Chapter 35 Mama Bears

From the moment Kathrine spoke to Hildy the day before she knew something was wrong. Her fears were confirmed when Hildy arrived and told she and James about meeting the mysterious client who turned out to be Jaz. To say that Kathrine and James were shocked was an understatement, shock did not begin to describe the effect that Hildy's revelation had on Kathrine.

The elderly couple reassured Hildy that she had no reason to be concerned over Kami's love for her. Kathrine, like James was sure of this fact. At the same time, Kathrine was wise enough to know that the reappearance of Jaz would hardly bode anything good. Already Jaz's re-entry caused Hildy insecurities to come to the forefront and that was not good.

After Kami fainted from shock at the news of Jaz's presence in New York City, Kathrine purposed in her heart to do something about that woman regardless of what Kami and Hildy chose to do. She had no intention of letting James know she was planning to 'give Joyce Amy Zachery a piece of her mind' because she knew James and what he would say.

She could just hear him now "Oh, Kathrine, leave the young people to sort out their affairs. Kami and Hildy are well adjusted ladies and they will handle the situation without interference from a meddling grandmother".

Kathrine loved James dearly but at times he was too … too …. just too male. He did not always grasp the nuances involved in the emotional hold or influence an old lover can have over a person as they venture into a new permanent relationship. In Kathrine's opinion, the relationship Kami had with Jaz was one of co-dependence but in a toxic way. Kami at that point in her life was just feeling her way out of the closet and unsure of herself in the lesbian world. When Jaz entered Kami's life and showed her so much attention and favor, her granddaughter just lapped it up and blossomed initially. Kathrine felt that Kami wanted to hold on so badly to that initial feeling of 'being special', of being the one Jaz 'chose', that she allowed herself to just take and take and take Jaz's possessive behaviour. Kathrine also thought that Jaz was co-dependent on Kami because she needed to be constantly affirmed, to constantly be told how great she was.

Kathrine spared a moment to say a silent prayer for Jaz. She asked Heavenly Father to show Jaz that she needed help in releasing the possessive, controlling part of her personality. That done, Kathrine refocused on the task at hand, which was speaking to her daughter about the situation. During the night, after James retired for bed, Kathrine used WhatsApp to contact her daughter Kalia. Due to the time zone difference between New York City and Ipswich, Kathrine did not call her daughter with the news, but instead informed her on voice message. She let her know that she urgently needed to speak with her about Kami. Kathrine asked her daughter not to call her when she got the message but to await her call instead. Of course, Kathrine did not tell James about contacting Kalia because she knew he would say; "Oh Kathrine, leave it to Kami to tell her mother when she is ready. I do not understand this need to be always be telling Kalia everything that goes on in Kami's life. And Kalia is just as bad as you, wanting to know every detail".

Kathrine praised Heavenly Father for the early morning meeting James had with their son Kalechi. Father and son needed to review some new projects for their company, as such James got up early, had his breakfast and was out the house before Hildy and Kami came downstairs for their breakfast. The young couple chatted with Nana as they ate but Kathrine could hear the strain in her granddaughter's voice as she joked with her fiancée and grandmother. Kathrine decided not to bring up the 'elephant in the room topic' if the younger couple did not bring it up. Their avoidance of the matter at hand only strengthened Kathrine's desire to 'have a word with Jaz' before her granddaughter contacted her as she knew Kami and Hildy eventually planned on doing.

Kathrine was going to ensure that no whiff of poison or hint of negativity from Kami's previous relationship be allowed to tarnish the present relationship between Kami and Hildy. As the young couple prepared to leave Nana's Brooklyn home to head back to their Manhattan penthouse, Kami embraced Nana and said:

"Nana, I know you are worried but don't. I am going to handle this. I will meet up with Jaz and set her straight because she no longer has any claim on me as she told Hildy. Everything will be OK". With those words Kami kissed her grandmother and left with Hildy.

Kami and Hildy were barely out the door when Kathrine went to her tablet and placed a WhatsApp call to her daughter in England.

"Good morning Mama, what's going on? Your voice sounded a bit worried on the voice message you left me. And why couldn't I call you? Why did I have to wait on your call?"

Kalia asked these questions one after the other not giving her mother a chance to respond.

"Kal Kal, listen to me, I have some upsetting news. Your father does not know I am speaking to you about this because you know how men can be at times when it comes to emotional or relationship issues. I felt I needed to discuss this matter with you before Kami called you".

"Mama you are getting me worried now. What is going on?"

Kathrine then proceeded to tell her daughter everything that happened between yesterday when she called Hildy to invite them over for afternoon tea and this morning when they left to head back to their penthouse.

At the end of the recap there was silence on the line for the space of several seconds. Kathrine eventually asked, "Kalia, are you still there?"

"Mama … Mama. What is this you are telling me? Jaz is back? And she did not approach Kami directly but rather she went to Hildy as a client? This is not good! That woman is up to mind games!"

"Exactly! Kalia, that was my thought exactly! But I just could not understand why now? So many years have passed, why contact Kami indirectly now?"

Mother and daughter were quiet for a few moments as they both looked at the situation from different angles, then Kalia proposed an answer.

"Mama, I think it is one of three things. One: Jaz is seriously ill and is trying to reconnect with her past. Two: she had a failed love affair and it made her realize that life with Kami from her perspective was good and she wants to reclaim that life. Three: she found out somehow that Kami is getting married and her possessive nature kicked in and she wants her back".

Kathrine listened and tapped her index finger on her chin as she was known to do when in deep thought, then replied.

