Back at the country estate, Robert threw his bags onto the floor of his bedroom and then joined his father in the kitchen for a cup of coffee.
"How's the Foundation?" David asked light heartedly.
"Fine. We had a fundraiser for the kids and families reunification center at Lauren's law firm a couple of weeks ago." Robert answered with a tone of disinterest.
"Yes, I heard it went very well. The center is close to being endowed. She must be happy." David answered as he stirred cream into his coffee.
"Yea, it's what happened at the fundraiser that worries me Dad." Robert said gravely.
"Oh?" David's interest was piqued.
"At the fundraiser, there was a speaker who had lost and found her family. It moved Lauren to tears. And afterwards, Lauren and I, and Michael was there too, we talked. She said she had looked into her adoption." Robert revealed.
David's pulse quickened. He had done everything he could to keep the adoption private, the details hidden from the public. From Lauren. He hadn't wanted her to know. If she knew, she'd be naturally curious, and want to see for herself. She might find herself in danger, in that unforgiving landscape with all those creatures. What he feared the most, was that his daughter would discover another family, her roots and a sense of belonging. He might lose her. Most importantly, she might get hurt and he couldn't bear that possibility.
"We were very careful to ensure the records would always be sealed, Robert." David answered carefully. "No one who petitions the court could unseal the file." He added.
"That's what she said. Though she figures it's a closed adoption, the birth parents didn't want to be found." Robert finished.
"Good. The less she knows the better. Besides, I'm not sure she'd ever believe the truth." David said emphatically.
"What does the file say anyway?" Robert asked.
"Not much, really. We couldn't lie on the court papers, but we couldn't exactly say the truth either, they would've thought we were nuts." David answered.
Back on the highway, Lauren's thoughts drifted to the contents of her adoption file. She chewed her lip as she analyzed the document in her mind. The details about the birth parents were scant. It was her biological father who placed her for adoption after her biological mother died. The file didn't specify how her birth mother died. She had siblings, the file had mentioned a sister and two brothers. Lauren had been disappointed her birth mother was no longer alive. Just one despicable parent then, she had thought to herself. A man who didn't want the responsibility of an infant when his wife wasn't around to deal with it.
A voracious anger festered within Lauren. She had wanted to know the truth, and the truth had hurt. She felt cheapened knowing her father didn't want to take care of her, but had chosen to keep her siblings. Though she had never thought of it before, she wanted to meet her biological father. To tell him he was a selfish bastard and a terrible father. To show him what a success she had become, no thanks to him. To unleash the hurt she felt and make him hurt too.
To meet her biological father, she'd have to turn to the only person who knew his identity: her adoptive father. The file had recounted the fact that her parents retrieved the infant Lauren from the birth father. Her parents met him. Dad knows who he is. This meant Lauren would have to ask her father.
The second arrival at the country house was Michael. As he joined his best friend and his boss in the kitchen for coffee, he offered his thoughts on Lauren's interest in her adoption.
"She just wants to know where she comes from. Everyone needs that, David" Michael had tried to explain.
"It's so much more complicated Michael" David warned.
Michael sensed there were things he was not privy to. It was most unusual because he thought he knew everything about the family, such was the closeness between the Johnsons and Wilsons.
Before they could discuss much more, Lauren's car was easing past the estate gates.
Lauren was welcomed warmly by the men; she offered more subdued greetings – a quick peck on the cheek for each of them. As the group gathered for dinner, David explained the absence of his niece and nephew.
"Juliette was called back to the hospital for an emergency; that's the life of a doctor I guess. George is staying on base tonight for a quick debrief. Since he's now promoted to an army officer, those meetings are going to become more frequent. He still prefers to spend his time with the men in his battalion. In any case, they won't be here until at least tomorrow."
"I always thought George was too caring for the army" Robert quipped.
"He cares about his men and serving his country. We should be proud of him." The family patriarch said firmly.
Lauren was uncharacteristically silent. She was very close to her cousins and it was unusual she had no comment or news about them. This did not go unnoticed by the others at the dining table.
"So how's work Lauren?" Her father probed, hoping to start small talk.
