CHAPTER 3: A FATHER'S GRIEF

Grant Gray was at home in his office looking out the window. Violet was on his mind. Even though he had cut her off and effectively disowned her, he still felt guilt over her upbringing. He was so focused on growing his company that he neglected to see the drastic change in her and how she was treating her fellow classmates, Charlie Brown in particular. He knew he should have told her it wasn't healthy to carry around so much hate for one boy and ask what he even do to deserve said hatred. He also figured the hatred towards him stemmed from the jealousy she harbored for the Brown family as a whole.

Silas Brown, like Grant, was a business man himself, though nowhere near the vast wealth of the Gray family. Silas owned his own barber shop and made a pretty decent amount of money for the family. While they were nowhere as rich as the Grays, the Browns were better-off than most families in the middle-class neighborhood they lived in. But one thing the Browns had that the Grays didn't was family closeness. Silas, no matter how busy he was, would take time out for his kids, wife, and Snoopy. No one doubted that Grant loved his family, and Violet would dote on her father at every opportunity, especially to Charlie Brown, but they really didn't have that closeness the Browns had.

The Grays, for a better term, were fractured. While father and daughter were loving to each other when they did get together, the mother, Kathleen, was virtually absent from their lives. And when she did make her presence known, she was out of rehab for a brief spell. She would be there for holidays and special occasions, but for the most part, she was addicted to alcohol and hard drugs. Before Violet was born, Grant and Kathleen used to go out on the town quite a bit. They partied almost every weekend and even some weekdays. But after Violet was born, Grant settled down and got serious about his family, but Kathleen never fully abandoned her party lifestyle. And whenever the Grays would have a get-together with friends, she'd be wasted almost immediately, thus leading to her being in and out of rehab most of Violet's life. It didn't help that she wasn't particularly motherly to the girl, either, which also might have influenced her automatic animosity towards the Browns. Maureen Brown was a kind mother and often defended her kids when they were bullied at school and even comforted her. Maureen had words with Grant himself over Violet's rotten treatment of her son more often than not. Kathleen would usually insult young Violet saying that she was homely and that she was worthless. If folks knew what Violet went through growing, they may have had more compassion for her when she was sentenced at her trial. That may have been why she was close to her father and doted on him whenever he was around because he loved his daughter dearly and she loved him. That was why it devastated Violet when Grant disowned her and cut her off.

Grant was looking out the window watching the landscapers plow the snow from the driveway. It was the weekend and he didn't have to go to work. Kathleen, who was home from her two hundredth trip to rehab, walked in and wondered what was wrong with him.

"Grant?" she began. "Everything copasetic?"

"Oh, hey Kat," he sighed. "Was just thinking."

"About Violet?" asked Kathleen.

"That and other things," Grant responded. "I should have been around for her growing up. Maybe she wouldn't be in prison now had I raised her right."

"Oh, forget about the little bitch!" Kathleen snapped. "I say good riddance to that little pain in the ass. I should have aborted her when I had the chance!"

"Stop it, Kathleen!"

"No! She did us a favor by landing in the pen! And you finally did the right thing cutting that little bitch loose! Now it can be just us two again! I only wished you haven't left her some money for when she got out."

"What the hell's the matter with you, woman?! That's our daughter you're talking about! I feel awful about letting her go! I can only imagine what she's going through right now!"

"Bullshit! We're finally free of her and you STILL talk about her and actually MISS HER?! Grant, we're free! You didn't give her the gun and tell her to try to wipe out the entire Brown family! She did that all on her own! Sure she may have been jealous of them, but what did she REALLY have to be jealous about?! We have more dough than TWO families like the Browns!"

"Maybe it wasn't about the money with her. Have you fucking though about that, Kathleen?!"

"Maybe not, but the point is, it's not our fault she went postal and try to kill and entire family!"

"Well, maybe it is, Kat."

"What do you mean?"

"Maybe, just maybe, WE should have been there for her more. WE should have raised her better. And WE should have been better parents. YOU especially!"

"I DIDN'T WANT THE LITTLE BRAT, YOU DID, ASSHOLE!"

"YOU GODDAMN RIGHT I WANTED HER! I LOVED HER!"

"WELL I DIDN'T! I was happier when it was just the two of us! We didn't have to raise a snot-nosed brat and make sure she got her education, make sure she was well-fed, et cetera et cetera! We could go to the finest restaurants, travel to exotic places, sleep until noon. But we ended up having a kid, working to feed and clothe her, taking her to doctor's appointments, living a dull life!"

"It's called responsibility, Kathleen!"

"WELL I DIDN'T WANT THAT, GRANT! I WANTED IT TO BE JUST US!"

"WELL YOU KNOW WHAT, KATHLEEN?! IT CAN BE JUST YOU NOW! PACK YOUR SHIT AND GET OUT OF THIS HOUSE! I'M DONE WITH YOU!"

"WHAT?!"

"MONDAY, I AM FILING FOR DIVORCE! I'M SICK AND TIRED OF HAVING TO DEAL WITH YOUR DRUGGED-OUT RANTS, ALCOHOLIC RAGES, AND DEGRADING OUR OWN DAUGHTER! NO WONDER SHE'S SO MESSED UP HERSELF! I KNOW I COULD HAVE DONE BETTER, TOO, BUT UNLIKE YOU, YOU SELFISH WITCH, I CAME TO MY SENSES AND REALIZED IT! I'LL GIVE YOU A HALF HOUR TO GATHER YOUR THINGS! NOW GET THE FUCK OUT OF MY OFFICE!"

Kathleen was beside herself. Her husband had told her he was divorcing her. She said meekly, "Grant, I…"

"LEAVE!"

Kathleen ran out. Grant, in a boiling rage, slid all of the stuff on his desk off and onto the floor, including his computer keyboard, monitor, and mouse. He then went over to his private bar ad made himself a scotch on the rocks, calming himself down. He thought about what had transpired.

"I'm so sorry, Violet!" he wept.

NEXT CHAPTER: MAKING UP