Chapter 28
Chapter Twenty-Eight
“ I ’m starving,” Vivian said as she wheeled her chair to the dining room table.
“You’re always starving,” Delta teased, taking a seat across from her.
Her decision to come here and cut off her father hadn’t been made lightly. The trip to New York and her success in the meeting made her realize she had become complacent, allowing her father to control much of her career with very little pushback from her. The trip also made her realize she could advocate for herself, and when she found a new manager, she intended to speak up more often so major decisions were more collaborative instead of one person being in control.
Nonetheless, her heart was heavy. Making fun of her sister was a way of fighting the queasiness in her stomach because she knew, after this dinner, her family would be irrevocably broken.
“Whatever. You’re only saying that because you survive on a diet of carrot sticks and ice cubes. The rest of us normal folks don’t have to worry about our appearance, thank you very much.” Vivian grinned across the table at her.
“I’m eating bread today.” Delta picked up a roll, broke it in half, and stuffed the bread in her mouth.
Vivian let out an exaggerated gasp. “Whoa.”
“I know I didn’t see you eat a piece of bread.” Edward’s deep voice filled every corner of the dining room as he entered, with her mother close behind him.
The smile on Vivian’s face died as she looked across the table at her sister. Delta’s insides shriveled up. “I had a little piece,” she said.
“Good grief, Eddie, she’s allowed to have bread every now and again,” her mother, Jocelyn, said. Her skin was two shades lighter than Vivian and Delta, and she wore her hair in a curly bob.
“She has promo pictures coming up. She doesn’t want to look bloated.” Edward sat down and smiled at Delta. “You know I only have your best interests at heart, don’t you?”
“I do. Thanks for the reminder.” Delta carefully placed the leftover bread on the table. “Are you feeling better?”
“Much better, thanks. Doctor said it was acid reflux. He recommended antacids and gave a list of foods to cut back on. See, we all have to cut back if it’s in our best interest. How did things go in New York? I want to hear all about your interviews and meetings,” her father said.
As dinner was served, Delta launched into a recounting of her time in New York, where she had been accompanied by her publicist and an assistant. She explained that her interviews had gone well, and the radio DJs liked the sample of “On My Knees,” the first single to be released from the album.
“That’s good. Your promotional gigs for next week were confirmed today. In a couple of days, I should have the schedule for after the new year. You know the drill. Things are going to be crazy leading up to the release of the first single off the album, which will be crazier than normal because of the publicity surrounding your relationship with Ignacio.”
“Actually, I wanted to talk to you about the album,” Delta said, slicing into her grilled chicken breast. She had steamed vegetables on the side, while her family was eating roasted chicken, mashed potatoes, and brown sugar-glazed carrots.
“What did you want to talk about?”
“My first single won’t actually be ‘On My Knees.’ It’s going to be ‘I Don’t Miss You.’”
Edward’s knife and fork hovered above his plate. “What song is that? I don’t remember any of your songs having that title.”
“It’s a song I wrote. I recorded a demo with a few of my own songs, and while I was in New York I shared the performance with people at the label.”
“Sweetheart,” Edward said with a condescending laugh, “the record label is investing a lot of money in you and has already decided which songs will be included on the album and in which order they’ll be released. You can’t go making changes all willy-nilly. Who did you talk to?”
“Chase, in A&R. He approved the changes.” She saw the shift in her father’s composure.
“I see.”
He couldn’t argue with her answer. Chase was in charge of the album’s creative direction, and his approval meant the changes were a done deal.
“You’ll have to go back in the studio?” Edward asked.
“Yes. The timeline is tight, but Chase said if I do my part to have the recordings completed on time, they can be included on the album.”
“Why didn’t you discuss this with me before you went to see him?”
“Because I knew you’d try to talk me out of it.”
An uneasy silence permeated the room. Vivian and Jocelyn watched Delta and her father’s conversation with their eyes bouncing back and forth like spectators watching a tennis match.
“I don’t know what’s going on with you, Delta. The other day I asked about you and Ignacio, and the way you talked about him—well, you sounded like a woman in a real relationship, not a fake one. Now this. Is he putting ideas in your head?”
“I’m an adult. Despite what you believe, I can think for myself.”
“Don’t be disrespectful to your father,” Jocelyn admonished.
“You want me to have more respect for him?”
“He is your father .”
Delta felt as if her chest was caving in, and suddenly she no longer cared about propriety and respect and manners and sparing the feelings of her parents. She was a grown woman, and it was time to prioritize her happiness and her peace. Time for them to respect her .