"I think your first suggestion is not it. Somehow the Jaz I remember would hardly want to be seen as 'weak'. To come looking for Kami now she is ill does not fit with the image I remember of Jaz. The second suggestion does not sound right either. Jaz was a beautiful woman, and she is what modern relationship experts would call 'an alpha female'. I do not see her coming back to Kami just because a relationship has gone bad. Now the last suggestion you made Kalia sounds like it can hold water. I can see Jaz coming here because she found out Kami is getting married and wants to let her know that what was hers will always be hers".

Kalia was quiet for a few moments as she considered her mother's analysis of her suggestions.

"Mama, I believe you are correct. There is something my instinct is telling me I should do, but I am too far away to follow my feelings. I do not want to put you in a situation in which you feel uncomfortable or ill-equipped, but Mama I want to ask you to do something for me", Kalia said softly with a bit of hesitancy in her voice.

"My Darling Child, I am thinking the same thing", Kathrine said and waited to hear what Kalia would say.

Kalia chuckled and said "Mama, we are two of a kind".

Kathrine gave a big smile at those words and replied "That we are. You are my love and my life, my Darling daughter and so is Kami. I would do just about anything to protect either and both of you".

Thousands of miles away in her office at Suffolk University, Kalia felt the love from her mother wrap around her like an embrace. Her smile on hearing those loving words was a mirror image of the smile Kami bestowed on those around her when she was happy.

Clearing her throat, Kalia said, "Mama, please take your tablet with you when you go to Jaz's hotel and do a WhatsApp video call when you begin speaking with her. I want her to hear from me personally what my position is on this 'claiming' foolishness she is speaking about".

"Of course, my Darling. Let me ring off now, I need to dress quickly and be out of here in fifteen minutes. I already called our driver and he is parked at the curb waiting for me. I need to get to Jaz before Kami and Hildy reach out to her. It is possible Kami may think we are meddling in her personal affairs but I as I always say in certain situations it is better to ask for forgiveness than permission".

With those words the mother and daughter duo ending their internet call.

Jaz used the Hilton Hotel's gym and had a vigorous work out before having her shower and breakfast. She called the two hospitals where she worked and checked with her secretaries to ensure that all her patients were being looked after by doctors she felt were almost as good as her. After leaving some instructions with her hospital staff she thought about calling Donna.

Jaz smiled at the thought of speaking with Donna. She was the only friend Jaz had who was not intimidated in any way or form by her ice-cold glares. Jaz would not openly admit this to her friend, but she was really pleased that Donna stood up to her and did not allow Jaz to push her around or control how she thought or behaved. As a matter of fact, in Jaz's quiet reflective moments, she realized that she was beginning to become too attached to Donna. She looked forward to hearing her opinion on any and every topic. Even the topics most people shied away from; politics, sports, and religion. The two women expressed their thoughts, sometimes in agreement, and other times in heated debate, but always honestly and passionately.

As Jaz thought some more about Donna, she asked herself "What am I really doing here? Coming after Kami when I realized she was getting married seemed to make sense at the time. But now … it does not. Joyce Amy Zachery is you pride so big? Is your ego so huge that the thought of someone having what you once had angers you so much?"

Jaz walked around the hotel suite and thought some more about the situation. "For the sake of argument, suppose Kami was to call it quits with Hildy and agree to resume a relationship with me, would I really want that? How would a renewed relationship effect my friendship with Donna?" That question made Jaz stop her walking up and down. "I wonder if I would have as much time to spend with Donna as I do now?

Jaz did not like the answer that immediately flooded her mind. "Kami and Hildy are in love by the sickeningly sweet way they looked at each other in the newspaper photo I saw several days ago. There is no chance of Kami coming back to me, this visit is not about that, it is about getting answers on why she left in the first place and letting her know that I will always be in her mind because she will always belong to me". Even as Jaz told herself these words, she knew she was being foolish, but stubbornly she tried to convince herself that she was right.

Jaz decided to forgo the call to her friend because she did not want Donna's cool logic to eat away at her already weakening resolve to go through with her plan to see Kami and shake her up a bit. She decided instead to do a bit of reading after breakfast while placing a 10:00am deadline on Kami. She decided to give her former girlfriend the opportunity to contact her before she initiated the next meeting.

Kathrine entered the Hilton hotel that had such fond memories of the Thanksgiving luncheon from last year. She went to the front desk in the lobby and asked the clerk to call up to Dr Joyce Zachery's room and let her know she had a visitor. Kathrine did not give her name but if Jaz requested it before allowing her to be told what room she was in then she would give her name to the front desk clerk.

Several floors above Jaz got the call from the front desk and was told there was a lady there to see her. Thinking it was Kami, Jaz told the clerk to tell the lady her room number and allow her up.

A couple minutes later Jaz heard the firm knock on the door. Smiling a smile that could only be described as predatory she pulled the door open without looking through the peep hole. To say that Jaz was caught off guard would be an understatement.

As she looked at the elegantly dressed older woman, she did not immediately remember who she was.

Kathrine greeted Jaz coolly, and did not wait to be invited into the room but walked past her into the suite and stood by one of the armchairs.

Jaz turned and looked at Kathrine as she stood next to the chair. She frowned at the strange woman because she recognized there was something familiar about the stranger's features, but she could not put her finger on it. In those few initial moments she had no idea who Kathrine was.

"Excuse me …. I am not sure who you are ma'am", Jaz said not liking situations to be out of her control as this one was at the moment.

"My apologies", Kathrine said. "My daughter and I would like to have a word with you about this foolish claim you think you have on my granddaughter". Kathrine said in a no-nonsense voice.

From the moment Kathrine began to speak, it was like the mental fog in Jaz's mind lifted, and Kathrine features clicked into place. Jaz realized that the woman in front of her was Kami's grandmother.

Rather than feel nervous or intimidated, Jaz smiled a genuine smile. She was curious to hear just what Kami's mother and grandmother had to say, coming into her room like two Mama Bears out to protect their cub.