"Fine. The foundation had a gala a few weeks ago, to help unite children with their families." She answered, hinting at her inner-most thoughts.
"Yes, I heard it was a great success. You're doing the Family name proud" David emphasized.
"Everyone has the right to know where they come from. As do I." She had done it. Lauren had brought the issue up, a little more bluntly than she had hoped.
"You know exactly where you come from Lauren, our family tree's been traced back generations." Her father said defensively.
"That's yours and Robert's family tree. I want to know where I come from, who my birth family is." Lauren demanded. The room silenced. Her father and brother looked displeased. But she pressed onward. "I just want to know who they are and why they gave me up. The file, it was so vague."
"Your adoption file?" her brother said incredulously.
"I don't want to know how you accessed that. Though I suppose I should be proud that my daughter is smart enough to open a file sealed by the court." David said sarcastically.
"You met them, my birth family. They handed me over to you and mom, personally. What's their name? Where do they live?" Lauren's voice rising, a sense of urgency building within her.
"Lauren, trust me, you don't want to know. It's for your own good." Robert warned.
"This is none of your business Robert. I'm so sick of you guys making decisions for me. You have no idea what it feels like, you've always been the prodigal son." Lauren seethed. The comment was entirely undeserved as her parents took extraordinary care to treat their children equally – which is why she knew the accusation would sting. But she had wanted them to feel the force of her anger.
"That's crap Lauren and you know it. You're being so ungrateful, mom and dad have always loved you just as much." Robert challenged.
"I suppose I should be grateful that you guys picked me out of a catalogue of poor unwanted babies to take home?" Lauren spat, losing total respect for any table manners.
Robert too, had lost his temper. "You know what Lauren, don't complain when the truth blows your mind. You should know the truth of that hell hole we got you from, it's a story out of fantasy books, maybe then you'll appreciate how good you have it."
"What the hell are you talking about?" Lauren demanded.
Before their father could step in, the truth tumbled out of Robert's mouth. "You're from another world, or dimension or something Lauren. Your so-called birth family, they were elves. And in that hell hole they call Middle Earth, they have orcs and dwarves. They fight with swords and get around on horses. And I'm pretty sure they've never heard of a car or cell phones or lawyers. It's straight out of Tolkien."
Realizing what he had done, Robert buried his face in his hands. Robert had lost his temper, something he had never done with his sister. Lauren wasn't sure what she was expecting, but it certainly wasn't the explanation her brother had just offered. In stunned silence, she slowly turned towards her father. Looking for a confirmation or what she had certainly thought would be a rebuttal to what her brother had just said. All eyes were looking at David Johnson now. He remained silent a few more minutes, trying to find a path out of this situation.
When David said nothing, Lauren dismissed her brother "you're being ridiculous."
"Are you going to make a liar out of me Dad?" Robert challenged.
David considered the situation for what seemed like an eternity. Though he had worked for most of Lauren's life to ensure she did not find out about the circumstances of her adoption, David felt a strange sense of relief when Robert blurted out the truth. He had not liked keeping secrets from his daughter, even if he had done it for her best interest. He was currently in a difficult position. He had not been prepared for the truth to tumble out tonight. But, now that Robert had divulged it, he couldn't justify lying to cover it up.
Breathing in deeply, he plunged into uncertainty. "Yes, what your brother said is true Lauren. You all better get comfortable in those seats because this is going to take a while to explain." David began. He suddenly noticed Michael was still present at the dining room table; he had been silent throughout this family affair. "Michael, I've always thought of you as a son. I hope you understand why this has to stay secret. Lauren's life literally depends on it" David implored.
"I would never jeopardise Lauren's safety" Michael said, without hesitation.
"Well, then I should begin at the beginning. Our family, has been able to trace our history for thousands of years, back to ancient times. We have always had an important duty, to be the gate keepers of an opening between two worlds." David recounted. In detail, he poured out the history of the Johnsons' duty and the events that led up to his family bringing a baby girl home.
At the end of his tale, David was met with a shocked silence. Lauren was speechless, a rare occurrence for a lawyer. After a long while, she managed to find her voice.
