A Promised Fate (37 page)

“I understand being nervous but don’t be. Leaving is
safer than staying here. You aren’t doing anything alone – we'll be
together.”

“Maybe we should leave now. We can skip the gala,
pick up Max and head out tonight. If it is safer to leave, then I
think we should go right away.”

“I would, but it’s a seventeen-hour flight to Athens
and you are nine months pregnant, Ava. No one will let you get on a
plane right now. It’s not a safe move for the baby. I know we're
still two weeks out, but you can go into labor at any time. You
need to be by the hospital and by your doctor.”

“When we will be able to leave?”

“I don’t think you will get a release for travel from
your doctor until the baby is a few weeks old at least.”

She sighed. She was worried.

“We have enough security at home now that I think
we'll be okay until then. Once we have the baby, we can say quiet
goodbyes to family without them knowing and we can slip out one
night. We won’t need to take much with us. I will move some money
around and wire funds to a bank overseas. We can use the cash in
the safety boxes. There's about thirty thousand stashed away and I
can remove it without anyone’s knowledge. The cash will get us
where we need to go, and get us settled.”

“They’ll look for us. With all that's happened in the
last few months, your parents will call the police. We can’t leave
them with that much worry. We owe them so much more than that.”

“I’ll tell my dad, then. He'll understand and he can
tell my mother once we're gone. They won’t look for us; they’ll
want to protect our children just as much as we do.”

“Okay. As long as we're together.”

“Always.”

I edged the car towards the entry doors of the
gallery and we were promptly greeted by valet. “Remember to
breathe. Forget about everything for a while. Tonight is for fun.
You’re going to raise a ton of cash for
House to Home
and we
can leave whenever you like, or we can shut this place down. It’s
your call. Just promise to save one dance for me.”

“Deal.”

Our car doors opened without a moment’s hesitation
and we climbed out onto the path leading to the gallery doors.

Ava’s event was much classier than the fashion show I
had dragged her to a couple of months prior. No press gauntlet,
blinding flashes, or noisy interviews. There were two hired
cameramen in black tuxes positioned at the front entrance, one
camera for the society pages for
The Times
and a second man
taking photos for keepsakes that would be given to each couple in a
thank you card.

We entered and smiled warmly. Ava took in a shaky
breath and I re-linked her fingers with mine. “I promise not to let
go of this hand all night.” I squeezed her fingers tight. “Let’s
have fun.”

“Ava!” My father grinned from ear to ear. He was
obviously pleased with the outcome for the evening. “I can’t
believe what you’ve done here. Truly, you amaze me.” He was with my
mother and Margaux. Each of them kissed Ava’s cheek and squeezed
her free hand lovingly. My father refused to meet my eye. He hadn’t
taken any of my calls all week and when I dropped by the house, he
was in his study – too busy to talk.

Throughout the past months, Ava had shared all of the
details of this event with me, right down to the tableware. One
look at the gallery full of round tables covered with white linen
cloths, immaculate centerpieces, champaign flutes, and elegant
table settings told me that Ava’s extreme attention to detail had
certainly paid off big time. The space, usually pristine white
walls and stone floors, had been completely transformed into a
sophisticated and stylish area marked by crystal, soft candle light
and smooth white calla lillies.

The gallery was already filled with people mingling
and sipping champaign and more supporters trickled steadily through
the doorway every few seconds. Members of the string quartet were
warming up on their instruments and servers bobbed about the room
with platters of hors-d’oeuvres.

“Would you like to look at the photos?” Ava
suggested.

“Actually, yes, I would love to.”

“You’ll never guess what I was able to score for the
evening.” Ava talked excitedly as she walked towards a wall with a
stunning black-and-white photo of an oak tree.

“Is that a…”

“Ansel Adams, yes it is.” Ava beamed with twinkling
eyes at the rare and beautiful photo. “An art collector in San
Francisco is friends with Margaux and he donated the original print
for the auction!”

“Wow, Ava. That is fantastic.”

“Hmmm,” she mused proudly. “I think your dad has his
eye on it as a gift for your mother.”

