Family Reunion (6 page)

Rory stood staring at her with his brows drawn. "What's wrong with you?" He asked, noticing her strange behavior. Lena leaned toward him and took a deep breath, inhaling the smell of him and then leaning away from him, she looked up asking him.

"Where were you today?"

"It's late. Can I just go to bed please?" He responded, unwilling to cooperate with her.

"Sure…goodnight." She muttered gently.

He closed his door, she walked away.
'Oh my son, we are such strangers, I fear the distance between us is as far as the distance between your father and I.'
She needed to lie down; the scent of him had gotten to her, it was so strong and familiar to her, trapped in her head, shaking her calm, wrecking her peace.

* * *

"I was right, I just knew I was! He has her, he knew all the time who we were, and he lied! Right there in our faces he lied! Now what…I say we head back as soon as possible, then-…"

"No son."

Mike looked at his father shocked. "No?! Why not? Hope is back there! That damn Indian has her! I want her back!"

"Michael – she's
my
daughter! Have you forgotten that? You'll never want her more than I do…but no matter how bad I want her back, I will not jeopardize your freedom by letting you return to an area where you could be identified and captured once again, it's too risky. You're out of there; you'll stay out, for the time being anyway."

Mike sat back in his chair trying to cool down. He knew that his father was right but the thought of her with that Indian while he was there doing nothing tore him up inside. "You know that Indian has her because of me, that keeps coming back to haunt me, how do you think that makes me feel?!"

"
I know exactly how it makes you feel, believe me son you're spinning in a vicious circle that will not end, don't get stuck there. You have to stop thinking
that
so we can move forward."

Mike swallowed the lump in his throat as his mind replayed the scene of how she had pleaded and fought with him not to send her away, it was eating him up to know, that instead of sending them away, he should have gone with them, but then, he would have never found his father – yet, they could have all stayed at Webster Fields when he went home, the should and should nots were getting to him.

"What do we do now?"

"Garland Paige, he has a really good reputation. He's a tracker, bounty hunter, one who knows the Indian Territory and will do a better job of tracking Red Crow's village than we ever could. I'm expecting him at any time now – for the right price, he'll return and find it."

"He's just one man, how will he possibly get her from this Red Crow if he is not willing to give her up?"

"All I want him to do is find the village. Family ties and connection will do the rest. As a matter of fact, I'll send him with a missive to Harvest Gold Plantation."

"The O'Brien's?"

"Yes, if no one is to get killed, we need to approach from the family side. Jordan O'Brien is the answer."

The following day Manny was relieved to find that Garland had been back in the city for weeks. After a lengthy discussion, both men agreed the O'Brien's were the better choice for their first move. Manny would Finance Garland to cover all expenses of his travel as well the price he expected, he left the two men to make arrangements to leave in a few days.

With the matter of locating Red Crow's village taken care of, Manny went about his day instructing his son on the functions of his business. Leon was on hand to explain their customary routine, so their first duty was to deliver the signed shipping receipts and collect payments for the deliveries they had made. As they did so, Manny filled his son in on his ships; their names, capabilities, concerning weight load for cargo limits, their styles, speed and what he used each for as he matched each of his vessels to their captain and many of the crewmen manning them, some of whom Mike had already met.

Before leaving the bank, Manny introduced Mike to the key accountants and manager. Following that departure, the three strode for Manny's office, continuing the crash course as he listed the countries and Islands he traded with.

Mike's head was spinning as his father fired out
one piece of information after another – Leon was there to insert something he may have forgotten to mention. Approaching the building, Mike's eyes grew large at the number of crewmen there, lined up, waiting for his arrival. They were up the stairs, through the lobby, out the door, and midway along the block. Trying to take it all in, he had no idea the efforts that went into running a shipping company, the many men who were employed under his father, while being reminded that the line he passed on the way into Manny's office was only from two ships, with many others still abroad yet to come in.

Several times, he had to check himself as he stared trying to remember not to gape at the man beside him. An overwhelming respect like none he had ever experienced swelled within him for his father. As he sat helping pass out the pay, it dawned on him.

'My God, he is rich, this man, my father, worth more money than I've ever stolen or seen in my life!'
He couldn't believe what he was seeing. Once more he turned his attention to his father as one of the men was telling him something that made him rock back roaring in laughter. He had been singing an Irish ditty, causing the same response from everyone else there hearing him. Mike chuckled as well, realizing that his father's laughter was deep, rich and contagious. It made Mike smile as his heart squeezed in his chest, all that he was, all that he'd built – he’d done so in order to have the freedom to love his mother. It was then the point was driven home, Maynard Ramsey Webster had truly loved his mother, Lena.

A lump grew and lodged in Mike's throat as he turned away from his father to focus on passing out the pay and checking it, while each man made his mark for receiving his wages.

* * *

"How was school today?" Lena asked Rory to break the silence in the coach as they traveled home from picking him up once again. She felt lost on how to close the wound that marred their relationship. Watching him, she wondered how she could have ever considered denying him her love. Trying to avoid the pain she suffered from losing the other two, had only served to invent a new and different struggle. Mike and Hope had been taken away while Rory, God forgive her, she had pushed away.

How did one just shut down their ability to love their own child? For her, she knew it was impossible because she tried, with all the past loss playing over in her mind she tried, and failed. Her maternal instincts were much too strong.

She worried about Rory; feared for
him; no matter how much he resented her, she loved him. Unfortunately, the worry now was that it may be too little too late, he did not want her love.

She sighed as he looked out the window and answered blandly. "Same as usual."

