WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE?

by Desktop Dragon

Ana Grey was always sure of who she was and where she came from, until a surprise email is sent to her informing her that she may be the long lost sibling of someone seeking answers. In New York Eva Cross is that person seeking answers as she has just had everything she took as fact turned upside down and she no longer knows who she is. I DO NOT OWN FSOG OR THE CROSSFIRE STORIES.

13. Chapter 13

CHAPTER 13

(EVA)

I am officially speechless. Never in all my life had I expected Ana's mother to behave like that. I cannot believe her reason for calling was purely to try and facilitate a reunion with Frank, it is beyond belief that she would even consider that appropriate.

I had naively thought that she was calling to offer support and ask how she was doing. Ana had told me that she was estranged from her mother and I had assumed it was along the same lines of estrangement as Gideon's relationship with his mother. They didn't go out of their way to communicate but when they did, they tolerated each other and were civil... well, just about civil. I have issues with my own mother but now after witnessing that little show, I see I have nothing to complain about. My mothers only fault was that she cared too much. She became obsessive and over protective after what happened with Nathan, and when she married Stanton he indulged her unacceptable behaviour by giving in to her and getting his security people to infiltrate my life with tracking devices and bugs. Our relationship became irreparably fractured and I had distanced myself from her after we'd had a massive row when I had found out that not only the phone she had bought me and the make up compact she had given me had electronic trackers hidden inside, but the treasured watch I wore, which was a graduation present also contained a tracking device. That one had hurt as I'd even entertained the notion of making it an heirloom and passing it on to my own child should I ever have one, at their graduation.

After what happened with Nathan my mother had become intolerable and her behaviour more bizarre. For years afterwards she had suffocated me; following my every move and when I didn't respond to her constant calls demanding to know where I was and what I was doing, she constantly harassed me and my best friend, Cary with incessant calls and voice mail messages. Her behaviour was just unacceptable. When I was a teenager, I could accept it to a point as I was a minor and she was responsible for my welfare. I could accept it, but I didn't like it and I became more and more rebellious. In fact, I now realise the main reason I chose to go and live with my dad in California after what happened with Nathan was because of my mothers over bearing behaviour. But when her stalking continued and intensified after I came of age that was when I put my foot down and told her straight enough was enough and if she didn't stop it I would even consider putting a restraining order on her. When I had married Gideon, she had backed off a bit. I realise that it was probably because she knew that Gideon had an extensive security team around him and she knew that he would keep me safe. I know she was guilt ridden as she felt responsible for what had happened to me and she was horrified that I had been repeatedly molested for years under her very roof and she hadn't suspected a thing. I did try and see the situation from her perspective but she made it so hard for me when she refused to back off and let me breathe.

As I try and offer my sister what comfort I can my mind goes back to the conversation I had with my mother as we were making our way here to Christian and Ana's home…

"Nice car" I say as I look around the inside of the Audi SUV.

Gideon nods and looks around, "What is it like to drive?" he asks Raul who is sitting up front.

"Very pleasant sir" he says politely.

"Would you say it was better than the Merc's we have in our fleet?" Gideon asks and I smile, he is clearly impressed with the Audi and from his question I am guessing he is looking to replace the fleet of Merc's with Audi's.

"Are you looking to replace the Merc's?" I ask and Gideon just looks at me knowingly.

"Maybe" he says cagily and I let out a laugh.

"What about the Bentley? Are you going to replace that with an Audi?" I ask and I see the horrified look on his face and I know that his beloved Bentley isn't about to be set aside.

Before I can say anything else, I feel my phone vibrating in my pocket and I fumble for it. As I pull it out, I see my mothers face on the screen and I take a deep breath. The news has clearly arrived in New York and I wonder what sort of reception I am going to get from her. I feel a momentary pang of guilt that I didn't give her a heads up on what we did earlier.

