Revenge of Cornelius (7 page)

"Mama, I don't want Rosie to leave.
Please, can she stay with me?"

Andrea stared at him for a few
moments. "She would have only been gone for a little while,
honey."

"No, Mama. I want her to stay!" he
pleaded.

"Okay." Andrea sighed. "I'll turn on
the TV for you guys. You can just watch TV for a while."

"Don't worry, Mrs. Benjamin. I'll take
good care of Alex," Rosie stated—the sincerity in her voice brought
about an unexpected smile to the woman's face.

Andrea patted Rosie's arm. "Thanks,
dear. You're so nice." She went over and switched on the television
before leaving the room.

* * *

Mira looked at her reflection in the
mirror. The blue, fish-shaped, dangling earrings complimented the
light-blue pants outfit she was wearing. She was ready to go and
expected Bobby to show up at any minute. Her mother was elated when
she heard they were actually going on a date, although Mira made it
clear to her that it wasn't a real date - just lunch.

"What are you
doing?"
She shook her head slowly, still
staring back at herself. "
You know you
don't want to give him any false hope."
With that, Mira heard a vehicle pull up in front of the yard.
She snatched her purse from the bed and headed out front. The car
door slammed shut and she arrived at the kitchen door just before
Bobby had a chance to knock.

"Hi. Wow!" Bobby said with a surprised
look smothering his face. "You look…very nice."

"Thanks," Mira answered squarely. "We
ought to get going."

As she went to lock the door behind
them, they heard a car pull up on the driveway.

"It's your folks," Bobby
said.

He and Mira watched as Sara got out
from the driver's side and went over to help Michael out of the
car. She placed his arm across her shoulder and started to walk
with him. Bobby rushed over to help. He took the other
side.

"What's wrong?" Mira asked, quickly
re-opening the door of the house.

Michael looked extremely lethargic and
his eyes had a slightly pink hue that Mira hadn’t seen
before.

"Your father is just a little tired
right now, honey," Sara replied. "We're going to get him inside and
tucked into bed."

"But it's so early in the day. Dad,
are you all right?"

Michael nodded, but didn't say a word.
Mira followed as they helped him to his bedroom. Bobby returned to
the living room, moments later, and sat down on the
couch.

"Honey, could you give me a few
minutes alone with your father please?" Sara asked Mira. "I'll be
right out as soon as I'm done."

Mira's silence served as an
affirmative answer and Sara gently closed the door behind her. Mira
heard the deadbolt click. Massaging the nape of her neck, she
sauntered out to where Bobby was. "I wonder what's the matter," she
said. "Dad looked so weak and out of it."

"He probably didn't get much sleep
last night and just feels exhausted," Bobby submitted.

"I don't know." She sat next to him in
contemplation. "He hasn't looked like himself lately and all the
weight he's lost since the last time I saw him… I just don't
know."

They sat quietly until they heard the
bedroom door open, then shut softly again.

Sara joined them in the living room.
It suddenly seemed like she bore the weight of the world on her
shoulders.

"So, you two were on your way out I
see?" She tried unsuccessfully to sound upbeat.

"Mom, what's wrong with Dad?" Mira cut
to the chase.

"Is Rosie still at the Benjamins'
house?"

"Yes," Mira quickly answered the
question she knew her mother had posed to somehow avoid the
previous question.

"You two are dressed up so nicely. Why
don't you go on your way and we can talk when you get back, sweet
pea? Your father just needs some rest and he'll be fine in a few
hours. Trust me."

Mira turned to Bobby. "Bobby, I'm
sorry, but I can't go."

"Mira!" Sara exclaimed.

Mira was still looking at Bobby. "If
you want, we can do this another time. I'm really
sorry."

"Uh…sure. Sure, we can. It's no
problem." He got up. "Call me later?"

"Sure."

Sara sighed. "Bobby…"

"It's all right, Mrs. Cullen. Ya'll
have a good day, now."

"You too, Son," Sara replied
sadly.

After Bobby left, Mira stood up and
faced her mother.

"You're keeping something from me.
What's wrong with Dad?"

Mira's question was greeted by an
eerie silence, then Sara turned away and sat down on the sofa. She
patted the cushion next to her and Mira sat there.

"Sweet pea, there's something I need
to tell you."

Mira felt her heart sinking at that
moment. Her gut told her that what she was about to hear would not
be good.

Sara took her daughter's hand into
hers and sighed heavily. "Honey, your father is very sick. He's
been for some time now."

She had Mira's full
attention.

"I wanted to tell you and your brother
so badly, but your father absolutely forbade me."

"Tell us what, Mom?"

Sara's expression revealed that she
was searching for the 'right' words. With a look that ushered a
wave of sadness in the space between them, she said: "Your father
has stage four lung cancer, dear."

Mira stared back in utter
shock.

"His chance for survival isn't good at
all," Sara added.

"What?" Mira shook her head slowly as
if trying to line up the jumbled thoughts in her mind in some
particular order. "Are you saying he's going to die?"

Sara saw the tears quickly forming in
her daughter's eyes, the sight of which pierced her heart.
"Anything is possible, dear. By some miracle, your father could
recover."

"We're not talking miracles, Mom. At
this point of the illness, could Dad die? Tell me straight up
'cause I need to know!"

Sara shut her eyes, then looked at
Mira again.

"Yes, honey. The tumor is malignant.
The disease is terminal. I'm so sorry, honey. I'm so sorry." No
longer able to hold back her own tears, she pulled Mira close and
they embraced tightly. "I wanted so badly to tell you and Wade what
was going on, but I couldn't dishonor your father's wishes. He
didn't want anyone pitying him and was determined to only reveal
what was happening once his condition started to deteriorate. I'm
afraid he's at that point now."

