Kept In The Dark

Chapter Two

"My father," Mia managed to utter those words after sitting in silence for a few minutes.

Grandma sighed and shook her head a couple of times. She sighed again as she gently stroked the short-legged corgi dog that sat peacefully on her lap.

"I told Donna to tell you," she shook her head again, "I told her but would she listen? No! She's a silly girl sometimes."

No end of thoughts ran around Mia's confused mind. She felt as if she'd moved forward an inch. Well, Grandma hadn't screamed at her not to mention him again. And this, the girl thought, was progress, at least.

"So, can you tell me about him? I mean I've tried asking Mum, and she just won't tell me anything." Mia paused for a moment, "Grandma," she said, looking her elderly relative straight in the eyes, "I have a right to know who my father is." 

"I can't, and I won't tell you everything, Mia. Your mother is my daughter and I will not betray her confidence in me. I feel it is her place to tell you when she feels ready to discuss the matter."

The tone of Grandma's voice shifted and deepened slightly with a clear warning tone to her words. Mia knew she was close. She'd hit a nerve and she knew it. But if Grandma wasn't going to tell her, then who would? 

"You can't tell me everything, fine, but if it's left to her then I may as well just forget him. There's no way on Earth she'll tell me anything. All mum cares about are Brian, the twins and watching rubbish tacky reality tv shows. I don't think she gives a damn about me, Grandma. I don't think she does."

"Mia, your mum loved you more than anything in the world. Donna isn't trying to hurt you, my dear. Far from it. She's trying to protect you."

"Protect me?" This was new. For years Mia always thought that her mum just wasn't all that interested in her due to her age when Mia was born.  She knew from talking with her mum and her aunt, Mum's older sister, that her pregnancy was tough and that at just fifteen years old, Donna didn't know how to be a mother. But with help from her mum and sister, she finally got the hang of it. The subject of Mia's dad, however, was not something she ever discussed. Now Mia felt as if there was a bit more weight behind one of her theories. Maybe whoever he was, he wasn't a very nice man. Why else would she need protection from him?

Mia and her grandma sat in a calm silence for a few minutes. Neither one knew exactly what to say. Mia knew what she wanted to know, the information she was desperate for, but the last thing she wanted to do was to cause her grandma any upset.

"Please tell me something." Mia requested again as a single tear hovered in her eyes threatening to force her makeup to streak down her face, "If he wasn't a nice man then I still want to know. His DNA is in me. He's part of me, Grandma, I'm part of him."

Grandma sighed. She'd been doing that a lot lately and it hasn't gone unnoticed. The more she deeply exhaled the clearer it became to Mia that she was hiding something. The girl wasn't stupid. Far from it but the less she knew about her father the more idiotic she began to feel. Everyone she knew at least knew the name of both their parents. When her younger twin siblings called out 'Dad' to Brian to get his attention a twinge of jealousy pierced Mia's heart. Who could she call Dad?

Grandma's voice dropped to almost a whisper as if she dared not say his name aloud.

"James." She said,

The older lady looked sheepish and recoiled back into her chair. The lines on her forehead seemed deeper and the colour of her complexion almost drained from her skin. Drops of tea spilt from the teacup in her hands that now trembled like fallen leaves, covering her top and skirt in now cold liquid.