The next day…
Fatima couldn't sleep last night because for some odd reason, she kept replaying the interaction with Liv in her head. Something about Liv was enticing to her, but she couldn't put her finger on it. Maybe it was the love they both shared for the law? Or maybe it was something deeper… something like a family connection? Either way, Fatima was determined to find out, so she convinced Zac to drop her off earlier than the agreed upon time because she wanted to "tour" the Keating and Associates office. She did call the reception first to ask for permission, and surprisingly, Liv volunteered to personally take her on the tour.
| Keating & Associates |
"So yep! That about covers everything that we do here at K&A" Liv said as she and Fatima walked into her office after walking through all 12 floors of the massive law firm. "Would you like something to drink?" She asked, standing in front of her bar fridge.
"Um… water is fine" Fatima replied before taking a seat on one of the chairs.
"Here you go" Liv said, placing a bottle in front of Fatima before sitting on the chair behind the desk.
"You have a beautiful office" Fatima said, admiring the oakwood shiny table, the marvelous view of the city, the high ceilings, and glass walls that made up Liv's office.
"Thank you!" Liv said back with a smile. "So Fatima… I've actually been meaning to ask you something since last night, if you don't mind?"
"Okay…?"
"Last night when I asked you why you gave up on the criminal defense attorney route, and you said it's a long story. However, since we have some time to spare… would you mind summarizing that long story for me?" Liv asked.
"What made you choose this career path?" Fatima asked, changing the topic, causing Liv to chuckle because she acts so much like her mother (Shayla).
"My mother did. It's kind of a family lineage" Liv replied.
"Oh… so is that how your sister got into Law as well?" Fatima asked, still deviating from Liv's question.
"Yes, but don't get it twisted. My mother never forced us into it. She just instilled the passion in us and then left us to make our own decisions" Liv explained. "Also… you ain't slick with all these questions. I'm on to you" she hinted with a slight chuckle.
"Huh?" Fatima acted oblivious.
"You're deflecting" Liv said. "Look, it's cool if you don't wanna talk about whatever it is that stopped you from pursuing law. But just say that! No one is forcing you to say anything. Heck, you don't even know me, so I get it.'
"No, it's actually not that at all. It's just a really sensitive topic for me, but I do want to tell you" Fatima replied.
"Okay. Whenever you're ready to speak. You may start" Liv said calmly as she waited patiently.
"It has everything to do with my mother" Fatima sighed as Liv sat up because she was interested to hear where this was going.
"What about her?" Liv asked.
"She uh… we had a really rocky relationship growing up. Shit we still do! Our relationship is actually in shambles right now" Fatima said shaking her head.
"I'm sorry about that" Liv said sincerely.
"It's whatever" Fatima shrugged. "Anyway, so I grew with feelings of rejection/ abandonment, and my mother was the source for all of that. So because of how she treated me, I wanted to get away from her, and I was convinced that the only way to do that was by fleeing to Africa after I graduated from high school. The plan was to study Law in Cape Town, but then I soon realized that studying South African Law would inhibit my chances of practicing here in the States if I ever decided to come back. So I chose to study something remotely close, something that wouldn't have me bound in Africa for all eternity– just in case I change my mind."
"What'd you choose?" Liv asked.
"Commercial Law. At least with that I can get a job anywhere in the world because business law is the same all throughout the world" Fatima said.
"Where was your father during all the times your mother was treating you badly?" Liv asked while trying her hardest to not show how pissed off she was.
"He was there." Fatima said.
"And he just sat there and did nothing?!" Liv asked with her blood slowly starting to boil.
"No it wasn't like that. For a great chunk of my teenage life he actually wasn't aware because I hid my issues with her really well. He only found out later down the line" Fatima explained.
"Okay… and then what did he do after finding out?" Liv asked.
"I mean, what could he do? Divorce the love of his life because of lil ol' me?" Fatima chuckled to hide her pain.
"Trust me. She is not the love of his life" Liv mumbled to herself.
"So yeah… he put me in therapy and then also asked my mom to treat me better. Look, I don't want to paint my father as a bad person. He loves me and everything he has done was to benefit me and my siblings. Evelyn also wasn't bad all the time– there were some good times. I mean, sometimes my behavior warranted how she treated me– I used to be a rebel, so I don't blame her for some of the things she said or did to me." Fatima continued explaining.
Meanwhile, Liv's mind had sailed. She was angry! At her deceased sister. At Carlos. And at everyone else who voted to have Fatima estranged from the Keating family at the tender age of one! She doesn't know the full story or the real reason behind why it had to be done because she was just a "child" and she wouldn't understand– is what they said when they justified it.
Truth is… Fatima's mother/ Liv's eldest sister (Shayla) was murdered in cold blood, and to this day, her killer hasn't been found. During the days leading up to Shayla's death, it was like she knew it was coming. She was working on a very dangerous case, and deep down, she feared that it would end in tears. However, when she tried to get out, it was already too late. She was in too deep.
She then prepared Carlos and her mother (Annalise) on what to do if she died. In fact, it was her idea to have Carlos completely disappear with 10-month-old Fatima. She didn't explain much except that it was for the best and that Fatima being estranged from the Keating family was quite literally the only thing that would keep her alive. Shayla asked Carlos to give her 2 months to try and fix everything, and then she promised to return afterward so that she and Carlos would marry and live happily ever after.
