WHEN DADDY LEFT

No longer a baby

Raquel's POV

"You spent the whole of last night in your office on that computer screen I bet you didn't sleep a wink. Care to tell me what is wrong?"

"Um..nothing, good morning mummy how did you sleep?"

"Not a way to ignore my question."
"Mummy am okay I was just um..writing a book."

"So cliché."

I mutter softly as I get up from the bed. She turns and furrows her eyebrows.

"Mummy when did you become so inquisitive?"
"Since the day you decided to distance yourself from me and decided not to tell me that Liz and the Millers are still taunting you."
She chuckles and sits beside me stroking my back.
"Mummy maturity doesn't always come with age to some people let them talk whatever they want to."

"So you mean they've been doing this for a while? Even when I was here last summer?"

I ask starting to sense that there is something she's hiding.

"I am used to hearing their words and going deaf and dumb on them after all, no response is the best response."

She says with a shrug crossing her arms on her chest.

Wow my baby girl is no longer a baby.

There's something yet I can't understand even though a part of me says that it's not true but still the other part says it might be true. Did she take money from the Millers?
I know she won't do such a thing but what if all this was a planned thing between her and Daniel. I know Daniel is very rich but how did they get such kind of money to buy or even rent such a house in such a high end neighbourhood? I suddenly find myself asking,

"Y'vania is it true?"

All colour drains from her face in shock as if I uncovered one of her top secrets.
"What..what are you talking about?"

She asks almost in a whisper.

"What Charles Miller said. Did you take anything from them to..to stay away from Anthony?"

She sighs heavily as if relieved that I didn't ask whatever it is that she thought I was going to ask.

"Mummy. I knew you would ask me about this but what I didn't expect is you thinking I'd take that money."

She shakes her head stands up and starts pacing up and down biting the tip of her index finger. I try reading what she's thinking and I see clear innocence in her eyes.

I didn't raise my kids to be dependant on others or accept bribes in order to do something but I guess there's something more to this story beside the issue that Anthony's mum is Mariah whatever.

She comes and sits beside me and stares at me fidgeting with her fingers saying nothing.

"Did you take the money? How much was it why did you take it?"
"Oh please mummy don't even start."

She says with a scoff lighting up with the biggest smile I've ever seen on her since the day she broke up with Anthony.

"No, all I want to know is.."
"Mummy I..I didn't take anything." She says all of a sudden wearing a serious face.

"Then why did everything happen so fast?"
"What happened so fast mummy? Both you and I knew what happened between Anthony and I. Daniel has always been in love with me. We got married because we love each other. We have a baby together mummy."

"What happened?"
"Mummy do you seriously want me to talk about this again? You don't trust me?"
"I trust you Y'vania but.."
"But what mummy? I told you guys everything."