2.
~ Ariadne felt her heart race and her vision become spotted with black.
'Don't faint.' She told herself.
Quickly, she stepped out into the hall and closed the front door behind her.
"What... what are doing here?" She hissed at the strange looking man who, now that she took a hard look at him, did resemble her father. The years weren't kind to him.
She was filled with anger that this part of her past was showing up at her door unannounced and uninvited.
"I came to see you. Buddy of mine reads this magazine about business." The man explained as she looked over his worn, dirty jeans and working man's shirt. "Well, it was talking about this old boy named Arthur." He said her husbands name like is was a joke. "And it said he was CEO of this big company. That his wife's name was Ariadne. My buddy was like 'Chuck' ain't that your girl's name?' and I was wondering if it was the same." He said in his course back woods accent Ariadne had shed years ago.
She still couldn't believe her eyes that this man had tracked her down.
"Well, I called up to the company and said I was Arthur's father-in-law and I wanted to speak to him. They told me he didn't even live in America. What kind of shit is that?" He asked in disbelief as Ariadne felt her body being weighted down slightly.
"Those people wouldn't tell me where he lived and I had to find out online that you were living in France." He finished.
"Online?" She asked. "Wait, how exactly online?"
Her father was not computer savvy and she doubted that he would have hired a detective to locate her.
"Well, I typed in his name and yours and up pops this article about some crazy woman breaking into your home and trying to kill you. So here I am, your old man." He said with a triumphant smile.
Ariadne felt sick. As her father looked around the nicely decorated hall outside her apartment.
"This is a nice looking building. What's the rent around here?" He asked.
"Dad, listen, I'm in the middle of something." Ariadne fumbled as she wanted to retreat back into her safe world again. The head of an ugly past resurfacing.
"I was wanting to take my Bumble Bee out to lunch. I don't speak French and no one here speaks English. I don't know why they can't learn English. I thought everyone speaks a little English. Why did you want to live in France anyway?"
"Dad, fine I'll meet you at the little cafe with the red and black awning in 30 minutes." She told him as she backed away from the strange ghost.
"Well, what about Arthur?" Her father said taking off his ball cap and revealing a head of thinning hair.
"He's at work." She stammered as she retreated back into the apartment. "I'll meet you there, just give me a few minutes."
~ Ariadne was breathing hard as ghosts were suddenly everywhere. Her brother Sammy, the judge, Miss Annie, Hugo and Victoria. They all stood and watched her as she locked her door and stood there shaking.
"Ariadne?" Came Arthur's voice.
She jumped as if he was a ghost.
"What's wrong?" he asked.
She turned and saw her husband holding the baby. Dominic was smiling and laughing. His oatmeal all over his face and clothes.
"Oh nothing." She said pulling her robe on tighter around her body. Trying to remember to act normal. Trying to remember how to talk without that backwoods accent she hadn't used in so long.
"Who was it?" He asked as she took the baby. Glad to feel her son's warm, little body next to hers.
"Oh, no one. Just a solicitor." She said.
"Have to talk to the doorman." Arthur grumbled. "He just lets anyone in the building. You would think after that happened with Becky, they would be more careful."
"I'll talk to him. I'm going to the store." She said distractedly.
"For what?" He asked as he followed her into the nursery where she changed the baby's messy clothes and washed his face.
"Honestly Arthur, you got more food on the baby then in him." She laughed hoping to change the subject.
"You will be happy to know, Dominic fed himself this morning, and I think my son did a great job." Arthur said proudly. "I think he might be gifted." He added.
"I need you to watch the kids while I go out." She told him.
"Alright." He said as she retreated back to their room to dress. Darcy already hard a work on a new water coloring.
She dressed with lighting speed. Actually taking time to look over her clothes. Noticing for the first time that they were nice, brand name shirts, slacks and dresses.
'No dresses.' She told herself as an ugly memory gripped her stomach and made her feel sick.
She put on the frumpy jeans she liked to wear and layered on a T-shirt, button up top and worn jacket she had stopped wearing.
She looked at the nice clothes in her closet. Clothes she never gave a thought about before now. There had to be thousands of dollars in clothing and shoes in front of her if not more. She grabbed her bag and thought better of it. Her bag was a very nice, classic name brand that went with everything. It was too trendy, too rich. She pulled out her old red purse she hadn't used since the Fischer inception and put her pocket book, cell phone and other items in it.
She spotted the Taser she normally kept in her everyday bag and tucked it into the red purse to. Arthur had gotten her the discreet Taser after the incident with Becky. It was a very powerful one. The kind that the police used. It shot probes at the assailant and didn't require her attacker to get close to her.
Feeling more confident with the weapon, she didn't say goodbye to Arthur as she fled her home.
~ She spoke briefly to the doorman and he showed her the log in book.
"That man, was not my Dad." She told him sternly. "Please call the apartment before you let anyone on our floor. After what happened with that crazy woman, this was not a pleasant surprise." She barked at him. Suddenly going from the always sweet and kind woman, to an angry thing that would have his job over this.
The doorman was apologetic and told her it wouldn't happen again. She gave him a harsh look as she left the building.
~ The cafe she told her father to meet her at was simple and one she and Arthur never frequented because the service was so awful. The staff barely bringing them drinks before forgetting about them.
It was almost empty as she easily spotted her father by a big window.
"I got us a good seat, Bumble Bee." He said waving at her. His loud voice carrying through the cafe and making the few customers there look at this strange American.
"That's good." She said feeling embarrassed as she slid into the seat next to him.
A waiter came to them and asked what they would like in his native language. Her father grumbled and Ariadne asked politely for two coffees with cream in her elegant, well practiced French.
"Wow, Bumble Bee." Her father said as the waiter left them. "I'm impressed. You speaking that silly language."
"Not a silly language." She told him feeling you courage rise up. "I've lived in Paris for years now. It's important to learn the language of a place you live in."
"Well you need to tell that to all the folk coming into America who don't want to learn English." He laughed at her.
"Dad, what are you doing here?" She asked. Not laughing at his joke.
"I came to see you. I wasn't invited to your wedding. I called your mother. She hasn't heard from you since the sentencing. Why didn't you tell us you landed a rich man?" He asked with an appreciative smile.
"Is mom with you?" She asked worriedly. The lies she told her husband falling apart like a house of cards.
"Oh no. Still back home." He said as the waiter brought them their coffee.
Ariadne breathed a sigh of relief.
"Dad." She said after they had sipped their coffee in silence. "Tell me, what you want? Did you come for money? Is that it?"
"Don't you talk to your old man like that, damn it!" He said in a low, dangerous growl. His dark eyes turning evil and snake like.
"Fact is, I used up a lot of my saving on the trip even if I flew coach. I think the least you could do is put the old man up for a few nights." He said returning quickly to his easy going manner.
"I'll give you cash for a hotel and reimburse you for the air fare." She told him curtly. Digging in her purse. Her hands easily finding cash she always had ready. Arthur insisting she carry cash for emergencies.
"Will six thousand be enough?" She asked handing over a large amount of neatly folded bills from a hidden pocket.
"That's nice of you." Her father said pulling the cash from her without hesitation. "I was hoping you could take the old man out for the day. We can see museums and I want to meet my son-in-law, Arthur."
"Dad, I haven't seen you since I was 9 and I haven't explained to my husband about Sammy or anything else. I want to keep it that way." She said bluntly. Proud of herself for standing up to him.
"You ashamed of your old man?" He barked at her. "With you money and fancy accent?" He added looking at her in disgust. "What makes you think I won't meet your husband anyway?" He growled.
"Because, that would be a mistake." She said coldly.