Better than myself Part 23
(Sequel to As a Man)
Disclaimer: I don't own anything, I'm not making any money, and all the wonderful characters belong to the lovely JE. I would borrow Ranger for awhile, though.
Valerie's Biological Father's POV
My entire life has always been about me, what I wanted, what would benefit me and my aspirations. By doing this I completely ignored my only child. I have always known that Valerie Plum was my daughter. But telling all of Trenton would not benefit anyone, it would probably make matters worse. As it is, Valerie's outburst at Pino's has the gossip mill working overtime. She always seemed such a calm level headed girl, but the news that her entire life had been a lie, has hit her hard. She broke down in the restaurant after seeing Frank eating lunch with Stephanie and Ranger. Yelling that he didn't need to pretend to love her anymore, he can spend time with his "real" daughter and move away and forget about her. Frank did a beautiful job of calming her down and reassuring her of his love. However, her break down ousted Helen's biggest secret.
I know Helen will never reveal my identity without permission. She loves her reputation too much; I know it is a little tarnished with everyone knowing of the affair, it would only get worse if everyone knew I was the father. I loved her very much during our time together, but she didn't have the connections I needed to fulfill my dreams. We both knew our affair was doomed from the start. I was married when we met, but I was so drawn to the girl she was. Helen was beautiful and so full of life; you couldn't help but want to be around her.
Her marriage to Frank Plum was a sensible decision, he is a good man. I always knew that he would take care of her and when he returned from overseas, he just jumped into the role of Valerie's father with very little question. From what I heard around town, both girls were treated the same by Frank. It wasn't Valerie's treatment that was the hot topic around town; it was the callous way Helen treated Stephanie. That was what made me finally end our affair. How could I love a woman, who had no apparent love for her youngest child?
After Stephanie was born is when my feelings for Helen started to change. She was no longer the fun loving woman that captured my heart. I was not attracted to what she changed into, the kind of woman I never wanted, always worrying about how things looked instead of how people felt. I remember our last encounter-
Stephanie had just broken her arm after trying to jump of the roof. Helen was so angry about it, she couldn't look at is a childhood lack of judgment, it was personal as if that little girl was purposely trying to embarrass her. She confided in me that she will never love Frank like she loved me. Having Stephanie made it harder to pretend that I would come for them. I didn't know why I missed it before- she only had Stephanie because it was what was expected of her and it ruined her fantasy.
I feel like her behavior is partially my fault. I thought I could have and do anything I wanted, never considering the fall out. Never considering that Helen was waiting her entire life for me to change my mind and marry her.
I think it is far past time I start putting others first. My wife has wanted to travel for years and because I had to see and be seen around Trenton, I never wanted to go anywhere. She has been behind me, supporting everything I have ever wanted to do. I think it is high time I do something for her.
Now what am I going to do about Valerie? The research I have done on her shows that her family is struggling financially. Her husband's (Albert?) law practice didn't have the business it needed to support a family of their size and the rumor is that there is another on the way.
I can send more business Albert's way and set up trust funds for my grandchildren – that does give me pause –I have grandchildren I will never know. I would never try to get in the way of that, I would never want the children to question Frank's love for them or be confused by my presence. I will make sure that they can afford whatever college of their choosing.
Where I am at a loss about, is how to help with the immediate needs; housing, food, clothing and transportation. I can't just walk up to her and hand her cash without a million questions. That leads me to the meeting with Ranger Manoso. I trust him to be discreet, regardless of his relationship with Stephanie. I think having a relationship with Stephanie is a plus because he will have more of an intimate knowledge of Valerie's needs.
Very few Trenton residents have been inside the Rangeman building, we are all sad to see the base of operations leaving. That is our lesson to learn, we were all so stuck in our ways that we didn't try to make them feel welcome. Even when it became obvious that they were nothing of a help to the police and generous to the community, we still chose to treat them like criminals.
Sitting across from Ranger Manoso, I am struck again by how intimidating he is. He has an aura of absolute power that makes you want to follow him anywhere. Which is what makes him a good leader, it would make him a wonderful politician, if he background was clean, and he could probably rule the free world.
I tell him of my connection to Valerie and Helen, explain to him the problem that I am having, wanting to help her financially. He really is a man of few words, he said that he would discuss as much as he could with Stephanie, apparently Valerie and Stephanie have some things to work out. But as long as that is fixed, Valerie will have a job, including full benefits at Rangeman. She could be a filing clerk or work in customer billing. Because the operations will be so much smaller and there will be no government contracts handled out here at all, she should be the perfect fit.
I leave the meeting feeling that I have accomplished something. Maybe it is too little too late, but I don't want her to have to struggle any longer.
A/N: I don't know if it is in the plans to reveal who her father is, I don't know if it will advance the story. Now everyone knows that Helen had an affair, she is probably mortified and we will here from her soon (as long as my muse cooperates)
Thank you christibabe and margaret fowler for helping me through my writers block. Your ideas have not only helped me with this chapter, but gave me ideas for the next couple.
Please review – I appreciate every one of them.