“Would you like it?”

She immediately grasped the meaning of my question.
“Ari, don’t you dare get into a bidding war with your father. Let
them have it.”

“We’ll see.”

We continued to walk along the wall and admire the
various photographs up for auction. At last, we came to the wall
displaying the work from my mother. My mother's photography
generally focuses on people. She enjoys catching her subjects
un-posed and in the moment, believing that smiles are more genuine
when people don’t know a camera is on them. I couldn’t agree with
her more. In this grouping of photos, she chose some of her
favorite candid prints of the Greeks in our lives. On display,
right before my eyes, was a superb assemblage of my family
tree.

“Do you know anyone in these photos?” Ava asked and
she pointed to the wall.

“Yes, all of them.”

“Really?”

“Mmm.” I shook my head and pointed to a magnificent
close up shot of my beloved grandmother. “This is my Yaya Elodie,
my father’s mother, the picture was taken only a few weeks before
she passed away.” Her skin was tanned and full of deep lined
creases. Her eyes were large and midnight brown and her smile was
bright and happy.

“I like the name Elodie… we still need a girl
name.”

“Yes, it is a beautiful name, but my sister will have
our heads on a stake in our front yard if we name the baby after
Elodie. Lauren called dibs on the name years ago for her own
child.”

Ava frowned in disappointment.

“This photo, here, is my mother’s great aunt Gigi.
She used to smoke cigars with the men on Sundays and would drink an
entire bottle of Ouzo by herself, then she would pass out drunk on
a pool floatie on the deck.”

“Gigi?” Ava suppressed a giggle.

“Yes, Gigi, let’s not even consider naming our baby
after her.”

“Deal.”

“This here is Julia’s mother, Hera, and her father,
Troy, before they moved to Europe. This is Elodie’s mother, Koren
and her mother’s sister, Leoni. These men here,” I pointed to a
photo near the top of the wall, “are Basil and Dirke, my great
uncles on my father’s side.”

I came to the photo of my paternal grandfather. “This
is my Papus. This is Cal.”

Ava stared wide eyed at the photo, “Oh, Ari! I’ve
never seen a photo of him before! He was so handsome. You look just
like him – it’s unbelievable how closely you resemble one
another.”

“I was incredibly close with Cal. My grandfather was
truly an inspiring man. Family always came first to him. He opened
his home up to anyone in need, anyone who had a hardship or needed
help finding a path in life – he was there for all of them. His
love was powerful and always unconditional.”

“He sounds just like you. How old were you when he
passed away?”

“Thirteen.” My fingers fidgeted with the leather
strap on my watch. “It happened a few months after Julia moved in
with us. She took to Cal immediately and found comfort with him,
just as everyone did. He had this sort of magnetism that is hard to
explain. When he and Elodie died, Julia was devastated, completely
grief-stricken. Everything was still so raw for her – and then Cal
was gone. My dad didn’t speak to anyone for a number of weeks. I
remember feeling so much hate. I had never felt hate before until
that day. Cal's passing was a very dark time for our family.”

“That’s so sad. How did he die?”

“The Kakos. They got them both.”

Ava sucked in a breath at my words. “What do you
mean? Why would they have come for Cal and Elodie?”

“Elodie and Cal were the ones who took your father in
and raised him. They also took in Troy, Julia’s father. The wound
of your father’s death was still very raw to them and then after
Julia’s parents were murdered, Cal was blind with anger. He was so
infuriated with The Kakos' evil that he tried to kill one of them
out of rage for what they had done. He loved your dad and Troy as
he loved his own sons. Cal was unsuccessful at killing a Kakos, of
course and eventually, the man caught up to him and ended both my
Papus and Yaya’s lives. Their home was set on fire, and they were
both trapped inside, they weren’t able to escape. Their bodies were
reduced to ash. Very few of their possessions remained.” I gestured
to my watch. “This is all I have of him.”

Ava cuffed her palm over her mouth and closed her
eyes. “Oh, God. I’m so sorry.”

