Cursed

11. The Devil is Free

A heavy silence followed their conversation. Both were shocked and surprised beyond imaginations. To find a lost family member after a time so long, Louis couldn't even breathe. Finally, she decided to rise. So did Ms Carter. They both embraced each other in a warm hug and Louis couldn't help but letting her eyes moisten.

"Nana! It's been...it's been such a long time. Where were you? We searched for you everywhere." Louis sobbed.

The last time she'd seen her grandfather was years before when she was no more than a five year old bothersome child. She was too young yet the child could feel the tension in air whenever her grandmother and mother would come face to face. She was once told to go to her room and tightly shut her door one evening. Little did she know beyond that door a family was breaking. She didn't understood then but later it was obvious that the distaste her mother and grandma had for each other had grown beyond limits and both couldn't be the part of family. She didn't even get to say a goodby and that dreadful night her grandfather had left never to return again.

"I'm...I'm so sorry dear. I never meant to hurt you. It was stupid of us, your mother and me, to break the family like that. So selfish we're we never thought of what you might be going through." Soona river of guilty tears streamed along her grandmother's pale wrinkled cheeks.

"I missed you grandmother. Whenever I'd see my friends walking around with their grandparents, sharing things with them and laughing and enjoying, I missed you every single time." Louis sobbed and hugged her long lost granny more tightly.

"I missed you too, dear. But what could I've done. I did try a few times to approach you. But my own son was against it. He thought his wife would suffer greatly from my visit." She said sadly.

"Anyway, that was the past. Please, dear, please don't let me regret my past. I've got only a few days left now. This old plant can wilt any time now." She said.

"No, don't say that. Don't ever say that. Now that I've met you finally, after all this time, I won't let you go. I will never let you go." Louis looked miserable. River of tears flooding in both eyes covering all of face and snot trickling down her lips, she could look no further worse.

"I won't dear. Not unless I can no longer prevent Death's icy hands from stealing my life." She said and wiped Louis' tears.

"Come dear, lets not wastw any further time. You must be thirty now, right? A lot happens in twenty five years, dear, I want to hear it all. Your school life, about yoyr friends, college, friends, children, oh husband. Wait, are you married yet? Of course you must be. How else could be be an Adams?" Still tears in her eyes, tears she strongly fought against, Ms Carter forced a smile.

"I was married, Nanna. But..." Her faltering implied only one thing. Being old and wise, her grandmother had no trouble realizing what Louis was talking about. The marriage hadn't work out.

"There, silly me, you are crying and I'm making you further sad. How worse can a grandmother be?" She tried dissipating the gloom but the atmosphere was not getting better even by a bit. She wad obviously curious of what had happened regarding her only grandchild's marriage but now was clearly not a good time.

"It's fine, nanna, it really is. My marriage didn't break because my husband wished that way." Louis clarified. She had for once calmed down, at least she could now talk without sobbing.

"After graduating from the Law College, all I wanted to do was focus on my career. I got various job offers, all excellent offers. But my parents forced a marriage on me. I did marry the man, Brandon." Louis said.

"We married on only one condition. I will never be told to quit my job." She stared at her laps while playing with her fingers.

"Oh, honey, I'm so proud of you!" Her grandmother beamed. Louis looked into her eyes, surprise painted on her face and in those wide curious eyes.