Hidden Heart (38 page)

“
I’m sorry I put you
through this, sir,” Tessa said, addressing the mayor. “I wish I
didn’t have to show you the photos. Nor did I intend to add more
suffering to your family. But I owed this to myself and to your
daughter, who became the victim of the same person. It’s time to do
the right thing.”

The mayor stood in slow
motion, looking a hundred years older. He took Tessa’s extended
hand, then pulled her into a hug and whispered into her ear, “I
wish my daughter had a friend like yours, maybe she would’ve
survived.”

Tessa smiled, then walked
out of the house. She stopped outside the door, a light breeze
ruffling her hair. She looked at the dark sky with its glittering
stars, then heard barks close by. The guard approached, keeping the
dogs on a short leash.

When she entered the
mayor’s house, Tessa hoped her heartbreaking story would somehow
convince the mayor to do what was right. When she left his house,
Tessa felt enlightened, a sense of total control over her life
and
closure
—all
she’d wanted since her life had been shattered months
ago.

“
Let me take you home, Mr.
Popescu,” she said once in the car.

They drove in silence the
short distance to the farmer’s house. When she stopped the car, she
looked sideways at him and said, “I’m sorry it took so long. I hope
he’ll return the money.”

The farmer looked down at
his calloused hands and said,” I’m sorry I thought and spoke ill of
you. I thought you were like everyone else out there, lying to us
and shallow… That man…the one that did those things to you...I
never wished anyone harm, but I hope he rots in hell.” He got out
of the car and walked to his gate, never once looking
back.

Tessa drove back home. She
felt sorrow and guilt for surviving when her baby and the notary
didn’t—both killed at the hands of the same man. But she also felt
a sense of accomplishment, joy washing over her. Her life would
never be the same, but at least she was back on track.

She looked at her watch;
seven-thirty. When she stopped at the next light, she rummaged in
her purse and pulled out the piece of paper she wrote her father’s
number on.

She dialed the number. As
if someone were standing right by the phone waiting for it to ring,
she heard after one ring a strong, deep voice, “Hello?”

Tessa swallowed hard,
willing her voice to remain steady. “Hi, I’m sorry to bother you…
is this Mr. Mincu?”

“
Tessa, is that
you?”

Chapter 21

Tessa
arrived on time for the French supermarket opening. She parked
her car, and remained seated for a few seconds, hoping her heart
wouldn’t explode and her hands would stop shaking. Seeing everyone
again made her nervous, but that wasn’t the only reason. After the
opening she’d meet her biological father for the first
time.

They’d talked several times
since she’d made the first call after the visit to the mayor’s
house. Both nervous, they barely knew what to say to each other
that first time. She gave him her phone number and two days later,
he’d called back and this time the conversation lasted a bit
longer. It broke the ice, it seemed and since then, they talked on
a regular basis. He told her he was anxious to see her, but if she
wasn’t ready yet, he’d wait. Last night she called him and said,
“I’m ready,” and planned to visit him after the opening
ceremony.

For the special day, she
picked a tweed dress with a scoop neck, short sleeves and contoured
waist, her mama’s pearl necklace, matching ear studs and bracelet.
She put on subtle make-up, twisted her hair in a thick loop at the
nape of her neck and felt as ready as she’d ever be.

Tessa got out of the car,
locked it and looked around for familiar faces. She spotted Victor
and Dina and walked their way.

“
Kiddo, so good to see
you,” Victor said, kissing her cheeks and hugging her tight. “I
knew you wouldn’t let me down,” he said, releasing her.

“
Glad to be here,” Tessa
said and when Dina hugged her she whispered, “I’m seeing Adrian
this afternoon.” By the look on Dina’s face she knew she shocked
her. “I’ll tell you more tomorrow,” she said, giving Dina a thumbs
up.

“
Tessa, oh my, I haven’t
seen you in ages,” Elena, Victor’s daughter, said.

When Tessa turned around,
she saw Elena approaching with her husband Marcel holding the baby.
They hugged and Tessa asked to hold the baby.

“
Wow, what a big boy you
are,” she said and the baby smiled happily, trying to catch her
necklace. Tessa looked at Victor who stood across from her, his
chest bulging with pride, then at the baby and said, “I’m glad you
don’t look like your grandpa,” then burst into laughter.

“
Oh dear, only you could’ve
said something like this and still be alive,” Dina leaned towards
her, pretending to look the other way.

Victor’s face reddened and
his pointed finger threatened to poke at her. “You better take
those words back; either you’re completely blind or you just want
to annoy me, but I’ll—”

“
Good afternoon
everyone.”

Tessa looked over her
shoulder and saw Alessandro standing right behind her. She turned
to face him and smiled, still holding and rocking the baby. To her
relief, he was alone.

“
Hi,” everyone said and
Alessandro did the round of hugging and shaking hands, leaving
Tessa for last. When her turn came, he just stood in front of her,
looking grave and struggling to swallow. His jaw clenched, his
eyebrows drawn together. He brushed a hand through his hair, bowed
and Tessa thought for a second that he’d kiss her over the baby’s
head. She tilted her chin upwards, stopped rocking the baby and
waited. But the kiss never came. Alessandro caressed the baby’s
head, then took his chubby hand and caressed it. “Hello, little
man,” he said, smiled at the baby and walked away.

Tessa felt her face on
fire, her heart melting. Her humiliation was bitter. She was
mortified by her expectation—why would he kiss her, when she had
sent him away? She looked around their group, but no one seemed to
observe what just happened.

Former colleagues, all
asking questions and eager to see her, surrounded them soon. She
smiled and replied politely, confirming the story Victor had told
everyone about her having been in a car accident and so badly
injured, she couldn’t return to work. She decided she wasn’t quite
ready to open up to everyone about the truth, especially during the
party.