Unfortunately, things didn't go according to plan… When Carlos was about to divorce Evelyn, he found out that she was pregnant with CJ. And to make matters worse, Shayla was found dead a few days later. So basically, Carlos decided to just stay with Evelyn and learn to love her again as they raised their kids together. He figured that since he was open to accepting Eva as his own, then surely Evelyn would offer him the same grace with regards to Fatima– but boy was he mistaken.
Needless to say, Annalise and Liv worked tirelessly trying to solve the murder of their beloved, but after years and years of hitting dead ends, they gave up and ultimately had the case declared a cold case.
"For what it's worth, I'm sorry about everything that you've been through" Liv said sincerely as she snapped out of her trance.
"It's fine. I've learned to deal with it… I think" Fatima said, unsure.
"Are you still in therapy?" Liv asked.
"Nope" Fatima said, shaking her head. "I quit it many years ago. It wasn't really doing much for me anyway." She shrugged. "Anyway, this topic is kinda depressing so can we talk about something else?" She asked.
"Of course!" Liv said, checking the time on her watch. "We have about 15 minutes before Zac and them arrive so what do you want to talk about?" She asked.
"Shayla" Fatima said without hesitation. "I want to know what happened to her and if y'all are ever gonna reopen her case?" She asked and could instantly tell that this was a touchy subject for Liv because her mood instantly dropped at the mention of her sister's name.
"I uh… I don't know if we're ever gonna reopen her case because it might be too much for my mom to handle" Liv said, getting choked up. "If I'm being honest. It might be too much for me too." She admitted.
"I get that and I sympathize but don't you think that she deserves justice?" Fatima asked.
"Look uh… can we please just drop it" Liv said on the brink of tears. "I'm sorry but I just don't want to talk about this anymore. The memories are just too painful to relive."
"I'm sorry I didn't mean to open up old wounds" Fatima said feeling bad. "I was just being my usual inquisitive self."
"Don't worry it's not your fault. It's me– I guess I just realized that I haven't healed from my sister's death." Liv said.
"Can I ask you one more thing and then I promise to let it go?" Fatima asked hesitantly.
"Sure" Liv said.
"Do you have a picture of Shayla? If so, can I please see her?" Fatima asked. "The few that I found on Google were outdated and not really clear."
Liv debated on whether or not she wanted to show Fatima some more recent pictures of her mother. Reason being that they bared a striking resemblance. Even a blind man would be able to deduce that there is some sort of relation between the two. She pondered on her thoughts for a while and then just said fuck it! As she opened the drawer attached to her desk and pulled out a photo album filled with Shayla's pic from the time she was a baby… all the way to her last days on her earth.
"Here you go" Liv reluctantly handed the album over to Fatima and nervously watched as she started browsing through it.
Fatima was silent while browsing through the baby/ teenage photos. She didn't see much of a resemblance until she came across a picture of Shayla at age 21 when she graduated and obtained her Law degree from Howard University.
"I know that this may sound crazy but she looks exactly like–
**Knock Knock**
Jill (Liv's assistant) interrupted. "Mrs Pope. Your 12 o'clock is here."
"Thanks Jill, you can send them in" Liv replied just before Jill closed the door to go and get Zac, Eva and Malik.
"I'm sorry about that" Liv turned her attention back to Fatima. "You were saying?"
"N-nothing" Fatima said not wanting to be weird. She closed the album and handed it back to Liv.
**Knock Knock**
"Come in!" Liv yelled while putting the album back where it belongs.
Zac, Eva and Malik came in and took their seats.
"Good day everyone. Thank you for being punctual" Liv said with a welcoming smile. "I trust that you have all read and understood the contents of the folders I gave y'all last night?" She asked and they all nodded in agreement.
"Perfect!" Liv smiled. "This shouldn't take long then" she said, handing them each a black pen. "Please initial on the following pages… 2, 7, 15, 20 and 30."
-They all did as told-
"And then please sign on the following pages… 9, 18, 27, 36 and 45." Liv instructed and they all obliged.
"Lastly, please open on page 50 so that I can initial and sign" Liv said and they all did as told.
"Alright ladies and gentlemen, it's official!" Liv exclaimed. "Zoë Tayla Taylor, formally known as Skylar Vashae Wright, now legally and rightfully belongs to Zac and Fatima. Thank you all for your cooperation. Meeting adjourned."
"So that's it?" Eva asked feeling a little emotional.
"Yep" Liv replied sincerely. "Please excuse me while I go get these files submitted." She said standing up with the folders in her hand. "You're free to leave because we're done here" she said before leaving.
"Thank you for not fighting us on this" Fatima said.
"And thank you for raising our princess for 3 wonderful years!" Zac expressed with gratitude.
"It was a pleasure" Malik said, getting choked up. "Come on baby let's get going" he said standing up and holding his hand out for Eva to take– which she did. "Please excuse us but we have another meeting to get to before going back to work."
"A meeting in this building?" Zac asked.
"Yes. Our attorney's office is on the last floor" Malik replied.
"Who are y'all meeting with?" Fatima asked.
"With Annalise Keating. She's gonna represent us when we go on trial. Jamal is getting arrested for murdering Skylar today" Eva said.
"She's very good. I know that y'all are in good hands. All the best and we'll be praying for God to give y'all strength" Fatima said as she and Zac also got ready to leave.
"Thanks Tima, I love and appreciate you" Eva said, hugging her sister.
"I love you too sissy" Fatima hugged her back before the pairs went their separate ways.
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A/N: time jump coming up in the next chapter...