Page 45 of The Fallen

Renea and Marie left the room and decided to take a walk through the forest outside the perimeter of the house.

?Renea couldn't help but be quiet and distant. She didn't know how to began telling her what happened to her father. It was a chapter of her life that she had closed long time ago. She knew she had no choice though.

?They continued to walk in silence until they were so far away, the house was a speck in the distance.

?“Mom, I just want to say, I'm not angry,” Marie began, stopping in front of a small pond. “Everything you did, I know it was because you were protecting me. I love you so much for that. But I really need to know,” she took a deep breath. “Who is my real father?”

?Renea joined her in front of the pond and bent down to wade her hand in the water. Marie sat down next to her and crossed her legs.

?She gazed at her daughter, dreading this conversation. She had no intentions of ever revealing the secret she had buried deep. They were painful to even think about. All it did was break her heart all over again. But now it was her daughter who was asking for answers and she could not deny her.

?“When I was younger, the world was like a playground to me. My mom used to say I was mother of the universe. It was just how I was. I treated everything and everyone as if they belonged to me,” she chuckled. “I was so naive then. Your Uncle Josh used to tease me and call me 'your highness'. It was a different time for me; I didn't worry about any of the things I worry about now.”

?She sat down in front of Marie and folded her legs, too. She reached for Marie's hands and she obliged.

?“It was no different when I met your father. It's true, he is the descendant of Semjaza, but he wasn't the one who sweet talked me. I made this happen. When we met, the sparks flew. I hadn't felt a connection like that since your uncle and I synced up for the first time. He was so handsome with his hazel eyes and smooth Indian skin. His hair was black as coal and wavy. He was such a gentleman, too.”

?“He sounds dreamy,” Marie joked.

?“Well, he was. Anyway, we knew the rules. We knew what we were doing was wrong, but I insisted. I didn't want to lose him. I couldn't stand to be apart from him not even for one minute. So we continued on in secret. Even your uncle had no idea what was going on. That's how I learned how to block so well. I had a lot of practice.”

?Tears formed in Marie's eyes and Renea wiped them away as they fell. She wanted to comfort her, but she knew there was nothing she could do, that would erase the fact that her identity and the possibility of a different life was stripped away from her as a child. In the course of a couple of months, their lives had changed drastically. All of Renea's lies and secrets tumbled down on her and she needed to face the music.

?She continued to tell Marie about the story of her father. She could never say his name; she could only describe him in detail. Since he had left long ago, it was too painful to say. She thought she wouldn't be able to survive a heart-break of this magnitude, but with Frank and Marie there with her, she managed.

?“The love we had for each other was organic; we had no control over it. Once my mother found out what was going on, she forbade me seeing him, in fear for my life. But it was too late, you had already been conceived,” she said and broke down crying. “He didn't want to put either one of us in jeopardy, so we decided it was best that he leave. Little did we know, having you would seal our fate and make us a part of the prophecy that could ultimately end us.”

?“He just left us and didn't look back?”

?“Yes, but he had to. Believe me, he didn't want to leave. At the time, we believed the Watchers would see what we had done and come find us. It never dawned on me that this was what they were planning on. For the first couple of years of your life, I was afraid. I did everything I could to shield you from this world, even though I knew it wouldn't be enough. But they never came.”

?“So, if you know all of this now, why didn't he come back?”

?“He was there, he was always there. Sometimes I could feel his presence, his aura,” she touched her cheek, “his scent lingering in your room. He was there at the hospital when you were born. He was always close. But then five years ago, I couldn't sense him anymore. Gradually, each day, I could feel him less and less. I don't know what has become of him, but I fear it is something bad because nothing but death would tear him away from us.”

?Marie began to cry. Renea knew this story would crush her. There was no way she could have been prepared for this. It was like a tragic play that repeated over and over in Renea's head when he first left; so she could imagine how Marie felt now, hearing the story of the father she had never met.

?“Does dad know any of this?” Marie asked.

?“He knows I was in love with another man and you are his child, but he didn't care. He said he fell in love with me the first time he saw me and nothing would change that. He wanted to be a father to you and I needed someone other than your uncle to lean on.”

?“Are you saying he was your rebound or something?”

?“No baby, I loved Frank, still do. He is such a good man and father. I would have never built the life you have without him. He became my other half and I his.”

?“But are you in love with him?” she asked.

?“Honestly, I don't think we know what love is, it's not in our nature to know. We think because we get overwhelmed with emotions, it is our heart telling us it's mister right, but we're not hardwired to feel like humans do. Look at what our ancestors did. That's the type of blood we have in our veins.”

?“I don't believe that. I truly feel that we love just as hard as they do, maybe more. We're half human, remember. And it's okay that you had room enough in your heart to love three people. No one will fault you for that. I won't, at least.”

?“I love you so much, Marie, and I'm sorry I kept this from you,” she said standing up.

?“I love you more.”

?Marie stood up and dusted her pants off. They hugged then began to walk back toward the house.

?“What are we going to do now that Azazel is free?” Marie asked.

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