This is the first time we have spoken since all this happened. After she had given me Frank's name that day at the hospital, she hadn't called me again and I was too upset with her to be the bigger person and make the first move. I've spoken to Stanton on a number of occasions since, he had called me to try and smooth things over and offer his assistance but I had rudely told him to back off and that it was none of his business. I had called him back and apologised and he had waved off my apology with a level of understanding which made me feel even more guilty. That guilt had vanished though after my father had called my mother in a rage and laid into her for lying to him and as a result Stanton had called me and had a go at me for telling my dad. I had put him straight and told him my dad had a right to know that he had been lied to and that it wasn't my fault my dad had argued with my mom. I had told him that the only person to blame for this whole situation was my mother and that my dad had every right to be angry with her. That was the last time I had spoken to either of them.

I steel myself as I answer the call, and as I open my mouth to speak, my mothers voice comes over the line to me.

"How could you Eva? How could you?" I close my eyes; I can tell my mother is working herself up into a fit of hysterics. This always happens, I open my mouth to speak again but once again I am cut off by my mother ranting at me.

"I have never been so embarrassed in my life, you have stood there in public and aired our very private business for the entire world to hear, I will never forgive you for this Eva, never".

Before she gives me chance to respond and explain she hangs up and I stare at the phone in shock.

"Fucking hell, she hung up on me and didn't give me chance to explain" I say angrily.

I do understand my mother's reaction to a degree, as I have just announced to the world that my mother lied about who the father of her child was for years. What I don't understand is why she didn't let me explain why I did it. She expected me to understand and accept her reasoning for what she had done and yet she isn't allowing me to explain my actions.

I try and call her back and my eyes widen as I realise that she has blocked my number as the call won't connect. I feel the tears welling up in my eyes and I blink them back.

"Angel?" Gideon says with obvious concern as he shuffles closer to me and pulls me into his arms.

"She's blocked my number" I say and I cringe as I hear my voice cracking with the emotion.

"Oh Angel, come here" Gideon says as he holds me tighter. "Tell me what to do? Tell me how I can fix this for you?" he says and I manage a weak smile. My love for him grows even more than I thought possible with those words. He wants to fix this; he wants to step in and take the hurt away and make everything alright again.

I shake my head sadly, "There is nothing you can do, not until she starts thinking rationally again. I'll keep trying to make contact with her… maybe call Stanton, although I doubt he would take my calls at the moment after the last time we spoke" I say with a shrug.

I see a determined look in Gideon's eyes and I know he will take it upon himself to try and bridge the gap between myself and my mother.

I look up and see we have turned into a long winding driveway; Gideon follows my gaze and he looks at the enormous house appearing in front of us.

"Wow" I say as I look at my surroundings. A beautiful meadow with hundreds of spring flowers spreads out as far as the eye can see and in the distance I see the glint of the sea on the horizon. "It's beautiful here" I add and Gideon nods.

"It is certainly very impressive" he says simply.

I see that the car in front of us has stopped, Christian has climbed out and is opening Ana's door. She turns and sees our car and I suddenly need to be with my sister. I pull away from Gideon and as the car stops, I jump out running towards her blurting out what has just happened with my mother…

I pull my thoughts back to Ana and the situation with her mother, this isn't about me. I need to be there to support my sister.

"Now you know why I don't have anything to do with my mother" Ana says bitterly.

I shake my head, "I have to say, it takes a lot for me to be rendered speechless but what your mom said certainly managed it". I try and keep my tone light and it works as Ana lets out a small giggle.

She shakes her head sadly, "That was why I didn't want to talk to her, I knew she wasn't calling to see how I was and I just couldn't deal with her selfishness and ulterior motives. I thought she was calling because of who you are. My mom is motivated by money and the last time she decided she wanted a relationship with me was when Christian came into my life so I knew it was his bank balance which had provoked that. Knowing who you are and who you are married to would be too much of an opportunity for her to pass up on so I was expecting her to try and call at some point after what we did. I never expected her to call wanting me to reconnect her with Frank though".

"It appears we are both struggling with our moms at the moment" I say bitterly and Ana quickly remembers the events of earlier.

