Serenity Falls

Chapter 47

"Courtney’s running against me."

Mr Taylor frowned. "Your friend Courtney?"

Alyssa shook her head lightly. "She’s not my friend anymore. But don’t worry, Daddy, she’s not going to win. I won’t let her." She folded her arms, glancing towards the roaring log fire, watching the flames dance, intertwining with each other with every movement, before averting her gaze back to her father.

"That’s my girl," Mr Taylor said. "Anyway, I have something to tell you. Miles has only just decided to tell me that there is an important business conference in London tomorrow afternoon – can you believe it, he said he ‘overlooked it on the calendar’. So I’m going to be leaving first thing in the morning."

Alyssa tried to mask her disappointment, but she could not stop a small sigh escaping her mouth.

"I’m sorry, Alyssa. I wish I could stay longer, but I am afraid it’s impossible. This meeting is crucial for the business, especially when we are preparing for expansion. Maybe we could visit the island in the summer together? Spend some quality time together as a family?"

Alyssa knew he meant well, but even on a promised holiday, she knew there would be complications. Some problem with the stock levels of the business, and he would have to fly home immediately. Even if he said he would stop thinking about work and focus on the holiday, it would be physically impossible for him. And plus, she didn’t fancy being stuck on a remote island with only Tiffani for company.

"I need to tell you something," she blurted out, unable to listen to his ‘family’ spiel any longer. Even the thought of Tiffani being pregnant made her want to vomit – she was bad enough on her own, but a child?

Mr Taylor frowned, somewhat confused by her sudden outburst. "What’s that?" he inquired, studying her distressed expression. "Is something wrong?"

"Well... yeah," she admitted, sitting back on the armchair and looking up at her father. "Will you promise you’ll believe me?"

"What are you getting at, Alyssa?"

"It’s about Tiffani," she said, sighing as she watched her father’s face fall.

"Alyssa, honestly, I know you and Tiffani have your differences, but if you’re going to tell me lies about her, then you might as well leave right now. I won’t tolerate you doing that kind of thing."

"This is true, though, I swear. She admitted it herself."

"What is it, then?" He frowned.

She took a deep breath. "The other day, I overheard Tiffani talking on the phone. She was telling her friend about the baby... only, she said something else."

"Well, she’s allowed to tell people, isn’t she? There’s no rule against that."

"She said that you weren’t the father of the baby, and that it’s someone else’s. Someone called Damien." She averted her gaze to the floor, not wanting to see her father’s expression. Suddenly, the swirl pattern of the carpet became much more interesting as she waited for her father’s response.

It seemed like decades passed before he said anything, when it reality, it was only a mere few seconds. "No," he said, his voice sharp. "No, it can’t be. Damien is just a friend. They went to school together. You must have heard her wrong. She was probably just telling him about the baby, and you misunderstood."

"No, I definitely heard right," Alyssa said. "Because afterwards, she threatened me. She said if I tried to tell you then she’d just deny all knowledge. She told me there was no way you would believe me."

Mr Taylor exhaled, standing up from his seat and walking over to the window, his hands behind his back. He stayed there for a few seconds, not a word escaping from his lips. Then he sighed. "Why do you feel the need to make these things up, Alyssa?"

"I’m not making it up!" she protested, raising her voice. It was becoming all too clear that her plan was backfiring. "I’m not just trying to make Tiffani look bad, Daddy, it’s true! Why can’t you just believe me?"

"Why would Tiffani sleep with another man, let alone her old school friend? It doesn’t seem very likely, does it, Alyssa?" He turned back to her, narrowing his eyes. "Why can’t you just be happy for us? She’s going to have a baby, and we can all be a proper family."

"You say that, but we won’t be!" shouted Alyssa. "You could make all the promises in the world, but even when the baby’s born, you’ll still be out of the house for weeks at a time. You know that, so why do you even bother with all this crap about your ‘family’?"

"Alyssa!"

"It’s true, though, isn’t it? You’re just trying to make yourself feel better by saying all of it. But how often do you actually keep your promises? You talk a load of shit, Dad, and you know it!"

"If you would stop making up things and lying to me, then maybe it would be easier to feel like a family," he shot back, his face angry. "You have never liked Tiffani, for reasons I don’t understand, and ever since she’s lived here you’ve been nothing but downright rude to her."

"I told you," Alyssa shouted, her voice so loud it made her throat hurt. "I’m not lying! This is true! Tiffani might act so sweet and innocent around you, but that’s only because you’re giving her shitloads of money! You’re so freaking oblivious you can’t even see what a witch she is!"

Her words hung in the air, the atmosphere so tense it could’ve been cut with a knife. Alyssa stopped, breathing heavily from all the shouting, waiting for any kind of response. She half-wished he would argue back, shout, anything to fill the silence that was now consuming the room. He was just standing there, his head tilted downwards so his eyes were focused on the floor. Whether he did not have a comeback to Alyssa’s point, or whether he was just choosing not to answer her, it was unclear.

An eternity passed. Alyssa was still frozen to the spot, not daring to speak or even move. She knew she had angered her father to a point she had never seen before, and it was somewhat frightening, not knowing how he was going to react. He wasn’t a violent man, but the possibility of him hitting her at that moment did not seem unlikely.

What if he did hit her? How should she react? Would she run away, or take his blows?

But she didn’t need to consider this. He didn’t hit her; he didn’t even shout. His tone of voice was surprisingly calm, and yet held a threatening underside. "Do not make up lies about Tiffani, or anyone else in our family, for that matter," he said, lifting his head to look at her. "Now, please get out, and we will forget that this conversation ever happened. I will see you when I get back."

Alyssa took a deep breath, although she could not summon up the courage to say anything more. She did not respond to her father’s statement, she just turned around and headed for the door, trying to ignore the pain that was swelling inside of her. Deep down, she had known that this would be the outcome. And yet she had tried to hold on to the faint glimmer of hope that he would finally believe her, and realise Tiffani’s true personality.

The door clicked shut behind her and she was left in the hallway alone. It was silent, aside from the sound of running water from inside one of the staff bathrooms, and she sighed deeply.

So, what now? She asked herself. Tiffani’s still here to stay, and Dad hates me more than ever.

Potential tears were forming in her eyes and she blinked furiously, trying to remain confident and collected. She walked down the stairs until she reached the first floor, and entered her quiet room.

Just another year and a half, she told herself. Then I can claim my trust fund and get the hell out of here.

Maybe her Dad would see sense. He was never one to keep wives for very long anyway, so it would be likely that Tiffani would find herself divorced soon. That would be the day, she thought. She just hoped it would be before the baby arrived – that way Alyssa wouldn’t have to suffer any sleepless nights.