I hopped up on the counter and Mark leaned against the breakfast bar across from me as I dug through my purse…and pulled out a picture and handed it to him…he looked at it and said, "Is this them?" I said, "Yup…Sam and Maria Cage…That was their wedding day…Jack is actually in the picture, you just can't see him…" He said, "Let me guess…she was pregnant with him…" I smiled and said, "Yea…Moms folks had a fit…" Mark said, "Why? They look happy?"
The timer went off and I said, "Go sit down and I'll explain while we eat." Mark said, "Okay…Need me to do anything?" I said, "Nope, everything is ready…go ahead and started eating your salad…" I grabbed the sauce and added it to the bowl of chicken and pasta, with the freshly grilled vegetables. Then grabbed the bowl with the warm sliced garlic bread. I walked into the dinning room and set everything down and we started eating…Mark said, "Okay, so explain."
I sipped my water and said, "Oh right…Well…Mom was an opera singer in Italy when she met my father…he was in a few biker gangs, on in Italy, Germany, France, Scotland, and in a big one here in the states…He was a Hell's Angel here…Anyways, late one night my mother was walking home from a concert rehearsal and she just happened to walk by a bar him and his buddies were at having a few too many drinks…and they started messing with her…dad came in and basically swept her off her feet…he started going to see her sing and she sang her way into his heart…Naturally my grandparents were beside themselves…their daughter was not going to marry some redneck, American roughneck, biker covered in tattoos…They were completely against it…but when mom told them she was pregnant…they basically had to grit their teeth and just bare with it, thinking their marriage would never last…When Jack was a year old, they moved to the states…and settled here…then had me when Jack was 2 and then Jaden when I was 2 and Jack was 4…After Jaden they decided they'd had enough…Mom would call her mother once a month…but they never regained their relationship back as mother and daughter…Mom really hated grandma for that, because none of us kids got to know our grandparents or other family members on moms side…I don't think we missed a lot…We got the best of both worlds with our parents…whether the whole family was in on it or not."
Mark said, "So what about that night Jack and your parents were killed?" I said, "I was on the road…on a promotional tour for my new album…I was supposed to go be home 3 days early…but my asshole tour manager scheduled a few extra dates…so I wasn't even scheduled to go home for another 6 days…I called and told my mother…she said it was okay and then told me she loved me and she'd see me when I got home…I could hear dad in the back ground saying for me to hurry up cause he had a Harley ride with my name all over it…"
I looked down at my plate and tears slid down my cheeks…Mark said, "You don't have to finish it…" I said, "No…it's okay…" I took a deep breath and sighed heavy…I continued, "Anyways…I woke up 2 days later…and it was all over the news that Singing Sensation Erin Cage's parents and older brother were brutally murdered in their Lake Tahoe, California home. I guess some guys broke into the house to take the obvious stuff, TV, VCR's, DVD's, CD's…whatever they could get their hands on…anyways…when they figured out there was three people in the house, they duck taped their mouths, hog tied them, sat them on their knees and shot all 3 of them in the back of the head…"
I used my napkin to whip my eyes…and said, "I sued the TV stations, cause they are not supposed to air stuff like that until the next of kin had been notified…and no one had made any effort to call my manager or even get a hold of me…I immediately left the tour and went over to the school and grabbed Jaden…the press was their hounding her for statements…and when they saw me get there they came after me too…Jaden found out the same way I did…the damn news…That was 3 years ago…"
Mark said, "What did you do with the house and everything?" I said, "I sold almost everything in it…except for the stuff in Jacks room…I gave it to his fiancé…mom and dad's stuff in their bed room I threw it all in storage along with dad's 4 Harley's…I gave Jaden mom's Ford Escort…cause she needed a car to get back and forth from her school…and sold everything else…A neighbor cleaned up the house before I went back inside of it…and I kept the house, it was all paid for…I only use it as a vacation place now…somewhere to run away and unwind…" Mark said, "I'm sorry Erin…I didn't realize everything that had happened..."
I said, "It's not your fault…you didn't pull the trigger and kill them…" Mark said, "Did they ever find them?" I said, "Yup…4, 17 year old boys…they tried them all as adults…they are in prison for the next 20 to 25 years…on 3 counts of murder…they all had prior records for like domestic violence against their girlfriends or even family members, drug possession, DUI's…no one even saw them coming." Mark said, "Well, dinner was good Darlin'…Thank you…You know you didn't have to cook…I do know how to…" I said, "Yea…I know…its okay, I don't mind." I got up and was getting ready to start clearing the table to clean the kitchen…
I went to walk away when Mark grabbed my hand and I looked down at him and he said, "C'mere for a minute." I walked over and he pulled me down to sit sideways on his lap and his arm enveloped me into a tight hug against his warm body…I wrapped my arms around his neck and buried my face in the side of his neck and just started crying…Mark was soothing…he ran his hands up and down the middle of my back and said, "I'm so sorry Erin…I wish I could take away your pain darlin'…I'm just happy they caught those little bastards…you can talk to me any time you want to…I don't mind."
I whipped my eyes and said, "Thanks Mark…for everything." Mark said, "Listen, you cooked…I'll clean up…just come keep me company." I said, "Okay."
Quote of the day: "That's just great, now what? I'm doomed…and all because Ms. Man decided to take her little drag show on the road."