"Oh god, I'm sorry Eva. You were going to tell me what happened when your mom called you, come on let's sit down" Ana says her own hurt and upset forgotten as she focusses her full attention on me. Once again I feel a pang of guilt as my issues with my mother have invaded my thoughts and now this conversation, when I am supposed to be supporting Ana with her issues with her mom.

I wave my hand, "Don't apologise Ana, you never have to apologise to me". I look around and realise we are alone. "It appears we have been left to talk" I say and Ana looks around and smiles.

"They are good men; we are both lucky to have them" she says and I nod in agreement. "Now, spill… what happened?" she adds.

I realise I am not going to deflect this and so I take a deep breath and outline the conversation I had with my mom and what had happened and Ana listens and holds my hand as the tears start to fall from my eyes.

"This is totally out of character for her, she has always been so over bearing and over protective after what happened with…" I stop as I realise I am about to reveal the darkest moment in my past.

Ana looks at me carefully, "What happened with who? Did someone hurt you?" she asks with obvious concern.

I swallow hard, I don't want there to be any secrets between us after all we are sisters but that whole part of my life is incredibly hard for me to talk about.

The difficulty I am having is clearly showing on my face as Ana wraps her arm around me. "Hey, it's ok if you are not ready to tell me what happened, if you don't want to tell me that's fine" she says.

I bury my head in her shoulder and wrap my arms around her, "I was raped" I whisper. I feel Ana stiffen and she holds me even tighter and rubs my back offering me her unconditional love and support.

This simple action gives me the confidence to open up and tell her. "I was ten, and I was raped by my then step brother – Nathan. That was the first time, I lost count of how many times he forced himself on me. He told me he would kill me if I told anyone, and I believed him as he murdered my cat and left her body on my bed when I came close to breaking and telling my mom. It all came out when I was fourteen. I didn't realise but Nathan had got me pregnant and I suffered a miscarriage, there was so much blood, too much for an ordinary monthly period and my mother took me to the hospital. The doctors discovered the damage inside me that he had caused and because it was a miscarriage… and my age of course, they suspected abuse. The authorities were called and it all came out. My mom was brilliant throughout that whole time, she didn't hesitate. She divorced her husband - the man she was happy with and got me out of there. But she was drowning in guilt and she became overbearing and over protective as a result of that. She suffocated me, so much so that I went to live with my dad for a while. I was dealing with the trauma of the years of abuse, the miscarriage and then my mom stalking me and I rebelled, I just went wild. I was so out of control, it's not a time I am proud of, but going to live with my dad was the best thing I did as he got me the help I needed".

Ana is silently listening and letting me speak, "So, your dad knew what happened to you?" she asks quietly.

I shake my head, "No, well when I say that he does now but not back then. Although I'm sure that he knew something bad had happened because I was so out of control, I mean he is a cop so I think he knew something had happened to me but he didn't ask me outright. He didn't judge me for my bad behaviour, he just got me the help I needed. He found out a few years ago. Gideon and I hadn't been together long and Nathan had been released from prison and came to New York looking for me. I didn't know, until the police came knocking on my door telling me that Nathan had been found dead in a hotel room in New York and he had… he had photographs he had taken of me and he had notes on me, he had my address and my daily routine… it was clear that he was stalking me". I stop speaking and swallow hard as I remember that time. I pause as I consider what I am going to say next as there is no way I am going to reveal that Gideon was responsible for Nathan's death. Nathan had confronted him and threatened him that if he didn't leave me he would kill him, as it had all recently come out in the media that we were seeing each other and that was how Nathan had found me in New York. Gideon hadn't taken kindly to being threatened and knowing who Nathan was and what he had done he'd taken the opportunity to get in there first and permanently remove him from my life. But that is a secret which has to stay between myself and my husband.

"The police showed up, while my dad was in New York visiting me. He saw the reaction on my face when Nathan's name was mentioned. When I explained who Nathan was and that he was a former step brother my dad started putting things together, it wasn't hard for him to join the dots with what the police told us about what they had found in his hotel room along with when Nathan was my step brother and what I was like when I went to live with him. He's a cop and so it's his job to join the dots. I think at that point he realised that Nathan had done something bad to me in the past… and because he's a cop he managed to do some digging and found all the reports and Nathan's juvenile record which had been sealed, but when he died dad was able to access it. It was all there in black and white what he did to me… it nearly broke him". I stop speaking and shake my head as I try and rid the memories of that time from my mind.

