She moved to her Daddy and, even though she was no longer a baby but now a big girl, her Daddy was strong and he picked her up, just like always. She wrapped her arms and legs around him and nuzzled her nose against his. And, again, just like always, he nuzzled hers right back.
Then she pulled back, just a bit, and she took a deep breath because she had to ask what she’d been thinking about for
days
, for
weeks
but had always been too scared.
“Daddy?” she said, her voice timid.
“Yes, sweetheart?” her Daddy replied and Tash felt something funny in her heart because he’d never called her sweetheart before and she liked it a whole lot.
“You’re not um,” she stopped then rushed on, “ever going to leave again, are you?”
She watched her Daddy’s handsome face turn stunned then hard then soft and then he said, “Never,” in a way that she really,
really
believed him.
She took one of her arms from around his neck and put her hand on his cheek and said something else she’d been too scared to say, “Today’s a happy day and once it’s over, do you think you’ll hurt anymore?”
He blinked slowly and then said, “Hurt? Tash, what makes you think –”
“I see it in your eyes,” Natasha interrupted. Mummy wouldn’t like that Tash interrupted but she suspected Daddy wouldn’t tell.
Her Daddy’s arms became tighter than ever and his hand went to the back of her head, his fingers sifting into her fun, bouncy curls and he pressed her cheek against his strong neck.
What he didn’t do was answer.
“You’re too sharp for your own good,” he muttered and Tash had heard
that
before. She had the suspicion that she wasn’t too sharp for
her own
good. She was too sharp
for everyone else’s
good.
“I don’t want you to hurt anymore,” Tash told him quietly, thinking they should get back to the subject because it
was
an important subject.
Her Daddy pulled back and looked her directly in the eyes, and looking at him she saw
her
eyes for she and her father had the same
exact
eyes.
“The hurt’s gone, Tash,” he told her.
She stared at him closely, trying to see any of the hurt there, in his eyes, his face, anywhere.
She couldn’t find any so she smiled her quirky-sweet smile.
Then she cried, “Yipeeeee!”
And then she got her
bestest
, best gift of the day.
Her father smiled back at her.
* * * * *
Maxine
“I do
not
believe this is happening,” Lily stood seething in her sitting room.
Maxine couldn’t believe it was happening either. Time was ticking away. They should have left ten minutes ago. Instead these
odious
creatures were standing in the sitting room saying things to Lily, things… things… things… such
things
that Maxine was worried her ears were bleeding just hearing them.
It had been a fun, happy morning full of giggles, tears and champagne and they’d tackled the food they’d barely touched the night before (to Maxine’s delight, she liked her food). Lily was Lily again, fully Lily, the girl Maxine had met nearly a decade before, happy, giddy, full-of-life, smiling and open-hearted for all to see.
All was finally well in the world.
Then, watching Lorna, Emily and Susan drive away, Maxine had felt Laura stiffen by her side. She’d turned to see what Laura was looking at and she spied Alistair walking toward them, a man and woman with him.
“Alistair what are you doing here?” Maxine smiled at him.
Alistair didn’t smile back.
Then Maxine felt it, a wave of something horrid pounding at her back and she turned to see Lily, who was even paler than Laura who seemed rooted to the spot, her mouth open in shock – supremely unhappy shock, Maxine felt it important to note – and Lily looked ready to commit murder.
“How
dare
you!” Lily shouted, advancing on them. “Go away! Go! Get out of my sight!
How dare you!
”
The hard, angry look on Alistair’s face softened as he gazed at Lily but he remained resolute.
“Lily, you must listen, Jeffrey and Danielle told me about McAllister,” he implored. “Please, you
must
listen.”
“I don’t have to listen to a thing you say,” Lily snapped and turned to Maxine. “Let’s go.”
Maxine was looking between everyone. She knew who Jeffrey and Danielle were and her eyes narrowed on them then they swung to Alistair and you’d have to be blind not to see her face screamed “traitor”.
“We’re going,” Maxine declared, moving to Laura.
“I want to hear what they have to say,” Laura said quietly, staring at her children and everyone stopped.
“Laura, the booking for the ceremony is firm. If we miss it or we’re late,” Maxine put her hand lightly on Laura’s arm, “we can’t be late or they’ll have to move to the next wedding. Saturdays at the Registry Office are booked solid. Lily and Nate were lucky to get the one they have and even still, Nate had to pull strings.”
“You two go, I want to hear what they have to say,” Laura replied then turned to Lily. “I’ll drive your car. After I’m done here, I promise, I’ll follow.”
Lily was shaking her head but Alistair started speaking and all attention turned to him.
“Lily has to hear it.”
“Lily’s going to go marry my son.” Laura’s voice, which had been soft, now had a fierce tremor running through it. “
I’ll
deal with Danielle and Jeffrey.”
“I’m not leaving you alone with
them
.” Lily’s voice also had a vein of iron coursing through it.
Laura turned to Lily and took her hand. “You must go. Go to Nathaniel. I’ll handle this.”
“No,” Lily shook her head again and said with finality, “we’re family and family sticks together.”
Then, before Laura could reply, Lily turned to Alistair. “You have ten minutes.”
They’d all walked into the house. Lily didn’t sit or offer refreshments and neither did Laura. Maxine was standing sentry. Alistair took his cue and stayed standing as did Danielle who, Maxine noted with ire, was staring about her looking at the newly furnished, sumptuous sitting room like she’d walked into a squalid hovel and Jeffrey who was staring intently, even hungrily (but not in a good way, in a way that made Maxine’s skin crawl), at Lily.
“You now have nine minutes,” Lily stated after they’d stood there for awhile and no one but Lily said anything.
