Becoming a DeMarlo

4: "Guess you could call it a miracle."

Chapter 4: "Guess you could call it a miracle."

I couldn't get the sight of my bruised and bloodied "father" out of my mind.

He wasn't a good father by any means, but he also couldn't possibly deserve that level of pain, could he?

And what about my siblings, who were all now supposedly homeless? They were always jerks to me and enjoyed tormenting me, but I didn't necessarily want them to suffer. They probably didn't even know what was going on when Elijah's men attacked.

After about ten minutes, Charlie finally parked the car.

I looked up to see we were at what seemed to be a diner.

"Come on. You're probably still hungry," Charlie said, opening my door for me.

I quietly thanked him before following him in.

The diner seemed old, and was nearly empty. We took a booth at the far end.

"This place is a family favorite. Elijah and I used to come here all the time as little kids, whenever Mom and Dad weren't too busy," Charlie said, breaking the silence.

A thin, tall, elderly woman approached our booth, carrying a single menu. She had a graying Afro that was pulled back by a colorful headband, and had on just as colorful jewelry.

"Hey, Val!" Charlie greeted, flashing her a perfect smile.

"Why, hello Charles! Who's this beauty?" she grinned, as she placed the menu in front of me.

Before Charlie could reply, the lady dropped her smile and dramatically gasped.

"Oh my good lord! She's a spitting image of Amelia! Oh, what godforsaken witchery is this?!" she wailed, her eyes literally tearing up.

"Val, this isn't witchery. This is Maya," Charlie gently explained.

I felt extremely uncomfortable. The crazy lady stopped crying, and placed a hand to her cheek, making her bangles loudly clash against each other.

"What are you on about, Charlie? That's impossible!"

Charlie shrugged, not losing his charming smile.

"Guess you could call it a miracle."

I continued to sit in silence.

"A miracle is right! Oh, this is just wonderful! I have so many stories to tell you, honeybun, but I'll have to wait for a day when your big brother isn't around," she teased, winking at me.

I cracked a small smile. She seemed nice, just awfully emotional.

"I'll get you your usual, Charles. What do you want to eat, baby?" Val asked.

"I'll just have a burger and fries, thanks," I said, finally piping up.

"Oh my lord! She even talks like Amelia!" Val cried out.

What fresh hell?

"Val, it's alright," Charlie said, awkwardly patting her back.

"Oh, you two youngins' don't know anything. In fact, none of y'all know anything, even though that Elijah likes to act like he does," she sniffed, turning her nose up at Elijah's name. "Your mother was a saint," Val informed me.

I gave her a tight-lipped smile. If I said anything, she'd probably start crying again.

"I'll get you kids your food," Val finally said, blowing into her cheetah-print handkerchief as she walked away.

Charlie waited until she was out of the dining room to speak.

"I'm sorry. I didn't realize she'd get so emotional at the sight of you."