Forum Alert – I have started a forum entitled: Secrets Left Untold, Q & A. For anyone who wants to ask any of the ten very talented authors a question as to why they chose a certain storyline direction. Or if you would like to discuss your storyline ideas, please feel free. We are very interested in your opinions! And as this project is getting off to such a great start I thought it would be fun to start another round robin but to have you, our expert readers decide what type of story to write. Also if anyone would like to volunteer to write on the next story, here is the place to throw your hat into the ring.
Chapter one - ToryD
Chapter two - Terpsichore314
Chapter three - KatieKay90
Chapter four - MJ Mod
Chapter five - LostBluePhantom
Chapter six – Moonshine's Guide
Chapter seven - Phantasmarose
Chapter eight - Susana
Chapter nine - Splendorous Night Unfurled
Chapter ten – Hatred Behind a Mask
A/N Well, it's my turn now! Gulp! I've never written anything up till now; I've only been betaing for Tory. I hope my chapter join seamlessly with the others. Thanks to Tory for her help with the chapter's flow!
Happy Thanksgiving to our American friends!
Tory's note – I am so proud of MJ! She has done an amazing job on this chapter!
Secrets Left Untold
Author MJ Mod
Chapter 4
Christine was terrified of telling her secret to Erik; she was scared of his temper. Having seen his in action with Isabel and the police a few moments earlier; she didn't want him to be angry with her. And truth be known the episode had left her utterly drained and feeling guilty. On one hand, if she spoke she risked Erik's wrath, he might feel wronged and be furious at her. On the other hand, she owed him the truth and it'd be the honest thing to do, the right thing. It was the only thing to do. There was always the risk of Ben's father deciding to claim back his son. No paper had been signed and no one had witnessed the events. There was also the possibility of Isabel finding and contacting Joseph. He'd take back his son in an instant if he were offered money, which Isabel has in abundance.
Christine was the only mother Ben had known. Their mom had been too sick to take care of him after his birth. She WAS Ben's mother in every aspect except for giving birth to him and sadly Joseph still had all the rights to his son. No, she'd do it. She'd tell Erik. He deserved to know the entire truth from her. He'd been only kind to Ben and her; yes, she'd do it, even if she felt nauseous at the very idea. She'd do anything to protect her little brother from his father.
She took a deep breath and said to Erik "I need to talk to you. It's very important, it's about Ben." She looked like she was going to be sick.
Erik was wondering what was happening. He felt instantly alarmed at the anxiety in Christine's voice. "What is it?" he asked her sharply.
Christine could feel the tension emanating from Erik's body as he stared at her expectantly. "Not here," she said quietly, not wanting to alert Jeanne to the seriousness of their conversation. "Could we go somewhere to talk in private?"
Erik was getting worried worried. What did Christine want to tell him about Ben that needed to be said in private? "Let's go to my office upstairs," he said as he rose and held out his hand to her. Christine took his offered hand and felt as if some of his strength was passing from him to her. As Erik opened the door to his office Christine was impressed by its grandeur. It was a very functional office as far as Christine could judge. It looked as if it were professionally designed much like what she saw once for a Business Tycoon's on one of her mother's favourite soap operas. Erik gestured for her to sit down in a chair in front of his desk as he sat behind it. His eyes took on a look of concern as he regarded her paleness and she appeared to be overly nervous. Erik feared she was sick. "Christine, are you alright?"
"No!" She cried out as she took the plunge. "I'm not Ben's mother!"
Erik looked confused and angry. "What do you mean, you're not his mother?" he yelled.
"I'm his sister," she said softly as she tried to bank down the fear that was racing through her.
Erik clenched his fist in rage at Christine's betrayal. He took a deep breath as he tried to control the anger and hurt that was filling him as he stared at her with his unforgiving green gaze. His thoughts were filled with bitterness at his own stupidity and his uncharacteristic and unquestioning acceptance of her story the evening before. Perhaps Isabel was correct in her assumption that Christine was committing some crime. Did she take him for a soft touch? Did she honestly think that she could simply use her innocent looks and younger brother to gain entrance into his home? Maybe the accident was some kind of plot against him. But no, there was no way she could have known he was coming. It had been a last minute decision.
