The Rag Doll

Part 22

Punishment is not for revenge, but to lessen crime and reform the criminal.

-Elizabeth Fry.

The whole room was silent, no one said anything, until Ivar decided to say something to Henry.

"Hey, I'm not your father, I'm the guy that saved your life that day, remember?" Ivar smiled at Henry, and he had no idea that he was breaking his son's heart.

Henry heard Thays and Jay talking about Ivar the night before, and Henry had no doubt that his mother and Jay were telling the truth, so Henry thought the worse, Ivar, his own father didn't wanted him, so Henry cried, nobody in his family ever saw him like that. Thays grabbed Henry and went straight to his room, Frederuna, Gisla and Donna followed her.

Ivar was watching her closely, he was amazed by Antoinette, he did not care that his wife heard about his obsession with her, he just wanted her, nothing else mattered to him. Ivar wasn't sure if it was lust, or something else, but he knew that he needed to have her. He was devastated that Antoinette heard his conversation with Ubbe on the fashion show, Ivar wanted to get rid off his big brother, but he hurt her instead.

"Well, you will hear from me, right now, I want to take care of my family." Harvey said, and he asked the Lothbroks to leave Antoinette's apartment.

They did, and that plan was worst thing that Harvey could do, now Aslaug met Antoinette, and she wasn't happy that she could ruin her favorite son's marriage. Aslaug thought that she was perfect, wealthy family, well educated, royalty, but she was too perfect, and Aslaug needed to find out more about Antoinette. She was convinced that Antoinette was hiding something, and she would find out, she texted Harbard, her lover and an amazing hacker.
Back at the apartment, Henry was still crying, and that broke everybody's heart.

"Mama, why my papa don't want me? I'm a bad son for him?" Henry didn't let go of his mother's neck, he was crying on her neck without stopping. Her worst fear happened, Ivar rejected Henry, even if it was without him knowing the truth.

"Henry, what makes you think that he is your papa?" Thays needed to know how Henry found out, he wasn't supposed to know.

"I heard you and Jay talking, he said his name, Ivar Lothbrok. He is my papa, and he doesn't want me." He cried even more, that was breaking Thays.

"Henry, look at me." He looked at her, with red and swollen eyes. "He is your papa, but he doesn't know that. That's why he said that to you, okay?" Henry nodded.

"Can I tell him? He won't reject me anymore, I'll be a good boy, mama. You'll see, he will be proud of me." Thays hated to say no to Henry, but this time, she needed to, at least for now.

"Henry, I told you before, he hurt me. And he was the one that hurt Jay, you can't tell him, but when the time is right, I will tell him myself, that he is your papa. And I'm sure that he will be so proud of you, he will love you as much as love you."

"That much?" Thays laughed at that comment.

"Yes. What do you think about go to sleep and after that, we can do something together?" Henry nodded and he laid down, and sleep right after.

Thays watched him, and she felt guilty that she couldn't keep her promise, of never letting Henry suffer, she realized that people would hurt him, no matter how hard she tried to protect him. After a few minutes, she went to the living room, her whole family wanted to know what happened.

"He's sleeping now, but he cried a lot." She sat on the couch, next to Jay.

"Do you want anything?" Gisla asked, she was really concerned.

"No, I just need to be alone today, please?" All of them nodded.

"If you need anything, just call us." Rollo said and Thays agreed, she was emotional, she would need them, just not that moment.

After her family left , she took a deep breath.

"Henry heard our conversation." Jay stated, and she looked at him surprised, but didn't said anything.

"You forget that I was a cop." Jay chuckled, she looked at him and laughed.

"This day was horrible." She looked down.

"I know, but everything will be fine." Jay said that honestly, how wrong he was.

**************

Ragnar was barely speaking to Aslaug, and she was the same, He needed to be with Lagertha, he wanted to be in her arms, Lagertha was the only one that was on Ragnar's heart and mind. Aslaug took a jet and she returned to England, she already called Harbard from the airport, and she wanted to know everything about Antoinette. She went straight to Harbard's apartment, that ironically enough, she was paying.

"Did you find anything?" Aslaug asked, he was on his computer, as usual.

"No, the girl is really clean, great grades, the only thing that I couldn't find is the father of her son." Harbard was a little annoyed, he could find anything, that was the first time that his abilities did not served him.

"No one is that clean, there's something wrong with that girl, Ivar is obsessed with her. I won't allow that girl to destroy my son's marriage." Aslaug was scared, the last time that Ivar looked at a girl like that, was with Thays.

"I will find something, but I'm looking for something on her family too, did you knew that her mother was gone for a year? I don't know what happened, it was the same year that your maid killed herself." Harbard was intrigued, and he will keep looking.

"Whatever you can find, let me know. I talked to the nurse that is taking care of the driver, she works for me now." Aslaug smirked.

Harbard kept looking, and he found something, something that Harvey tried to hide, but not even money could hide that.

"You're never gonna believe in what I found." Harbard's mouth was open, he wasn't expecting that at all.

"What is it?" Aslaug was scared, she never saw Harbard like that, she thought that nothing could surprise him.

"Antoinette is not telling the truth about her, not even her family."

"Just tell me." Aslaug was impatient.

"She's not from that family, at least not by blood."