Chapter 23-Kenya #2
“Kendra, there is no easy way to say this, but information has been given to me that Ivan is having an affair. I was told that he has a daughter outside of the ones you share, and he has a son on the way. I haven’t had a chance to look into this information, but—”
“Oh, that’s all you wanted to speak about. You could have said that over the phone and saved me the trouble of driving this late in the evening.”
“What could you possibly mean by that’s all? Kendra, Ivan is cheating on you. Your husband is building a family with someone that isn’t you, his wife.”
“Don’t do that,” she said with a look of disgust plastered on her face, shaking her head from side to side.
“Don’t do what? If I am guilty of doing anything, it’s trying to be a dutiful sister by telling you about your cheating husband. You don’t have to tolerate that, Kendra.”
“Everybody can’t be old and barren like you, Kenya.”
“Excuse me!” I couldn’t believe my ears. Out of all things I expected her response to be, disrespect towards me was nowhere near what I expected.
“You were a fool for letting Ahmad get away from you. If you were smart, you would have forgiven him. Maybe then you’d be living the lifestyle that I am privy to.
So what if my husband cheated? You think that you are better off with that hoodlum you brought to our parents for brunch?
Honey, please … You know what? Mother was right about you. ”
“So, that is how you view me? Wow. Truthfully, Kendra, for the first time in forever, I don’t care what you or your mother have to say about how I live my life.
That hoodlum that you speak of is an amazing man.
He is the best thing to ever happen to me.
He’s supportive, loyal, kind, articulate, and I could go on about how good he is to me and to my body.
Oh, and guess what? He’s not giving any of that to another woman, and I can guarantee it. Now, what can you say about Ivan?”
“Don’t be na?ve, Kenya. I married a man just like our father.
All men stray, and I don’t worry about his indiscretions because I live a fabulous life.
I have an amazing home. I drive a luxury vehicle.
My body is never adorned in anything except for the hottest designer.
I have beautiful children. Now, I could go on and on about them.
Let’s talk about your children ,” she said with a vindictive smirk.
“Who knew that you were so much like your sinister mother? Our father is a good man, and you know that.”
The menacing sneer she wore widened.
“But you just said that good men don’t have outside children. Maybe you should go talk to our brother , Tobias.”
“What?” Deadly silence filled the air, slowly killing me. “You’re lying.”
“Oh, dear sister. I don’t think so. Tobias is our bastard brother.
He is our father’s outside child. Father and our beloved Fancy had an affair.
He told mother that he was going to leave her because Fancy was pregnant, and Fancy was prepared to leave her husband.
He said that he wanted to be there for his child and told her that he no longer loved her, even though they were still newlyweds.
Mother got pregnant with you in order to keep him, and Fancy was hired as the help.
That way, Mother could rub her victory and her wedding ring in her face daily.
Nothing is what it seems, my dear sister. ”
“How long have you known?” I asked in a calm tone.
One characteristic that I attributed to my profession was never letting anyone see me sweat, although Kendra’s words and revelation cut deep.
I had only prepared myself to be the bearer of bad news. I never considered that Kendra had been holding onto news of her own.
“Since I was in high school. One day I overheard our parents talking about his bastard child Tobias. I confronted her about it, and she told me the truth. To be an educated attorney, you really are na?ve. Father isn’t as good a man as you thought, now, is he?”
Then and there, I thought back to all the compromising, intimate interactions between my father and Fancy, something in me snapped.
In hindsight, it was all so clear. I couldn’t deny that my father always seemed happier around Fancy than with his own wife. I would always find them engaged in conversations, joking, and laughing, sometimes too close for comfort.
He rarely participated in conversation with my mother in the same manner. The resentment that my mother had toward me was so clear now.
She hated me because she never wanted me.
My existence was a casualty of a love triangle and a bitter woman who couldn’t stand to lose a wealthy man.
“Get your miserable ass out of my house!” I yelled and surprised myself.
It was rare for me to raise my voice or speak to people like that, especially my family, but it was warranted.
“Oh, my, Kenya, that is not a suitable way to talk to your guest. The hoodlum is rubbing off on you.”
“Kendra, you have ten seconds to get out of my home before I forget that we’re sisters.” There was an anger flowing through me that I didn’t recognize, and the unfamiliarity frightened me.
“I knew that he would bring you down. It’s a shame to see that you lost all of your class.”
Without saying another word, I went to the closet that was next to my front door, grabbed the bat, and swung it a few times as if I was practicing.
Fancy told me years ago that every single woman, living alone needed to have a bat, a golf club, and a gun in their homes to protect themselves.
I took her advice, and I was glad that I did. I felt like I was having an out-of-body experience, reacting to the situation based on anger, and not utilizing judgement.
That was so unlike me. This was all unlike me.
“I am not going to repeat myself,” I said, swinging the bat.
With wide eyes, she grabbed her belongings and scurried out of the front door. A few seconds after her dramatic exit, I heard her car start and accelerate away from my house.
Regardless of what she had to say or what she felt, I refused to be disrespected in my home. I’d endured her and my mother’s contempt for too long. That part of my existence was dead.
If I never gained their approval, that would be fine. They seemed incapable of genuinely loving me and accepting me without an ulterior motive, and I was just now understanding that it was their loss and not mine.