"I had no choice, I love Ben as if he was my own son," Christine cried. "I'd do anything for him."
"You had better explain yourself now!" he growled menacingly as he pounded his fist against the smooth polished surface of his desk.
Christine jumped at the violence of his action. "Ben's father is our mother's boyfriend. His name is Joseph Buquet. He threw me out of the house after my mother's death three weeks ago. Mom had left Joseph everything in her will," Christine said with a weariness that almost broke through Erik's rage. "I was studying at NYU on a full scholarship in Computer Aided Design at the time of her death."
"Continue" Erik said curtly without breaking his intense stare.
"Mom had been sick with cancer for a long time, before Ben's birth," Christine informed Erik with a sorrowful voice. "When she became pregnant with Ben, she stopped her treatment so that he would be born healthy," Christine shook her head sadly as she recalled the endless hours of watching her mother faded into nothingness. "From the moment Ben took his first breath, I was the one who held him. I am the one who rocked him to sleep; I am the one who walked with him all through the night when he was suffering from colic. I'm the only mother he's ever known," she said softly as tears filled her eyes.
"What about Ben's father? What right did you have to deprive him of his son? The man must be frantic with worry," Erik snapped at her. He was thinking about his own father and what his mother had done to them. "Ben has every right to know his father and to live with him," he said harshly.
"Joseph doesn't want Ben!" Christine replied vehemently. "He wanted to put him in foster care and I couldn't let him do it."
Erik didn't know if he should believe Christine's story. All he had up to now was her word. He didn't really know her after all. What else had she hidden from him?
Erik looked so cold and distant now, so unlike the kind and caring man she had met the night before Christine thought as she watched him with saddened eyes. She was worried that she might have damaged his trust in her irreversibly with her stupid lie. But she felt she owed him the truth, for he had taken her and Ben into his own home. So even though it would have ensured their safety in Erik's home, she couldn't continue to deceive these people who had been so kind. After all, wasn't there a saying The truth shall set you free, she thought to herself with irony. She could only hope it was true and that she chose the right person at the right moment. Seeing that Erik was waiting for further explanations she began to speak again. "Joseph let me take Ben as long as I promised not to interfere with the Social Security death benefits he receives for him," she said with a resigned sigh. "Since then Ben and I have been living on the street going from shelter to shelter. In fact, when your car hit me we had nowhere to go. We had been evicted from the airport lounge," she whispered in a self-defeated tone.
"Why couldn't you just go to a shelter?" Erik asked sharply as he tried to harden his softening heart.
"I couldn't stay there anymore," Christine said as she looked down at her tightly folded hands. "There are men there that prey on women like me," Christine added without looking up.
Erik felt a fire engulf him at the thought of any man putting his hands on Christine. "Weren't there surveillance cameras at the shelter?" He asked with a barely leashed rage.
"Cameras cost a lot and shelters are constantly pressed for money, you need someone to watch them, there's no patrol, and most of the men are drunks or junkies on a high. They're very dangerous and the volunteers don't want to interfere as they're afraid for their lives," she told him in a matter of fact tone that attested to her truthfulness.
Erik didn't know what to think anymore. He had heard about the problems at the city's shelters. Like many people he had seen the series reporting the problems on TV but he hadn't believed all he heard. In fact, he remembered thinking it was yellow journalism. But what if it was barely scratching the surface? What if all Christine had said was true? Still, none of this excused the fact she had lied to him and he felt she had abused his trust.
"Why did you lie to me, Christine?" he asked softly as he regarded her dejected expression. "You could have told me the truth before this. Are you confessing now only because of the scare Isabelle gave you?"
Christine sighed as she looked up at Erik's expectant eyes. Everything was so very complicated and it was all Joseph's fault. And perhaps more than Joseph it was her mother who was guilty. Guilty of not making sure her son was well taken care of. "Erik…" she said as she swallowed hard past the lump in her throat. "I didn't know you. I'm Ben's sister. I have no job, I've left school, I don't have any of Ben's papers, and I have no legal right to him. My only goal was protecting my brother the best I could," she explained. "I'm sorry I lied to you, but I can't say that I wouldn't do it all again. Ben is my main concern, everything I do is for him now," she said with such a conviction that Erik had to admire her inherent sense of protection for her younger sibling.
