Part III
Istanbul. The place she thought she had escaped from. Yet here she is again. The past few months in Ankara had seemed like a fairy tale. She thought she and Emir were living their happily ever after. She had convinced herself she'd never have to worry about Cavidan Tarhun again. Turns out she was only fooling herself.
Fortunately for Reyhan, "back to Istanbul" did not mean back to the Tarhun estate. They will be spending a considerable amount of time there, due to the nature of Hikmet's illness, but they won't be living there. They will be living with Emine and Murat in their palatial estate. A home so large it makes even Emir's eyes goggle.
"This place is huge," he whispers to Reyhan, laughing at the irony. "My mother would die of envy knowing we're living here."
"Then it's probably best we don't tell her," Reyhan whispers back, trying not to lose track of where they are as they take an impromptu tour around the place. The estate really is huge. It is comprised of six different wings, each wing basically its own home. Emir and Reyhan will have their own wing.
"Feel free to decorate this place anyway you like. Consider it your home," Emine says, giving them huge smiles. "I'm just so happy this house will finally have some life again. You're going to be very busy, Reyhancığım. We can take our time with the nursery. But we can get people in here immediately to work on the room for our Princess. Isn't that right, Princess Ayla?"
Reyhan just shakes her head. She thought the move was going to be hard on Ayla, moving to a whole new city and everything, but she's super excited. The girl is taking the change like a champion. Reyhan is finding that Ayla has an adventurous soul. She seems to thrive under even some of the most challenging circumstances. This move is just another adventure to her.
They take the rest of the day to get settled and decide to go see Hikmet early the next day. Emir and Reyhan are both anxious to see him, but even flying in on Murat bey's private plane made the trip tiring for Reyhan. Her prior illness makes the pregnancy a bit higher risk than normal, so they didn't want to take any chances with her health. It's going to be hard enough to see Hikmet so sick as it is. Not to mention having to face Cavidan. Emir doesn't want Reyhan to face so much stress in one day.
But morning comes and Emir knows he can't delay the visit any longer. Standing outside of his family home, he takes Reyhan by the hand.
"Are you ready?"
She bites her lip and gives a small nod. He knocks on the door.
"Emir? Reyhan? Come in, Çocuklar!" Melike says when she opens the door to them. They decided to keep the visit a secret so no one was expecting them. But this welcome from Melike warms their hearts.
She hugs them both, almost forgetting to close the door. She puts her hands on both their faces in turn to "get a good look at them" before declaring them both too thin and promising them a dinner full of their favorites.
"Slow down," Emir laughs. "We actually came to see Baba. We heard about what happened to him."
"Ah yes," Melike nods, her mood sobering. "Terrible accident. It's still a mystery what happened."
"Why didn't anyone tell us sooner?" Reyhan asks. "We wouldn't have known if Kemal abi didn't call."
"We can save the questions for later," Emir says. "Let me go see him now and we can talk about what happened later."
"Emir," Reyhan protests.
"We talked about this," Emir reminds her. "I go in first. That was always the plan. Amca warned us that it's hard to see him like this. I don't want this to be too stressful for you."
He looks down at the hand she has covering her stomach. He frowns.
"Are you feeling okay?" he asks her, cupping her cheek with his hand. "How about some tea? Melike Abla?"
"Of course," she says with a knowing smile. "You go see your father. I'll take care of Reyhan."
When he's gone, Melike turns to Reyhan, her smile growing larger.
"You two seem close," Melike says. "Dare I say, happy?"
"Things are good," Reyhan admits with a dreamy smile, rubbing her stomach and causing Melike to gasp when she notices the act.
"Kızım! Are you ..."
"Shh!" Reyhan silences her, looking around to make sure no one is within hearing distance. "It's a surprise. We're going to tell the family later."
"A baby? Oh, Reyhan," she says, throwing her arm around the younger woman. "You can't know how happy that makes me."
Reyhan blinks away her own tears of happiness. She was hoping for this kind of reaction, but not expecting it. Sadly, she knows not everyone in the house will feel this way. Cavidan in particular. She's too uncertain of how the woman will react to news of both this baby and Ayla's adoption to feel any true relief. And she's too worried about her uncle to be completely happy right now.