"Oh Eva, I don't know what to say, but console yourself with the fact that your mom believed you, she believed you and when she did know what was going on she didn't hesitate to support you and do everything in her power for you to get your justice".

I stare at Ana, her words remind me of Gideon, when he told me that his mother didn't love him enough and how she had continually tried to deny that anything had happened to her son. I know Gideon had confided in Christian what had happened to him as he had told me afterwards, and for a moment I am filled with anger that Christian had betrayed the trust my husband had placed in him and he had told Ana Gideon's story. I open my mouth to confront her when what she says next has me quickly swallowing my words.

"My mother took me to live with a violent sexual predator and she didn't believe me when I tried to tell her what he was like".

I stare at my sister in shock, oh my god not Ana as well?! "What happened?" I ask gently, my anger evaporating and compassion quickly replacing it.

Ana takes a deep breath and I see a pained look in her eyes as she is remembering that point in her life. "Ray married mom, and raised me. But I'm certain all the way through that relationship she cheated on him. She was never there for me and she didn't behave like a mom should. I didn't really notice as I was growing up as I always had Ray. He was always there, always the stable influence in my life. I just assumed all moms were like mine. They went out and didn't really care about their families. It didn't matter to me as I knew I could always count on my dad. He was always the one who came to school functions and who took care of me when I was ill, mom was just someone who lived in the same house as us". She pauses and I see the sadness in her eyes intensify as she says that.

"Anyway, as I say I'm fairly sure she cheated on dad throughout their relationship but then she met Stephen". She pauses again and I remember her brief comment about Stephen when we first met. I realise that this man hurt her in some way. I send up a silent prayer that she wasn't violated and wait for her to speak.

"He turned moms head, promised her the earth and she fell for it. She didn't think twice about divorcing dad and she said she was leaving with Stephen and going to live in Texas. I assumed she said that because she was leaving me behind as well but she insisted that I went with her. I didn't want to go, there was something about him I didn't like. I begged her to let me stay with dad but she didn't listen and so off we went to Texas. The day I went dad gave me a cell phone, nothing fancy just a small basic one and told me that if I needed him I was to use it. It was a big thing for him to do and I knew that it cost him money which I know he didn't really have to spare. We went and as soon as we arrived in Texas Stephen started showing his true colours. He was abusive and violent; he was emotionally abusive towards me calling me fat and stupid and he was physically abusive towards my mom. He would hit her and I'm fairly certain he raped her too. Mom got a job as a waitress and she worked long hours, which left him alone with me more and more. He was a heavy drinker and I just kept out of his way and locked my bedroom door. One night he cornered me in the kitchen, he started touching me. His hands were everywhere and he pressed himself against me and I could feel that he… he was aroused. He was drunk and I knew that if I didn't do something it wouldn't end well for me. Dad had taught me self defence and he'd taught me to shoot…" she pauses and smiles proudly, "I'm a crack shot" she says.

