Grace raised her eyebrows at Violetta and Spencer. ‘Well, she may not be Leon’s daughter but she sure does have his temper.’
And for a moment the three laughed.
Violetta reached out her hand and held Spencer’s in hers. ‘I hope you are our father, Spence,’ she said.
‘Me too,’ said Grace, standing up and holding his other hand.
Spencer looked at the girls, who he had treated as his own, whom he had loved and cherished, even from afar.
‘I hope so too.’
29
Birdie, New York – October 2010
Birdie looked contemptuously at her husband. ‘You have nothing to hold me here any more, Leon,’ she said as she moved into the bathroom. ‘My parents are dead and I’m leaving.’ She started to rifle through the cupboard, looking for her face cream.
Leon felt the rage burning within him.
Birdie continued, she wasn’t scared of Leon any more. She had had an affair with Spencer for the last ten years and now her parents were gone, her daughters were independent, well almost, she wanted her life back, the one she thought she might have had a long time ago.
‘I own more of Pajaro than you, so I will buy you out, return to my company,’ she said haughtily.
Leon looked at her. ‘You cannot be serious,’ he said, shaking his head.
Who was this woman who stood before him? She had changed over the last ten years and he didn’t like it. As the girls got older he had stopped hurting her physically. Instead he took out his rage against her out on their children. Belittling them, denying them opportunities, and Birdie had tried to make up for Leon’s cruelty.
‘I am serious, Leon. You and I had an agreement. Now my parents are gone there is nothing left to say. You have insisted on continuing with your mistress Melanie ever since I came back to New York. You think I don’t know. I knew she was on holidays with you and the girls, I knew her son was there. How do you think that makes me feel?’ she asked, although she didn’t really care any more.
‘Well, you think I didn’t know about you wanting to fuck that fag Spencer all this time? What a shame he only likes men, probably sucked your father’s cock,’ said Leon, his face was ugly as she spoke.
Birdie felt herself hurt with the rage she felt. ‘Not only did I want to fuck him, as you so elegantly put it, Spencer, I did. And I have done for the past ten years,’ she said, trumping him.
Leon stood in shock; he had entertained the thought, of course, of Birdie and Spencer together. But he was sure no man would remain single forever, and there was no mention of lovers so Leon assumed, as always.
‘You are serious?’ he said.
‘Deadly,’ said Birdie, not afraid of him any more.
‘I will turn the girls against you, they will side with their father. I have the money, all they want is the money,’ he said desperately.
‘Don’t bother, Leon, they aren’t even yours,’ she said, turning her back towards him.
‘What?’ he roared.
Birdie turned to see him lunging towards her. ‘Of course you knew that, Leon,’ she said, trying to push past him. ‘Why else would you be so horrible to them? No father could treat their own flesh and blood like that,’ she accused. ‘I’m leaving you for Spencer. We are starting again. What should have been. You and I should never have been, Leon,’ she said, suddenly sad.
Leon slapped her hard, his rage filling the room. Birdie instantly regretted telling him. She tried to push past him to get out of the small confined space.
‘You fucking whore,’ said Leon.
He pushed her with his whole body and she flew backwards, slamming her head against the bath. The room went black. The cold tiles lay beneath her head. She tried to get up but her body wouldn’t do as she wanted. Her head hurt, like a rubber band was around it, squeezing tighter and tighter. She tried to crawl but all she could do was roll over.
Just be still till the pain goes away, she told herself. Thea will come, she thought. She willed Thea to come, but she was still.
He had left. She heard the car start and then she heard nothing. Only silence, and the thumping in her head reverberating. She tasted blood.
I should have walked away, I should have left the house, she thought. I shouldn’t have said anything about the girls. I should have waited for Spencer. He said he would be here with me but I wanted to say it to him.
