Page 27 of Exposed

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Madison was up again before Alex, a new habit she enjoyed. Watching him slumbering away, his breathing deep and restful, she sensed he was truly relaxed. Maybe for the first time in years. She’d do anything to keep it that way. The sound of rustling clued her in that the gunnery sergeant was up and at ’em. She slipped out, following the light to the kitchen as quietly as she could.

“Coffee, Jellybean?” Dan asked.

Madison slid across the kitchen floor and wrapped a bear hug around him. “No sneak attack on you. Coffee sounds great.”

Dan handed her a cup as she scrounged through the fridge for some cream. Sugar was permanently planted on the table, with a small stack of pennies for company. “So, you and A.J. What’s going on there?” He didn’t look at her, but took a seat and patiently waited, stirring a few spoons of sugar into his coffee. Satisfied the sweetness would permeate every mouthful, he put the spoon down and took the mug in his hands but didn’t drink. He’s just watched the ripples across the surface subside, drawing his eyes to the steam.

She sat down next to him, grabbing his spoon and helping herself to the sugar. “Something, I don’t know ... wonderful.” She tried to calmly conceal her elation and pulled the mug to her lips, sipping slowly. She awaited his reaction. But Dan just took a quick sip and resumed his Maxwell House stare down.

“Does he make you happy? Take care of you?” Dan looked up at her through squinty eyes, the way only a parent can, gaging the level of their kid’s truth telling.

Madison set down her cup to clasp his hands. They were tight around his mug. So much so, she realized for the first time just how worried he was. “Dad, I’m happier than I’ve ever been in my life. And he really takes care of me, and I hope he feels like I take care of him too.” Her smile glowed from within as she took another sip.

“Well, you’ve both been through a lot.” He took a gulp and laughed out a slight exhale. “Between the two of you, I couldn’t tell you who I’ve worried about more about over the years.”

“Hmm, your fiercely independent, introverted, and occasional basket case of a daughter falls for a high-profile and intermittently tortured workaholic. I take it you’re not worried now, are you?” Her grin ticked up whimsically, enjoying the sport of ribbing her dad.

He just sat back in his chair. “Nope, not worried at all. But it’s time I let you in on a little secret.” More Alex secrets? Madison perked up, listening attentively. “Remember when I asked you if you if you needed money for anything? Getting settled? Trying College? Or if you needed anything before you went to New York?” Madison nodded. “But you,” he tapped the tip of her nose with his finger, “you always said no. Why?”

Now it was Madison’s turn to stare down the dark liquid steaming in her cup. “I don’t know. I guess I just really wanted to make it on my own. You made your own way. Jack got his scholarship and started his career on his own. Why should I have been any different?” Madison shrugged her shoulders. “After what happened to Jack, I just felt like, um, exploring my options. And, I really loved every job, every journey, and every life-long friend I’ve made. I’m not sure I’d be the same person without them, and I wouldn’t change a thing.”

“So, you don’t regret not taking me up on the money?”

Madison knew her dad would give up everything he had for her. And knowing that had always been enough. It pushed her to work harder than anyone around her. “No, why would you think that?”

It was Dan’s turn at a maniacal glance. “Why don’t you take a look in that drawer over there.” Madison’s intrigue pulled her to step over to the drawer and open it, which she assumed would be filled with the pens, post-its, rubber bands, and the other superfluous nick-knacks she recalled from childhood. As she opened it, instead she found it filled with letter upon letter. All addressed to Dan, and in an unmistakably recognizable handwriting. Alex. She quickly strolled her fingers through them. They went back years, from various addresses. As far as she could tell, none had been opened. She grabbed the top handful, and turned back to Dan.

“Dad, what is all this?”

Dan looked over. “Jellybean, that was A.J.’s personal trust fund to you. Well, and me, I guess. He sent these a few times a year. I stopped opening them when they stopped including letters. Just checks. But I never cashed one. I did keep them, as a reminder of A.J.” Madison couldn’t help but hold one of the most recent ones up to the light. Then another. Then another.

“Dad! This is some serious money.”

“Yes, Frankie, it is. But A.J. earned it, not me. And I didn’t need it. But, I thought maybe someday you’d need it. And checks I guess are only good for six months, because he kept upping the amount. Like a running tally. Some crazy, personal lotto. I figured I’d have them just in case you ever needed them.” She plopped back down on the chair next to Dan with a handful of envelopes. She was in complete disbelief. Dan took one and waved it in front of her. “I just needed to let you know that, without knowing you or asking for a single thing in return, A.J.’s been trying to take care of you since way before now.”

Madison looked down at the envelopes fanned out in her clutched hand. Then, she thought of Alex, asleep in her bedroom. Checking the time on the microwave, she plotted. “Dad, I need to go out for a while. Can you keep Alex occupied?”

“Good old-fashioned diversionary mission.” He flicked a penny from a small pile on the table and slid it to Madison. “I’m all in.”

Madison swiped the penny into her hand and jumped over for another tight hug. “Thanks, Dad.”

Madison grabbed her bag and slipped out into the early, dark morning.

Alex’s deep sleep was abruptly disturbed by a crack in the silence, the distinct rev of the Big Banana. “Madison?” he looked around, then stretched his arm to her side. She wasn’t there, and her side was cool. The lightweight blanket wouldn’t hold the heat in for long, though. He slipped on a pair of sweats and a T-shirt and headed out of the room.

Following the light emerging from the kitchen, he saw Dan fixing a cup of coffee. “Black, right?”

“Right,” Alex answered, still a little groggy. He took the cup from him and sat down in the same seat Madison had vacated. Dan had returned the envelopes to their drawer when she’d left, removing evidence of the disclosure. Alex found Madison’s cup still half filled. Subtly touching it, he felt the bit of warmth it held.

Dan pursed his lips in amusement, watching Alex, the ever astute operative. “Well? What can you tell me?”

Alex cupped the side of Madison’s mug, while sipping from his freshly poured one. “She’s been gone a few minutes, which only confirms what I already knew from her 130-decibel departure. But, from how Madison indulges in coffee, a likely catchup session with her Dad ensued. By the warmth remaining in the cup, even with the ambient cool of the room, I’d say you two were talking for twenty, maybe twenty-five minutes at the most. On top of which, she decided to leave suddenly. Not a lot of pre-thought. Otherwise, she would have paced herself to finish her coffee faster, or otherwise just passed.” Alex eyed Dan, who nodded.

“I love that little girl, but a covert escape in the dark of morning is just not her thing.” They both chuckled. “Madison’s had to grab something, but she’ll be back a little later.”

A sip of the piping hot coffee held him, and the flavor instantly pulled Alex right back to this exact spot, where he’d enjoyed a cup so many times before. It eased him. “You know, I forgot how great your coffee is.”

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