Seventh grade came and Kayleen, her best friend, introduced her to a new group of kids she befriended while Millie was in summer camp. She knew right away Jack and Penny would not approve of this group but Kayleen approved and that was more important to her. That was the school year of Millie’s bat mitzvah and the first time she smoked weed and drank vodka. It was downhill after that. The summer between seventh and eighth grade was the last summer she went for eight weeks and then the next summer she didn’t want to go at all. She wanted to spend the summer having fun with her friends but Jack insisted she go at least for four weeks. She went but ten days into the session, Millie was kicked out of camp.
Kayleen, her brother Connor, and the rest of her friends had driven up to the camp and Millie sneaked out. She was caught smoking a joint. While the rest of them ran off in Connor’s car, Millie was hauled back to camp by the head counselor and Crystal was called. Jack was touring in Europe and Crystal was next in line to be called if a guardian needed to be contacted (Penny was third) and Crystal came to get her. Millie had hoped it would be Penny but this was Crystal’s chance, her moment to come down hard on Millie. Needless to say, it was a very ugly car ride back to Voorhees. Crystal used one of her infinite groundings to try to control Millie along with heaping chore after chore on her. This only led to more rebelling and ultimately, Millie sneaking out at night. That’s when she was forced to switch rooms with Sasha. He was sent to the basement and she to the second floor. The switch didn’t stop her.
“You’re going to wear yourself out,” Danny called from the hood. Millie waved him off and kept pacing and looking at her cell phone for the time. The bus was due around 11:30 and it was already 11:45. Her thoughts were focused on the kids coming back and something else that was growing inside of her.
“Where are they, Aunt Millie?” Annie asked as she shadowed her, trying different ‘styles’ of silly walking with her crutches. Twice she nearly fell despite Millie’s warnings.
“They’re coming. The schedule said they’d be here around 11:30.” Annie slipped and Millie caught her before she biffed it. “This is the third time I’m warning you. If you fall next time, I will not catch you and I make no promises I won’t wet myself from laughing at you.”
“Oh, you,” Annie replied with a laugh but returned to just walking normally. A few minutes later she stopped, balanced against one crutch and used the other one to point. “They’re here!” Millie’s heart fluttered and she looked in the direction where she saw the bus entering the parking lot. It wasn’t until she saw the faces of Sasha, Karie, Natalya, and Leo that she said a prayer thanking God for watching over the four and returning them safe to her.
“You guys have grown like four feet!” Danny exclaimed and gave them each a hug.
“Don’t exaggerate, Danny,” Millie playfully admonished him. “They’ve only grown two feet.” Everyone laughed and the men found the four big duffel bags and strapped them to the top of the Suburban. The family piled in and headed home for a light lunch. Millie and Danny planned a big welcome home BBQ for that night and after cold cut sandwiches, all children – including the teens – were sent to their rooms to rest and/or nap. No one complained. Since none of the adults were taking a siesta, that meant Little Sofie wasn’t sent to her room. Millie lay down with her on the couch and as soon as the little girl was asleep, Millie carefully extricated herself so she could prepare for the dinner.
Danny and Matty were out back sweeping off the deck and wiping down the picnic tables and benches. Melanie was poking at a pot of boiling potatoes for potato salad and Millie grabbed the melon baller to attack a large watermelon, two cantaloupes and two honeydews. She was just about done with the watermelon when her cell phone rang. It was Crystal. Taking a deep, calming breath, she answered it.
“Hello, Crystal.”
“Did the kids make it back from camp?” she asked.
“Yes, and in one piece.”
“I made sure to send them letters.”
“They mentioned you had.” Where Millie had written to the kids each day, it was Sasha who let her know Crystal had only written to them once and it had been a group letter. Still, it was more than Millie thought she would do and she thought it only fair she invite the children’s mother over to the BBQ.
“That sounds great!” Crystal replied. “I can’t wait to hear about the kids’ camp adventures. See you later!” Millie frowned. Although she invited her over for dinner, she was hoping Crystal would decline like she usually did.
“Is Crystal coming?” Melanie asked as she started quartering the taters.
“Yes.” Millie just couldn’t make her voice sound excited which her sister-in-law picked up on. She also felt a bit nauseous.
“At least she wants to see the kids,” she countered.
“True, but I’m not going to tell them she’s coming in case she doesn’t show.”
Three hours later, to Millie’s surprise, Crystal walked into the kitchen after coming through the security gate. The kids were also surprised but they quickly surrounded her and the campers talked over each other. Millie picked up Little Sofie – who Crystal ignored – and took her out onto the deck where Danny was manning the grill. Her stomach was giving her fits and she sat on one of the benches, her back towards the house. Matty joined her and slipped his arm around her shoulders.
“What’s up?” he asked after pecking her cheek.
