Chapter 9 Malbec Again?
Greg blinked, processing what he just understood.
He felt the shock running through him as the realization hit him.
In his mind he kept hearing Aunt Janet saying repeatedly – “My Child!” – and it struck him that she wasn’t meaning him.
The soft sobs were partially muted against his shoulder.
Instinct kicked in, and he pulled her tight to him, comforting her with a shushing sound and soothing her as he slowly stroked her back gently with his right hand.
He turned and softly kissed her cheek, then whispered to her, “It’s alright, Aunt Janet.
I’ve got you. You’re safe. She’s safe. Your daughter is safe.
” For Aunt Janet, it was like a slap to the face, snapping her out of the grief that was overwhelming her.
“Daughter?” she murmured. “What daughter?” She was just starting to realize what she must have said, but didn’t want to admit it.
“Veronica,” Greg said as gently as he could. “It only makes sense that you mean Veronica.”
“What are you talking about, Greg?” Janet suddenly insisted. “I don’t have any children! You know that!” She pulled back and glared at Greg.
Greg smiled lightly, his eyes softening, then he spoke in just above a whisper.
“I didn’t realize it until now, but all the clues have been there all the time.
If it wasn’t for the hospital and you reacting to Veronica being injured, I probably wouldn’t have made the connection.
” He pulled her close to him again. “It’s okay to admit it now, she’s perfectly safe. ”
“Greg,” she began and her voice started to crack. “I,” she paused drawing a deep breath in. “I can’t,” she stammered.
“Yes, you can Aunt Janet. She is safe. Your daughter Veronica LaFayette is safe. I don’t know how this all works, but it’s clear enough that she’s your actual daughter. She called you like her second mom. I don’t understand it, but I do know now that you are Veronica’s mother.”
She leaned back and lowered her head. “I guess there’s no point in denying it now. You’ve figured it out.” She lifted her head with a soft smile in her eyes. “I am.”
Greg shifted slightly, laying his hand on hers. “I’m actually glad that you are her mother. It means that she’s not alone. She has family.”
“I’ve carried this burden for over twenty-eight years. It was such a weight on my mind and heart. Not being able to admit the truth until recently.”
“Recently?” Greg asked, a puzzled look coming across his face. “I don’t understand what you mean by recently?”
“Just before Jaques died, he told Veronica everything. Gave her the letter that her mom wrote to her shortly before the Ovarian Cancer claimed her. She contacted me after that, and we talked for a long time. That’s why she came back to Kansas City. She wanted to really get to know me.”
“So, Veronica does know,” Greg mused. “I’m glad she does. But do you mind me asking how this all works?”
“Are you up for a long story?” she asked as she regained her composure.
“If it will help with this whole situation.” He ran his hand through his hair. “Understanding this might help me understand my own situation somewhat.”
“Possibly,” Janet observed. “I’ve held this in for so long, it feels like a ton of weight has been lifted from my chest.” She smiled softly.
“I’m sorry for all the deception, but it really matters when it comes to her identity.
Are you sure you want the whole story, including how your mother helped to protect this secret? ”
“My mother helped,,,” Greg was stunned, barely able to breathe for a moment. “How, uh, when, uh where, uh why,” tumbled out of his mouth as it was vocalizing the thoughts running through his mind.
“Do you remember me babysitting the three of you when you were young?”
“Somewhat, for a few years anyway,” Greg admitted slowly. “But then you disappeared for a summer and when you came back, you didn’t stick around.”
“I came back from England, pregnant. I was so thrilled about it because I was engaged to a wonderful man, Malcom Mallory. He was handsome, sophisticated, and a gentleman. He’d swept me off my feet.
He was the son of the man whom my dad worked with to restore the Erronts winery back to Francois Erronts, Edmund Mallory.
He’d given me a bottle of Malbec as a reminder of how love ages. ”
“Malbec?” Greg said. “Why does this wine keep coming up?”
