ꨄThe Debutanteꨄ

106.

...

Next Night

...

Tonight, things were not going as originally planned in Renee's home. It was 11pm, and Instead of Anika packing her bags for her 6am flight, she and Cookie were arguing back and forth with one another.

"I'm not going, Cookie- You were just agreeing with me yesterday, Anika!" Cookie replied. "And maybe I was, but I'm not allowing you to go fight this man alone!" Said Anika. "You are being so difficult, good lord. I'm trying to prevent us from constantly dealing with his ass. Let me do what I have to do. I will be perfectly fine." Said Cookie.

"And what if he tries to do what he did to you recently, again? What will you do then? Why would you even step foot in the mansion again?" Asked Anika. "Look, I don't even want to look him in the face. But the sooner we put an end to it, the better. You'll be a lot happier too once you see he's no longer an issue." Said Anika. "What if the feds find out? You'll be right back to square one. In prison!" Said Anika.

Cookie released a groan, then walking towards the bedroom door. "I need to sit on the back for awhile." She said. Anika sat on the bed after she left, letting out a huff. They've been arguing quite frequently and it's been a nerve-wracking bump in their relationship.

A few minutes later, there was a light knock on the door. Renee pushed it open, peeking her head inside. Anika sat up straight. "Oh.., hi Ms. Halloway. I'm sorry for raising my voice and everything. I was just frustrated." She said. Renee waved her hand at her, then sitting down beside her. "It's okay. I understand my daughter can sometimes mix up her love for someone and make it appear as overbearing selfishness." Renee said. Anika blinked a few times. "Wow, that's...blunt." Said Anika.

"When my girls were younger their father and I butted heads all the time. He wanted them to stay put in Philly, living a basic life with basic necessities, because the main goal for him was to survive." Renee said.

"But me? I wanted them to live. To see the world. To travel, to hike the highest mountains and swim in the clearest of waters. To experience Paris, London, Egypt, and Japan. I wanted them to live with their hearts. My art was taking off and I couldn't bare to leave them behind. So, I took matters into my own hands and tried to kidnap them, as it would legally be called. But that wasn't my intention. I wanted them to be happier." Said Renee.

Anika released a breath. "As you can see, I failed. Their father found out, we separated and he filed a restraining order on me. For years I was angry about it, blaming him for a lot of the things that caused Cookie to go to prison in the first place. I was able to travel while my kids were sitting at home...surviving. I was so desperate to save them, that I refused to also look at how much that could have affected him after I tried to take the kids we both made together and whom he treated so well, away from him. He loved those kids. Never had to worry about that. But there was so much that life had in store for them. And if I would have gotten away with it, she wouldn't even know that Lucious existed." Said Renee.

"The point I'm trying to make, Anika, is that sometimes our love for someone can make us do harsh things. All we want in the end, is to stop others around us from being unhappy. And that's what Cookie wants. I don't want her confronting that devil either, believe me. Especially after what he did to the both of you." She said.

"I just don't want her to get hurt. I don't want the same thing that happened to me to happen to her. He's even angrier now that he knows I'm still alive. He might put a bounty on our heads or something- and that's why she's trying to get him before he gets you both. Cookie survived prison. She can survive him. Being married to him, he's far too predictable for her."