Page 2 of Maximum
“But…”
“There’s no but, Ciara. It disgusts me to hear your insecurities spewed out and to see you sob in the arms ofmyson.”
“Maximum is my son too.”
“Yet I’m the one dedicating my life to making him academically superior. What are you doing for the boy except making him weak with all your repulsive tears?”
I could hear sounds of crying coming from my mother again and then a low sneer from my father. “Either you get it into your thick Irish head that you’ll never be enough for me to stay away from other women or you’ll leave my house.”
“Other men are faithful.” Sorrow dripped from my mother’s voice making it crack.
“No one is faithful! Some just hide it better than others.”
Steps across the kitchen floor told me Conor was leaving. My mother’s voice rose slightly as she called out to him, “How would ye feel if I slept with other men?”
His answer came in a sneer. “If you can find anyone who wants to fuck you, be my guest.”
Bam.The sound of the door slamming made me close my eyes to hold back my tears.
My instinct was to run to my mother and comfort her again, but I didn’t dare move, and sat with my young soul ripped apart from my father’s harsh words. I wanted to tell her that it wasn’t true that no one was faithful, but my father was my teacher and over the years I’d come to accept that he was incredibly knowledgeable and intelligent. He’d spoken the words like a fact, and I was sure his statement was backed up by research and statistics. Yet, it saddened me deeply to know that the illusion my mother had painted all my childhood, of love between two people who trusted each other to be faithful, was nothing but wishful thinking on her part.