"I tried to get away from him, but his hands were everywhere. Thankfully though I managed to escape but I knew I had to tell mom. I wanted to go home to dad. I told my mom and she accused me of making things up because I wasn't happy in Texas and she said that I loved Ray more than I loved her. I told her I did because he had always been there for me, she didn't like that and said that Ray was nothing to do with me anymore and I should forget about him. I phoned my dad that night and told him everything and he promised me that he would wire me the money to get myself a plane ticket to get myself out of there. He promised me that he would try and get the money together as quickly as he could and I believed him as I knew he wouldn't let me down. It only took him about a week to get the money together and send it to me, which surprised me as I was expecting it to take much longer, but he did it. In that time things got worse with Stephen, even though mom didn't believe me she still confronted him and asked him about my allegations and that made him worse, he wouldn't leave me alone. I checked my bank account every day hoping to see the money in there so I could leave, but I knew it would take my dad a while to get that sort of money together so I really wasn't expecting it to be there. The day the money came through I was shocked to see it so soon but also so relieved and I planned my escape. I was about to go when I heard Stephen coming in, he was drunk as usual and he saw me with my bags and asked me where I was going. I told him I was going home to my dad and he tried to grab me. He said he was going to get what he wanted from me before I went. He grabbed me and tried to undo my jeans but I struggled and fought him. I kneed him in his privates and as he buckled I just grabbed my bags and ran. I made it to the airport and got on the first flight to Washington. I called my dad and told him what was happening and when I arrived dad was waiting for me. He took me to the police and we reported Stephen and my dad started custody proceedings to get sole custody of me. Thankfully because he had legally adopted me it was fairly straightforward… I didn't realise it at the time but it was Christian's dad who took his case. He had befriended my dad, after dad had made some furniture for him and when dad went to him asking him for help and advice on what he should do and who could help him, he didn't hesitate and took the case himself pro bono".

I stare at Ana in surprise, I am relieved that, that animal didn't rape her but I am shocked at what she went through, not having the support of your own mother is a concept which is alien to me.

"Mom called constantly and hurled abuse down the phone at me and at dad but we recorded everything and it all helped with the case against her. In the end she just gave up, she realised that if she didn't have to bother with me she was free to pursue her own selfish life and that is exactly what she did. As a matter of courtesy I informed her when I graduated from high school and when I graduated from college but she never showed up to either. She got in touch again when the news broke about Christian and I. I knew it was Christian's money that she was interested in and not me so I told her where to go, that was three years ago and the last time we spoke until she called tonight".

"Wow" I say. I am feeling overwhelmed by everything she has told me.

I see Ana is thinking about something, and she reaches for me and looks at me hesitantly. "Would you like me to try and speak to your mom?" she asks.

I stare at her in shock, "You'd do that?" I ask and she nods enthusiastically.

"Of course I would, you are my sister. Plus, I was thinking if she isn't accepting your calls then there is also a very good chance that she won't accept Gideon's either. She doesn't know me, so I have the advantage that she may take my call and once I have her on the line, I'm hoping she will hear me out".

I let out a small snort, "I wouldn't hold your breath, she had worked herself up into a fit of hysterics when she called earlier".

Ana grins at me, "Oh I'm used to dealing with irrational people and talking them around to my way" she says cryptically.

I look questioningly at her, and she smiles again, "Let's just say being married to Christian has its moments, there are times when I have to talk him down off the ledge. Admittedly it doesn't happen as often as it used to, but when we first got together he was quite overbearing and very irrational. He over reacted a lot and over time I learnt how to manage him and his more challenging behaviour".

I am shocked, as Christian always comes across as so cold, calm and aloof. I can tell he loves Ana dearly but he doesn't strike me as the type to have an emotional meltdown. Then I think about Gideon and the public mask he wears - the impassive cold CEO, very similar to Christian's demeanour. The media in New York had nicknamed him the iceman and I had laughed as that couldn't be further from the warm and loving man I knew. My mind goes back to the offer Ana has made and I smile at her.

"You can try, we have nothing to lose but I warn you it won't be easy" I say.

As I say this the door opens and I see Christian hesitantly looking inside. I smile at him and he pushes the door wider and enters the room and as he does so Gideon follows along with Ray.

"How are you baby?" Christian asks Ana as he makes a beeline for her. She assures him she is fine as Gideon moves towards me.

"Everything ok Angel?" he asks me and I nod.

"Everything is fine, Ana has offered to call my mom and see if she can reason with her" I say.

Gideon's eyebrows rise, "Really? I tried to call your mom while you two were talking but it appears she has blocked my number as well. I tried calling Stanton and he didn't pick up so there may be a chance she won't respond to Ana" he says.

Ana shakes her head, "I can't see how, she doesn't know me or have my number so the only way she wouldn't answer is if she doesn't answer unknown numbers".

"It's worth a try" Christian says.