"Will you be staying home to have dinner, it would be nice, if we - we could eat together for once." She asked softly. Rory had to turn his head to look at her, the request puzzling him. "Eat together? Why? What is wrong with you? You never cared before if I ate with you."

Lena swallowed and hesitantly smiled. His blunt question made her unsure of how she should answer him. "I know," She paused to take a breath. "I know I haven't been what I should have been for you and I want you to know it wasn't because I had no interest in you, it's just that-…"

He rolled his eyes with a, "Please, you must have me confused with someone else, I know better. You at times hardly knew I existed, and when you did, you wished I didn't." He stated flatly, followed by the thought of what Manny had told him the previous night.

Discarding the advice, he felt he could not help it, within his mind he saw no way of suddenly being nice to her when he knew she didn't care about him.

His words cut like a knife, Lena made another attempt. "Rory, that's not true, never had I a desire that you didn-…"

"How can you say that!?!" Rory exploded, shocking her, lowering his voice he leaned toward her as he bit out. "Do you think I'm stupid? You think I don't know about when you first came here pregnant with me, how much you hated it!! I know how you cried about the bastard you carried! I know how you wished I would die! How you told Sandra you didn't want me! I know about the night I was born and you called for anyone to come and take me away! Yes! I know...so don't try this with me-..." He said sharply, hating the feel of tears coming to his eyes. "...-we have a bargain remember, a promise to each other. You leave me alone, and I, sure as hell, will leave you alone!"

He turned back to looking out his window as Lena sat staring straight ahead. She thought she would drown in the humiliation that washed over her. Sitting across from him, she was unable to move, unable to say a word in her defense. She barely felt the sting of her tears as they dropped from her unblinking eyes. It took everything within her not to throw herself forward and weep. Silence once again reigned as they went through the city. Rory fought to keep his eyes pointed out the window and not look at her.

'Why had she looked the way she did when I told her what I did?
Why?! It's the truth. Rollo didn't lie. Tauntin' me all the time, saying how worthless I am. Sayin' how my own mother didn't even want me.'
He remembered every nasty word... "…and boy when yo' own mama don't want you, you sho'nuff ain't worth shit!! She should'ah let your ass die the night you was born! She was too soft hearted to let yo' lil'hollerin' ass pass on." He taunted, and slapped Rory upside the head. "Boy - pay attention t'what you doing! You done cut too low with that scythe'!" Rollo had yelled at him as they stood in the yard, trimming the grass.

"Don't hit me on my head no more!" Rory had yelled at him.

"What yo' lil'red ass gone do? Huh? You gone run tell ya' mama? I done already tol'yah she don't give a shit 'bout you! So what ya' gone do?!" A hard blow to the chest knocked Rory back so he dropped the scything tool and moved back yelling again. "Leave me alone Rollo!"

"Leave me alone Rollo!" Rollo mimicked, "Lil'red ass pussy. Get yo' ass back here, get this scythe! Don't make me kick yo'ass! You got all this yard to do!" He ordered.

"No! Finish it your damn self!" Rory yelled from a distance.

"Boy you betta get yo' ass back here! Don't make me chase you! I catch you – I'mo kick yo'ass all night long! Now get back here now! You askin' fo' a ass kickin'…I swear to God you is!"

"You got to catch my ass, to kick my ass!" He ran off like a shot with Rollo behind him cursing and threatening him as he tried to catch him, sometimes he did but lately he couldn't.

Rollo had gained weight and slowed down, while Rory had grown bigger and speeded up. Dismissing the ordeal from his mind, Rory chanced a sideward glance at his mother. Lena was now vacantly staring out of her window, a profound sadness in her eyes, more somber now after what he had said. He shook his head. He was not going to feel sorry about what he’d said.
'She's up to something. Gotta be! Why else is she all of a sudden trying to act as if she cares about me?'
He found himself staring at her, really looking at her.

The previous night she had smiled at him. Slight as it was, a smile still the same, and when she picked him up, again a smile. He realized he could probably count on one hand all the times he had seen her smile. Just then, before he cut her down, the third smile at him, ever.

He thought again on what Manny had told him. Had something happened to her to make her the way she was? Right then it occurred to him that he had never heard her laugh. For the first time he wondered why? As he stared, something else suddenly came to him. She was pretty, some would even say beautiful. That came from picturing her as he had seen her earlier…smiling.

'How woul
d she look if she really smiled, or laughed like she was happy or excited about something?'
For once he really looked her over, and as he did, he wondered,
'Who is she? I don't even know her. My own mother and I know little or nothing about her. How old is she? Thirty-six? Thirty-seven? What happen to make her as she is? Has she ever been in love? Has anyone ever loved her?'
Remembering a time back,
'Yeah.'
He thought about Sandra's solicitor, Mr. Cavat, he’d had it bad for his mother. Often there were times when he visited Sandra over one matter or another, bringing his wife along with him before she’d passed away. Sandra consulted him concerning the various shops she secretly owned and operated. While his wife sat in the study talking to Sandra, he would excuse himself as if he had to go relieve himself.

Like a wily fox he always somehow located his mother, wasting not a moment as if he couldn’t wait to be near her, to touch her, Rory would catch him, pinning her into a corner or up against the wall in the kitchen, with Lena trapped and fighting him off as he begged her to be his mistress. How many times had he walked in on him, to see him pressed against her, with her back to the wall? Her hands straining at his shoulders trying to push him away, as he forced himself on her; desperate it seemed, kissing her as his hands traveled over her body, one on her breast the other up her dress feeling along her thighs as Lena struggled to hold him off and keep his hand from between her legs.