. JR Listen, I’m still here for a few days. I mean, I’m gonna make sure that everyone who committed to a sponsorship follows through. If that document is here, I still have boxes to go through. I’m gonna find it. BELLA Thanks. That means a lot. Come on. LILY Oh there you are, I was wondering where you were. What’s wrong, sweetie? BELLA Nothing. LILY Really? And how long have I known you? BELLA Too long, apparently. LILY Look, I know a sad face when I see one. Does this have something to do with JR? BELLA No... maybe. LILY Look, I know that you’ve been hurt before, but you can’t hang on to that forever. Sometimes... Ugh, I don’t know. you just have to let go and trust somebody. BELLA I know, and I have. But I can’t just give my heart to someone who’s leaving. LILY I’m sorry, sweetie. BELLA I just have stronger feelings for him than I ever could have imagined. I really didn’t want that to happen. LILY Yeah, well that’s what love does, doesn’t it? Sometimes the heart just chooses its own path. BELLA Yeah. JR Thanks for coming over on such short notice. CHAD Yeah, no problem. Let’s just hope we can find this. JR I hope so. It’s the last thing I can do for Bella before I leave. CHAD Guess Iraq was a deal breaker. JR That, and I’m out of here before the end of the week. CHAD You’re going to crush her heart, you know. Look, I’ve known her a long time and she’s avoided relationships, then you came along. JR Hey. BELLA Hi. JR Hi, surprised to see you here. Especially without Indie. It’s been what, a day, and-- and I miss her already. BELLA Yeah, I’m sure she misses you too. JR Yeah. Do you want to grab a coffee or something? BELLA Uh, I was actually just gonna head over to city hall to check the land registry. I want to make sure nothing was overlooked. JR You know, Chad came over last night. We were up almost all night, we went through all the rest of the boxes. BELLA Any luck? JR I’m sorry. BELLA Well, I still have some of my grandpa’s stuff to go through, so there’s still a little glimmer of hope. JR Maybe I can-- maybe I can come over later, help you. BELLA Um, yeah. I-- I don’t think that’s the best idea. It’s just gonna confuse Indie, so. JR Right, of course. How are things going with her adoption? BELLA Good, good. Um, yeah, we-- we had a lot of interest after the Tv show, so I should be able to get her placed in the next couple of days, which will be the best thing for her, especially with the move coming up. JR Yeah, I suppose that’s true. Do you want a ride to city hall? I just parked back there. BELLA City hall’s right there. JR Yes. Yes, I knew that. I absolutely knew that. BELLA It was, um-- it’s nice to see you, JR. JR Yeah. BELLA You’re right, Nana. Grandpa kept absolutely everything. LILY Yes, except for the one thing we need apparently. MADDIE Well, at least all this purging will make moving easier. BELLA Thanks for staying so positive, Maddie. MADDIE This came in this morning. Thought you might want to see it. BELLA Oh. LILY Come on in, JR. Come on, come on in. JR Hi. BELLA Hi. JR Hey. Hi girl, hello. LILY Maddie, do you want to help me put the dogs to bed? MADDIE Yes. LILY It’s time, it’s way past their bed time. Come on sweetie. Good to see you. JR You too. LILY We’ll see you guys later. JR Goodnight Lily. Goodnight. MADDIE Goodnight. JR I know, I know that it’s a bad idea. BELLA Nana called you, didn’t she? JR Perhaps. She said you have a lot to do. Let me help. BELLA I’d really appreciate that, thank you. BELLA Well, um-- now I know why she loves you so much. JR Do you want me to go? BELLA No, I’m really glad you’re here. Stay and we’ll go through all of this, okay? Oh. JR More pictures. BELLA Very skinny and I had black hair. It’s not-- JR You know what, they grew back. That is a great shirt. Can I see? BELLA Yeah. LILY Oh my, have you been up all night? JR Well, there’s a-- there was a lot to search through. LILY And you didn’t find anything. JR No, there’s nothing