Jake's was busy. All the pool tables were full and the bar was cloudy with
cigarette smoke. She found him though, at the end of the bar talking with
Jake. Laughing about something and drinking his beer. Oblivious to the
stares she got, she walked straight up to him.
"Mike"
Mike turned, and his smile grew larger when he saw his daughter standing in
front of him. It faded though when he saw the tear stains on her cheeks
and the anger in her eyes.
"Courtney, what is it, is it AJ?" His hands clenched at the thought of his
soon to be ex son in law and the hell he had put Courtney through.
"No this has nothing to do with AJ, it's about you"
"OK sweetheart, why don't you tell me what's wrong"
Courtney stared at him, not sure what to say or how to say it. I mean, it still sounded crazy to her but the lady had been so convincing. She had papers and pictures and travel documents.. "Courtney, what's the matter?" Mike's voice was filled with concern and he gripped his daughter by the shoulders. "Is Janine my mom?" There she had said it, it just came out. Mike stood there, looking at her in shock. His mind reeled as he thought of what to say. "Of course she's your mom. Why would you ask me that?" He stumbled over the words as his mind ran in a thousand different directions. Where the hell had this come from? It wasn't possible that she could know anything. "Sweetheart, please tell me what's going on" "I don't know what's going on" Courtney's voice rose and her eyes filled with fresh tears. "All I know is that I was at work, minding my own business, when some lady came in there and started babbling to me about being my mother. She had these pictures, and these papers and she keep calling me Jacqueline. Why the hell would she do that?" Courtney was yelling and Mike was desperately trying to calm her down. "Courtney, sweetheart, it's ok calm down. We'll figure this out" She shoved his hands off of her. "We'll figure this out? How do you expect me to trust you, to believe in you when you abandoned me in the first place?" Mike looked at her in shock. "Courtney, I thought" "You thought wrong is what you thought Mike." Courtney pulled papers out of her pocket and threw them at the man she had thought was her father. "It's all here, birth certificates, pictures, travel visas, why would she go through so much trouble if it wasn't true. Now I am asking you again, and I want the truth or I swear I will never talk to you again. Is Janine my mother"? Mike looked at his daughter and his heart was filled with pain. He hated to lie to her, but the truth would rip her apart. He couldn't lose her, not again. He cursed Janine as he said, "No Courtney Janine is not your birth mother." Courtney just stared at him as her world fell apart. "Are you my father"? Tears welled up in Mike's eyes "Yes sweetheart, I swear to you that I am your father" "Was that woman my mother"? His voice broke "Yes"
Courtney's eyes filled with all the emotions Mike hoped to never see, anger, betrayal, fear. She grabbed the papers off the bar and turned from him. "Courtney, wait please" he went after her but she turned on him. Her voice was low, quiet and devoid of any emotion. "Don't touch me. You just stay away from me" "Where are you going?" "I'm going to find my mother" He watched her walk out of the bar and was afraid he had lost her forever. He went back to the bar and swallowed his beer in one gulp. Then he saw the paper on the bar. He picked it up; it was the birth certificate for Jacqueline Jacks.
Courtney stared at him, not sure what to say or how to say it. I mean, it still sounded crazy to her but the lady had been so convincing. She had papers and pictures and travel documents.. "Courtney, what's the matter?" Mike's voice was filled with concern and he gripped his daughter by the shoulders. "Is Janine my mom?" There she had said it, it just came out. Mike stood there, looking at her in shock. His mind reeled as he thought of what to say. "Of course she's your mom. Why would you ask me that?" He stumbled over the words as his mind ran in a thousand different directions. Where the hell had this come from? It wasn't possible that she could know anything. "Sweetheart, please tell me what's going on" "I don't know what's going on" Courtney's voice rose and her eyes filled with fresh tears. "All I know is that I was at work, minding my own business, when some lady came in there and started babbling to me about being my mother. She had these pictures, and these papers and she keep calling me Jacqueline. Why the hell would she do that?" Courtney was yelling and Mike was desperately trying to calm her down. "Courtney, sweetheart, it's ok calm down. We'll figure this out" She shoved his hands off of her. "We'll figure this out? How do you expect me to trust you, to believe in you when you abandoned me in the first place?" Mike looked at her in shock. "Courtney, I thought" "You thought wrong is what you thought Mike." Courtney pulled papers out of her pocket and threw them at the man she had thought was her father. "It's all here, birth certificates, pictures, travel visas, why would she go through so much trouble if it wasn't true. Now I am asking you again, and I want the truth or I swear I will never talk to you again. Is Janine my mother"? Mike looked at his daughter and his heart was filled with pain. He hated to lie to her, but the truth would rip her apart. He couldn't lose her, not again. He cursed Janine as he said, "No Courtney Janine is not your birth mother." Courtney just stared at him as her world fell apart. "Are you my father"? Tears welled up in Mike's eyes "Yes sweetheart, I swear to you that I am your father" "Was that woman my mother"? His voice broke "Yes"
Courtney's eyes filled with all the emotions Mike hoped to never see, anger, betrayal, fear. She grabbed the papers off the bar and turned from him. "Courtney, wait please" he went after her but she turned on him. Her voice was low, quiet and devoid of any emotion. "Don't touch me. You just stay away from me" "Where are you going?" "I'm going to find my mother" He watched her walk out of the bar and was afraid he had lost her forever. He went back to the bar and swallowed his beer in one gulp. Then he saw the paper on the bar. He picked it up; it was the birth certificate for Jacqueline Jacks.