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Twenty-Five
Amethyst
I’d prepareda quick meal of soup and sandwiches, which my mother and I had consumed in strained silence.
With the way my nerves were twisting, I was surprised I’d even been able to eat at all and found it a near miracle that my food had stayed put.
My mother had betrayed nothing at first, and I was simultaneously impressed and annoyed that she seemed to be coping so well.
After the meal, we’d settled in the living room, and now, after a few more minutes of tense silence, it was time to talk.
“Thank you for speaking with me,” my mother said quietly.
She looked at me, then looked away quickly before she looked back at me again.
Davit would have said she was acting was acting suspiciously, but it was nerves. I recognized it in the way she held her shoulders, the way she kept looking at me and then looking away.
Recognized it because it was exactly how I acted when I was nervous.
It still blew my mind that she was here, but every time I saw her, noted those little resemblances, those connections, I knew it was true.
I didn’t know how I felt about that. I was still shifting wildly between fear, anger, and hope, which was the worst emotion of them all.
“I need a moment, please,” I said.
She frowned ever so slightly, but I barely paid her any attention as I rushed back into the nursery.
I started at a sleeping Crystal, trying to get hold of my emotions, wondering if I could have this conversation.
My heart swelled with love as I stared at my baby, but that thought was clouded with the memory that I had almost lost her.
The memory of who had almost taken her from me.
I couldn’t help but think of all the things my father had taken.
My mother, my self-esteem, far too many years of my life.
But despite all he had done and all he had tried to do, I had so much more than I’d ever allowed myself to dream of.
Had a chance for even more.
I took a deep breath and wiped away the tears that ran freely now.
Raphael James had taken enough from me. I wouldn’t let him take anything else.
I went back to the living room where my mother sat, looking like she hadn’t moved an inch.
“My friend Kayla will stay with the baby. Would you mind if we went outside and got some fresh air?” I said.
She shook her head and stood. “No. I wouldn’t mind at all,” she answered.
Kayla came in and greeted my mother, then looked at me. After I nodded that I was okay, we left the apartment. The ride down in the elevator and the walk out of the apartment building were awkward, but not as tense as lunch had been.
I had so many questions, and I didn’t even know where to start.
All I could hope was that something would come to me as I walked.
“I’m not as familiar with this neighborhood,” I said as I stood awkwardly on the sidewalk.
