“Now that I’ve seen to Natasha’s hair, I need to prepare,” Fazire said in his I-am-a-genie-all-bow-to-me voice and he disappeared in a poof of grape-coloured smoke that drifted towards his bottle until it was gone.
Tash looked at her father. He looked more handsome than anyone she’d ever seen in her whole life. And she remembered everyone she’d ever seen in her whole life, she remembered everything, though she’d never told anyone that. He was wearing a dark suit with an ivory shirt and a pretty tie the exact colour of Tash’s dress.
She moved to her Daddy and, even though she was no longer a baby but now a big girl, her Daddy was strong and he picked her up, just like always. She wrapped her arms and legs around him and nuzzled her nose against his. And, again, just like always, he nuzzled hers right back.
Then she pulled back, just a bit, and she took a deep breath because she had to ask what she’d been thinking about for days, for weeks but had always been too scared.
“Daddy?” she said, her voice timid.
“Yes, sweetheart?” her Daddy replied and Tash felt something funny in her heart because he’d never called her sweetheart before and she liked it a whole lot.
“You’re not um,” she stopped then rushed on, “ever going to leave again, are you?”
She watched her Daddy’s handsome face turn stunned then hard then soft and then he said, “Never,” in a way that she really, really believed him.
She took one of her arms from around his neck and put her hand on his cheek and said something else she’d been too scared to say, “Today’s a happy day and once it’s over, do you think you’ll hurt anymore?”
He blinked slowly and then said, “Hurt? Tash, what makes you think –”
“I see it in your eyes,” Natasha interrupted. Mummy wouldn’t like that Tash interrupted but she suspected Daddy wouldn’t tell.
Her Daddy’s arms became tighter than ever and his hand went to the back of her head, his fingers sifting into her fun, bouncy curls and he pressed her cheek against his strong neck.
What he didn’t do was answer.
“You’re too sharp for your own good,” he muttered and Tash had heard that before. She had the suspicion that she wasn’t too sharp for her own good. She was too sharp for everyone else’s good.
“I don’t want you to hurt anymore,” Tash told him quietly, thinking they should get back to the subject because it was an important subject.
Her Daddy pulled back and looked her directly in the eyes, and looking at him she saw her eyes for she and her father had the same exact eyes.
“The hurt’s gone, Tash,” he told her.
She stared at him closely, trying to see any of the hurt there, in his eyes, his face, anywhere.
She couldn’t find any so she smiled her quirky-sweet smile.
Then she cried, “Yipeeeee!”
And then she got her bestest, best gift of the day.
Her father smiled back at her.
Maxine
“I do not believe this is happening,” Lily stood seething in her sitting room.
Maxine couldn’t believe it was happening either. Time was ticking away. They should have left ten minutes ago. Instead these odious creatures were standing in the sitting room saying things to Lily, things… things… things… such things that Maxine was worried her ears were bleeding just hearing them.
It had been a fun, happy morning full of giggles, tears and champagne and they’d tackled the food they’d barely touched the night before (to Maxine’s delight, she liked her food). Lily was Lily again, fully Lily, the girl Maxine had met nearly a decade before, happy, giddy, full-of-life, smiling and open-hearted for all to see.
All was finally well in the world.
Then, watching Lorna, Emily and Susan drive away, Maxine had felt Laura stiffen by her side. She’d turned to see what Laura was looking at and she spied Alistair walking toward them, a man and woman with him.
“Alistair what are you doing here?” Maxine smiled at him.
Alistair didn’t smile back.
Then Maxine felt it, a wave of something horrid pounding at her back and she turned to see Lily, who was even paler than Laura who seemed rooted to the spot, her mouth open in shock – supremely unhappy shock, Maxine felt it important to note – and Lily looked ready to commit murder.
“How dare you!” Lily shouted, advancing on them. “Go away! Go! Get out of my sight! How dare you!”
The hard, angry look on Alistair’s face softened as he gazed at Lily but he remained resolute.
“Lily, you must listen, Jeffrey and Danielle told me about McAllister,” he implored. “Please, you must listen.”
“I don’t have to listen to a thing you say,” Lily snapped and turned to Maxine. “Let’s go.”
Maxine was looking between everyone. She knew who Jeffrey and Danielle were and her eyes narrowed on them then they swung to Alistair and you’d have to be blind not to see her face screamed “traitor”.
“We’re going,” Maxine declared, moving to Laura.
“I want to hear what they have to say,” Laura said quietly, staring at her children and everyone stopped.
“Laura, the booking for the ceremony is firm. If we miss it or we’re late,” Maxine put her hand lightly on Laura’s arm, “we can’t be late or they’ll have to move to the next wedding. Saturdays at the Registry Office are booked solid. Lily and Nate were lucky to get the one they have and even still, Nate had to pull strings.”
“You two go, I want to hear what they have to say,” Laura replied then turned to Lily. “I’ll drive your car. After I’m done here, I promise, I’ll follow.”
Lily was shaking her head but Alistair started speaking and all attention turned to him.
“Lily has to hear it.”
“Lily’s going to go marry my son.” Laura’s voice, which had been soft, now had a fierce tremor running through it. “I’ll deal with Danielle and Jeffrey.”
“I’m not leaving you alone with them.” Lily’s voice also had a vein of iron coursing through it.
Laura turned to Lily and took her hand. “You must go. Go to Nathaniel. I’ll handle this.”
“No,” Lily shook her head again and said with finality, “we’re family and family sticks together.”
Then, before Laura could reply, Lily turned to Alistair. “You have ten minutes.”
They’d all walked into the house. Lily didn’t sit or offer refreshments and neither did Laura. Maxine was standing sentry. Alistair took his cue and stayed standing as did Danielle who, Maxine noted with ire, was staring about her looking at the newly furnished, sumptuous sitting room like she’d walked into a squalid hovel and Jeffrey who was staring intently, even hungrily (but not in a good way, in a way that made Maxine’s skin crawl), at Lily.
“You now have nine minutes,” Lily stated after they’d stood there for awhile and no one but Lily said anything.
“Your fiancé is a criminal,” Alistair stated bluntly.
Laura gasped. Lily’s eyes narrowed and her hands clenched to fists. Maxine tensed.
Alistair went on. “Jeffrey and Danielle have had private investigators investigating him. I’ve read the reports. Not only was McAllister a petty thief and runner for a gangster, your soon-to-be father-in-law was a gun dealer.”