“Your fiancé is a criminal,” Alistair stated bluntly.
Laura gasped. Lily’s eyes narrowed and her hands clenched to fists. Maxine tensed.
Alistair went on. “Jeffrey and Danielle have had private investigators investigating him. I’ve read the reports. Not only was McAllister a petty thief and runner for a gangster, your soon-to-be father-in-law was a gun dealer.”
Jeffrey moved forward and Lily took a step back so he stopped but, unfortunately, he spoke.
“Lily, they’ve both gone legit but you should know his mother was murdered. There’s even the possibility he did it, that Nate murdered his own mother,” Jeffrey said, his voice dripping sincerity, false sincerity even the biggest fool on earth could tell he was an out-and-out liar.
Then it started, the vile words spewing forth, not only from Jeffrey but also from Danielle. And not just about Nate, though the words about Nate were more shocking and sad than vile, but also about Victor.
Maxine found it took every bit of willpower in her not-very-full (at the best of times) reserve to stop herself from moving forward and scratching their eyes out.
“Quiet!” Laura suddenly shouted, finally stopping the words and all eyes moved to her. “Quiet,” she repeated in a lower tone, her voice again trembling but this time with anger. “I thought,” she began and then stopped, blinking and swallowing, visibly trying to get control, then she started again, “I thought I was ashamed of you before, of who you are, what you’ve become, all you’ve done, but now, now… now, I don’t even know what to say. You aren’t just no longer my children, from this point on
you no longer exist.
”
That was when it happened, Maxine was sorry to say. That was when her willpower gave out (but, it might also have been all the champagne she’d consumed that morning, she did, very much, like her champagne). She would, of course, look back and deeply lament her actions but it was beyond her control. She
liked
Laura and she
loved
Lily and she couldn’t have stopped herself even if she tried.
Which she didn’t.
For, after Laura made her statement, Danielle walked right up to her mother and slapped her across the face.
And
that
Maxine could not abide.
Luckily for Maxine, she had a partner-in-crime, because Lily apparently was just as finished with the conversation and she didn’t abide the physical abuse from daughter to mother either.
So both Maxine and Lily acted to put a stop to it.
Which was, it would turn out,
deeply
unfortunate?
* * * * *
Victor
“I can’t imagine where they are.” Victor heard the girl say.
They were standing in the Registry Office anteroom. The guest list was few, some close friends of Victor and Laura’s, Lily’s shopgirls and various and sundry other people neither Victor nor Nathaniel had ever met that were a part of Lily’s life.
They were supposed to have gone into the ceremony room five minutes ago. If they missed their appointment, they’d have to reschedule.
Victor felt a sense of doom. All day Nathaniel had seemed, well, it was hard to believe but Nathaniel had seemed light-hearted, relaxed in a way that Victor had never seen before in his son.
Never
. Victor felt
certain
that Nathaniel had fixed things with Lily.
Now, he was not so sure.
Victor looked out the window and saw Fazire in a strange dark-purple suit, a turquoise tie and a camera hanging from his neck, pacing the pavement, glaring down the street as if he could force, with his magical powers, Lily’s limousine to glide toward the entry and he appeared to be talking to himself.
“Sir, we’re going to have to ask –” one of the Registry Office personnel had approached Nathaniel who, Victor noted with mounting alarm, looked grim, beyond grim, grim tinged with what Victor was devastated to see was
resigned
.
Then Victor heard Nathaniel’s mobile ring.
“We really must ask you to turn off your mobile,” the Registry Office person said but snapped her mouth shut when Nathaniel’s steely gaze sliced to her.
Nathaniel pulled out his phone, looked at the display and swiftly flipped it open just as Victor’s mobile rang in his pocket.
“Lily.” Victor heard Nathaniel say, his voice terse.
Victor pulled his phone out and saw on its display, “Laura calling.”
He flipped open his own mobile as he heard Nathaniel say in terse clip, “You’re
where?
”
Everyone’s eyes swung to Nathaniel as Victor put his phone to his ear.
“Laura,” Victor said into the phone but heard nothing but sobs. Victor felt the doom settle in his heart as his body went tense and he watched as rage replaced resignation on his son’s face.
“What’s happened Laura?” Victor asked quietly, thinking he knew the answer.
He didn’t.
“We’re in… we’re
all
in…” Laura stuttered. “
Jail!
” she wailed and Victor’s brows snapped together. Then what his wife said penetrated.
So Victor shouted, “
Jail?
” and Nathaniel’s and everyone else’s eyes swung to him as Laura babbled into his ear something about Lily’s attorney then Jeffrey then Danielle and just as Victor prepared to have a stroke, considering his blood pressure had to be skyrocketing and his anger had reached new bounds, Nathaniel strode purposefully to him, mobile still to his ear.
“I’ll be there in less than an hour,” Nathaniel was saying into his phone, his voice vibrating with fury. Victor watched as Nathaniel listened for a few moments and when he spoke again he carefully controlled his voice and said softly, “Darling, I’ll take care of it. I’ll be there in less than an hour.” Then he flipped his phone shut and looked at his father.
“Laura, I have to go,” Victor interrupted his wife.
“But Victor!” Laura cried.
Victor looked at his son. “Nathaniel needs me,” Victor said.
There was silence for a moment and then, with what he knew was hope in his wife’s tremulous voice, she said, “Of course.” Then, with definite hope, “I’ll see you soon, my love.”
He heard the disconnect in his ear and flipped his phone shut.
“What do you need me to do?” Victor asked his son.
“Lily and I are getting married today,” was all Nathaniel said.
Victor nodded that the message was understood and Nathaniel glanced at his daughter who was giggling with Lily’s shopgirls.