Chapter Text
The real estate agent, Candace, hammered the sign into the ground, interrupting what seemed like the end to a beautiful story where the McGees solved another crisis,each hammer a blow on Molly’s heart. “Sorry, folks,just how it is.” She said with a slight southern accent. “Kindly vacate the premises as soon as possible.” She then flashed a sinister , almost snide grin. “Gotta prepare it for buyers! If not….”
She smiled at the McGees.
“Such a shame we have to do this.”
Her forever home was taken away from her, just like that. With a letter and a sign being nailed into the ground.
A few hours later, the family could only sit around and stare aimlessly out the car window, all their worldly possessions in a trailer behind. They had said goodbye to Scratch , in a moment soaked with tears and sobbing. It had gone so, so wrong in so little time.
“What are we gonna do?”
Sharon shook her head. “Alright, kids, I’m gonna-“
Pete pulled her aside for a moment as Molly and Darryl looked up at them with wide, hopeful eyes, trusting in the adults to fix the situation.
“Could we…break it to the kids easy?”
“Pete, they just lost their house!”
Pete merely grimaced at Sharon.
“We just need to have a more positive outlook on things…here, watch.”
He then proceeded to turn and spout some nonsense about camping. Which the kids did not buy, clearly, judging by the doubting looks on their faces.
This….was not good, thought Sharon. Two kids, a husband who didn’t want to live up to reality, and mounting bills. Their mail was probably piling up at the door.
How could she have missed all those bills? All those warnings? What were her options? Her strategies? Could she find some kind of way? Would they need to file for bankruptcy? Could-
“Sharon, you’re….very pale.”
They had parked in the middle of the forest, away from most of Brighton’s buildings. The birds chirped at them almost mockingly, as if to remind them they were miles away from the nearest toilet.
“Oh, no, honey, I’m fine.”
She smiled at Pete. Couldn’t let them know what was on her mind.
Pete clapped his hands
“Well, guess this is home now. Molly, you told Scratch to stave off buyers, right?”
Molly nodded, though she didn’t look very confident. “Yep! He’ll scare them all off!”
“Are we gonna be okay?”
“Of course we are, sweetie. We just need some time to get our cash together and we’ll move back in in no time!”
Sharon glared at Pete but could only watch him soothe the kids with his words, soft cushions to protect them from reality.
Molly picked at her shirt, her mind racing. Was this how her time in Brighton ended?
A few days in, Darryl’s Switch was out of battery already. “Mom, I’m bored!” The kids chorused.
Sharon was using her laptop to check her bank account, already painfully aware of their dwindling power supplies. She’d have to charge it at the mall.
She turned to snap at them before seeing their faces, and remembered their surroundings.
“Alright, fine, we’ll listen to the radio….”
She reached to turn it on. The radio crackled to life and begin playing an oldie tune. As the kids leaned in to listen, she turned to Pete.
“So, I found some discrepancies in our mortgage reminders, but…we don’t have an attorney to consult , do we? Are there even any we can afford in Brighton?”
Pete shrugged. “I mean-“
The radio switched to a commercial.
“Have you recently been caught off guard by a financial tragedy?”
“Has a big old corporation taken away everything you love?”
“Do you have no legal expertise or representation whatsoever?”
“Well , I, Saul Goodman, believe under the Constitution you have rights.” The radio continued in a deadpan.
“You may be entitled to financial compensation, and I’m here to help.”
“So if you want to get some money, and take back your life? Better Call Saul!”
Pete and Sharon stared at each other, before Sharon scrambled to write down the number that followed.
The days passed. Sharon could see Molly and Darryl grow increasingly withdrawn and sad. When Scratch visited, he could see the desperation on the little ghost’s face. The Mcgees reduced to living like this. And she hadn’t even figured out how to tell Mom yet.
With nothing to lose, and watching Molly run all around town with a faux-smile pasted on her face, Pete and Sharon decided to try to contact this Saul person. A quick phone call, a Google Maps search, and an appointment were rapidly coordinated by Sharon.
Pretty soon, they found themselves standing in front of a dirty old strip mall, the bright red words “Better Call Saul!” mounted on top,screaming at them. They looked at each other. Was this the guy who they’d trust their future to?
Well, not like they had a choice. Molly would be absolutely heartbroken if they had to move again. And it felt like the rest of their life here was just around the corner-they had to do this. They couldn’t sit around and pray for money to just fall into their laps.
Sharon took a deep breath and knocked on the door.
“We’re open!”
Pushing it open, she saw a dirty reception area, a receptionist puffing away on her cigarette. “You got an appointment?”
“Sharon McGee, four o’clock.”
“Aye, he’s in there.” She gestured to the door. Pete and Sharon looked at each other nervously before pushing the door open. Inside, a brightly lit office papered with the Constitution and a lone desk with a small Lady Justice statue greeted them.
Several law degrees hung on the wall from “The University of American Samoa.”, clearly run off a bad printer. The floor was covered with a crusty, shaggy carpet.
Behind the desk sat a balding, middle aged man, dressed in a finely tailored suit with a pink shirt, with a bad toupee and an empty martini glass next to him.He looked over at Pete and Sharon. Immediately, he slid his files off his desk, adjusted his tie, and leaned forward, before flashing a huge grin at the pair that almost seemed to light up the room. He stood up and walked over, shaking the nervous couple’s hands.
“Pleasure to meet you…McGees! I’m Saul Goodman, and how may I help you get your money?”