Ana reaches for her phone and she looks at me expectantly. I realise she is waiting for me to tell her my mom's phone number. I rattle it off to her and she quickly taps it into her phone. I watch closely as she listens and as the call is connected she places it on speaker so we can all hear what is said.

"Hello". I hear my moms breathy voice and I close my eyes. Immediately Gideon is sitting beside me and wrapping me in his arms.

"Hello Mrs Stanton, you don't know me but I am calling on behalf of your daughter Eva. Please hear me out, my name is Ana Grey and I just wanted to talk to you and see how you are after what must have been a shock when you saw us talking to the media earlier".

There is a long silence and I hear my mothers breathing increasing and I know she is working herself up again. Ana also hears it and quickly jumps in once more.

"Please don't get upset Mrs Stanton, I know this is all very upsetting and with hindsight we should've given you a heads up about what was going to happen and I can only apologise that we didn't. But the situation we found ourselves in was evolving so rapidly that we just reacted to it. We are all trying to deal with a lot of information at the moment and a number of revelations which have come out regarding Frank Lambert, and having met the man today and realising what an unpleasant character he is and how deluded he is. We felt it was necessary to shut him down before he fed any more lies to the media and made the situation worse. You should know that he was the one who initially broke the news to the media that he was our biological father so we had no alternative but to do what we did. We believed that by confirming and then giving the detailed response that we did it would focus the media attention on him and his actions rather than us and our wider family… including you".

There is a long silence and then my mother speaks, "Well… when you put it like that, I didn't realise I was just so upset. I never expected Eva to do something like that. I know exactly what Frank Lambert was like, he was all charm until he got what he wanted. As soon as I discovered I was pregnant with Eva he transferred to another unit and…" she trails off and I hear a sob.

"I know he did and it was wrong, do you remember two marines coming to tell you that Frank had gone?" Ana asks gently.

"Yes, they were very nice men. They came to see me and they looked out for me for a while. They stopped when I started my relationship with Victor" she says and she lets out another small sob.

Ana smiles, "Well that was Jose Rodriguez senior and Raymond Steele, I know both men personally and Raymond Steele raised me as his own after Frank abandoned my mother. Jose Rodriguez is also known to me and he is a lovely man".

"I see, and you say Frank came to see you?" my mother asks.

I hear Ana sigh, "Yes he did" she says. She patiently explains everything, going right back to the email she received from Finding Family, meeting me in Chicago and the revelation that Frank was actually alive and well, and that he was responsible for previously sending a manuscript to be published. She explains everything right up to the point of what happened today and how we confronted Frank and everything that was said. When she has finished there is a long, stunned silence.

"I had no idea, I haven't spoken to Eva since all this came out when Victor got shot… is Eva there with you now?" she asks.

Ana smiles and looks at me, the tears are now rolling unchecked down my cheeks as I smile gratefully at my sister. Gideon is silently sitting beside me just holding me tightly.

"She is, would you like to speak to her? I'm certain you both have a lot you want to say to each other" she says.

"I would yes… and thank you… thank you Ana for explaining everything to me" my mother says.

"Not at all Mrs Stanton it was my pleasure" Ana replies kindly.

"Monica, please call me Monica" my mother says, "and I'm sorry that he used your mother as well" she adds.

"Ok Monica, and don't worry about my mom. In her case I think the manipulation was probably mutual" Ana replies, and I can't help but notice the bitterness in her tone as she mentions her mother.

Ana looks across at me once more and I smile at her gratefully, "I'm passing you over to Eva now, just listen to each other and talk to each other," she says and the look she gives me as she says that tells me that is a message for me as well as my mom.

I mouth the words thank you as Ana stands and hands her phone to me.

"I'm handing you over now Monica" Ana says.

"Eva? Eva are you there?" my mother asks and I hear that she is now crying.

"I'm right here mom and I'm sorry" I say.

"So am I honey, so am I" she says.

I look up to see Ana, Christian and Ray slipping from the room leaving me to talk with my mom, Gideon as I expected remains stoically at my side and although he hasn't said a word his hold on me increases slightly and he doesn't have to say anything as his actions speak for him.