After losing his hotel room, Royal claims he has only weeks to live so he can move back in with his estranged family; as the truth unravels, he must find a way to be useful and earn a place in their lives.
- Scenes 1–39
Royal is absent from the children’s adult lives, and their family remains shaped by his betrayals and abandonment.
- Scenes 40–47
Royal wants a path back to Etheline and the children, and claims impending death will give him one.
- Scenes 48–50
He returns to the house and openly asks his children for a chance to make things right.
- Scenes 51–90
Royal tries to reconnect through schemes, misjudgments and genuine care, learning that affection alone cannot erase old injuries.
- Scenes 91–92
Royal admits to Etheline that he hoped to win her back and remove Henry, revealing the motive behind his return.
- Scenes 92–110
Royal loses the household and faces separation again; Richie’s suicide attempt exposes the family’s deeper pain.
- Scenes 111–133
Royal returns to a useful place in the family by listening to Richie and protecting Ari and Uzi during the wedding-day crash.
- Just before
- Scene 136
Etheline and Henry marry in a judge’s office two days after the wedding-day crisis.
- Scene 137
Royal watches a performance of Margot’s new play, which receives mixed reviews and closes within two weeks.
- Scene 138
Raleigh and Dudley tour universities to promote their book about Dudley’s condition.
- Scene 139
This scene
