“Well, it’s good to know my girl still recognizes me after all these years,” he replied with sarcasm. “I must say, you’ve grown into a beautiful young woman. You look just like your mother did at your age.”
“What are you doing here?”
“I’ve come to see you.” He never moved from his spot. He just sat there, staring at me all cool, calm, and collected in his black dress slacks and dark gray button down. It was hard to see his face in the dark, but the way he was acting, it was clear that he thought there was nothing unusual about the fact that he’d broken into my home. I wanted nothing more than to lash out at him and tell him exactly what I thought, but I simply couldn’t find the words. Instead, I just stood there listening as he said, “It’s been a while. I thought it was time for us to catch up.”
“A while is a bit of an understatement, don’t you think?” I sassed. “It’s been what? Fourteen years or more since I’ve seen or heard from you.”
“Let’s not get distracted by the details. Besides, that’s all behind us now. It’s time to move forward,” he answered casually. “I see you’re doing well for yourself. Got a nice place here. I guess working at a nursing home pays better than I thought.”
“How do you know where I work?”
“I know everything about you, Delilah.” His eyes met mine in a cold, angry stare. “What kind of father would I be if I didn’t?”
“You’ve been watching me ... The man in the black truck. That was you?”
“That was one of my associates.”
“Of course, it was,” I snapped. “Why don’t we just skip all the BS, Dad, and just tell me why you’re really here.”
“I already told you. I’m here to catch up. To reunite with my children.” There was something about his tone that made my skin crawl. I had no interest in catching up with him, much less being in the same dark room with him. “In case you were wondering, I’ve done quite well for myself too. I’ve got my own business. It’s been very successful until recently.”
“Oh? And why’s that? Did you gamble away all your profits?”
“You’d be wise to watch your tone with me, Delilah. I’m not the same man I used to be,” he barked with a threatening tone.
“Clearly.”
“You know, I spent years listening to your mother’s shit. She was always bitching because she couldn’t see the bigger picture. I had plans. I knew what I was doing. If she’d just been patient, she could’ve had a much better life. You all could have.” Before I could respond, he continued, “But that’s all in the past. It’s time for us to focus on the future.”
“And how do you plan on us doing that?”
“For starters, you could tell me what is going on with your brother.”
“I’m not sure I know what you mean.” I crossed my arms and tried to keep my voice steady. “As far as I know, Danny’s good.”
“You sure about that?”
“What do you mean?”
“Danny came up missing just under a month ago, only a few days after he’d made a big delivery. Shortly after, a second associate of mine came up missing as well.” He leaned forward, and for the first time I caught a glimpse of his face. He hadn’t aged much, just a few sparse gray hairs here and there, but there was an evil look his eyes like I’d never seen before. A menacing expression crossed his face as he said, “I think the two are somehow connected.”
“Why would they be connected? Danny doesn’t have any ties to your associates.”
“That’s where you’re wrong.” He shot me an indignant glare and announced, “Danny has been working for me for almost five years now.”
“What?” My mind was racing, making it difficult to think. I knew I had all the pieces to the puzzle, but I was having a hard time putting it all together. I took a deep breath and tried to calm the storm of thoughts racing through my head. After several moments, I was still at a loss. The only job Danny had that I knew about was selling drugs, and I couldn’t understand what that had to do with my father. “How could he be working for you? He hasn’t even seen you in years.”
“Like I said, I’ve established quite a business for myself. I wanted to share my success by making Danny a part of it. I’ll admit, he wasn’t aware that I was behind this venture when he was offered to start dealing, but he’s done well. There’s a chance he could take over the entire business one day.”
I was completely appalled. Our father, a man who was supposed to raise us, guide us, and keep us out of harm’s way, had led his own son down a very treacherous path. To make matters worse, he seemed so offhanded about it, like it wasn’t a big deal that his son was dealing drugs for him. I just couldn’t fathom it. I wanted desperately to believe I was wrong, that he was talking about something else, so I asked, “Are you saying this business of yours, the one you got Danny involved in, is dealing drugs?”