Secrets and Lies

Chapter 22

The brown eyes opened sleepily, blinking a few times to readjust. A taint of fear crept into the dark irises.

"Who're you?"

She mumbled, still slightly sleepy. She quickly came to, pushed herself upright and darted her eyes around the room.

"Where's mommy?"

Mina asked, fear edging her tone.

"She had to be somewhere, Mina."

Luka said softly, trying to allay the child's fright. Mina looked wary.

"And daddy? Where's daddy?"

Mina asked again, voice small and nervous. Luka tried to catch her eyes and smile, remove what Mina obviously viewed as a threat.

"He can't be here right now, Mina. I'm afraid you're stuck with me,"

"Do I know you?" Mina challenged as she wriggled herself into a sitting position, locked her intense eyes on his face. "How'd you know my name?"

"Mina, I was here earlier – my name's Luka, I'm married to Sam."

Mina softened at the mention of Sam's name. Luka smiled to himself. The girl had been quite taken with Sam, and Sam with her if the look on her face was anything to go by. Mina grabbed for the bear that had fallen away from her in sleep, but ended up snatching at air as she misjudged the distance.

"Here - " Luka handed her the soft toy, taking in the girl's appearance fully for the first time – she was a carbon copy of her mother – from the soft, coffee coloured skin, to the deep, questioning brown eyes. "That's a very nice bear. Does he have a name?"

Mina frowned, flicking her gaze between the soft toy and Luka's face. The man smiled gently, and his voice was lilting, comforting. Mina was still unsure. This whole situation was a little frightening. She fastened her arms around the bear, brought it close into her stomach.

"He doesn't have a name," She paused, considering this for a second. "Jenny gave him to me."

"Oh, did she? Who's Jenny – a friend from home?"

"Jenny's mommy's friend. She lives with us." Mina elaborated. "She takes care of me when mommy has to work."

"Neela - " Luka stopped, corrected himself. "Mommy has a job? What does she do?"

Mina furrowed her brow in a gesture so reminiscent of her mother it was frightening, stared intently at him with those intense brown eyes.

"Did you know mommy?"

She asked, clearly puzzled. Luka nodded.

"Before you were born, when she worked here,"

He clarified.

"Was she a doctor? Like you?" Mina asked, taking in the white coat and stethoscope. Luka smiled slowly. Clearly, whatever Neela did now, it wasn't in the medical field.

"She still is. She'll always be a doctor."

Mina faltered a second, unable to quite grasp the intricacies of his answer, before speaking again.

"What about daddy? Did you know him too?"

There was a pause, wherein Luka considered his answer carefully. Mina had clearly only just met her father, and wasn't old enough to process the complications behind her conception, the complexities of adult emotion.

"I did, Mina, yes."

Mina tilted her head, her small features solemn, considering her next words carefully.

"I just met daddy today." Mina stated eventually. "Until now it's just been me, mom and Jenny at home,"

"Oh. That must have been exciting." Luka said, finding the child increasingly difficult to read. "Coming to a new city, meeting your dad for the first time. It's been a big day for you."

"Mommy always said daddy lived far away." Mina mused, regarding her companion thoughtfully. "But Chicago doesn't seem that far away."

"Where do you and mommy live?"

"Lincoln." Mina answered. "We got the bus here."

"You're right, sweetheart, Lincoln isn't that far away." Luka replied, his geography of Illinois rusty but not that rusty it seemed. "It's only about 2 and a half hours away."

"So daddy will be able to come and visit us when we go back?" Mina's energy returned, her whole body upright and practically quivering with excitement.

"Maybe."

He kept his reply as non-committal as he could, knowing it was best not to get the girl's hopes up. He didn't know what had come to pass between Mina's parents, but by the look on Neela's face last time he saw her it hadn't been pleasant.

"He could come up for the weekend and stay with us. That'd be great." Mina enthused, her eyes bubbling and bright. "There's so much I need to show him."

"Why don't you wait and see what mommy has to say first, Mina?" Luka spoke softly, patiently. He was trying to distil some of her excitement, but Mina would not be deterred it seemed. Precocious to a fault – Luka knew exactly where the 5 year old got that.

"He's my daddy." Mina stated, almost petulantly. "She has to let me see him."

Luka considered the child a second, her gaze determined and unflinching.

"Oh, does she indeed?" A third voice intruded into the conversation, artificially bright. Luka twisted on the stool, saw Neela silhouetted in the doorway. Mina looked up at her mother, suddenly less defiant.

"I wasn't…I mean, I didn't." Luka uncharacteristically faltered over his words. Neela smiled, a small, sad smile.

"It's alright." Neela crossed to the bed. "I know what she's like."

Mina gazed at her mother, then across at Luka. Neela's eyes were glistening in the half-light. Mina narrowed her eyes, thought about asking at the same time Luka spoke again.

"She's gone?"

The whisper was more of a statement than a question. Neela nodded. Mina maintained her silence, sensing the inappropriateness of her interrupting. Luka's eyes misted over, barely able to hide how devastated he actually was.

"How are you doing?"

Luka asked gently. Neela's chin dropped onto her chest, her jaw and throat aquiver with repressed tears. Luka stood, pulled her to him. She almost crumpled against him. Mina watched, slightly afraid. Why was her mom so upset?

"It's going to be alright."

He murmured, briefly allowing the emotion to show through. Neela pushed back from the embrace, turned back to Mina.

"Sam's on for another few hours." Luka began. "But I'm off now. I'll drive you both back to our place, you can stay there."

He placed a hand on the back now presented to him. Neela went to shake her head, but Luka cut her off by speaking again.

"You look like you could do with some sleep." He said, matter-of-factly. "And there's nothing more you can do here."

Mina cast her eyes aside, still holding tight to the teddy bear, confused by the scene in front of her. Something more was going on than she knew about, and that was frustrating to her.

These whispered words, her mom crying – this had to add up to something else. But try as she might, Mina couldn't make it make sense.