Smile (a Michael Jackson Fanfiction)

(84)

Janet's POV

I sit in the smoky bar as I wait for LaToya's ass to show up, the same I've been doing for the past hour. She called me to come here because she said it was key that we met in a unknown, sketchier kind of place so that no one expect we would actually be there, you know, being Jackson's and all.

I stand to walk out, when I see a large man enter the bar, and he looks oddly familiar. I've never seen him before, but his familiarity irks me. I sit back down to observe the conversation that he starts to have with a skinny, mixed man at the table in the middle.

"...Emma Abella."

My eyes widen as I keep my ears alert, and continue to eavesdrop on their conversation. I sip my beer to try and look casual as I play with a quarter in my hand when something else catches my ear.

"...rid of Jackson."

I grit my teeth, turning my body a bit to see them out of the corner of my eye. They haven't looked my way yet, and still don't notice me as I discreetly watch the conversation going back and forth between the two of them.

I know neither of the men, but they must know Emma or Michael. I mean, come on, they have to. Their names wouldn't just be said together like that.

"Give him a shot to the head..."

Oh shit. I have to get out of here and tell Michael about this.

I wait until both men leave before leaving my money on the table and heading straight to Michael and Emma.

*

I pull into the driveway, and the gates to Neverland open immediately after I've called to say that I'd be here within the next few minutes. I speed up the driveway and come to a screeching stop before swinging my door open and running up to the main house.

"Michael!" I yell, banging my fist on the door relentlessly, "Michael, open up this fucking door!" I continue to yell, starting to panic a bit.

"Hey Dun-"

"There is someone out to get you and Emma," I say quickly, cutting him off when he opens the door. His eyes widen and his lips part.

"What are you talking about?" he asks slowly, furrowing his brows as I push past him into the house before shutting the door behind me and locking all of the locks.

"I was in this bar that Toya told me to meet her at," I begin to explain, walking straight to the kitchen to lean against the island, "She never showed up, and I was about to leave, when there were two men talking about you and Emma so I had to stay to hear it out."

"What did they say?" he asks quickly.

"I didn't catch most of their conversation, but I heard them talk about Emma, getting rid of you and giving you a shot to the head." I swallow nervously, as Michael steps back a bit before sitting on a barstool as his face blanches.

"What did they look like?" he mumbles, his eyes glazed over with fear and stress.

"One man was large. Looked pretty tough and intimidating, and the other guys was a slimmer, mixed guy. Brown hair. The larger man was all disheveled and the mixed guy was done up. Not super expensive, but good style."

"Any names?" he asks quickly, looking at me intently as I try and recall the name I heard at the end.

"Shit, I don't know Mike," I sigh, rubbing the bridge of my nose as I wrack my brain, "The mixed guy addressed the other guys as... um... Derek... Dan.. Danny-"

"Daniel?!" Michael exclaims, and my eyes widen.

"Who is that?" I ask urgently as Michael's eyes turn dark and his fists clench at his sides as he stands from his chair. I've never seen him like this, "Michael, who is it?"

"It's Emma's father," he grits and I let out a slight gasp, holding my chest.

"Emma's father?!" I squeak as he runs his hands down his face in frustration.

"He was just in this house too." he grumbles and my jaw drops as I step back a bit.

"Why?!"

"Her parents just showed up here randomly a couple days ago," he sighs, shaking his head, "Emma's mother is still here, actually. She's nice. Her little brother, Stephen, is here too." Michael says softly, folding his arms.

"She has a brother?" I whisper.

"Yeah, Emma's playing with him in the backyard right now. He's seven."

"Wow, that's a big age difference," I sigh, staring off into space.

"We need to do something about Daniel and this other guys you saw," Michael grunts, starting to pace a bit, "I'm sure they will meet up again, so I'll have my private investigators follow Daniel to see who he's working with. I'll hire everyone I know and then some." he says quickly.

"Okay, Mike," I sigh, shaking my head as he picks up the phone to start calling who he knows, "I'll go out back and keep Emma and Stephen occupied while you call who you need to." he nods, pressing his ear to the phone as I start to make my way out back.

When I spot both of them laughing together, I make my way over to them. Emma sees me and smiles widely, stopping her pushing of Stephen on the swing.

"Janet!" she exclaims, walking over to me, "What are you doing here? I didn't know you were coming."

"I didn't either," I sigh, wrapping my arms around her as I feel my nervousness grow, "I just decided to stop by." I smile tightly as we pull away.

"We have so much to catch up on!" she grins, wiggling her ring at me and I smile at the thought.

Good job Mike.

"My Mother got here a couple days ago from Canada," she sighs as Stephen makes his way over to us, "My Father was here too, but, he's gone," she grumbles, shaking her head, "Anyways, you want to meet her?"

"Sure," I smile sympathetically, feeling bad that she doesn't know what's going on yet. Emma smiles and grabs my hand before leading me to one of the guest cabins on the property.

"Emma?" a voice similar to Emma's calls as we walk into the cabin. She steps out from one of the back rooms and she gapes at me, "Oh my gosh," she gasps, looking to me, and my cheeks heat, "You're Janet Jackson."

"Yes, I am," I smile bashfully, tucking some of my hair behind my ear, "It's nice to meet you, Mrs. Abella."

"That's the name of Emma's father," she scoffs, waving her hand through the air, "We've recently separated. It's Sasia, but you can call me Molly."

"It's so nice to meet you," I nod, pulling her into a hug, "Now I know why Emma is so pretty."

"You're kind," Molly smiles shyly.

After a bit of small talk, we say our goodbyes and start to walk back to the main house, leaving Stephen with their Mom. When we walk in, Michael is on the phone. His voice lowers when he sees us and he hangs up before smiling nervously.

"Hey guys," he smiles tightly, desperately reaching for enthusiasm.

"Babe, what's wrong?" Emma asks, walking up to him before wrapping her arms around his neck. He looks down into her eyes and I smile at the connection.

Finally he found the right one.

"Nothing you need to worry about," he smiles wanly before gently kissing her lips. Michael looks to me and nods, letting me know he's taken care of things, and I take a deep breath.

"Okay, guys, I just popped in to say hi," I smile, "I think I'm going to head out." Emma smiles, walking up to me to pull me into a tight hug.

"It was short, but I always love to see you, Jan," she sighs, resting her chin on my shoulder for a second more.

"Yeah, we should get together more often. A girls night out or something," I smile as we pull away, "Especially since you tell me we have a lot to catch up on," I wink and she smiles brightly.

I hug Mike, before hugging Emma again, and head out. I really hope they find Daniel and this friend of his. Michael and Emma both deserve better.