“I wish Crystal would go away,” she replied honestly after covering Little Sofie’s ears. She didn’t know if her niece picked up anything they said but whenever they did say something detrimental about her mother, they covered her ears just in case. “She may have birthed them but she is no mother.” The anger that was always just under her surface flared and then rushed away, replaced by tears of guilt. “I can’t believe I said that.” She handed Little Sofie over to Matty and ran into the far corner of the backyard near the garden Penny created in Ellie’s memory. A few moments later, Matty wrapped his arms around her. Millie turned so she was facing him and cried into his chest.
“I’m not sorry for what I said, Matty,” she said into his chest. “I meant every word. She’s never been a mother. Penny was their mother. She was my mother and I want her back, Matty. I want her back so bad.”
. . .
Danny doled out the last bowl of vanilla Tofutti to go with the pareve sugar cookies from the deli. The kids, Crystal, Matty and Melanie were scattered about the deck enjoying dessert and he took the opportunity to go talk to Millie. He was worried about her since she didn’t participate in dinner. Matty said she wasn’t feeling good but Danny had seen her sister crying in Matty’s arms as he grilled the burgers and hot dogs. Something was up but he didn’t have a chance to get away until after getting everyone situated with their dessert.
She wasn’t in any of the bedrooms upstairs and as he stood on the bridge that overlooked the family room on one side and the front staircase and foyer on the other, he noticed the door to Jack’s bedroom open a couple inches. They had a strict rule in the house since the kidnapping – no one was allowed in Jack’s bedroom and the door was to remain closed. Danny knew none of the kids ever broke that rule so he guessed that’s where Millie was. When he entered the darkened room, he saw her silhouette in one of the wingback chairs by the front window. Without turning on the light, he walked over to her and sat in the chair opposite. There was enough light coming in from the streetlight outside to see her. She looked sad. He didn’t know what to say so he stayed silent.
“How did dinner go?” she finally asked after several minutes.
“Good,” he replied.
“And Crystal?”
“Surprisingly okay. The kids seem to be enjoying her presence.” Millie took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “Are you pi
ssed she’s here?”
“Yes.”
“Have you been stewing about her the whole evening?”
“For a little while but then…” She was quiet and Danny let her have the silence. When she spoke up again, he was surprised and worried at where her words went. “But then I started wondering what horrible things the kidnappers were doing to Jack. I don’t know why my thoughts went there.”
“I won’t deny I haven’t had those same thoughts but I don’t think it’s healthy for us to try to guess what they’re doing.” Millie could not be swayed, however.
“We’ve seen him beat and then he looked so thin. They’re starving him. He looked so sick in the last video. They may be withholding medical attention. And Penny. She…”
“No, Millie,” Danny said, his voice firm. “I will not be part of this conversation.” And with that, he left his sister in the darkened room. He knew he should have tried to detour her thoughts but he found himself angry at her and he was afraid he might say something he regretted.
“How is she feeling?” Melanie asked as he sat next to her on the deck and stole one of her cookies. He couldn’t answer and stuffed the stolen treat into his mouth. Crystal was sitting on one of the loungers with Annie sitting on the end of it and the others kids, except Little Sofie, surrounding her. She was dressed in a pair of linen shorts, snug tank top, and heels that were more appropriate for a night at the club than at a backyard BBQ. Her pale, thin hair was perfectly straight. Annie was telling her about her day camp and Crystal looked like she was actually interested in what her daughter was saying.
“I wonder what game she’s playing,” Danny said.
“You didn’t answer my question,” replied Mel.
“She couldn’t be bothered to come say goodbye to her kids when they went to camp.”
“What’s going on, Danny?”
“I have no idea anymore.”
. . .
Danny could not sleep that night even after he and Melanie made love. The time spent with his wife was a nice distraction and he was able to concentrate on her but when they were done and she drifted off to sleep, his thoughts went back to Millie and Crystal. Why was Millie thinking about how Jack was being hurt? Why was Crystal so engaged with the children she usually ignored? For whatever reason, those two questions robbed him of slumber.
He saw every hour from midnight to five and gave up on sleep. Slipping out of bed, he pulled on his workout clothes and running shoes and headed out to the gym. The sun was threatening to rise and the humidity left the grass wet as he followed the decorative path to the gym/studio. Stepping on the treadmill, he started a steady jog. He focused on clearing his mind and counted each step he jogged. After every one hundred, he started over.
Counting his steps was just part of his analytical mind and actually helped him come up with the songs he wrote with Jack. His brother was stronger when it came to lyrics while Danny was strong when it came to melodies and writing various musical parts. Before he started running, he used a metronome to keep an even beat he could focus on and then find the beat of a new song. Although the steady beat helped him, their songs did not have a bland and steady beat. Danny admitted his approach to songwriting was unique but it was how he wrote. Jack was a guitar plucker when it came to tunes but Danny found the rhythms first. When he had one, he tapped it out to Jack with a pair of drumsticks and Jack would flip through his lyric notebook to see if something might fit. When it did and if Jack had a melody already, they worked from there. If his brother didn’t have a melody already, then Danny focused on that. Their songwriting was a finely-tuned machine and Danny missed it.
