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“It doesn’t matter, Gabby’s right, I’m hardly better than Graves. I’ll have my things out of the house tomorrow.”
“What?” Gabby said trying to figure out what had just happened. She expected more rage not this…detached acceptance, not even with her reminders of their wedding night.
“It’s yours, I’ll have Paul draw up the papers tomorrow,” he said.
“Of course,” Gabby laughed harshly still not buying it. He was obviously trying to save face in front of everyone here, especially with her pregnant but she wasn’t going to fall for it. “I think you forgot something, I get nothing, remember? Only a child you forced on me…”
Gabby turned and walked out before anyone could begin to speak, running into someone who’d been listening in. “Adam?” she said through her tears.
“So I finally get to meet my baby sister do I?” he asked. “I should beat the crap out of that bastard in there.”
“It doesn’t matter,” she told him. “I’m fine.”
“Then why do you look like your heart just broke into a million pieces?”
“Because it did, but I’ll survive, after all, I’m the tough one. Go make sure he doesn’t sic the cops on Haley. I’ll be okay, I promise,” she said heading out the front door and walking down the sidewalk away from the house. She stopped at the corner and looked back over her shoulder at the house, seeing the outlines of the people still inside and knew what she had to do. Plan C was on it seemed; she just wished it wasn’t necessary.
***
“What did Gabby mean when she said youforceda child on her?” Sam asked glaring across the table at him.
“Not that,” Wyatt assured him. “I refused to use protection.”
“Why didn’t Gabby go on the pill then?” Viola inquired.
“Because she almost died the last time she was on them,” Haley stated. “She got a blood clot that travelled to her lungs. It was the first time I’d ever seen Gabby sick, and it hurt so much to think that she might not make it.”
“What?” Maggie said. “When was this?”
“Her sophomore year at college, she had started seeing someone, a guy who seemed great but wasn’t,” Haley explained.
“Sort of like Wyatt here?” Adam asked entering the room.
“Who the hell are you?” Wyatt said turning to stare at the latest arrival.
“Adam Mason, that’s my dad, my peanut, and my sister…my other sister I just met going out the door and from the looks of her face you’re lucky I don’t beat the tar out of you.”
“Gabby left?” Haley asked.
“Did she take the car?” Wyatt inquired.
“No, she was walking,” Adam stated.
“I should go,” Wyatt said.
“Oh no, you’ve got some explaining to do,” Sam said, “as do you,” he added turning to Haley. “Why didn’t you call any of us when Gabby got sick?”
“She told me not to,” Haley answered. “She was in pain but made me promise to not say anything unless absolutely necessary.”
“I take it never got to that point?” Viola asked.
“She came close, the doctors barely found the clot in time before it reached her heart. She came out of it and that was it. She never mentioned it again, broke up with the guy she had been seeing and then, she was back to full Gabby mode.”
“Meaning what?” Joan inquired.
“Meaning that she never let anyone close enough to truly touch her,” Haley stated. “You have no idea how hard all of this was on her. She was sixteen when she found out that she had another brother and sister, but she didn’t have time to be hurt or angry about it because she immediately knew how much I needed someone to lean on. She was two years younger than me but she comforted me. She was at Mom’s funeral, hiding in the back but I could feel her and afterwards she spent the entire night with me, listening to me go on and on about Mom. It took me a while to realize that I’ve always relied on her, she never had a chance to rely on me to help her through finding out that Owen wasn’t her biological father and whether or not he knew. Then I got involved with Donald…things were a mess and I left Gabby to deal with school and everything else alone until I needed her again. She never questioned why I had pulled away, she never would,” Haley said sadly.
“That’s Gabby for you though,” Viola said going over to hug her. “No matter how much of a bitch you were to her, no matter how much you resented her if she loves you, she loves you withher whole heart. I never understood why she always forgave me but I do now.”
