Vengeance

“Denise, I’m your mother and I love you, but I will not sit by and watch you descend into hell and take Caprice with you. If I have to take you out of this world, I will.”

Everything became blurry after that for a moment. I could see Grandma and Mother struggling and hitting each other. I tried to blank it all out and pretend like it was not happening.

A minute seemed like a hundred and I realized that Grandma was passed out on the floor, presumably knocked unconscious by her own daughter. I could see her chest rising and falling, so I was positive she was still breathing. I remember being appreciative for that: her chest rising.

Mother turned to me with the paring knife in her hand and, even at seven years old, I understood that I was in imminent danger. I tried to get up and run from the kitchen, but I was not fast enough. Mother grabbed me from behind and I felt the blade of the knife slicing down my left cheek in a jagged line. She let me go and I toppled to the floor, holding my face. I was speechless, and even if I could have found words, I would have been too afraid to actually speak them.

“Now, no man will ever want you,” Mother said. “The curse in the Tatum family ends with you.”

Chapter Six

Turns out that my grandmother was fine. Mother didn’t use the knife on her, only me, the demon. She was beaten-up pretty bad, though. We were both hospitalized for about a week.”

Marcella gulped down some saliva. “I’m sorry that your mother did that to you. Where are your mother and grandmother now?”

“Grandma died when I was young, right before my twenty-first birthday. I didn’t get a chance to say good-bye to her. I was already in New York, but I wrote her letters; no return address.” I paused and took a deep breath. “Mother’s in an institution not that far from here. Based on your profession, one that I’m sure you’re familiar with.”

“I don’t really do a lot of institutional work any longer.”

I drank some water to regain some composure after going back to a place that I never thought I would revisit again.

“Have you seen her?” Marcella asked.

“No. Like I said, I haven’t been back here in decades. Even after she first got locked up, I never wanted to see her. Regardless, Grandma wouldn’t have allowed it. Not after what happened. I heard that the doctors determined that the cancer finally took her, but it was really the emotional pain created by being raped by her own brother, who raped her daughter in return, and fathered her granddaughter. I’ve often wondered if Mother was right and Uncle Donald is really her father. It would make a lot of sense.”

“Do you want to find out?”

“Hell no,” I replied quickly. “My life is fucked-up enough as it is. Why would I want to confirm some sick shit like that?”

“Well, Wicket, I’m glad that you felt comfortable enough to share what happened with me.” She stared at my face. “When did you have the scar removed?”

“Several months after I arrived in New York. Daddy paid to have my face reconstructed. It was Hannah’s idea. She realized he could afford it and thought it would make me feel better.”

“Who’s Hannah?”

That one question made me realize that our session needed to end for the day. I was not prepared to discuss Hannah, or what had happened to her.

“Can we reconvene this later?” I asked Marcella as I stood. “Even though we’re in a spa, I feel anything but relaxed.” I paused and looked down at her. “Are you willing to see me on a regular basis? Money is no object. I can pay you well for your time.”

Marcella stood up. “I would never charge you extra because of your wealth. And yes, I am willing to see you.” She glanced around the spa. “But I do have a suggestion. It would be inconvenient to make such elaborate preparations to meet here all the time. I have a hideaway cottage in Pike County, a little ways from here. Population less than twenty thousand and my closest neighbor is literally a mile away.”

I was stunned. “And you go out there by yourself.” I chuckled. “Oh, mea culpa. You probably have a nice, loving relationship with a man who adores you and goes out there with you.”

She looked uneasy. “I’ve always made it a point to keep my private life isolated from my clients, but I will say that I’m not troubled to go there alone. That’s the point of it being a hideaway. Sometimes I need to unwind and diminish the rest of the world.”

“I can dig it, but I’d have to bring KAD with me. I would be scared to death to go to sleep out there. I don’t see how you do it. I can visit but I need to get out of there before dark.”

“KAD?”

“Oh, that’s my nickname for my three bodyguards.”

She laughed. “First initials?”

“Exactly.” We smiled at each other for a moment. “Your cottage sounds lovely and I would like to meet there. What about this same time next week? I prefer to continue to arrange all of these sessions myself. Even though all of my staff have confidentiality and nondisclosure agreements, in this economy, you never know what people are capable of.”

“Same time next week. I’ll e-mail you the address.”

“Thanks, Marcella.” I reached out my hand. “Even though it was hard for me to discuss what my mother did to me, I do feel some type of liberation for having said it.”