At Last|| Mialotte

Monster

Charlotte and Mia's time off together after Alex's birth was coming to an end. Alex was 4 months old and was growing so quickly they could hardly stand it. Renee loved spending time with him and was constantly bringing her friends over to see him. At first, Ellie was obsessed but she had been acting a bit distant lately. She was getting ready to be 9 years old so Charlotte figured she was just growing up.

Mia and Reece had come up with a plan for Charlotte to stay home with Alex and Amelia for the first year of their lives. They didn't want to have to start their children off in the nursery too soon so Charlotte seemed like the perfect choice. Amelia Jade would be coming any day now and it was clear Marjorie was absolutely miserable. She called Charlotte at least once a day and rambled on asking so many questions about what to expect with labor. Charlotte thought it was sweet that Marj was so concerned about keeping Amelia safe.

On Mia's last day of staying home, they were in the midst of cleaning Ellie and Ren's room. Charlotte had dropped something and when she bent down to grab it, she found a stack of letters under Ellie's bed. Confusion coursed through as she thumbed through the letters before reading the signature. Her heart dropped into her stomach and she felt like she could get sick. How on Earth did Charlotte not know that Nick had been writing Ellie?

She couldn't decide if she wanted to be upset or flat out angry, she read through the first letter.

Oh, anger it is.

Dear Elaina,

Hi Ellie, it's Daddy here. I miss you and Ren so dearly and wish we could be a family again. I'll be free to see you anytime soon and would love to see you again. I'd love to start over with your mother and make things right. Please tell Renee thank you for me because she is the one who confirmed your address for me.

With lots of love,
Daddy

Start over? Make things right? There was no fucking way he was thinking Charlotte might want anything to do with him again. Her hands trembled as she held the paper and had to resist shredding it into tiny pieces.

"Mia!" She called out in the hallway, she wasn't sure where Mia had gone but she needed her.

"Yes my love?"

Mia was a bit thrown off by the panic in Charlotte's voice until she saw she was holding something. Oh fuck, here it is. Renee had told Mia what they were doing and how they had been writing to Nick. She was trying to find the right moment to bring it up to Charlotte.

"Did you know about this?" Her voice was filled with venom.

"Char, let me explain. Ren brought it up to me about Ellie being upset about her dad. I couldn't help but throw out the idea of writing to him. She doesn't know what happened between you guys and she might just need her own closure."

"Have you seen these disgusting responses from him? He wants to start over and make things right with me and wants to be a family-"

"Charlotte, you need to breathe, you're working yourself up too much."

"Well wouldn't you work yourself up if you thought that your wife was on your side. But in reality, she's basically plotting with your children for you to get back with your abuser-"

"That is enough." Mia's voice was stern,"You know that's not true and you're saying that to shut me out. "

"I-"

"No. You are not going to shut me out this time, Charlotte Roberts."

Mia was suddenly so close to her that she could feel her breath on her face. "If you'd notice, these letters are all the same because he just won't stop now. Ellie has sent one letter and confided in me that she regrets it. "

"She does?"

"She also told me that she'd like to visit him-"

"Absolutely not! I'm not leaving her with that monster." Charlotte was furious, her cheeks pink and ears bright red.

"Charlotte, I will hold your mouth shut if you interrupt me again." Mia dragged her fingers down her cheek, seeing the fire down a bit in her eyes. "She wants to visit him to see why he couldn't be there for her and be kind to you, Charlotte. She is so furious with him. She wants to give him what for."

Charlotte's demeanor changed. She felt a little ridiculous at how quickly she allowed herself to get upset. Ellie wasn't trying to get her back with Nick. She just wanted some closure.

"Do you think we should let her see him?" Her voice was quiet now.

"Charlotte, I wished for nothing more than to see my dad one more time so I could ask him anything. The situations are different but I know how Ellie feels. You have to remember... we didn't tell her what Nick had done to you. She just thinks he was rude and doesn't understand why he's been in jail. She wants to ask those questions and when she learns the truth, I promise you. She'll not want anything to do with him."

Charlotte suddenly felt very small and like she couldn't make herself any tinier. She always had to be small to conform with what Nick wanted. If she was herself, she was "flirting" and making a whore of herself. She hadn't felt this way since the last time she had seen him, tears stung her eyes at the thought of seeing him again.

"Mia, I don't think I can face him." She admitted, her voice shook a little as she looked down. "I don't think I can handle seeing him."

Mia pulled her into her arms, rubbing her back gently. "I know, sweetheart, I know." She cooed,"Do you want me to take her then?"

"Would you be willing to? I want to protect my little girl but I'm a-afraid of him, Mia."

She began to cry into Mia's chest, hiding her face. She felt so shitty about herself at that moment. She didn't realize how much Ellie still didn't know about her and Nick. And how she might have just thought Charlotte was keeping her from him.

"I'd be more than happy to protect our little girl, Char. I know you're afraid and I understand why. He is a monster."

Mia was trying her best to soothe her, but it was making her a little emotional too. She was so protective over not just the girls, but of Charlotte. She couldn't get the memory of finding Charlotte passed out by the bar that night out of her mind. Or the surge of anger that she felt when she found out he had thrown her out of their house.

"Do you want me to explain to Ellie what he did?"

Charlotte nodded her head against her chest, her cries becoming sniffles,"I think she's old enough to know now and have her own thoughts on it. "

"Char, sweetheart?"

"Hm?"

"You know she will always love you more than him because you have been here. You don't need to worry about her wanting to be with her dad. She has told me many times about how Mama is such a hero and she's saved the day. "

"She thinks I'm a hero?"

"Yes baby, she does. They both think the world of you just like Alex will when he's older. We always have the best day when you're here with us."

"Mia, I love you so much."

"I love you, Charlotte."

"I didn't mean to get so angry earlier-"

"I know baby, I know." She picked Charlotte up,"Let me run you a bath, darling, you can clean later on. "