"Melike Abla," Reyhan starts. "Please tell me what happened with my uncle. How did this happen?"
"No one knows, Kızım," she explains. "He was in his office, working. I went to take him some coffee and found him collapsed on the floor. It could have been his heart, we don't know. He was still having trouble from time to time. But it was usually under control with his medication. So again, we still don't know what caused him to collapse. And unfortunately when he fell, he hit his head on his desk. The head injury is what's causing the most trouble. The damage has left him completely paralyzed. He's unable to move or speak."
Reyhan closes her eyes, this time unable to stop the tears.
"My poor uncle," she cries softly. "I can't believe what he's going through."
She must look a little unsteady on her feet because Melike takes her arm and leads her to the couch in the living room. She helps her sit down.
"Let me get you that tea."
"No, Melike Abla. Stay with me," Reyhan pleads. "I'm fine. I promise. Just a little lightheaded. Emir just likes to worry about me. He tends to overreact."
"I'll stay, but you need something," Melike insists before calling out to Nigar. The other woman comes and Melike instructs her to bring the tea.
Reyhan remembers that Nigar had never really been fond of her. A situation that doesn't appear to have changed. The look she gives Reyhan almost rivals one of Cavidan's glares. Reyhan isn't even sure what she's ever done to get on Nigar's bad side this way. All she did was show up with her uncle that fateful day. Reyhan guesses that was all it took.
"Nigar still doesn't like me," Reyhan whispers to Melike. "And I can't imagine Cavidan hanım does either."
"Kızım ..."
"No, it's fine. I can accept that she hates me," Reyhan tells her. "I've come to terms with it. I'm here for my uncle. Cavidan hanım is free to do whatever she likes. Just so long as she knows I won't be playing her games this time."
"Bold words coming from the meek little mouse."
Melike's eyes pop open in shock when she hears Cavidan enter the room. Nigar must have called her from the kitchen. Cavidan had an early morning breakfast meeting with the women's group she's still trying to join. The group that even Melike knows Cavidan can't buy her way into. But Cavidan insists on trying anyway. The meeting was set to go at least until noon. Cavidan being home this early means Nigar let her know about Emir and Reyhan.
Melike rises to stand between Cavidan and Reyhan, thinking to protect the younger woman. But Reyhan steps around her and steps right up to Cavidan fearlessly.
"Cavidan hanım," she greets in a polite, yet guarded tone. "It's nice to see you."
"Why are you here? I thought we had gotten rid of you," Cavidan snaps.
"Pleasant as always, I see," Reyhan says, her unusual sass surprising Cavidan. "You haven't changed at all."
"Well now. Look at you. You really have grown bold, Girl. And you apparently have forgotten how miserable I can make your life."
"I'm not here to fight with you, Cavidan hanım. I'm just here to see my uncle. You can go back to pretending I don't exist."
Reyhan tries to walk away, but Cavidan grabs her by the arm.
"Why pretend you don't exist when I can make it happen for real?" Cavidan warns. "I know you think you've managed to seduce Emir all these months you've had him alone. But he's my son. I know him. Family is most important to him. And now that he's finally returned home to his family, you will go back to just being the little nothing you always were. I'll make it so he forgets all about you. Then we'll see how bold and sassy you really are."
Cavidan lets go and gives her a little shove that puts her right into the path of Nigar and her tray of tea. The tea spills all over Reyhan's dress when they collide.
Reyhan yelps in pain when the hot liquid seeps through her clothes and reaches her skin. She quickly pulls the fabric away to avoid getting burned.
"You are such a disgrace," Cavidan says with a sneer. "Getting rid of you again is going to make my day. This is just the start. You think last time was bad? That was just a warm up."
"What's going on out here?"
They are all surprised to hear Emir enter the room.
"Anne. It's been awhile. How are you?" Emir drops an obligatory kiss on Cavidan's cheek before moving to Reyhan's side. His eyebrows scrunch up in confusion when he sees the tea stains all over her. "What happened to you?"
"Just a small accident," Reyhan says, glaring at Cavidan. "I'm going to the room to change into the clothes Ieft here. And then I'll go in to see my uncle."
