A Mother's Bond

5

Beyoncé P.O.V. July 5, 2016
I stared out the window of the luxury van, replaying the last four hours of my day.

I glared at Jay as he pressed answer. I turned to face the window. This always happened. We would be having a great day, he would get a call and just like that, family time was over.

"Mr. Carter?" A female voice. I raised my eyebrow.

"And Mrs. Knowles-Carter," I added.

Jay gave me a look, and I blinked slowly. I didn't give a fuck who it was. They needed to know he had a wife who wasn't afraid to let her presence be known. You needed to shut these hoes down before their little wheels could start turning.

"Perfect. It's good that you're both here. It's Isobel."

I frowned, turning to look at Jay. His forehead was furrowed in thought. Isobel hadn't called us in years.

"I found her."

After that, it was chaos. Jay called up his mama to take care of Blue, while I scrambled to find us a pilot who could fly us to Florida on such short notice. We were out of the house and in the air within an hour. The flight only took two hours, but they were the longest two hours of my life. Stuck in the air, unable to do anything. It was awful. Almost as awful as driving in this damn van. I looked down at my watch.

"How much longer?" I asked for the third time in the past five minutes.

Jay reached over and put a hand on my leg, effectively stopping me from bouncing it. I looked down. I hadn't even realized I'd been doing that.

"Bey, you have to remember what Isobel said. She doesn't remember us." Jay gently reminded me.

I nodded my head, barely listening to him. They found my baby. I never thought this day would come. I had given up hope a long time ago.

When we finally arrived, it took all my strength not to sprint through the doors. I waited for Jay to help me out of the van, and we walked in together. I looked around the station. My eyes quickly landed on Isobel. She was waiting at the front desk with an officer. When she spotted us, she waved us over.

"Where is my daughter?" I demanded.

I could feel Jay burning a hole into my face, but I couldn't care less. I hadn't seen my daughter in 11 years. I shouldn't be expected to observe niceties.

Isobel pressed her lips into a thin line and looked at Jay for help. "I really think–"

I stuck my finger in her face, shutting her up.

"Unless the next words out of your mouth are going to be 'I should lead you to your daughter', then save it." I advised.

Jay placed a calming hand on my shoulder. "Let's hear her out."

I looked into his eyes and sighed. I lowered my finger and nodded, signaling her to continue. She smiled gratefully.

"Okay, I just want to remind you that the August you once knew is gone. For the past 11 years she's identified herself as 'Sarayah'. She's had a whole life separate from you. In her mind, you are taking her away from the mother she knows, and she's not happy about it. I don't particularly enjoy being harsh, but it would be much worse if you went in there expecting the sweet kid who was taken from you."

I bounced my leg, trying to ignore her words. She didn't understand a mother's bond with her child. Once that bond was formed, it was damn near unbreakable.

"She's been waiting in an interrogation room for the past four hours. We've tried offering her food and drinks...That didn't end well."

She glanced uneasily up at the officer standing next to her. I looked at him for the first time. There appeared to be the beginnings of a bruise forming beneath his right eye. I frowned. August couldn't have done that.

Isobel looked back at me. "She's very angry, and she's going to need more than a few hours to accept her situation. Be patient with her."

I nodded, praying she would hurry up and bring me to my damn child already. She saw my determined expression and sighed, giving in.

"Okay, Officer Jones, lead the way."

30 seconds later we were standing in front of a grey door. I bit my lip nervously and looked up at Jay. His face was a mask, but his eyes betrayed him. I could see emotions warring in his eyes: hope, excitement and fear were all competing for dominance.

I squeezed his hand reassuringly, and he smiled down at me. I pointed at the door.

"Our baby is behind that door."

"Actually–" Isobel interjected.

I snapped my head around so quick she flinched. I turned back to Jay and smiled. He took a deep breath and opened the door. The door swung open, and there she was.

Big hazel eyes sitting below thick eyebrows – she could blame me for those. Caramel skin splattered with a light array of freckles. A slightly broader version of my nose atop two very full lips. She was wearing a black hoodie and black leggings. Her hair was as wild as ever, a beautiful brown mane framing her face.

I could tell that under normal circumstances she probably favored me, but the scowl she was sporting looked so much like Jay's I almost laughed. Well, until she directed it towards me. Suddenly it didn't seem so funny anymore.

Jay squeezed my hand tightly, probably trying to keep me from tackling her with a hug. I took a deep breath.

"August–"

She swiftly raised her arm off the table and held up one finger. I frowned, confused. I looked at Jay for some type of explanation, but he just shrugged, looking as confused as me. I started again.

"August–"

She raised another finger. My frown deepened, but I pushed forward, undeterred.

"I know how you're feeling right now–"

She rolled her eyes and held up a third finger before lowering her hand. I watched her curiously as she shook her head, lightly chuckling to herself. Her voice was deep, with a slight rasp. A far cry from the tiny little voice I was used to. She finally looked up at me with an expression I can only describe as contempt.

"At first, I didn't plan on letting you speak, but then I thought, why not. Let's give bio-mom a chance. As a matter of fact, let's give her three. Maybe she's not as stupid as she looks. Maybe she has a brain. Boy was I wrong."

She stared at me, her eyes tinged red from crying. I stared back and noticed something I hadn't before. Emptiness. There was nothing there. She didn't care about me at all. Her smile was dripping with malice.

"Oh, did I hurt little Miss Perfect's feelings?"

She pouted up at me, a twisted version of the sweet, innocent expression she used to make. I flinched involuntarily. She shrugged and looked away from me.

"Well, I guess you can't be that perfect because after all..."

She paused and looked back at me smiling. "You let me get kidnapped."

I felt bile rising in the back of my throat. She was taunting me, purposely hurting me. She was enjoying my pain.

She casually plucked a sheet of paper off the table. "I read the report."

Her eyes skimmed carelessly over the words. "You turned your back on a four-year old. Either you're an idiot, or extremely self-centered. Honestly, I think it might be both."

Jay placed himself between us, trying to act as a shield against her hatred. "Careful, you're speaking on things you don't understand."

She scoffed. "Don't insult my intelligence. I can put two and two together. I have no memories of either of you. I doubt that's a coincidence. Neither of you were ever there for me."

She craned her neck to look at me. "Especially not you. Let's be honest, Beyoncé. Getting kidnapped was the best thing that could've happened to me. You're obviously not fit to be a mother. So do us both a favor and leave."

"I–I" I stuttered, eyes darting between her and Jay.

"I'm sorry," I whispered before turning on my heels.

I flew out of the room, desperate to get away from this stranger wearing my daughter's eyes.