Ginny and Georgia: The Younger Shadow

Chapter 23-Finding the Secrets
"No one is here, Charlie! We have to do this. I've seen her, ok? I've seen how her eyes light up with fear if anyone gets near her cupboard. She never lets anyone clean in her room, and I'm not falling for her act." Ginny said. It was two days before that Austin had been sent home for stabbing a kid, but since he and Caleb got alone pretty well, he Georgia, Missy and him had all gone to Blue Moon for milkshakes. When they asked if we wanted to come, Ginny persuaded me to stay. And like the willing idiot I was, I had agreed and let her drag me along. The atmosphere in the house hadn't gotten any better, especially since Austin and Caleb had lit mom's garden on fire when they were playing. Trouble and unnecessary shit seemed to be flying our way.
"What if they come back though?" I asked, and worry coursed through my body. Mom would never forgive me.
"They won't, don't worry. Stop wasting our time then, Char. Let's hurry. It'll only take a few minutes."  Ginny protested.
Sighing with resignation, we opened the door to mom's room. I had only been in there once or twice, but from what I could see, it looked an absolute wreck. Clothes were scattered haphazardly everywhere, mom's bed wasn't made but crumpled, and her makeup was strewn around her desk.
"God, it looks like shit in here." Ginny muttered.
"Which cupboard did you want to search, Gin?" I asked, as I stepped over some pants and shirts.
"This one." Ginny gestured to the most vast cupboard in the room. Funnily enough, I never opened it and I didn't think it held any clothes except a few of mom's dresses. Ginny wrenched open the doors, and with a dusty creak they went flying open. The room already smelled faintly of mom's lavender perfume and freshly pressed linen, but this dulled the pleasant smells. Wrinkling my nose, we took a better look inside the cupboard. It was just big enough to fit about about three people inside.
"Virginia, what exactly are we looking for?" I questioned.
"Look for any photos, documents, things like that. Maybe certificates. Anything that gives us the answers as to who Marie Atkins is." Missy told us that was mom's real last name, and she changed hers to Zion's despite the fact they never did or would get married. I pushed aside some old makeup palates and scarves, and tried to look for the things Ginny had suggested. After about ten minute it searching, our efforts remained fruitless. What was the point in this?
"Keep looking, I know it's here somewhere." Ginny ordered. She bent down and began combing through old family pictures. But it was just old baby pictures of us, something we'd seen about a million times over. I had nearly given up searching through clothes and Austin's baby photos when I noticed one of the floorboards. It was something you wouldn't see if you were just checking for some clothing. It was barely noticeable to the naked eye. Cautiously, I lifted the floorboard. And underneath it was a stack of photos. I picked them up and flitted through them. None of them were us. It was a younger girl, who liked just like Georgia. I realised it was her. But she looked nothing like the outgoing mother I knew. Her hair was just like mine, lanky and mousy golden hair. She was thin and stood next to what must've been a younger version of Zion. He had the same dark hair and still looked pretty much the same, he had just grown taller.
"Ginny. Look at these. They're pictures of mom and Zion." She grabbed the pictures and also looked through them. In the picture, they had been standing outside of a greasy looking diner called Benny's. The next few were them riding motorcycles, in clubs, and in parks. They looked content with each other. I couldn't believe how much I looked like mom though. We didn't have the same eyes. Here were Hazel like Ginny, but we had the same hair, looked the same height, and even our eyes seemed to glitter the same way when we laughed. A couple other pictures were her with Missy when she was a baby. It said, "Marie and Missy by the pool" or "Marie and Missy making cookies". They just looked so innocent and pure. Not troubled. My mom and Zion really were just two teenagers in love. The last assortment of pictures were mom with a man I didn't recognise. She looked around 16 or 17, and he was a lot larger than her. He had a tubby belly and a thick black beard. But his eyes and face were just like talking. That same heart shape, the same pale blue eyes that meant I had to squint when it was sunny. His arm was around Mom and they looked like they were at some cafe. Then I saw a little Ginny sitting beside mom. She was in a buggy and busy eating some ice cream. Mom looked incredibly drained and her smile looked like someone was controlling her. She didn't at all look pleased. More irritated. But that man wasn't Zion. I had never seen him in my life. The date was labelled 23/03/03. Nearly 15 years ago. Five days before I was born. Mom's belly was bulging as well. And that man couldn't be anyone apart from my dad, Anthony. On the back was a note scribbled in black Ink: Virginia Miller, Georgia Miller, Anthony Greene and Jonathan Hills outside the Armour Cafe in Wellsbury. Oh my God. They were in Wellsbury. The Armour Cafe had been the name the previous owner gave the cafe before. And my mom had been there when she gave birth to me. I was born in Wellsbury. And this was my dad. His name was Anthony Greene.
"Charlie, this is how my dad looked like." I whispered.
"Oh. You look just like him. I'm there too. Anthony Greene. Who's Jonathan Hills?" She pondered.
In the next picture, Ginny wasn't there, but it was taken on the exact same day. This time the mysterious guy Jonathan Hills was with my mom. They were both holding coffees, but my mom wasn't smiling. She just looked resigned. The other guy, called Jonathan, had hair the colour of unknown shadows, and green emerald eyes. He must've lived in Wellsbury. At some point of my mom's life, she had been in Wellsbury. Suddenly, the door jerked open. I remember we had told mom we would be going to Max and Madi's house to hang out. Ginny and I stood stiff and frozen in shock. She thought she would be home alone. What if she saw us going through her private things? Hurriedly, I shoved the two photos I had just been studying in my pants pocket and held my breath.
"Is anyone there?" My mom yelled. I could hear her practiced breathing through the thin walls and my heart was pounding. Ginny seemed to be praying under her breath. And I could sense mom was in the room. Just stay...still...
"Virginia! Charlotte!" Her scream seemed to pierce my heart. Mom held a silver pistol in her hand. She was shaking violently. When she saw us she seemed to crumple to the ground like a paper figure.
"Mom! Mom!" I yelled. She had a gun. A weapon that could kill.
"Charlotte Marie and Virginia May, get out of there. Now." She ordered. I slowly emerged from the cupboard.
"Explain. Now. You told me you would be at Maxine's. And I thought there was an intruder. I thought..." she didn't continue, but I cut in with-
"We wanted answers. And we got them. You were with my dad! I saw a picture of him! But you told me there were no picture of him, Georgia!"
She flinched like a bullet had just torn her skin. Through clenched jaws my mom hissed,
"He was a bad man. That's all I will say. And he didn't want you, Charlie. He ran away like- like a coward. That's all you need to know. And you and Ginny are grounded. From now on you will come straight home from school, no backchat. I was just coming back after I forgot my purse for milkshakes, and this, after all I do for you, is how you treat me? This is what I get back?" She sniffed and we walked out of the room. When I had sat down on Ginny's bed, we just read in companionable silence. How could I tell my friends anything now? The truth had been so twisted even I struggled to make sense of it. But one thing was for sure. If it took me the rest of my life, I was going to find Jonathan Hills. My dad's friend. Maybe he could help me fill in the missing gaps.