“And you’re my mother.” She blew out a breath. “So why didn’t you protect me?”
“What are you talking about?” Edward demanded in a sharp voice.
The weight of emotion threatened to overcome her, but this time she wouldn’t allow the heavy load to crush her. One hand tightened into a fist beside her plate.
“Why did you leave me with Leo?” Delta asked.
Jocelyn gasped, bringing a hand to her throat.
Delta lifted her gaze to her father. “I’m sure you saw that he died.”
He didn’t move, as if he had been turned into stone.
“I keep going over it again and again in my head, and I can’t reconcile what you did,” Delta continued.
“W-we didn’t do anything,” Edward said.
“That’s the problem! You did nothing, and you knew. You knew . So why didn’t you protect me! ” She slammed her fist on the table and screamed the last sentence, shaking with anger and hurt.
Carefully putting down his silverware, Edward swallowed. “I…” He paused, shook his head, and then continued. “Sometimes… sometimes sacrifices have to be made.”
“Sacrifices?” Delta repeated, incredulous.
“Do you think I wanted that for you? Of course I didn’t, but look at everything you have now. You’re past the incident.”
“I’m not. I’m dealing with the remnants of what happened even now. I’m going to be better because he’s gone, but for the longest time, I felt alone because of what happened to me.”
“What are you guys talking about?” Vivian asked.
Edward’s eyes pleaded with her not to say, but Delta was beyond caring. The truth needed to come out.
“When I was sixteen, Mom and Dad left me alone with Leo Hargrove for a weekend so he could do whatever he wanted.”
“That’s not why we left you there! He was supposed to help you,” Edward said.
Her sister’s eyes widened in horror. “D, what do you mean? Are you saying…?”
Delta nodded. “Yeah,” she said in a thick voice.
Vivian stared at her father, then her mother, whose head was bent in shame, and then back at her father again. “Is this a joke? What’s going on right now?”
“It’s not a joke.” Delta used her napkin to dab at the single tear that streamed out the corner of her right eye.
Edward lifted his watery eyes to Delta. “If you needed help, you could have gone back to the treatment center.”
“I shouldn’t have needed a goddamn treatment center in the first place. Don’t you understand that?”
“We had a lot of bills. Your sister?—”
“Don’t you dare bring Viv into this!” Delta snapped.
“All right, you’re clearly upset,” Edward said in a placating voice. “We should probably discuss this in private. Why don’t we table this conversation until later?”
“We’re not going to table anything, we’re not delaying the conversation, and we’re not going anywhere else to talk. I came here for a very specific reason today, to tell you that I’m done. All my life, I’ve done things your way, and I’m ready to do things my way.”
“What does that mean?” Her mother’s voice was a jarring surprise as she joined the conversation.
“It means, Mom, that I no longer want Dad to be my manager. I’ve consulted an attorney, and I’m hereby giving you verbal notice that I’m ending our work relationship. A more formal dissolution of our arrangement will come later.” Edward opened his mouth to speak, but she cut him off. “If you try to fight me, I will leak what you allowed to happen.”
She was bluffing, but he didn’t know that and quickly shut his mouth. She knew him so well, she wasn’t the least bit surprised he was about to make an argument in an effort to remain her manager.
“Mom, your advisory role is also terminated. I’ll work up a severance package for both of you. You’re smart people. I’m sure you can figure out how to make the money last. I’m also selling the house, and I’m permanently moving in with Ignacio, which means you’ll have to leave here at some point.”
“Delta, we’re your family. Your parents,” her mother said.
She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, letting it out slowly past her lips. When she opened her eyes again, she looked directly across the table at her sister and smiled.
“Viv, I want you to come with me. I talked to Ignacio about it this morning, and we want you to live with us.”
“Are you sure?” Vivian asked, sounding surprised.
“Yes, I’m sure. We both are.”
“Somehow, this man has convinced you to turn your back on your family and risk tanking your career. You need guidance. This is what I was afraid of when you were younger. He has too much influence over you,” Edward said.
“No, you had too much influence over me, and that ends today. We’re still family, but you will no longer be a part of my business and use it to run my life.” Delta pushed back her chair. “My lawyer will be in touch.”
She headed toward the door, abruptly stopped, and returned to the table. She picked up the half-eaten roll, slathered it with butter, and stuffed it in her mouth while locking eyes with her father.
She caught Vivian’s proud smile before she stalked out of the dining room, feeling as if she had conquered the world.