"About that," Cavidan starts, a wicked grin on her face. "Son, we didn't know when you were coming back. And with your father falling ill, Cemre has been here as extra support. She's truly been the daughter of this mansion. I don't know what Suna and I would have done without her. She's been staying in your room and Reyhan's clothes have been moved to the guest room."
Emir just stares at her for a long minute, unable to believe what she just said.
"What is wrong with you, Anne?" he asks, still trying to comprehend. "You moved my wife's things out of our bedroom. And let Cemre stay in there. In our room. In our bed."
"Emir, just let it go," Reyhan sighs. It isn't worth the fight. "I'll just go see Uncle and we can go."
"Get that woman out of our room, Anne," Emir demands. "Today."
He takes Reyhan by the hand and drags her down the hall. He's muttering curses under his breath as he checks each guest room for her clothes. When they finally find the right room, he slams the door shut behind them.
"Why is she like this? And why didn't I ever see it?" he asks, running his hands through his hair.
"Calm down. I'm used to it," she tells him, turning around so that he can unzip her dress for her. "And we're not going to be here full time. I can take whatever she throws at me while we're here visiting Dayı."
"But you shouldn't have to," he sighs, frustrated at his mother's antics.
"And you shouldn't have to worry about defending me. I don't want to come between you and your mother, Emir. She's your family."
"You're my family," he points out. "You and Ayla and this baby."
He puts his hand on her belly. It's not so flat anymore, but it's not noticeable to anyone else yet.
"We are a family. More than when we left. We've changed. We're different now. We're a team. She's not used to us being on the same page. We'll have to give her some time to get used to the way our relationship is now," Reyhan says as she pulls on a clean dress, frowning when it's a bit snug. She trades it out for one with a looser fit. "And once we tell her about Ayla and the baby, I'm sure she'll come around. Grandchildren have a way of softening a hard heart."
She hopes. There may be no getting through to Cavidan. But she'll keep trying for as long as she can.
"Okay. How do I look?" She spins around to model the dress for him.
"Beautiful. As usual." He leans down to give her a quick kiss. "Now let's go see Baba."
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
It was harder than she thought to see her uncle so sick. So still. So silent. He can't move. He can't speak. All he can do is blink. For a selfish moment she's glad she never had to see him in the hospital. She can't imagine what it was like with him hooked to the various machines and tubes. This is bad enough.
"What do the doctors say?" she asks quietly. Emir wraps his arms around her and she falls back into his embrace. She knows she wouldn't be able to remain standing without him.
"He has a private nurse, so he's getting good care. But if there's any hope of him getting better, he'll need specialized treatment. We'll probably have to send him away for that. Amca has been consulting a doctor. I believe Narin is her name. She seems hopeful that my father can recover eventually."
"That's good," Reyhan nods, wiping away a stray tear. "Do you hear that, Dayı? You're going to be fine. You're going to recover. You have to. Because we have someone special to introduce you to. Our daughter. Ayla. You're going to love her. She's such a bright light. She makes everything better."
"She's such a character," Emir adds with a laugh. "She reminds me a lot of Suna when she was little. She's pure joy. So you come back to us because Ayla is going to need her grandfather."
He slides his hand down to Reyhan's stomach.
"And this little one is going to need a name. That's your job."
Tears start to stream down Hikmet's face and they can almost see his struggle. Trapped inside his mind. No way to communicate what he's thinking.
"It's fine, Dayı. You have plenty of time to get better," Reyhan says. "Plenty of time to hold your grandchildren."
The emotions get the better of her and she can't stay.
"I'm sorry," she tells Emir before running out to the veranda of the room. She just needs some air.
Emir gives her a few minutes before he joins her.
"Are you okay?" he asks, knowing that she isn't. He knew this visit would be hard for her. He would have protected her from it if he could have. But he also knew she needed to see him. All he can do or her right now is hold her. Dry her tears.
She turns around to find his waiting arms and falls into them. He lets her cry herself out.
"How could someone so strong and vibrant end up like that, Emir? My Dayı is supposed to be invincible."
He scoops her up into his arms and walks over to the seating area. He sits and lets her curl up on his lap. He strokes a hand down her back to calm her.