here on the severance. LILY Well, if it’s not here, and it’s not at the lawyers, there’s just one more place to look and that’s your house, JR. BELLA And-- and you looked through everything? JR Yeah. If those papers were there, I would have found them. I’m so sorry Lily. LILY Well, then I guess we just have to face the facts that it’s all over. I’ll make you guys some coffee, okay? BELLA You did everything you could, JR. JR So what happens now? What happens to Indie? BELLA Uh, well, I have some temporary foster homes for the dogs and Indie will stay with me until we can relocate... unless she’s adopted. JR That’s going to be really hard on her. She’s very attached to you. BELLA Yeah, she’s even more attached to you. JR Well, I should get going. I’ve got some personal stuff I have to pack up. BELLA Okay. Um, what are you gonna do with everything in that house? There’s a lot of stuff there. JR Yeah, well I’ll have the movers pack everything up and move it into storage until I figure out what I’m doing. BELLA Good, good. JR Bella, can I see you again before I leave? BELLA JR, I can’t do this. I promised myself I would never let anyone break my heart again. JR Bella, I-- I hear you. But please, I’ve never felt like this and-- just please tell me that we can talk about this, there’s gotta be something we can do. BELLA What’s the point? I mean, you said it yourself, long distance relationships are too hard. So what, we’re just going to drag this out longer? I think-- I think maybe it’s best if you go. JR Okay. BELLA Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, I know. JR Yes! Edward, it’s JR. RACHEL ...just really glad-- hey, these are the architects I told you about. JR Excellent, would you just give me a moment? Thank you. RACHEL Sure, why don’t you guys start in the kitchen. Okay. JR Listen, I have found something that I think you’ll really want to see. Yes, I am. I am. I am very excited. So if it’s okay with you, I’d like to come over right away and show it to you, are you-- are you free? Yes, great. Thanks. Okay, all right. Okay, bye. JR Uh, sorry, I didn’t realize that we had a meeting today. RACHEL Yeah, we did. JR Um, if you don’t mind, something important has popped up. Is it all right if I leave you here, do your measuring? RACHEL No problem. Hey, I will talk to you before you leave for tour. JR Yes you will. RACHEL Okay. JR Bye. EDWARD Jr. come on in. JR Thank you. EDWARD So you’re on your way. JR Looks like it, yeah. These past few weeks have been a roller coaster ride... changed my life really. EDWARD This is about Bella, isn’t it? JR She’s the most amazing woman I’ve ever met. EDWARD Well, sometimes these things happen to us when we least expect it. JR Yes, they do, and now I’m up against the wall. On the one hand, I’ve got the woman that I’ve completely fallen for, and on the other, the career that’s been the mainstay of my life. EDWARD Well, couldn’t you have both? JR Not in this case. Bella deserves somebody who’s there for her, present in her life and I guess I’m just not that man. EDWARD I’m sorry to hear that, Jr. I guess sometimes things don’t work out the way we plan. JR Sometimes they do. I found the severance papers that we’ve all been searching for. I figured if I can’t be here with Bella, at least I can do something to save the center. EDWARD That is the best news I have heard in a long while. Lily’s gonna be so relieved. JR It’s not here? That doesn’t make any sense, it was right on top. EDWARD Well, are you sure? JR Yes, it was marked ‘Stockard copy.’ Please don’t tell me I’ve lost it after all of this, how could I have lost it. Oh, I don’t believe it. There’s another copy. It’s Lily’s, take a look. EDWARD Well, looks like the real deal. JR You can make sure it gets to Bella? EDWARD Well, can’t you deliver it yourself? JR No, I don’t think that’s a good idea. EDWARD When are you on your way? JR Today. No sense sticking around. EDWARD Jr, um-- one of the things I’ve learned in this life is that love is precious. And if you’re lucky enough to find it, my friend, never let it go. BELLA Rachel, hi. What a surprise. RACHEL Oh, that’s me. Always full of surprises. BELLA Uh, can I give you a tour? RACHEL Yeah, I’m not so comfortable with dogs. BELLA Uh, well, I’d happily give you a tour of our indoor facilities. Most of the dogs are out for their walks right now. RACHEL No, it’s fine. In a few weeks it will all be bulldozed, so it doesn’t really matter. BELLA Uh, what about the extension? RACHEL The extension? BELLA Didn’t JR talk to you about it? RACHEL Oh that. BELLA Rachel, if we could just have six months, it would be so helpful. RACHEL Yeah, I was just talking to JR about it. As a matter of fact, I just came from his house. Um, we have a lot of big decisions to make now, and we’ve both decided that it’s really not in the best interest for the business. I’m so sorry. BELLA You’ve both decided? RACHEL Of course. Oh, I’ve asked JR to come into business with me. I think we’ll make a fabulous team. BELLA Isn’t he’s going to Iraq? RACHEL Yeah, but I don’t mind a little challenge. Oh, I have a little donation for you. To help you with the move. It’s the least I can do, and I can have my people arrange a truck. BELLA I’m sorry, is this a joke? RACHEL I’m just trying to be generous, Bella. Do my part for the rescue center. BELLA I don’t want your money, Rachel. Please get off my property. RACHEL And don’t think that your little game with the protesters will save you. It’s too late for that. Good luck with the move. BELLA Oh, would you mind just taking those over to the raffle booth? Thanks. MADDIE Hey, I didn’t see Jr around today. I thought he would have come over to help set up for tomorrow. BELLA Uh, yeah. He’s not coming. MADDIE Not coming? Why? BELLA He got a new assignment. He’s leaving for Iraq. MADDIE Iraq? Oh my gosh. How-- how are you doing? BELLA I just feel like I should have known better, but I still let myself... MADDIE Fall in love? Bella, come here. BELLA Come here, buddy, come on. Yes, in you go. Come here, good boy. MADDIE Need me to do anything before I leave tonight. BELLA Uh, no, I think we’re good. MADDIE Okay, see you first thing tomorrow. BELLA Sounds good, have a good night. MADDIE Good night, Lily. LILY Oh, good night hunny. BELLA Tomorrow is our big day. LILY Most exciting day of the year. Oh, it’s hard to think about leaving. Your grandfather built this place. BELLA He really loved it here, didn’t he? LILY Yeah. You know, we started very small, and nothing made him happier than building more space to accommodate more dogs. BELLA Well, you built a really beautiful place here. LILY We sure did. BELLA And a pretty beautiful life together. LILY Now it’s time to say goodbye. Not to just this place, but to your grandfather. I don’t know if I’m ready to do that sweetie. BELLA Nana. LILY Everything here is a piece of him. BELLA He’ll still be watching over you. LILY Yeah, I believe he will. BELLA We’re going to get through this, you and me. The Rachel’s of the world better watch out. LILY Yeah. BELLA Because we’re a fierce team. LILY Yep. BELLA I love you. LILY I love you too, kiddo. Thanks. JILL Make sure you come out today to Pooches in the Park to support Bella’s Rescue Center. BELLA Hi guys, hi Ethan! ETHAN Hi. BELLA Hi Willow. How are you enjoying having her? ETHAN I really love Willow. BELLA Oh I’m so glad, I’m so glad. I’ll catch up with you guys in a little bit, I’m just gonna do my rounds. BELLA Hi. CHAD Hey. BELLA Thank you guys so much for coming, I’m so glad you guys are here. Well, you two enjoy the day. I’m gonna run around a little but I’ll catch up with you in a bit. CHAD No problem. BELLA Okay. JILL Hey, Bella. BELLA Hi! JILL Are you all ready? BELLA Oh, as ready as I’m gonna be. You? JILL Absolutely. I’ve done a few interviews already and the people are raving about the adoptions. BELLA Oh, it