Monsieur Deuvault seemed
really pleased to see her and didn’t leave her side for a while. He
asked her to do the honor and help him cut the yellow ribbon along
with Victor and the city’s mayor, Mr. Neculai.

Reporters interviewed and
photographed them as a group, everyone speaking loud, everyone
sounding excited.

“
Ms. Cosma, I’m glad to see
you again,” the mayor said. He handed her a glass of champagne and
inclined his head.

“
Me too, sir. I have to
admit your press conference following my visit came as a surprise.
Many farmers called, thanking me for convincing you to return their
money. It must’ve been very hard on you to admit publicly your
daughter’s mistake…”

“
Indeed, it has been hard,
especially being in the public eye and scrutinized as much as I am.
But, at least I was able to undo some of her wrong-doing; I hope
the community will forgive her—in time.”

“
I’m sure they will. Time
heals a lot. Give your wife my best,” Tessa said and shook his
hand. A bodyguard whispered something into the mayor’s ear, and
then they left together.

Tessa turned to see
Monsieur Deuvault and Victor in discussion with Alessandro. Victor
waved at her and when she walked towards them, Alessandro looked
her way, said something and then shook their hands, leaving before
she reached them. It looked as he left only to avoid
her.

“
Where did he go?” Tessa
said, looking after Alessandro.

“
He needs to catch his
plane; he’s going to Italy for a few days,” Victor said matter of
fact. “Monsieur Deuvault was telling me about this awesome resort
on the French Riviera; let’s see if we can make some vacation
arrangements.”

Tessa smiled and listened
to the conversation, but her annoyance grew by the minute.
Alessandro didn’t have any reason to be so rude to her, first
embarrassing her in front of everyone while she held the baby, and
now when he took off like a shot.
What’s
his problem?

Alessandro arrived at the
airport within fifteen minutes. The plane was scheduled to depart
in an hour and he rushed to check in. He walked distractedly
through the tunnel into the waiting area, sat and pulled a
newspaper out of his bag, but the rows seemed to dance in front of
him replaced by Tessa’s image, holding Victor’s grandson. When he
first saw her, he almost ran to her, an unbearable need to hold her
temporarily clouding his judgment.

For a moment, he thought
she held
their
baby, the baby she’d lost, and the grief overwhelmed him. What
hurt the most was her refusal to acknowledge the loss; to talk with
him openly about the baby—as much a part of him as it was part of
her. He tried to understand her need for time and not wanting him
anymore, but didn’t he deserve closure, too? His agony lasted too
long and he wanted nothing but to stop hurting.

He stood and walked to the
nearby bar area and ordered a glass of wine, then a second one. He
dialed Gabriela’s number and when she didn’t answer, he left her a
message, “
Ciao, bella
, I wanted to surprise you first, but…I’m on my way to Milano
with the plane arriving from Bucharest at ten o’clock. Don’t come
to the airport, it’s too late, but if you could, please wait for me
at home; I need to talk to you.”

Tessa drove to the address
her biological father gave her. She was a mess, so nervous, she
could hear her heart beating. First Alessandro angered her,
behaving like a spoiled child and now having to face the man that
was her only other living relative other than Octavia and Chiara.
She had promised them she’d call no matter how late she returned
home, both being too curious to see how her visit went.

She arrived at the upscale
neighborhood, with old, opulent houses well maintained. Tall, metal
gates marked each estate. Several houses had guards patrolling
outside the properties while others had security cameras installed
on every corner.

The address she looked for
was an enormous brick house remotely positioned from the main gate
and hidden behind bushy oak trees. She pressed the button on the
security panel and waited. A young voice asked who she was and
after saying her name, the gates opened; Tessa drove in and
followed the paved driveway to the house. The front door opened and
a young lady showed her inside.

“
Dr. Mincu will be with you
shortly,” the young woman said, disappearing through a door that
seemed to be part of the wall, covered in wood panels to the
ceiling.

Left alone, Tessa looked
around her. Rich marble flooring covered the first floor, up the
stairs and continued on the second floor. Two half-moon sets of
stairs opened into a large foyer with heavy wooden doors behind
each set of steps. An impressive painting of an Arabian horse with
a golden frame hung on the wall at the end of the stairs on the
left, while another painting, this time of a man reading on a sofa,
with a German Shepherd resting at his feet hung on the opposite
wall, next to the second set of stairs.

“
That’s my father, your
grandfather, before the war.”

She turned to see a tall
man, well-built for his age, staring at her. His rather buttery
voice had a unique timbre, a richness to it that sounded like a
whisper. His salt and pepper hair was neatly combed over his head,
a short-trimmed, completely white goatee around full lips, thin
nose and his eyes… Dina was right, she did inherit her father’s
eyes.

“
Adrian…sir…” Tessa
mumbled.

He came closer and looked
into her eyes, so deep as if he tried to read the back of her mind.
His eyes filled up with tears. He brushed a shy palm over her face,
barely touching it and said, almost forcing the words out of his
mouth, “Ana… God, you look so much like her…I wish…I wish I had
known about you…” He dropped his gaze on her pearl necklace and a
gasp escaped his lips.

Tessa instinctively raised
her hand and touched the pearls.

“
She kept them,” he said.
“She kept the whole set, the earrings, the bracelet, and now you’re
wearing it.”

“
You gave them to
her?”

“
Yes, I did. She loved
pearls and she always looked lovely wearing them.”

His shoulders slumped under
the weight of his emotions, but a weak smile spread over his face
and when he smiled, Tessa knew why her mama fell in love with
him.

Adrian seemed to recover
quickly and said, “Come, let us sit in the living room, we have so
much to talk about. I have a few things I want to show to
you.”