Lia
I should have never given birth to you!
Anna's words resonate through my head as she storms out of the house. I stand completely frozen in my spot, stunned into silence by the hatred I heard in her voice.
It takes me a moment to snap out of my shock before I run upstairs to my and Blake's room, ignoring everyone calling out after me. I hurriedly take off the fuzzy pajamas I've been wearing and change into some jeans and one of Blake's hoodies then put on my boots, grab my wallet and phone and run back downstairs.
"Aiden, I need your car!" I rush to my brother, outstretching my hand to him demandingly.
He quickly digs into his pocket when he notices how agitated I am and hands me his keys. I quickly grab them and run outside to his truck before pulling out of the driveway like a madwoman. There's only one road leading from Joe's house, so I hope I can catch up to Anna before she gets away.
I speed through the streets in search of Anna's red Mercedes and when I finally spot her, I follow her all the way across the city until she pulls up in front of a big two-story house.
I park the car in the driveway then storm to the front door, banging on it furiously.
"What?! Did you come to beat me up with no witnesses? It's what you do best, isn't it?!" Anna snarls as she opens the door.
"Drop the act. – I tell her coldly – There's no audience anymore so you don't have to show off. I came to talk. One on one."
I can tell Anna's surprised by my tone. "Fine." She grumbles, letting me in.
I go to her living room and sit on the couch, getting a suspicious look from Anna as she takes out a bottle of brandy and a glass before she settles down on the armchair. "So what do you want to talk about?"
"I need to know the truth. No pretense, no acting, only facts." I state sternly.
Anna only stares at me silently for a while before sighing heavily. "You noticed."
"Of course I did. I'm a fighter, I have to see those things. I'm surprised no one else noticed; you're not exactly a good actress." I shrug, making her sigh deeply as she leans back in her seat.
"I despise you, Amelia. – Anna starts coldly – You ruined my life."
"You've already said that. What I want to know is why."
I wait patiently as she debates on what to tell me, sipping on her drink. "I was happy with Harold for the most of our marriage, but after we had the boys, our life changed. There were no longer just us. We had kids to take care of. The day-to-day routine of going to work, doing house chores and taking care of the kids killed whatever was left of our life before the boys were born. Then I met Alexander and it was like someone breathed new life into me.
The months I spent with Alexander were the happiest moments in my life, but I couldn't forget about my duties as Harold's wife and the boys' mother. My husband never suspected anything and I wanted to keep it that way.
But then, I got pregnant with you. – she sneers angrily – I never wanted another baby. It took me years to get back to my figure from before the previous pregnancies and I didn't want my body to be ruined again."
"That's not all, though, is it? You couldn't possibly hate me this much just for ruining your figure." I say, giving her a hard stare.
"No. That's not all. – she sighs – For months, I successfully hid my affair from my husband, but because of you... I could no longer do that. Harold knew that you weren't his. I begged him to not divorce me. I would be left with nothing if he did that and I would most likely lose custody of my sons. I couldn't risk that so I cut all ties with Alexander.
The problems began when I started showing. Alexander saw me one day and immediately put everything together. He realized that the baby was his and he was overjoyed. He asked me to keep you and let him be a part of your upbringing. I was in a tough spot. I had to choose between my husband and the love of my life.
I chose Alexander. I decided to keep you then leave you with him, so that he would always have a piece of me with him. I wanted him to remember me, even if it was only through you.
Since Alexander wasn't as rich as Harold and I, I decided to help him. I felt that it wasn't fair to burden him with raising you with no support from me. I told Joe and my father about my affair and the pregnancy... Since I knew that it's extremely rare for a girl to be born in our family, I had no doubt they would do everything they could to help me. I lied to them about Harold trying to hurt you. It was the only way for them to give me money for Alexander. They knew about Harold's temper and his anger issues, so they didn't even question anything I said. When they heard that you're a girl, they gave me one million dollars each and set up the trust fund in your name so you could have a better start in life once you entered adulthood.
I gave Alexander the money the same day I gave birth to you. I didn't even touch you after you were born, I didn't want to get attached to you. My father and Joe helped Alexander leave, still believing that it was all for your safety. I didn't know where Alexander went and I didn't care. I was just relieved that you were out of my life.