“My father has never been the same since. First your
dad, then Troy and Hera were murdered right in front of Julia and
then his own parents were taken from him, from us all. There was so
much loss and sadness and anger. It was after their death that he
really started his search for you. Finding you meant a lot to my
dad, it meant everything. You consumed him. I used to be so jealous
of you, Ava, so resentful of Baby, I probably even hated you – I
know Lauren did. My dad loved you so much more than he loved me, or
so I felt. I don’t think you will ever understand how important you
are to us. To my father, finding you was the only thing that
mattered to him. And now to me, keeping you safe is all that
matters.”

I pulled Ava to my chest as a sob broke from her
lips.

The sounds of violins, a viola, and a cello rose
artfully in the background and the gallery had completely filled up
with men in dinner suits and woman in elegant gowns. Everyone
wanted a moment of Ava’s time and she held my hand firmly while she
exchanged pleasantries and thanked each and every person for
attending the gala.

“Ladies and Gentlemen,” the MC spoke. “If you would
kindly take this moment to locate your seats, we would like to make
a few announcements before the night’s festivities begin.”

Ava led me to a table at the front of the room. We
sat together, hands still clasped, beside Margaux, my father and
mother, and my uncle Thais and my aunt Gianna.

Rory, Nick, August and Collin were all seated
together at a table directly behind us.

“The members of the
House to Home
organization
would like to start by saying how very thankful they are to have
you with them this evening.” The MC spoke smoothly from the podium.
“Please enjoy the sights, sounds and tastes before you and remember
first to drink up and then give from your heart.” The man paused
and people laughed. “All of the artwork you see here will be
auctioned off at a silent auction this evening. Your bidding number
is located on the back of your place card. We also have some truly
fantastic raffle prizes, including a romantic hot air balloon ride
for two, a private whale watching party aboard the lovely catamaran
Calliope, owned by the one and only Andy Alexander, and a fabulous
shopping spree right here in sunny California at the always
fashionable
baio
. All of the centerpieces at the tables are
available for auction as well as the…”

The MC talked on and Ava leaned over and whispered in
my ear, “Why didn’t you tell me all this beforehand? How come I
never knew about your grandparents? Or your father?”

“It’s not an easy subject for me. I should have told
you, but finding the words is a struggle. That was the first time I
think I have ever verbalized what had happened and how I felt about
the situation.”

“I’m sorry, Ari.”

“You killed the man responsible, Ava. It was No. 5.”
I stroked the slanted, inky line on her tally-marked wrist. You
gave him the same fate that he gave them, you don’t need to be
sorry, Baby. My world is good as long as I have you.”

The crowd applauded as the MC announced Margaux and
our attention was pulled back in to the evening’s affairs. She
stood up from the table. She smoothed her long satin gown and then
glided up to the podium.

“Good evening. I would just like to say a few short
words before the night gets away from me. My husband, Perry, was
the love of my life. He came to me over twenty-five years ago with
the idea for
House to Home
and he spent the rest of his life
dedicating his time, his passion and his love to the cause of
helping children. After Perry passed away, I was…devastated, not
only for my own loss but also for
House to Home’s
loss. I
truly did not believe that the center would be able to go on
without Perry’s devotion. As I stand here tonight and I look out at
this room full of eager and enthusiastic supporters, I can happily
admit to you that I was wrong. When I look into my granddaughter,
Ava’s eyes, I can see Perry living on through her. It is because of
Ava that hope of a better life is igniting in the hearts and souls
of more and more inner-city youths each day. On behalf of those
children, we thank you, Ava, for your tireless dedication to the
cause.” Margaux directed her eyes away from the crowd and focused
solely on my girl. “I know that Perry is smiling down on you. It is
because of you, Ava, that many of us are able to sit here this
evening, and on behalf of those people and myself, we thank
you.”

Margaux’s eyes were moist when she walked down from
the podium. The entire room applauded and Ava squeezed my hand with
as much strength as she could muster. Leaning in towards her, I
wiped an errant tear from her cheek and kissed her temple. My
father, who was seated next to Ava, wrapped his arm around her
shoulder and gave her a gentle squeeze.