He’d not written a single song since the last one he and Jack wrote for the double album. It was the longest span in twenty years he went without writing a song. Emerson wanted him and Matty to start writing together. Not for the Ivy Brothers, of course, but for some up and coming new singers Emerson recently signed. Matty was for the idea but Danny hadn’t made his decision yet. Common sense told him to take the offer. After all, and this was just between him and Melanie, they were trying for a baby. They didn’t want to say anything until Melanie was pregnant and through her first trimester.
Danny had plenty of money to support him and Melanie but for his future children, he wanted to make sure they were taken care of. Because of the kidnapping, the status of the Ivy Brothers was very much in doubt. Danny felt bad. The kidnapping was not only affecting his family, but it was also affecting Carlos and Gordie and their families financially. Since Matty was dating Millie, he was considered family but still, the other guys in the band were now basically unemployed as far as the Ivy Brothers were concerned. Carlos kept busy now with his nightclub in Philly, his new soup and sandwich shop, and his family. Gordie and his wife were enjoying their first born after years of fertility struggles. Gordie had been doing some producing in LA up until Angela gave birth.
None of them were hurting for money; they were all smart about their royalties and Return, the double album, had done the best of all the Ivy Brothers offerings in the first eight months after release. That was saying something considering the band wasn’t performing out of respect for Jack. Other than the first single, which was released prior to the kidnapping, the following singles were being released without videos. In meetings after the kidnapping, the band and Emerson agreed to continue releasing singles but there would be no performances or videos. They knew there would be some sympathy purchases but the songs were doing well on radio and sympathy only goes so far in the radio world. The early reviews of the album that came out before the kidnapping were some of the best the Ivy Brothers ever earned so the industry knew Return was an honest album.
It also did well with awards. No one was surprised when the Ivy Brothers swept all the rock categories they were nominated in at the last Grammies but when they also swept the overall best song and best album awards, that was something. It was also bittersweet. Jack and the others never formed the band for the possibility of award hardware. No, they wanted to create good rock music. That was their cake; the awards were the icing. Gordie, Matty and Carlos represented the band during the award season but Danny chose not to go. The Ivy Brothers was a band and if Danny showed up, it would become the Petrov circus. Even before the kidnapping and the car accident, the media often singled Jack out because he was the lead singer. He hated that and worked hard to make it about the five of them and not just him. And then the accident happened and the media focus exploded on Jack and now with the kidnapping, it was about Jack and Danny. The other guys insisted it didn’t matter to them but still, Danny knew Jack would feel bad.
Now Danny had the opportunity to write with Matty for other artists. Jack and Danny had a handful of their songs recorded by others but only because Emerson heavily insisted the songs would work better for some of the other artists in the Lion Records stable. Danny still wasn’t sure what he was going to do. He missed writing but most of the time he wrote with Jack. It wasn’t that Matty sucked when it came to songwriting – he was actually very talented – but Danny and Jack had been partners in songwriting. It was just another area where he missed his brother so much.
. . .
Danny ran for an hour and then returned to the house. Melanie was up which put him in a good mood.
“Good morning,” she said, her face bright and he could feel his mood lighten with it. He leaned in for a kiss that was on the sultry side. If it wasn’t a Monday and there were eight other people in the house on the verge of starting their day, he would have suggested a little before work fun. “Tonight, my boy, tonight,” she whispered into his ear. “Although we may have already been successful in our task.”
“What?” Danny said.
“Don’t get too excited but I’m a little late,” she said with a restrained smile.
/>
“Late as in…”
“Late as in late.” Danny felt his stomach lurch with excitement and he smiled wide. “But like I said, don’t get too excited. It’s just a couple days past my normal time.”
“But still…” He leaned over and spoke directly into Melanie’s stomach. “Hello! If you’re in there, I’m your daddy!”
“Daniil,” admonished Melanie but gave him a playful kiss. He wrapped his arms around her and gave her a big hug.
“I hope we are blessed,” he said. We need some genuine happiness, he said in his mind.
“I’ve got to go. There’s an early morning breakfast meeting with the rest of the docs.” Danny walked Melanie to his Jeep and opened the door for her. It was a muggy August morning and he knew the kids would be itching to get into the pool.
“Have a good day at work,” he said with one final kiss and then watched as Melanie did a three-point turn so she didn’t have to back down the driveway. She stopped when she got to the gate and he went into the garage to hit the button. He frowned as she drove away. He was turning into a big old softy, missing his wife less than a minute after she went to work. The frown didn’t last long as he thought of the possibility she could be pregnant. He hoped she was; he couldn’t wait to be a daddy.
Aftermath (The Deceptions Trilogy Book 2) Page 29