But even though I was happy about you being away, my boys weren't. They heard me talk to Joe and my father... They knew about you. I could tell they were really excited about having a baby sister, since there was no girl in the family.
As my sons grew up, they started asking questions. They wanted to know why you weren't with us and why their father was so angry and cold towards me. It didn't take long for them to try to search for you on their own. I admit, it was my mistake to not tell them you died or something. I should've made them give up on the idea of looking for you.
They were relentless in their search and they even told their grandparents about it. After Harold died, Joe and my father started pestering me about meeting you. They wanted to see their first granddaughter, even though you were born out of wedlock. I tried to convince them that it's impossible to find you after eighteen years, but I wasn't successful.
I couldn't stop them from looking for you and that made my hate for you grow. You unknowingly stole everything from me. Had it not been for you, I wouldn't have lost the man I loved, I wouldn't have lost my father and sons to their ridiculous obsession about meeting you.
I hoped that the boys wouldn't find you. But they did. And it was too late for me to do anything. I had to accept that you would somehow enter my life.
At first I decided to try the act of a loving mother... That's why I told you that Harold was abusive and that I left you for your own good. But it was harder than I thought. I couldn't get over the hatred and contempt I had for you, so when I heard about you being an underground fighter, I decided to use it against you. I thought that if you hated me like I hated you, you'd never try to steal my family from me.
What I didn't expect was for my sons to get attached to you so easily. Even though I succeeded in making you hate me, there was nothing I could do about my sons growing close to you. They loved you from the moment you had met.
I was green with envy. Everyone fell in love with you so easily, so quickly... You didn't even have to do anything, you just showed up out of nowhere and everyone dropped to their knees for you." Anna takes a break for a moment, rubbing her face tiredly before running her hand through her hair. She finally shed her mask and let me see her true self. I knew there was something wrong about the way she behaved and I suspected it was all an act. Whenever there were people around us, I would notice a slight change in the way she looked at me before she would make a scene.
"I never asked for this. – I tell her – I never wanted to take anything from you. I never tried to steal your family, your spotlight. I was perfectly content with living my life without knowing my biological mother. I felt no need to find you. I didn't want to find you." I state sternly, getting a quiet sigh in response.
"I know. It was stupid of me to act like that. I was swayed by my feelings for you and ended up pushing my own family away from me. I unintentionally turned them all against me." She cries out, burying her face in her hands as she sobs.
I don't know if I should try to comfort her or leave her alone. After hearing her side of the story, I sort of understand why she acted the way she did.
"There's one more thing I need to know. – I say after a moment, making Anna stare at me tearfully – Why did you sell me out to those two guys?" I make sure to not let any emotions show on my face as I question her, not wanting to betray how much her actions hurt me.
"I never sold you out. – my eyes widen in disbelief when all I can see is honesty in her eyes – I only said that so it would be easier for you to hate me. I thought it was the only way for you to stay away from my family."
"Then what happened?" I breathe out, completely flabbergasted about what I'm hearing.
"That cop did threaten me to arrest me for Harold's misdeeds; that part was true, but I knew there was nothing that could connect me to anything my husband had been doing. I never told that cop where to find you. I don't even know how he managed to get you. I'll admit, it was wrong of me to not do anything while they were hurting you, but I was so far gone in my own fear that my mind didn't even register what was happening to you. I've never been in a situation like that, kidnapped, tied up and gagged, and I didn't know what to do. I didn't know what I could do." I stare at her with wide eyes, beyond shocked at what I'm hearing.
"You didn't betray me..." I breathe out, leaning my elbows on my knees as I try to keep the tears at bay. I hurt her and accused her of betraying me when all this time she's been innocent.
"I didn't. As much as I hate you, I'd never do something so atrocious."
I can't help but chuckle. "You don't have to keep saying that you hate me, you know. I get it."
"Sorry. – she gives me a small smile – However, I don't want you to have any misconceptions about us. I feel nothing towards you, Amelia. I gave birth to you to appease Alexander, but I never loved you. And I never will."
"I know. I feel the same. I'm sorry about your arm, though."
"It's fine. It was my fault. I should've known that there would be repercussions for my actions and that those close to you would blame me for what you went through."