“Because it was mostly owned by Malcom’s late grandfather, William, who’d produced it from the grapes of the Erronts winery under his own label, Chateau Mallory.”
“Oh, I remember that part of the story from back in school,” Greg remarked. “So, what does this have to do with mom.”
“Well, as the summer was ending, I decided to go back to college. Malcom still hadn’t come for me and I knew that my parents wouldn’t approve of my unwed motherhood, especially since Malcom wouldn’t even respond to my texts, phone calls or letters.”
“He abandoned you?” Greg asked, bewildered.
“I thought he had—at that time. So, your mom came up with a plan to hide me from my parents until after the baby was born. My best friend Vanessa had just been married after a whirlwind romance with Jacques, and she was also pregnant at the same time as me. We stayed in touch with each other, though her pregnancy was proving to be very difficult for her.” She paused, collecting her thoughts as the memories flooded back like a raging river, full of turbulent emotions.
“Why was it a difficult pregnancy?” Greg asked with this opening.
“She had Ovarian Cancer,” Janet finally responded with deep sadness. “They tried to get her through the entire pregnancy so they could treat the cancer without harming the baby, but the cancer pushed in and crushed the child in her womb before she could deliver. The baby died shortly after birth.”
“That’s a sad story indeed,” Greg observed solemnly.
“That comes with a silver lining,” Janet replied somberly.
“I couldn’t go home with the baby; my family would have completely rejected me for being unwed and pregnant.
But with Vanessa losing her child at birth, I had an opportunity.
I was due to deliver about the same time, and the stress of it all hit me, triggering my system to begin the child-birth process.
After Veronica was born in the same hospital, we spoke and they agreed to take the baby as theirs, and have the other child attributed to me.
” She took a deep breath to control the emotions that were pulsing within her.
“I gave her the name, Veronica, and they kept it.”
“So, you gave birth to Veronica, but gave her up in the hospital to your best friend and her husband?” Greg asked incredulously.
“She was in deep pain, and I knew that I couldn’t raise a child by myself. It solved the problems for both her and I. She got to have the child she so desperately wanted, desired with her whole heart, and I got to be around to help raise her as Aunt Janet.”
“Wow, so that’s how you became Aunt Janet?” Greg asked.
“Well, actually, that was your mother’s idea.
She called me your Aunt Janet when I was babysitting the three of you.
Vanessa just continued with the idea, and Jacques agreed to it all, knowing that Vanessa would never be able to conceive again.
He wanted children too, but he was so in love with Vanessa that he knew Veronica was the only chance he’d have to be a father.
And I have to say that he was a most wonderful father to Veronica. I couldn’t have asked for more.”
“I am starting to understand this whole thing now,” Greg said then ran his hand through his hair. “But what about her real father? What’s the story there?”
“It turns out that he had his will changed, naming me his sole heir, but he neglected to provide the barrister with contact information for me.” Sadness filled her voice and tears started to well up in her eyes.
“It took him almost five years to find me.” She sobbed softly for a moment then took a deep breath.
“He’d died in a motorcycle accident just two days before he was to fly here to marry me.
” She reached down to her purse and pulled out a ring box.
She opened it to display a two-carat pear shaped diamond ring.
“This was to be my wedding ring.” She looked at Greg now, and fire was burning in her eyes.
“Dying on a motorcycle was beyond stupid. Didn’t he think about me?
Didn’t he consider our baby? NO!” She was shaking now as she continued with controlled anger.
“All he thought was to leave me with over one-hundred bottles of Malbec, the inheritance his grandfather had left when he tried to swindle the Erronts family out of their family winery and vineyard!” She thrust the ring into Greg’s hand.
“I vowed from that day forward to never let a man near my heart again. Not after that kind of betrayal.” She leaned back, crossing her arms hard in front of her chest.
“WOW!” Greg said, still looking at the ring. “That’s some story. I guess I can see how you could feel so betrayed because of his stupid actions that led to his death.”