"Do you know why they gave me up?" Lauren finally asked the question that had started this entire journey.
David struggled to answer. "I know this must be the most important question to you Lauren. But I'm not entirely sure. It was so long ago. I never spoke to your birth family about it directly. I only know the brief flashes of what I saw at the pond and I haven't thought about it since we took you home. Your birth mother had died and your father was the one to make the decision to give you up but –"
Lauren interrupted "it's OK dad, you're not the one that owes me the explanation. Do I really have siblings?"
"Yes, we met them very briefly. You have two brothers and a sister. They were grown up already. That's pretty much all I know about the situation on their side. We didn't spend much time there, just to bring you home as soon as possible" David replied.
Lauren breathed deeply. "It's been a long night. I'm going to bed."
The group dispersed into their respective bedrooms upstairs. A subdued calm had settled over the house. In contrast, Lauren could not rest. After pacing her bedroom, she put a sweatshirt over her pyjamas and crept quietly out of her bedroom. She found Michael's bedroom down the hall. Thankfully, he was still awake and let her in. Once inside, his eyes seemed to ask how she was. When she said nothing, he understood that she was deeply conflicted. His arms opened and when she walked towards him, enfolded her in an embrace. He held her in silence, rocking her back and forth as she gathered her thoughts. When she was ready, she let go of their embrace. He said nothing, simply waiting for her to speak when she was ready.
"I don't know if I should call a psychiatrist for both of them, or actually let myself think that ridiculous story could be true."
Michael's eyebrows raised a fraction. "If they're both crazy, they're sharing the same hallucination?"
"You think what they're saying is true?" Lauren asked incredulously.
"It's fantastical, to be sure. But if they wanted to cover up your adoption, there are much easier ways to do it than invent a story about elves and middle earth. It's so crazy that it just might be true. Ancient Scottish legends contain stories of elves, dwarves and other dark creatures. Maybe it wasn't all imaginary." Michael reasoned.
"Since when do you know so much about Scottish legends?" Lauren challenged.
"Ah, you forget I majored in classics before business school." Michael said with a shrug. "There's only one way to find out if it's true, looks like you're going for a hike in the woods" he prodded.
"I'm not going to look for that thing, the portal, or whatever they call it!" Lauren insisted.
"Why not? Can you really call your family crazy without being able to prove it? Aren't you just a little curious? All the searching you've done for your birth family, you finally have the answer in front of you and you won't take it?" Michael pushed.
Lauren struggled to give a response. "You're- you're actually suggesting I go find the portal and go to this Middle Earth? How can I even do that, I don't know where it is"
"Of course you know where it is. They described it well enough, I recognized it immediately. I'm sure you did too. It's that trail to the pond your Dad always told us to stay away from because of old surveyor's wells. Could it be you're not ready to face your birth family? You didn't think you'd find them and now that you have, you're not actually sure if you want this." Michael said.
Lauren chewed her lips. Michael was, of course, correct. She was angry at her birth family for sure. But as long as she didn't know who they were, she was free to fling any amount of fury at them in her mind. Now that she apparently knew where to find them, she might find they were good people, facing bad choices. Being blindly angry was much easier and satisfying. However, she was not about to let Michael know he'd read her so well.
"Of course I want to meet them. I just – it might be dangerous, crossing a super natural portal" Lauren offered a paltry excuse.
"Then we'll prepare. Bring clothes and supplies– I don't know if they have toothbrushes but it sounds like they definitely don't have hair dryers" Michael said dryly.
"We?" Lauren was much too astute to let that one go.
"I'd have to come with you, your Dad and brother would kill me if anything happened to you. We'd better bring George, good to have an army man" Michael explained, it made sense.
"Maybe we don't tell George about the portal part, in case it's not real and the men in my family are actually experiencing psychotic episode" Lauren added.
Lauren didn't really believe it. She wanted to believe her father and brother would not lie to her, in such a ridiculous manner, just to hide her adoption. She grudgingly admitted to herself that Michael was right, she had to find out for sure. No turning back now.