Loving Ashlynn (#Wattys2016)

Chapter 21 - The Bottom Line (Faith POV)Pt. 1

"I was overwhelmed with questions, but I could not turn to my father, even though by now, he had met a woman four years ago, married her and had my little siblings. I didn't want to be more of a reminder of his loss than I already was." That's why Cynthia left me; I was a reminder of something bad, a mistake.

My stomach seemed to turn before I knew all the details. Except it was just the way that Nova scrunched up her nose. I had only been free for a while but by now, I could pick up on the 'bad news' face. "So when I turned seventeen, I did research, saved money and bought a calling card so that I could call America - down in Louisiana - and talk to some family from my mother's side." I watch in awe as Nova swallows thickly, and her eyes take on a dark sheer, glazed look.

"My hands were shaking, but um I wanted to speak to them, I felt like I had too. They had pieces of information about half of who I was I believed. So I call the number I found, and when - when the person answered, the voice was - it was my mother," she smiles, but her cheeks shake, and her lip wobbles, but she pulls it together. Quickly I might add. "I hung up at first, stunned thinking oh no, I just heard what I wanted too. I recalled having an aunt, and thought, oh no, she just sounds like my mom," I lean forward, hanging on Nova's words.

Nova's smile grows wider, "When I finally got the courage to call back two days later, I was extremely nervous, because by then there were so many different scenarios in my head that I didn't know what was true and what was false. I was so young, but I tried to think back to when my father said we had to go into hiding, just to see if I had missed something."

My lips twisted up in understanding, ready to blurt out if I had no self-control right now, that I was enduring the same thing. It was horrid and painful. "When the woman answered again, I thought for sure I would be ready, but hung up once again... and the final time I tried, after two rings, the one that had answered with "hello?" she answered with, "Nova?" sounding so hopeful." Beside myself, I found that my eyes watered and I sniffed inconspicuously, but Nova still handed me a tissue box.

"It was not all sunshine from there on you know Faith. I hung up once more right after she said, "it's me, mommy," because again, those three words, meant that there were now a million more scenario's I had to question."

Letting what she revealed settle in, Nova remained reserved. And I had to wonder, "Did you ever call back?" I finally asked.  I mean she was no longer in Peru, but she wasn't in Louisiana either. Her face gave nothing away until I asked and straight thin lips transformed into a large pearly white bright smile. "I did, and I learned the truth, that she and my father were having problems, she wanted to move, and he left with me, kidnapping me, holding me hostage and I had not known the truth; there was no danger. My father kidnapped me."

Immediately I tense up, because there were those words again, 'kidnapping' and 'hostage.' I can only shake my head, "You've - you've read the file?" I stutter out when she doesn't say anything else.

Stunned, not only by her choice of words but also by her admittance. "There was no danger." That was almost too close to home. I had assumed there was a war, but that was even before Dmitri had found me. Why did I think that? Where were Cynthia, Andy and I before the gray room? 

"I have, and I'm very sorry that you've gone through what you did, our situations aren't identical, but I can empathize with the troubles-" I screwed my face up and instantly Nova stopped speaking, observing me.