-Rebecca. Talk to me.- The woman holds herself.
-You are not my mother.-
She recoils. -Yes, I am.- The woman stands tall. - I am your mother, at least the biological one and I did not sell kiddie porn.-
-NEITHER DID DAD!-
-YOU DON'T KNOW HIM, THEY FUCK WITH PEOPLES BRAIN'S IN THE COVE!-
What? How does she know where we go to therapy? -BULLSHIT!-
-I HAVE EVIDENCE.-
-BULLSHIT!-
-YOU WANNA SEE? FINE- She rushes to the room, I try to follow but the chain stops right at the frame of the hallway
She opens the door struggling with the keys and slams the door behind her. Thumping noises, swearing and eventually, she leaves the room bringing an old, brick-like laptop dragging the charger cord and another duffel bag.
She has a satchel hanging on her shoulder. The same bag from yesterday, I've seen it before.
We give each other mean looks. She places the laptop on the counter and turns it towards me.
-What would you prefer first? The video of your birth or the top ten videos of how you father got me brainwashed to steal you from me?-
Neither, really.
From the satchel Daphne also recovers my phone and leaves it behind the laptop.
-My birth.- Morbid curiosity, her eyes lit.
The woman starts looking in her satchel, plastic noises, metal noises. She has a lot of stuff inside that bag.
She gets a transparent CD case. "Rebecca's Birth" is written in cursive and purple ink, with my father's impeccable calligraphy.
She puts a CD in the computer. I walk to the counter and take a chair next to her.
The camera shakes, it's pointing to the ground. Silence.
...Here! We don't want to miss this, do we Daffy? My father's voice, my heart sinks. The camera pans up and it reveals a younger Daphne on the ground.
Her face is pulpy, she cries, I think she pissed herself, there's ... No... No that's not piss. It's the bag.
-Early labor! Can you believe our angel? Already a go getter.-
-AGH TAKE ME TO A HOSPITAL! PLEASE.-
-No Daffy. House labor, like the fucking hippie one you wanted. THE BEST FOR THE BEST WHORE- Dad kicks Daphne in the face. -I COULD HAVE MADE YOU TEN TIMES RICHER, TEN TIMES ANYTHING!-
-OH GOD, PIERCE PLEASE I BEG YOU!-
-STOP THAT! YOU ARE GOING TO HURT THE BABY!- I don't know that voice, it's a man's voice.
A woman in scrubs rushes to pick Daphne up and a man appears in the frame, wearing a coat and scrubs. Pissed, scolding my father. His voice is very foreign to me, but he looks familiar.
-I told you no recording Mr. Sterling. What about evidence?-
-I want her birth, I have Hunter's. She is MY child.-
Daphne weeps in the back, the man covers the whole frame.
-Fine, fine.- The man shakes his head.
-She is ready Doctor. The baby is already crowning.- When the man moves from the frame, Daphne is tied with ropes against a wall.
Her legs spread open and from her bloody vagina, what I assume is my head.
-I NEED A HOSPITAL PLEASE, I DON'T WANT TO DIE.- Daphne screams and weeps and the woman restrains her ankles to keep Daphne from closing them.
-Allison, is everything ready in the nursery?- The man puts on gloves and kneels next to Daphne and the woman in the scrubs leaves the frame.
Daphne is still weeping and gasping and trying to breathe.
-I need you to push Miss Ortiz. I promise you will barely feel it.- The doctor wipes some of the blood and sweat from her face.
-PLEASE, IF YOU EVER CARED FOR ME; PLEASE!-
My father's heavy breathing surrounds the audio, he zooms on her face.
-Daphne, at some point you have to stop thinking you can change me.-
Without zooming out he walks towards her. -But for the sake of our daughter, you are right. I should be more caring.-
He punches her, Daphne wails, something breaks. His knuckles are bloody and hurt and a lot of blood is dripping from where Daphne's nose bridge is supposed to be.
-STOP IT. SHE CAN'T PUSH WHILE UNCONSCIOUS MR. STERLING. YOUR DAUGHTER WILL DIE WITH HER!- Who is the doctor and is he helping my dad? Because it's not Tiffany's dad, but he kinda looks like him.
I know this video is fourteen years old but that's not Otto. This person is taller than him, with a smaller frame.
