53. Mrs Eve Hamilton.

[Claire]
"Wait, wait, wait, are you sure this is the address?" I asked Jean nervously.
"Are you nervous?" He asked and I nodded. "You don't need to be, I'm sure she'll be very happy to see you, who wouldn't want such an amazing child."
"Okay." I took a deep breath and got out of the car.
Jean had driven me to the address where my mother lived. After a two hour drive, we had gotten there and I was so nervous, my hands were shaking.
I wanted to meet my mother, it was my dream to meet her ever since I found out that she was still alive, I was really happy that I was getting to meet her but I was really nervous too.
What if she had another family?
What if she had moved on from me, after all, the last time she tried to contact me was over eighteen years ago.
Would she even recognize me?
How would she react to me showing up on her doorstep after all these years?
I had no answers to all these questions and it freaked me out even more.
"Do you want me to go with you?" Jean asked but as much as I needed his support, I knew that this was something I would have to do on my own.
"No, thank you, I should do this on my own." I hugged him and lingered just a little while longer.
"You're so brave." He whispered into my ear before I let him go. " I'll be here, I'll wait right here in the car, no matter how long."
"Thank you." I fought the urge to hug him again as I turned away from him and headed towards the door.
The house was a huge one and I wondered if she would be home. It was a large semi-detached house with beautiful gardens and it was brightly colored.
I pushed the bell button with shaking hands when I got to the front door and I looked back at Jean who was parked on the sidewalk, he gave me two thumbs up and I decided to face my fears.
I pushed the button two more times before a voice answered from inside.
"Look at the camera." The voice sounded irritated and I nervously looked around till I noticed the small camera on the other side of the door frame.
"Hi." I waved into the camera awkwardly.
"You're trespassing on private property." The person replied and I stood stunned for a second before I recovered myself.
"I'm sorry, no, no, I'm here to see someone." I said.
"Okay, get on with it then, who are you here to see?" The voice asked impatiently.
"I'm here to see Eve, Mrs Eve Hamilton." My voice shook as I spoke, I did not realize until now that I had no idea how I was going to address her.
"She's no longer Hamilton." The voice replied dryly. "Who are you?"
"Oh get off the intercom Mary." Another voice interrupted her and after a small shuffle, the second voice took the speaker.
"How are you there, it's awfully hot outside isn't it, please pardon my sister, she's very grumpy." The second voice sounded kinder.
"Um, yes it is, thank you." I replied, wiping the sweat that had gathered around my brow.
"Oh forgive me, please come in." After she spoke, I heard a little click sound and when I pushed the door, it opened immediately.
"Hi, welcome." A woman whose voice I did not recognize welcomed me into the house.
"I'm Olga and I'm the housekeeper here, the madam will like to see you in the study." She said, her accent pronounced.
"Thank you very much." I smiled at the chubby and stout looking woman, she had brownish grey hair and she had beautiful brown eyes.
"Is the madam Eve, Mrs Eve?" I asked her.
"Yes, the madam is Eve and her sister Mary." She explained.
We walked down the hall and I was in awe of the elegant interior design. I smiled to think that my mother had such good taste. I never liked my father's taste in furniture, they were a bit bland and boring for me.
This house looked like it was designed by a very creative artist, she had beautiful wall paintings, exquisite art pieces and lovely furniture.
Olga left me at a large wooden door, the wood was carved and designed like an art piece, the handles of the door resembled that of a candle holder and the light brown color of the door matched the house's beauty.
I knocked twice at the door before I heard another click, it looked like the house was also automated with smart devices.
When I got in, I tried my best not to admire the beauty of the room, the furniture and the art paintings on the walls but I failed.
The two women in front of me blinked twice when they saw me.
The first one who looked like the older of the two had long dark hair with green eyes and she regarded me with disdain and almost hate in her gaze.
She was a proper and classy lady and she was dressed as such with a silk blouse and a long leather skirt.
The other woman had short red hair with pale blue eyes, her eyes softened when she looked at me and she was also dressed elegantly in a long silver gown.
"Who are you?" The older one whose voice matched the first woman who had been mean to me asked.
"Now come on Mary, that's not very kind." She scolded her sister and walked to meet me. "Please have a seat." She offered me a chair and she sat opposite me.
"I'm Claire Hamilton and I've come to see Eve." I said.
The two women gasped before Mary turned red with anger.
"What are you doing here, did that terrible father of yours send you here?" She asked, annoyed.
Eve seemed too stunned to speak, she stood up from the couch and moved to her sister like she needed to get support from her, she had turned white and her delicate fingers were dancing around her mouth nervously.
"I'm sorry, have I done anything wrong?" Their horrified expressions shocked me and I wanted to bolt out of the door immediately.
"No dear, you haven't done anything wrong, I'm just so shocked that you're here, I haven't heard anything from your father in years except the monthly stipend he sends to my account and I'm just shocked that you would come here." She said,
I looked at her shocked unable to speak, I did not know how to act, I had come to find my mother but she did not look like she was happy to see me.
"Um… I'm… I think I should leave." I stood up immediately and made a beeline for the door.
"Oh no, please, you've come a long way, dono leave yet." Eve spoke softly.
"I'm out of here." Mary sneered and headed towards the door.
"Mary." Eve tried to call her back but she ignored her and walked out of the study.
"Please don't mind her, like I said she's just really grumpy."
"My father told me that my mother had died all my life." I started trying hard not to get emotional. "I found these letters a few months ago and I've been trying to find you since." I dug into my bag and brought out the letters and the photograph I had found.
"I'm sorry to hear that." Eve looked at me and spoke so softly I barely heard her.
"You've been searching for me."
"Yes, I came here to find you, I even got scammed but my boy… a friend of mine helped me to hire a new detective to search for you." I blurted out nervously.
"I have wanted to meet you for so long." A tear fell down my eye as I studied her.
"Your father didn't tell you, did he?" She asked, a tear dropping down her eyes.
"No, I didn't talk to him, I couldn't after I found the letters, I was just determined to find you and I felt so betrayed by him so I just got on a plane and came to Copenhagen." I explained.
"Your father was always a cruel man, a master of keeping secrets." More tears poured down her face and she stood up to pick up two boxes of tissues from her drawer.
"We're going to need this." She told me when she returned, she dabbed her eyes and I also took some to dab my eyes.
"I know that my father did not let you see me but I wished I'd known you growing up, I was so lonely without a mother." I told her truthfully.
"Dear, there are a lot of things you don't know but I don't think I can keep them in again." The tears were flowing again but at least this time we had tissues.
"I'm not your mother."