"What did you intend to do? Where were you going?" he asked her in a concerned voice.
"I had no idea, Erik," Christine replied with a short laugh at her own expense. "I really was at my wits end. My only thought was to continue walking until I couldn't stand up anymore or some solution appeared to me. I'm so sorry that I lied to you Erik," she apologized a second time. "I had no choice; but I can see how you'd think that I used you. And I understand why you're angry. Thanks for all the help you've given us. I really appreciated it," she said as she rose to cross to the door and walked out of the room to retrieve her brother leaving a bewildered and somewhat angry Erik behind her.
As she walked down the elegant staircase she saw that Ben was snuggled up contently within Jeanette's arms. It pained her to take away her baby brother from the love and safety he had found in Erik's house. He was laughing at Nadir who was making faces at him. "Thanks a lot for taking care of Ben, Jeanette", she said. "It was very kind of you." She began to dress her brother in his winter clothes and sat him in his stroller even as he began to fuss. She worried he was coming down with a cold as he looked ready to cry. She then took her coat and began to put back their meagre possessions in her bag. "Thank you all for your kindness but I've abused your trust long enough. I'm sorry you spent your money on us, Erik. I never meant any harm," she told them.
"Where are you going?" Erik said irritated while Jeanette and Nadir were looking on with confusion.
"We're going back to the shelter," she announced with a false sense of bravado.
"What about the men you told me about?" Erik protested as he pictured Christine and little Ben at the mercy of the city's most vile sexual predators.
Christine said "I'm sure they're gone by now. There are often new people there. I'll try to find a bed near another family, that's all."
Jeanette asked Erik what was going on. He ignored her and glared at Christine. "I forbid you to go, Christine." He said with an authoritative voice that caused Christine to start in surprise. "It's much too dangerous for you both."
"Erik," she pleaded. "I'm trying to do what's right. Please don't make it more difficult than it already is."
"Don't go Christine. If you do, I'll report you to the Child Protection Service'" he threatened using any available tactics to keep her here safely within his control.
Christine paled at his words. Would he really do it? Would he be so cruel as to take away from Ben the only mother he had ever known? Because she was Ben's mother, in every sense of the word, she thought to herself as she brushed away the fact that she hadn't given birth to him. She looked into Erik's eyes and gasped at the threat in his green eyes. He was deadly serious. "Why are you doing this, Erik? Surely you don't want us here anymore after I've lied to you." Christine said sadly as she watched the man whom she had thought would never hurt Ben or her.
Erik for once was happy he was wearing a mask for it helped hide his apprehensive expression. He'd of course never be so cruel as to carry out his vicious threat on Ben or Christine. He just didn't know how to convince her to stay or why he even wanted them to. "Please, stay. For Ben's sake; he needs a home and I've got lots of room." Erik hoped Christine would accept. He didn't know what he'd do if she refused.
Jeanne and Nadir were looking on bewildered. What was happening here? Christine had lied to Erik and he was threatening to report her to the Social Services? Christine felt tears in her eyes at the thought of the lies she had told these nice people. They had a right to the truth. In a few short phrases she recalled her story. They seemed at the same time relieved and hurt.
"Why didn't you tell us at the beginning?" exclaimed Jeanne.
"I was scared", Christine said. "Ben and I are vulnerable to Joseph's fancies. He can claim his son back at any moment, accuse me of kidnapping, have me thrown in jail and place him in foster care. He has every right to do so and I can't protect my brother. I'm jobless and homeless. No one would let me take care of my brother. I'm not even able to take care of myself," she explained bitterly. I don't care what happens to me, I deserve it all, she thought to herself angrily, but I have to protect Ben from Joseph.
MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM
Meanwhile across town, a jealous woman was preparing her revenge. "If that little nobody thinks she's going to come and take my rich lover away from me. She's got another thing coming," laughed Isabel darkly as she poured herself another drink. Taking out the Yellow Pages she looked under the heading Private Detectives.
After numerous calls she found the one she wanted, Javert Detective agency. "We search, we find, they pay', was their motto. Exactly what she needed to get her revenge on the little street whore and her horrible rug rat. "No one crosses Isabel Leigh without paying very dearly, no one!" Isabel swore to herself as she swallowed the last of her scotch before calling the agency.