"Well, it's not like you didn't have a hand in all that, since you're the one that trusted Alexander, but... - I sigh heavily - I think it's more Sandra's fault than yours. You weren't with us, so it's not like you had any impact on what was happening. Sandra and Alexander were the ones that ruined everything for me. I can blame you for leaving me with such an irresponsible moron, but I can't blame you for his actions. Of course, it doesn't mean I'll accept you in my life. I also don't expect you to accept me in yours, but... I could see that this... war between us is tearing the family apart. The animosity we have towards each other is inadvertently forcing them to choose a side. And I don't want to do that. I have no right to make them choose either of us."
"So what are you saying?"
"Now that I see your reasoning and your true colors, I know for sure that I will never treat you like a mother. You were absent my whole life and I have no feelings when it comes to you. However, that doesn't mean I feel nothing towards the others. I genuinely like them. That's why I'd like to propose a truce. We both know we'll never have that mother-daughter relationship, but we can still be civil."
"Are you serious? – Anna frowns in shock – How would that even work? Everyone pushed me away! They chose you!" She exclaims angrily.
"That's because they believed your act."
Blake
"That's because they believed your act." Lia's calm voice resounds from my phone.
After Lia stormed out of the house, Alan begged me and Tyson to make her come back. I assured him she didn't leave for good and she'll be back. I recognized the determined look on my kitten's face as she asked Aiden for his car keys. She wanted answers.
After few minutes, she called me and asked to put the phone on speaker for everyone to listen. My parents, Maria and Lia's family were a bit confused about my girl's intentions, but Tyson seemed to understand what she was trying to do.
Everything became clear when we heard Anna's confession. It was unfair to listen to her explain herself without her knowing, but it was obvious she wouldn't open up to her family about all the lies she had said.
What surprised us the most was when she admitted that she never sold Lia out to Mark and Patrick. She took the blame for something she didn't do only to make Lia hate her. Well, she succeeded in that, that's for sure.
My girl once again surprised everyone when she offered a truce between her and Anna. She reasoned that she doesn't want to tear the family apart. When she said that, I glanced at Tyson, only to see him smiling at the phone in pride. Even my parents seemed impressed by how my kitten is handling the situation. She may be eighteen, but she's smarter and more compassionate than anyone I know.
"It changes nothing. Even if I told them everything now, they wouldn't believe me." We hear Anna sigh dejectedly and I catch Alan sniffle quietly.
"I don't think that's true. You guys there?" We hear some rustling before Lia's voice resounds clearly through the phone, meaning she took it out.
"W-What is it?! You were recording this?!" Anna fumes, but Lia remains calm as she responds.
"No. I was on a call this whole time. Everyone heard what you said. I wanted them to see past your act."
There's a long silence before the sound of heart-clenching sobs resonate through the room. "I'm so sorry! I'm so fucking sorry!" Anna cries out. For some reason, this time I can tell her apology is genuine.
"Do you want to talk to them?" Lia asks gently.
"I can't drive like this." Anna scoffs.
"I'll take you." My kitten offers, making me smile. She's so considerate.
"You really want a truce, huh?" We hear Anna chuckle. "Fine, then. But don't expect me to warm up to you." She warns, getting quiet groans from some of us. This woman just doesn't give up.
"I won't. You're just a woman who gave birth to me." Lia states coldly.
"And you're just a kid I gave birth to." Anna replies emotionlessly.
"Babe, you there?" My kitten asks sweetly and everyone chuckles at the sudden change in her tone.
"Yep, I'm here."
"Can you turn on your tracker? I don't want to ask Anna for directions on our way back." I barely stop myself from laughing at the way she grumbles Anna's name in annoyance.
"Bitch." Anna scoffs in the background before I even manage to respond.
"Cunt." Lia counters snidely.
"Brat."
"Hoe."
"Witch."
"Twat."
"Bimbo."
"Slag."
"We're still here, you know." I decide to interrupt their exchange, as funny as it is to listen to them.
"Fuck." Lia grumbles before hanging up.
It takes approximately three seconds for everyone to burst out laughing.
Those two are ridiculous, but I have a feeling they're going to be fine.
They just need time.