-Who's the doctor?- I don't know why it's eating me so much.
-Elliott Lerchner, Otto's youngest brother. The nurse is Otto's first wife, Alisson.-
Daphne pauses the video.
I mean this still isn't evidence that she is my mother, dad forced her to give birth to his child with her, but it can still be all fake and that's another baby.
-I wanna keep watching.-
-No, Rebecca, you don't. It's hurting you.-
-I. Want. To. Watch. The. Whole. Video.-
Daphne lifts her brows -No. You. Don't. Just talk to me, do you think the tape is fake? -
-No... yes. I don't know.-
-Why do you think it's fake?- Daphne tilts her head and looks at me with the same sad clown expression.
-It could be your OTHER daughter.-
It takes her a second to process what I just said.
Her eyes squint and widen and her face turns harsh.
Daphne slaps me. -VICTORIA IS NOT THAT MONSTER'S DAUGHTER!-
Her palm was wide open, I felt every one of her fingers land on my face.
I recoiled far away from her. But the sting really hurts.
Dad is gonna kill her if she left a mark. He is gonna leave her face all pulpy and broken again.
-No no no no no.... I am so sorry. Pretty eyes.- She stays in her place. -I can't help it, not when it comes to her.- Daphne is trembling.
-He took her away from me and from her father. Rebecca, he stole both of you from me and Victoria wasn't even his!-
Daphne gets up and rushes to the fridge. She opens the freezer but I don't care what she is looking for. I try to reach the phone it's too far for me to take it with our her realizing... I need to get to the phone to call someone for help.
I want my mom so badly I could cry.
Instead, I breathe in and do my best to contain my tears.
-Daphne, can I go look for the Reglan in the restroom? It's in my products pouch.-
She closes the freezer with a frozen gel pack in her right hand. -I'll get it for you.- Daphne hands me a cloth and the pack.
-Cover it with it, so it doesn't burn you. I am not the only one who is going to get scolded if he finds you with a hurt face.-
She's right.
He is going to kill her and then probably lock me in the lodge ́s basement for as many days as I was captive. And if she bruised my face he is going to make me hurt her.
-So, only the Reglan? I have acid reflux medication and I really think you should drink some, but I understand if you don't want to drink any medicine I give you.-
It would be a stupid thing to do, yet my stomach feels like Pompeii.
-Okay... I'll have the medicine. I would like to be able to eat something and not make a mess of your house.-
Daphne nods at me with a smile and leaves the kitchen. Leaving my phone behind.
I hear her looking for stuff in my pouch, quickly I take the phone and type.
I send the same text to four different numbers. Mom's, Uncle Kenny's, Anthony's and Hunter's.
In that order.
-A woman named Daphne kidnapped me 8+ hours ago. Alive. Unhurt. Address Unknown. It seems to be in the dessert at a weird fake house. HELP.-
Once each message is sent, I delete them just in case.
Mom is in the air coming back from New York still but Uncle Kenny is probably at work by now. He can help me better than anyone else, considering he works for the FBI.
Hunter is probably worried sick if he is sober and Anthony is going to be the one making sure Dad doesn't set all of Cali on fire to find me.
Speaking of dad, he deserves more than just a text.
I call him.
One beep. Two beeps. Three beeps.
Daphne is opening her room, she closes the door behind her, she even locks it. Weird, does she want me to tell them where I am?
Four beeps. Five beeps. Click.
-Hello, Rebecca!- His voice makes my heart sink. He's calm, poised and happy to hear from me.
It's been more than eight hours and he answers like nothing happened.
-Princess? I know you are angry at me, but I am not angry at you. Tell me where you are and I'll pick you up. I can even take the Porsche, we can stop by Rodeo and get your mother something nice. Or we can go looking for an early present for your birthday?-
I can picture him, giving me that disgusting smile. -I haven't taken you shoppi...-
-Shut up.- I cry.
-Rebecca, what's wrong? Why are you crying?- His voice changes drastically.
-Daphne.-
Silence, I can't even hear his breath.
-I am sorry I called you a traitor. You have always been my favorite. I love you, Rebecca.- Click.
The silence on the other side of the phone adds a new layer of emotions to my day.
Now I am also disappointed at my dad for not reacting like a normal dad, whose kid got taken.
He hung up the phone like it was nothing.