What the Hell Happened?
Brennan
I went to the grocery store early enough that I could shop and take it back to Eden before going back to it to meet Diana. When she pulled up, she had a young girl with her, making me blink in surprise. I knew she had kids, but I thought they were all grown by now, which made me curious about who she was. I saw Diana’s hand tighten around the girl’s as they walked up to us. I nodded my head to the little coffee shop next to the grocery store.
“Let’s grab a coffee and talk,” I told her, eyeing the little girl.
“Alright.”
When we got to the counter, I nodded at her, my eyes still on the little girl that was by her side. “Go ahead and order. My treat,” I said.
“I will take a coffee, black. No sugar.” She glanced down at the girl before meeting my eyes, asking silently if she could order something for her. At my nod, she continued to order. “She will take a chocolate cake pop and a hot chocolate with extra Cool Whip and sprinkles.”
“Excellent choices, ma’am. And for you, sir?”
“Caramel Macchiato, extra caramel drizzle and two pumps of hazelnut.”
“Perfect. That’ll be $22.47.”
I handed the woman two $20 bills, telling her to keep the change. I followed Diana to a quiet corner where she sat the girl at another table before joining me at mine. When she sat down, she clasped her hands together in front of her with her head down.
“I owe you an apology.”
“What?”
“I owe you an apology,” she repeated, finally looking up at me.
“For what?” I asked, still in shock.
“For harassing you over money. For calling you an adulterer. For trying to guilt you into giving me money.” She turned her head to look at the girl. “She’s beautiful, isn’t she?”
“Yes, she is. Who is she?”
“You don’t know? Of course you don’t. Who do you see when you look at her?” She questioned quietly.
“Diadra, but that is impossible. She has been gone for what? 11 or 12 years?” I answered.
“You are right. How old would your girls be this year? 14?”
“Yes,” I agreed, almost choking on the word.
“Before she died, Diadra froze some of her eggs. 7 years ago, I had baby fever, but I couldn’t conceive anymore. My husband and I tried for a year before he gave up. He told me that my only chance was IVF. My eggs were no longer viable. Instead of buying eggs and fertilizing them, he inseminated some of Diadra’s eggs with his sperm. He implanted them in me, and thus Diadara was born. You were wrong, Brennan. I loved Diadra. I wanted to be there for her. I hate her for giving up. For leaving me here. My husband kept me away from her in the final years. He was angry with her because, toward the end, she ended things with him. He didn’t want me around her anymore if he couldn’t screw her. Believe it or not, she had decided to really try. I don’t know what caused her to go back to drugs. She did love you, Brennan. She may not have loved you like you deserved, but she did love you.”
She fell silent as a waitress brought our order over to us.
“What changed, Diana? Two days ago, you were yelling obscenities at me and trying to make me give you money. So, please tell me, what in the heck happened?” I inquired.
“I met someone. Someone who made me remember what pain was. Someone who made me remember what a good man you were. She made me realize that I didn’t have to guilt you to make you understand why the money was so important. I didn’t tell you why I wanted the money because I didn’t want you to try and take Diadara away from me. You have to understand that I was only trying to protect her. I love her, Brennan. She is my daughter.”
“I would not have taken her from you, Diana. I know how it feels to have a child stolen from you.”
She wiped a tear from her face. “I know, but stealing Diadra’s eggs is illegal.”
I waved my hand. “She is dead, Diana! There is nothing that is going to bother her. And to be honest, I’m glad the world has a piece of Diadra. I’m glad you still have a piece of her.”
“And what about you, Brennan? Do you still have a piece of her?”
I smiled as a strange sense of peace washed over me. “No, but then again I don’t need one.”
She reached across the table to take my hand. “When I leave from here, you won’t ever see me again. I’m taking my daughter, and I’m leaving. I’m so tired of my husband and how he treats us. He refuses to take care of her. He says she looks too much like Diadra to love her. But not for me. That’s what I was using the money for. To take care of her.”
“So, what are you going to do for money?” I asked.
She smiled lovingly at Diadara. “If I’m not with him, then I can get a job without the fear of something happening to her. We’ll survive.”
I hesitated before pulling out the checkbook I brought to buy her off. I quickly wrote her a check for $10,000,000 before carefully tearing it out and handing it to her. She looked down at it before tearing it up into little pieces.
“No, thank you, Brennan. I don’t want it. She made me realize that I was done being the woman that relied on others. We will be going to stay with Diadra’s aunt while I save some money. Is there anything else you want to know before I leave?”
“Yeah. I want to know who in the hell you met.”
She smiled at me as she patted my hand again. “You have a wonderful woman, Brennan. She is as smart as she is beautiful.”
My mouth dropped open. “You met Phoenix?”
She nodded as she sipped her coffee. “I did. She is really feisty. Really gave me a what for. She really loves you.”
“I know she does. I-I love her too.”
She raised an eyebrow at me over her mug. “You should be telling her that, not me.”
“I’m going to,” I told her.
“Good. Now let’s talk about Diadra. That’s why you’re here, isn’t it?”
“Yes. It is…”
Over the next several hours, we talked about everything Diadra. We talked about her addiction, about my triplets, and her family. After a little bit, our conversation went from heavy to lighter memories of her. When we were done, I walked her and Diadara to the car, hugging them both before waving them off. As I jogged to my car, I couldn’t help but have hope for the future. Maybe I could do this. With time, maybe I could stop hating myself.
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