Chapter 47
47
VIRGINIA’S, KASSIOPI
‘Is everything OK, love? You keep looking at your phone like you’re waiting for it to do something.’
Molly looked up at her mum and then immediately back at her phone again. ‘Sorry.’ She flipped the phone over so it was face down on the table. She’d tried to phone Christos and it had just rung until it went to voicemail. Each and every time. If she’d had Magdalena’s number she would have phoned her. She had already been to the apartment and found no one, not even Armeena loitering with intent. She was half-hoping one of the Baros’s was going to walk past here because she was desperate to find Christos, to tell him that Vaggelis wasn’t her father, but perhaps more desperate to fully admit how much she liked him…
They were sitting at one of the tables nearest the view of the water and, also, The Greek Dynamo . There were lots of boats docked today, nestled up to each other, fender to fender.
‘What is it? Something to do with your business?’ Janette asked.
And here was where she could tell a small lie, say she was waiting for a text from Siobhan or her manufacturer or anything other than the truth. But, after their heart-to-heart, they had promised nothing but the truth going forward, no matter how complicated or uncomfortable that might be.
‘I tried to call Christos earlier,’ Molly said with a sigh. ‘He didn’t answer. And then I went to the apartment and he wasn’t there either. He’s not answering any of my calls.’
‘Oh.’
Molly knew why her mum’s response was a little bit like she didn’t know what to say, because she wasn’t fully aware of the whole situation with her and Christos. More truth was required.
‘It’s a bit awkward between us at the moment.’ She sighed. ‘Well, more than a bit awkward. I took your advice of not leaving anything unsaid or undone and I told him I thought there was this connection between us and he agreed, and then… well, then I thought I knew that Vaggelis was my dad and that made us sort of related and?—’
‘I spoke to Maud today,’ Janette stated. She took a sip of her raspberry slushie, lips tight, eyes dark.
‘You did?’
Janette nodded. ‘I know I said I was going to talk to her when I was calmer but, Molly, she didn’t deserve calm! What she did was absolutely preposterous! It was wrong and it was lies on top of lies, and I can’t believe that poor Vaggelis thought you were his daughter all this time, all these years and he never reached out to me, to us, he just took what Maud gave him and watched from afar, and…’
Her mum’s voice trailed off as tears arrived again and Molly was already reaching for a serviette to pass her. She only had sympathy for her mum now. Any anger at being kept in the dark her whole life had been sidelined when faced with what Janette had been through.
‘I know,’ Molly whispered, looking across at The Greek Dynamo sitting just a few steps away. ‘And I wonder if I should give up my inheritance now because it isn’t fair, is it? Obviously Vaggelis left me a share of his things because he thought I was his blood, and I’m not, so it doesn’t feel right to take it now.’
Janette dabbed at her eyes with the serviette. ‘Only you can make that decision, Molly. I mean, I know that Vaggelis would have been desperately upset that you aren’t his daughter, but I also remember how fond he was of little Molly when he met you, and I don’t think that had anything to do with any letter Maud had written him.’
‘But we will never know that now,’ Molly said.
‘No,’ Janette agreed. ‘We won’t.’
She looked at her mum, her expression full of contrasting emotions. She had always known what an absolute rock she was but now she knew exactly how much she had battled with internally while making ends meet, keeping a roof over their heads, food on the table and whatever scraps of make-up they could afford to try to keep the bullies at bay.
‘What did Maud say?’ Molly asked, sipping her frappé.
Janette exhaled, putting her glass back down on the table. ‘Not a great deal, at first. But, then again, I was doing a lot of talking. I mean, she knew we were coming here, she gave us the money to come here… how could she not say anything even when she knew that? Did she think we would never find out what she did?’
Molly had no answer to that one. She had no sympathy for her great-great aunt.
‘When she did speak,’ Janette continued, ‘she said a lot of “I was doing it for the best” lines. No sorry, no remorse, still thinks that what she did was acceptable. But, I could tell, even now, the only thing she was really worried about was what I had told you. How you had to be protected, how it was my duty to protect you.’
Molly shook her head. ‘I can’t believe she would say that! When she did nothing to protect you!’
