A Helping Hand

Tony admits his life is a mess

Tony Stark was an absolute mess. Of course, it was to be expected that he would be after Pepper's death, but after two months, it was clear to James Rhodes that there was no way Tony could take care of himself- mostly because he hadn't been sober for more than a few hours the entire time, and those were usually the hours he spent sleeping. He suggested that Tony hire someone to help him around the house. The idea was soundly dismissed. Of course, James did try to remind his friend that there was someone else at stake- 8 year old Howard Stark, a bright young boy who was trying to cope with not only the loss of his mother, but also with his father retreating into his grief. James did what he could for the boy, but it was clear that something had to change quickly.

The gentle suggestions that Tony needed help were getting nowhere, so after another week of taking care of Howard and cleaning up after Tony's binge drinking, James decided he had no other option but to make an ultimatum.

"You're going to hire a helper. I don't care who, but I can't keep missing work to take care of you." He handed Tony a glass of cold water and waited for the protest.

"No, I'm not. I don't want to deal with someone just here to watch the train wreck."

"Fine. I'll screen them. The ad won't say who it's for and they'll have to pass the Rhodey test first before you even meet the finalists."

"You'd do that?"

"To save your drunk ass from choking on your own vomit? Yes. And because you need to focus on getting things right with your son."

"So how are you going to find this magic person who can handle the disaster that is my life?"

"Don't you worry about that. Just get some rest. And in the morning, try to eat an actual breakfast that doesn't involve liquor."

A week after their conversation, James tossed a pile of paper on Tony's table, "I interviewed a few dozen people this past week and these three stood out as the finalists. Rachel, a grandmotherly type I think would be good for Howard; Sarah, the restaurant hostess who saw a brother through to sobriety; and Abe, a professional councillor and life coach who comes highly recommended by a friend of a friend. Tomorrow, you need to get yourself looking presentable and to your office by 10:00am so you can meet them."

Tony flipped through the pages, eyeing the resumes suspiciously, "And you're sure none of them are going to turn on me? One of them is the person I need?"

"No, but it's better than nothing. I'll see you in the morning."

At 10:00am sharp, Rachel walked into Tony's office. James introduced her and they spent 15 minutes talking. Abe followed at 10:30, Sarah at 11:00. When they were all three gone, James was prepared to hear Tony say none of them would work.

"Not Abe. Or at least not all the time. Maybe once a week. I think I'd kill him. Let's offer the job to Rachel."

James called her that afternoon and she turned him down. He called Sarah. She accepted. He also called Abe and scheduled weekly visits. He went to tell Tony. Tony was not entirely happy, but resigned himself to whatever was in store.

Four days later, Sarah arrived for her first day of work.

Sarah had, like most of the world, never seen the Stark family home. Built into the side of a mountain, it looked a lot smaller than it was. The road curved up to a driveway that led to the entrance on the uppermost floor, the tall arching glass entry the only visible window. Hidden from the view of the road, the entire east face of the house was glass and overlooked a steep valley, the hills silhouetted by sunrises, kissed by the golden light every evening.

Howard met her at the door, "You must be Miss Graves."

"Yeah, but it's just Sarah. You must be Howard."