With the sunset shining into the windows of the penthouse office, Danielle prepares her things along with her daughter's. Grabbing her backpack, she holds it out to Rose.
"Rose my child, come grab your bags." Danielle speaks softly only to see her playing chess with Marissa. Rose moves a Rook that corners Marissa King with a Queen and Knight.
"Checkmate! I won! I won!" Rose jumps up and down while her Godmother smiles.
"I can see that! Well done! You are your mother's daughter." Marissa stands up and pats Rose's head as the girl runs to her mom and begins grabbing her things as she was told. "She's a very intelligent young lady, Danielle."
"I know she is. I'm very glad that she is." Danielle keeps her eye on her daughter and watches her place her books in her bag.
"Oh, I have one last file case for you. The client asked I personally delivered it to you." Marissa grabs a file from her messenger bag and hands it to Danielle. The latter takes it and opens it up while sitting herself on top of her desk. She stares at the name in the client box:
xᴀᴠɪᴏʀ ʀᴏᴍᴇʀᴏ
When Danielle sees the name on the first page, she slaps it shut. "Denied." She declares and slaps it on the table. "You can take it if you want."
"Yeah, see, I have this case I've been fighting with for over a month now and I'm getting very close to helping this Grandma with her grandchildren." Marissa smiles and slowly hands the file back to Danielle.
The Head Attorney turns her head and pushes it back with one finger. "Find someone else in the agency to represent it. I'm not going to. I'm sure my attorneys, hand chosen by me, can win his case."
"See that's my question, just earlier this week, you declined the other party completely and removed it so the agency wouldn't take it at all. Now, his case shows up and while you may not take it, haven't removed it from the firm. Why do you keep it in our agency?"
Danielle, still looking away, remains silent and watching her daughter.
"You still care-"
"How could I not?! He-!" Danielle bites her lip and faces Marissa. "You know why I can't fight his case, Marissa.."
"I know, Danielle. But think of his kid, he genuinely cares and loves for his kid. And I'm sure if he new the truth, he wouldn't hesitate to run back to you. Maybe he already has." Marissa looks at her best friend and carefully hands the folder back to Danielle.
"You still care about him, Danielle, and after all these years. Look, you both made a very, VERY stupid decision with this 'Contract'. You didn't fight for him. You care enough to keep his files in the vicinity and decline his wife's. You want-" Marissa is interrupted but Danielle who slowly takes the file in her fingers.
"No, I NEED to watch over this case." Danielle looks down at the file and closes her eyes. "You're right, I didn't fight for him then."
"And what does the company stand for?" Marissa smiles at her boss.
"Blossomed and Nurtured Family Law fights not for the parents but the best possible life of the child. We fight for the child as if it was our own. Our children won't suffer for the mistakes of their parents.." Danielle softly recites the motto that she built her company on and turns to Rose who stands at her desk, waiting to go. Danielle stares at her daughter who's full hazel hair runs down her back.
"Rose, give me a moment. Go with Tía Marissa and wait in the lobby. I'll be down in a moment."
"Okay Mama!" Rose smiles and takes Marissa's hand.
The Godmother looks up and nods to Danielle. "You don't have to like him, just the child. Remember, find any reason to prove he's a great father. You used to know and love him. You must have had a logical head on to have stayed with him or even make that contract in the first place. Focus on his good. What if it was Rose instead..?" Says Marissa as she turns and heads for the door.
Danielle nods softly before hopping off her desk and sitting in the chair. When the two leave, Danielle opens the file and begins reading the papers given to her. She finds it difficult to read mostly due to the fact that she doesn't want to read it; it agonizes her. She reads the life her ex-boyfriend has had without her; a life she so desperately wanted to have with him. Love, marriage, family, life, even the arguments, Danielle wished upon a star for it all. Danielle would have preferred to argue with Xavior forever over let his loving heart go to someone else.
As Xavior said, his son was named Dimitri. A name the latter adored. His ex-wife however, a name that haunts Danielle to the very core. LAST NAME: Romero. MAIDEN NAME: Martinez. FIRST NAME: Madison. The women who, in truth, stole the fairytale love story of Xavior and Danielle.
Judging from Xavior's side of "this" fairytale story however, it seems the truth is clear. Madison is not a part of their child's life. Xavior was generous to provide Danielle with pictures and dates. Nine pictures in total have a joyous father with his son from birth to what seems like a few months after his sixth birthday. On the tenth and final picture however, it's a picture of Xavior, Dimitri, and Madison. Xavior and Dimitri are smiling, or at least trying to, painfully. Madison on the other hand, scowls at the camera. All three paint the truth as clear as it can be. Madison wants nothing to do with Xavior, let alone, Dimitri. The smiles on Xavior and Dimitri's face are much different from the previous pictures as it seems their cheeks are filled with needles and each second of the smile is an agonizing cry.
Danielle flips to a separate picture that holds Dimitri's professional school picture and stares at the boy that owns his father's eyes along with his smile. If anything, he looks just like Xavior to a tee.
The head attorney sighs and places the files down and lays back in her chair and looks out to the setting sun that paints the room orange and pink.
"If it was Rose.." Danielle sighs and places her hands on her lap. "If only he knew.." The woman closes her eyes and turns her head to the office door opening and closing.
"Are you going to tell him?" Ilene stands in front of the desk with a puzzled look.
"I haven't told him and I plan on never telling him. He doesn't need to know. He has his own problems." Danielle straightens up and cleans the small mess of papers sprawled on her desk.
"I know there is no legal action reason to tell him but still, it's only right he knows." Ilene softly protests and hands a stray paper to Danielle.
Danielle receives the paper and places it in the villa folder with a simple nod. "Yes but he has not earned that trust and I doubt that this heart of mine could ever trust him again, especially with that precious information of mine."
The conversation ends with nothing more and Danielle staring at the telephone on her desk. With a quick dial on the number pad and a number scrawled out on a post it, the telephone rings in the latter's ear. Danielle taps her short fingernails on her desk and waits impatiently.
"Hello?"
"Hello is this Mr. Romero?"
"Danielle..?"
"Answer the question sir, is this Mr. Romero I'm speaking to?"
Silence rings for a small moment. Just as Danielle is about to repeat the question, the other answers.
"Yes this is him."
"Congratulations Mr. Romero, your case will be represented by Esquire Danielle Mondragon. A date must be set up to discuss further legal details."
YOU ARE READING
Roses & Lilies
General FictionDanielle Mondragon has worked for years after much agony to create a stable and sustainable life with her daughter, Rose. With a perfect small family and a successful career in Family Law, all seems as according to what she believed to be planned. T...
