Page 6 of The Hand That Holds Me
I wouldn’t have the life I have if it wasn’t for Jason. I felt like I owed him and set out to find his daughter for him. He talked about her when I was living with him. How he had screwed up and just wanted one chance to make things right with her.
One evening a few years ago, after a few too many scotches, Jason told me about Sara. His love for her was deep and brightly burning, even after all this time. He’d had to eviscerate himself when he pushed his one true love away. He broke himself to protect her and their precious daughter.
I’dhadto find Maddie, but it hadn’t been easy.
Sara definitely wanted Maddie as far from Jason as possible. It was almost like Sara was hiding Maddie from Jason and the rest of the world. I wondered if she knew the real reason Jason pushed her away, the dangers that were associated with his family all those years ago.
Thank God he was able to put all those problems to rest. Immediately he started looking for Maddie, but was never able to find her.
It took scouring social media, cross checking birthdates and investigating Sara’s past before I got a lead on Maddie.
“First things first.” I said to Jason as I slid the picture of Maddie across the table to him.
He took it from me with shaking hands and as soon as he looked onto her perfect face, his eyes began to fill with tears.
“She looks just like Sara. She is so beautiful. Tell me all about her. I need to know she has been taken care of, Lucas. Please,” he begged, his finger stroking the photo.
“Let’s start at the beginning and I’ll tell you everything that I know. Shortly after that night at your house…” I faltered, looking at Jason, not wanting turn the knife into his heart any more than it already was.
“It’s okay. I’ve excepted that I was a bastard to the one person I loved and sent my only child out to face the world alone. For that, I hope that she and God can forgive me,” Jason mutters sadly, never taking his eyes of her picture.
“Sara left Metro-Atlanta and moved about an hour and a half south to Columbus. Her best friend Lisa and Joe lived there and opened their home to Sara and Maddie. They went through all the legal proceedings to allow Lisa and Joe to adopt Maddie when Sara passed away, as I told you this morning.”
He moved his head up and down in acknowledgment, wiping the tears that were rolling down his face. Thank goodness his back was facing the room and we were tucked discreetly into a corner. Knowing Jason like I do, he must be walking an emotional high-wire to cry in public.
“From what I gathered, Maddie adjusted to living with the Johnsons pretty well. She was top of her class every year and graduated high school with enough credits to be a college sophomore.”
Pride. That’s what I saw when I looked at Jason. Pure pride for the daughter he never knew.
“She and Lisa’s daughter, Caroline, attended the University of Georgia together. They both have a Bachelor’s Degree in Business with a specialty in non-profits and charitable work. She graduated top of her class in two and a half years. They currently live in Downtown Atlanta on Peachtree North. You know that big complex that has the beautiful balconies?” Jason nodded. “That one.”
“How do they afford a nice place in downtown Atlanta? You said they just graduated from college and what little I remember about Lisa and Joe, they weren’t exactly well off financially.” He looked truly perplexed.
“Sara had a life insurance policy that paid out when she died. Lisa and Joe put the money into an account for Maddie and she has access to it for necessities. She and Caroline both received full scholarships so college was basically free. When they graduated a few months ago, Maddie used the money from Sara to buy a two-bedroom apartment for her and Caroline.”
“How much money did Sara’s life insurance pay?”
“She had a policy for half a million dollars. Apparently, she took the policy out when she found out she was pregnant with Maddie. Paperwork shows she changed the beneficiary to the policy about two weeks before she died.”
“Who was the original payee?” Jason asked, knowing the answer before he uttered the words.
“You, Jason. She wrote a letter that was attached to the policy. I’ve seen a copy of it. Sara stated she hoped you would have changed your mind about taking Maddie, but when she knew there was no chance you would return before she died, she ensured that Maddie would be taken care of.”
With that bit of news, Jason closed his eyes and silently wept. I gave him a few minutes to gather himself, wishing I didn’t have to tell him all the details, but he deserves to know everything. That way, when he finally meets Maddie, he may understand why she probably won’t be receptive to him.
“Look, I don’t mean to make you feel worse, but you have to understand that Maddie may not want to meet you. She’s gone her entire life thinking you don’t want her, only to lose the one parent she had left. Add to that, she lived with a family that loved her dearly, but she never knew where she came from. Sara had no family, and you walked away. Maddie may feel alone and not want to accept you or the truth,” I tell my mentor without allowing the emotion to show in my voice.
Be strong and never show weakness to your opponent. That’s what Jason taught me. To see him so emotional was a little unsettling for me. I understood why he was feeling the way he was, but it was still tough to witness.
“I’m okay, Lucas. Please continue.” Wiping his face with a handkerchief discreetly.
“She volunteers at an area nursing home spending time with the residents and assists with the literacy program at local library. This is something she has done since she was fifteen years old. When she graduated high school, she received an award from the library system in her hometown for 1000 hours of volunteer service in three years.”
Jason quickly does the math and looks shocked.
“She was volunteering 25-30 hours a week on top of high school and college classes?”
“Looks like it. From what I surmised, Maddie is all about giving back and connecting with others. The people I spoke with have all told me how immensely kind she is. She goes out of her way to help others and she spends time with people who are generally alone. I would say she has a good heart.”