‘It’s OK, Molly,’ Janette said, swiping more tears away with a brush of her hand. ‘It was a long time ago now.’
‘That doesn’t matter,’ Molly stated bitterly. ‘Time doesn’t change facts. It might water the severity down for some deluded people, but pain is pain and you have a constant reminder to look at every single day, I can’t imagine?—’
‘No, you stop right there,’ Janette ordered, leaning across the table. ‘Never ever think that’s what you are, Molly. Because there isn’t one moment where I’ve ever connected beautiful you with that . You are the best thing that ever happened to me. The very best thing.’
Molly nodded. She appreciated her mum saying that, believed it as wholeheartedly as she could, but she knew deep down it was so much more complicated than that.
‘There was a brief spell where I wondered if I could cope on my own with a child,’ Janette admitted. ‘But that was definitely more to do with me wanting to be sure I could do a good enough job raising someone. No matter how it happened, my main thought was… was I good enough to deserve the chance to be your mum.’
‘Mum,’ Molly said softly.
‘I’m still not sure of that sometimes,’ she admitted with a half-smile.
‘Mum! Don’t say that! You’re a brilliant mum. The best!’
‘I do my best,’ Janette said. ‘I’m not sure I was ever the best.’
‘Mum!’
‘Well, I never had time to home bake anything for the school fetes or make costumes for the plays or?—’
‘And I am so scarred by that, clearly.’ Molly smiled and reached for her mum’s hand. ‘Mum, you are my biggest role model. You’ve taught me everything I’ve needed to survive and to try to thrive.’ She squeezed her hand. ‘You’ve taught me to be brave and to be strong and you’ve taught me that… I’m worthy, that we are all worthy and that life is what we make of it.’ She smiled. ‘You’re the backbone of what Mollify is all about. I wouldn’t have had the courage to start this journey without you.’
‘Aren’t you forgetting that I said your job at the pharmacy was steady and reliable?’
‘I know,’ Molly said. ‘But that’s because you’ve always had to think solid and reliable. Maybe I snatched all the brave genes and ran with them.’
‘Flew with them,’ Janette corrected. ‘And that’s all a mum wants for their child, to see them fly.’
‘Well,’ Molly said, picking up her drink. ‘I’m going to try and fly. But, you know, the pharmacy can be a parachute if the make-up skydiving takes a spin.’
‘So, now that’s settled,’ Janette began, ‘what are you going to do about Christos?’
Molly sighed, looking out over the harbour sitting under a cloudy sky, eyes on their jointly owned boat. What was she going to do? Truth . Honesty .
‘I’m obviously going to tell him about Vaggelis not being my father,’ Molly said. ‘And… I’m going to tell him who my father really is.’ She swallowed. ‘If that’s OK with you?’
Janette nodded, hesitantly at first but then firmer, with more conviction.
‘I just want to be honest with him. Because… I care about him, and the relationship he had with his father wasn’t good and maybe it will help to show him that it doesn’t matter who you’ve come from, it only matters where you decide to go to, how you shape yourself and your future. He told me that himself, you know.’ She sighed. ‘But, after that, there’s no reason to tell anyone else.’
‘Oh, Molly, I don’t want you keeping secrets for me.’
‘I know and I didn’t mean it quite like that. Because Siobhan deserves to know too. Again, if that’s OK with you? But, there’s no need to make some grand announcement on Facebook or anything like that.’
‘No reality TV show?’ Janette asked. ‘No podcast?’
Molly shook her head with a watery smile. ‘No.’
‘Then what are you still doing here with me? I don’t need you to enjoy this delicious slushie. Go and find Christos and talk to him!’
Molly smiled, getting up from her seat. ‘Are you sure?’
‘Of course I’m sure,’ Janette insisted. ‘I’m in Corfu! Not my first rodeo here and when I’ve finished my drink I’m going to go up over there and find a hot slab of rock to lay on. Although, looking at that sky, I’m not sure it’s going to stay hot for long.’
‘Really?’ Molly asked, staring upwards. ‘But it doesn’t rain in Corfu, does it?’
Janette laughed. ‘Oh, it rains alright. And there’s nothing quite like a Greek thunderstorm.’