"It's going to be okay, Sweetheart. He'll be fine," Emir promises her, kissing her on the cheek. "Everything we talked about will happen. He's going to be a great grandfather. The kids are going to love him and he's going to love them. We just have to believe that."
She finally gives him a little smile.
"Somehow it's easy to believe when you say it." She lays her head on his chest and looks up at him. "Everything is better and easier with you, Emir."
This time he smiles. Yes. Love makes everything better. Love makes all the difference.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Cemre enters the mansion and immediately looks for Cavidan. She's heard the most exciting news and she must pass it on. She finds Cavidan in the living room, standing to the window with a disgusted grimace on her face.
"You clearly haven't heard the good news," Cemre says, walking over to the woman. "What has put you in this foul mood?"
"That snake," Cavidan practically growls, pointing across the way to the veranda off the room where Hikmet is.
Cemre gasps when she realizes what she's looking at.
"Is that Emir? And Reyhan? Why are they here? What are they doing?"
"They came to see Hikmet," Cavidan explains.
"But ... he's holding her," Cemre sputters out. "Why is he holding her like that?"
She watches him pick her up and sit with her, tucking her onto his lap. Kiss her. Stroke her hair, stroke her back. More kisses. A lot more kisses. She feels sick.
"He loves her?" Cemre asks, unable to grasp what she's seeing. "I don't understand."
"It's nothing," Cavidan insists. "We can fix this. She's nothing. We can make him see that again. Now that they're home, it'll be that much easier to send her away."
But Cemre isn't as sure. No, she's not sure at all. The kisses get more and more heated. Cemre can't stop her hand from lifting to her own lips as she watches them, jealousy roiling in her belly.
"Disgusting," Cavidan spits out before closing the curtains and blocking the view. "That girl has my son acting this kind of way and I won't stand for it."
She leads Cemre over to the couch and they sit, calling Nigar for tea.
"Now tell me. What is this news that had you so excited earlier?"
"He loves her," Cemre says again, still sounding confused.
"Snap out of it, Cemre!" Cavdian orders, clapping her hands in front of Cemre's face. "This will be fine. Trust me. This girl is just a distraction. One that is easily removed. You should have seen the look on her face when she heard you had replaced her in Emir's bedroom."
That gets Cemre's attention. Nothing like the idea of Reyhan humiliation to put her in a good mood.
"Really?" she asks. "And what did Emir say?"
"Oh, he gave the expected response. What are you doing, Anne?" she recounts. "Get her out of the room, Anne. But I could see that it was all for show. It was what she expected. So he said it. But he didn't mean it."
"Hmm," Cemre nods. But she still isn't totally convinced. And she can't stop seeing those kisses. She closes her eyes and shakes her head to try to shake clear of the memory. Besides, it's not like she hasn't seen Emir with other women. She'll get rid of Reyhan the same way she got rid of the others who came before her.
"Well?" Cavidan says, getting her attention again. "Your news?"
"Oh. Yes. That," Cemre says, coming back to her senses. "It's all anyone is talking about. You'll never guess who has come back to town."
At Cavidan's blank stare, she continues.
"The queen of the Istanbul social scene herself ... Emine Yilmaz!"
"Yok artık!"
Cavidan starts to do some mental planning. Emine Yilmaz is THE person to get to know. She's been away for years, traveling with her husband on various business trips. The last time she encountered Emine, things were kind of ugly. There were misunderstandings and Cavidan has never recovered socially. Now is her chance. She has to impress the woman. But she'll never do it with someone like Reyhan in the family.
"That stupid hillbilly picked the worst time to return," Cavidan scowls. "Emine Yilmaz will take one look at her and give the whole family the cut. Cemre, we've got to get rid of that girl and we've got to do it now."
Or Cavidan's chances of finally taking her rightful place in society will forever be ruined.
"But what are we going to do?" Cemre asks. "She's made him fall in love with her. He's never going to send her away."
Cavidan taps her chin as she thinks, a brilliant idea suddenly popping into her head.
"Then we make her leave. We use this so-called love she has for him against her. We'll make her leave him for his own good."
Yes. That could work, Cavidan realizes the more she considers her plan. This could be just the thing she's looking for to get rid of that girl. And once she's gone, Cavidan will get everything she wants.