makes me so happy to hear that. JILL Especially your soldier. She said when she returned from Afghanistan, her world turned upside down. Her new little friend is helping her deal with her Ptsd and keeps her calm. BELLA Well, these dogs are miracle workers. JILL I gotta get back to my camera. I’ll see you later? BELLA Of course, thanks Jill. BELLA Nana! LILYOh Bella, hi. Look what you’ve achieved, huh? Look at this. BELLA Well, it wasn’t just me. We’re a team. You, me, Maddie. LILY Aww. BELLA I could not have done this by myself. LILY Well, you worked really hard and you made this happen. And I have some really good news. BELLA What? LILY Well, I think maybe Ed might would like to tell you himself. EDWARD Well, you remember that long-lost document that we were all searching high and low for? BELLA Where did you find this? EDWARD Well, JR found it. He asked me to give it to you. BELLA Does this mean we don’t have to move? LILY We don’t have to move, Bella. BELLA Oh my-- LILY Oh hunny. BELLA Come... LILY Get in here! BELLA Give us a hug! LILY Get in here! Oh dear! Just listen to that music, that just makes me want to kick up my heels. EDWARD Well, okay. LILY What do you think? EDWARD I’m in! LILY Oh, what a day! What a day. BELLA Maddie! I have the best news! MADDIE I know. Lily told me, but I was sworn to secrecy. BELLA Well, it could not have been a better surprise. MADDIE I have something else to tell you, but I have to go to the kennels. BELLA Yeah, I’ll come with you. MADDIE Okay. BELLA Okay. So what was the thing you wanted to tell me? MADDIE I got an adoption application for Indie. BELLA Oh... MADDIE Isn’t that what you wanted? BELLA Yeah, I guess. MADDIE But? BELLA I’m-- I’ve just become really attached to her. It’s going to be hard to her let go. MADDIE I know, I’m sorry. BELLA It’s okay. I knew in my heart that this was going to happen. I’m just never really prepared for it. MADDIE Well, they’re in the military, and they’ve been here a few times and they like Indie. BELLA Okay. Well, I’d like to meet them before everything is finalized and make sure Indie is happy too. MADDIE Of course. And I was really careful with the screening. BELLA Okay. I’m just gonna take a second. MADDIE Okay. JR Hi. BELLA Hey. Wow, today is full of surprises. JR I just wanted to see you again. BELLA Well, I’m glad you’re here. Thank you for finding this and for saving the center. JR How is everything going with the fund raising? BELLA Uh, good. Yeah, sponsorships and donations are over the moon. Thanks, in a weird way to your new partner, Rachel. JR What? Partner? BELLA Yeah, she stopped by yesterday to tell me that you’re going into business together. JR Wow, okay. That’s not true. Actually, when Rachel found out that the sale no longer included the center, she threatened to back out. She wanted me to destroy the severance papers. I said no, I wouldn’t do that, and she walked. I’m keeping the company. BELLA Wow. JR, that’s great. I’m sure your parents would be really proud of you. Um, listen, good luck in Iraq. I’m really glad I met you. And who knows, maybe one day we’ll see each other again. JR Bella, a very wise man recently told me something that really opened my eyes. He said that if you’re ever lucky enough to find love, don’t ever let it go. Bella, I love you with all my heart. BELLA Jr, I can’t say it back. You’re leaving and it’s just gonna make my heart break even more. JR I’m not leaving. BELLA You’re-- you’re not? JR I requested a transfer to the local reserves, the paperwork’s being processed right now. BELLA Are you sure that’s what you want? JR I’ve never been more sure of anything in my entire life, because I’m in love with you. BELLA I love you too. JR There’s one more thing. I adopted a dog. JR Hi. Thanks Maddie. Good girl. JR I couldn’t leave her either, so I’m here to stay, for you, and for Indie, for us. If you’ll have me. BELLA Of course I’ll have you. JR Yeah? BELLA Yeah!