Mira pulled away. "How long have you
two been hiding this from us?" she asked.

"It's only been a few months since we
found out." Sara started to dry her tears.

"But Dad's been complaining about back
pain. Does that have anything to do with the cancer?"

"Yes. It's because of the size of the
tumor and where it's situated. The disease has also progressed to
his bones now." Sara explained.

"But how could he have lung cancer?
Dad never smoked."

"You're right. He never did, but he
does have a genetic predisposition to it."

"This can't be happening." Mira stood
up, combing her fingers through her hair. "This just can't be
happening! And regardless of what Dad wanted, how could you keep
such a secret from his own children for so long?"

Sara could see that Mira's sadness was
now intermingled with anger. She stood up as well.

"Mira, I know you find this
difficult to understand and I'm sure your brother will too, but
Michael—your dad—is my husband. We've been married for thirty years
and I love him. I've loved him before you and Wade ever came along
and I have to respect his wishes above all—no matter how
unreasonable they seem to be. He doesn't have much time left with
us and he didn't want to cause you and Wade, and the grandchildren
so much sorrow before he passed. That's why he chose to wait until
the time was getting closer. You may think it was quite selfish of
your father, but in my eyes, it's probably the most
selfless
thing he has
ever done. He did it for you all—not for himself. It's okay if
you're mad at me, but don't be upset with your father."

Mira tried her best to restrain the
tears, but they kept defying her. She hugged her mother again. "I'm
not mad at you or Dad, Mom. I know you would never go against his
wishes. I'm so sorry."

"Don’t be, honey." She cupped Mira's
face. "Now look. We'll all get through this together as a family,
all right?"

Mira nodded. "This must have been so
hard on you."

"Your father's the one who's had the
toughest time. On top of dealing with the illness, he had to keep
up with his 'tough guy routine' to pretend that everything was
normal. Yes, it was difficult going along with that, but as I saw
how hard he was trying, I couldn't allow myself to be weak, sweet
pea. I had to be strong just like him."

Thinking back, Mira couldn't remember
admiring her mother more than she did that day. Her mother's love
for her father reminded her so much of Karlen Key's undying love
for Andy. She didn’t believe there was any possible way she could
love her mother any more than she did already, but in that moment,
it proved that she could — and she did.

Sara took Mira's hand and they sat
down again. "On the way here, your father told me that it was time
to let you guys know what was going on. I can't tell you how much
of a relief that was. I felt a huge burden lift up off my
shoulders, though simultaneously, a new one was descending because
I had to break the terrible news to you and your
brother."

Mira squeezed her mother's hand. "So
when will you tell Wade?"

"I'll call him when I think he's home
from work," Sara replied.

"What about chemotherapy? How's that
been going?"

"No chemo. Your father absolutely
refused. He says he's not going out feeling sicker than he already
feels sometimes. After the prognosis and having been told by Dr.
Leo that it was a one percent chance that he could survive the
disease, your dad decided that he wasn't going to do the
treatments."

"You didn't try to convince him
otherwise?" Mira asked.

"I did, but he totally rejected the
idea. Dr. Leo couldn’t persuade him either. You know how stubborn
your father can be."

"Yeah." Mira got up again.

"Where are you going?"

"For a walk."

"When are you getting Rosie?" Sara
asked.

"In a while. You think Dad's
asleep?"

"Yes. He took some of his prescription
meds - one of them tend to make him a bit drowsy."

Mira went to the bathroom and washed
her face, all the while feeling like she was in a bad dream.
"Rosie…" she uttered softly, looking into the large, oval mirror.
"How could I ever tell her that her Pops is dying? How could I?"
She covered her face with both hands as tears streamed vigorously
through the spaces of her fingers.

"Are you all right, honey?" Sara was
at the door.

Mira patted her face dry. "Yes. Yes,
I'm fine." She opened up and Sara could see the sadness on her
face.

"Are you going to be okay?"

"Yes, I will. Right now, it's Rosie
I'm worried about," Mira revealed.

"You don’t have to tell her anything
right now, Mira."

"You know she's very intelligent, Mom.
With Dad not feeling well and looking the way he did when he walked
through that door a while ago, Rosie would know that something's
not right."

"I understand, but listen… your father
doesn't want Rosie with this information just yet. He doesn't want
to spoil her trip—the precious moments he has left with her. Just
be strong for her, please. When it's time for her to be told, we'll
all know."

Mira considered her mother's plea. She
ultimately agreed.

* * *

The sky appeared completely starless
as the moon gave off its light. An eerie stillness had found its
way there once again. Lying next to her husband, Andrea Benjamin
gazed outside through the open window at the blackness which seemed
better to her than closing her eyes to sleep. She glanced over at
Theo who had drifted off long ago into a welcoming dreamland or
perhaps a dreamless sleep. How unlucky Andrea felt as night-time,
as of late, had proven to be one of her greatest
adversaries.

She felt a cold brush of wind sweep
past her, then another, then another, but she knew it was no
ordinary wind. It was them. They were there again. She inched
closer to Theo and pulled the covers up above her chest.

Another passed by, then another, then
another. Her head was darting in all directions hoping to get a
glimpse of them, but it was too dark and she was simply too afraid
to reach for the light. The last time proved a terrible mistake as
the deep gash had bled profusely for the longest time. Her fear was
tangible, thick and debilitating. Then…