Divorced! Now what?
Chapter 184

Felicity

POV

I have been worried about Nate taking the shot for Bethany, but I have been sick lately with the flu, and with Bethany and Pam pregnant, I have stayed away. However, I am better now and ready to learn how everyone is and what has happened in the past week or so since the weddings. Mum must be a mess after her lovely dress was ruined by blood. She hated her special dresses getting blemishes on them. I gave Dad a call.

'Hi Dad, are you home?' I was not sure if he would work at the surgery. He is more freelance now, not tied to the place. He sold a half share of his practice and is more of a silent partner, coming in when overloaded. I think Dad likes it this way; it gives him more time to do other stuff.

'Yep, I'm having today at home. Would you like to pop over?' His cheery tone was a relief to me, a sign that he was coping well despite the recent events. He always prided himself in having a safe home environment for all to enjoy, and to have someone shot in his backyard would have made him upset.

'Yes, I need to catch up on what has happened since the wedding. Is Mum home?'

'No, I will fill you in about her whereabouts, when you get here. Are you bringing Sam?' He sounded hopeful, and I wondered if he was warming up to Sam at last.

'Yep, we have a couple of days off; he caught the flu too, but we are both fine now, and we are milking a few more days off work to spend together.' Sam and I got in the car and headed to Dad's place; I grabbed a peach cobbler from the local bakery and hoped we would have some afternoon tea and, if lucky, stay for dinner. I'm hopeful that Mum will be in a good mood; she seems increasingly cranky whenever I visit. At first, I thought she was getting old, which was part of aging, but then I blamed it on my engagement. But I do not know, and she seems okay with my sisters. Or I am reading too much into it, and I happen to be there visiting on an off day.

When we arrived, we saw several cars in the driveway. Did Dad have visitors? Why would you say come over?

I walked in without knocking and thought, should I have knocked? It was no longer my home, but I was in now, and I walked towards the laughter coming from the lounge.

'Hi, Bob, Pam, Theo, Bethany, Dad.' I rattled off their names as I headed to Dad for a hug and kiss.

They said hi back to me, and I sat on the lounge; Sam took the cobbler to the kitchen.

'Where's mum?' I asked, looking around the room at everyone.

'Your mother is in jail, sweetheart. Dad said and I frowned Jail?'

'Tell me, Dad, what is going on? I have only been out of touch a little while.

'Let me tell you all I know. Dad went on to tell me about Mum and the syndicate, then about my sisters not being his daughters, and how they too are in jail, and a lot of other stuff that has blown my mind. I always knew that Mum and Dad no longer shared a bedroom, but I had not realized that their marriage was not real. That must have been shattering for him, and I never really got on that well with Mum, often on her wrong side. Now, could it be because she knew I was Dad's daughter? These questions I will never have answered.

'The shooter died, so he is not going to come back for a second try. we were still unsure who he was aiming for. We assumed Bethany, but it could have been any of us! Dad said, bringing me back to our conversation. 'Are you going to stay living here Dad?'

'Yep, Bob and Bethany are just up the street, and I have two grandchildren on the way. Soon, the house will be filled with five babies, and when Thomas visits, that makes six.

'Hey, back up, two babies, five babies. Care to explain that?' I was shocked to learn who had had that many babies. I know both Pam and Bethany are pregnant, but five babies?

'Bethany is expecting twins, and Pam has three cooking in there.' Dad pointed to Pam's belly, but I failed to see three babies.

'Wow, a lot has happened in a week. I joked, gaining the laugh I had been hoping for.

'Nate is home under the care of a nurse, and I am a phone call away if he needs us.'

'That is great news, I was afraid to ask. I am so relieved that Nate survived, and what a heroic, selfless act he performed.

Jacko said during questioning your mother and sisters that she was pressured into being with the syndicate, that the wedding group was a lark at first until she met up with the wrong crowd at one of the weddings, and things went south from there.' 'Dad, I do not care why she was involved; she could have spoken to you instead of using your doctor skills, talked to Jacko or Bob, and don't tell me she did not know then. Others were around; I know a bunch of cops and judges were bad, but you weren't bad and knew cops that weren't. She could have asked you for help. Instead, she dragged Cindy and Margaret into it and dragged them down too. Theo groaned out.

'Hey, Theo, you got that part wrong. Cynthia met Margaret at the school she was sent to, and they spent a year together. Cynthia dragged Margaret into it. They shared a flat together. I was in advanced schooling while Cynthia was in a catch-up school. Besides, Margaret chose to do that fancy dancing on weekends when she had a good restaurant to run. Don't put it all on your Mum's shoulders, and I think Margaret was a lost cause the moment she teamed up with Cynthia! Bethany said, defending my Mother, which I had not expected from her.

'You're right; Margaret made her own choices like Cindy did. Cindy liked the attention she gained, even from an early age. I forgive Mum for getting stuck, and she should have asked for help, even if she lost her girls to it. But she should never have got so many other innocent ones involved. That part I am not sure I can forgive! Theo said, and I thought about that for a moment, and yeah, pulling innocent women and young men into that was so wrong, and nothing you can tell me will make what she did to those innocent ones right.

'I agree, Theo. I forgive her for not being Dad's wife and cheating on her real husband with Dad, but I won't forgive her for taking innocent people to those depraved ones to use them as they felt fit. I saw some of the women mother brought home for Dad to fix that was disgusting, and to say it was because of spousal abuse, it was not all that, and that is why she is in jail because she deserves to be. I say, gaining more and more anger as I talk.

'My mother and sister were no better; I understand how you feel; we are lucky we have a good dad, and they need us more than anything now. Stay strong, Felicity; your Dad needs your love and understanding. Bethany said, and I looked over at Dad shocked that I should be reminded that it has not been just us that is in this, but Dad is hurt too. He lost two children he thought were his and a wife. Well, he had never loved her in years, and I had hoped he would leave her, but he never did.

I got up from where I was sitting, sat on Dad's lap, and hugged him so tight.

'I love you, Dad.' I whispered in his ear and kissed his cheek. He squeezed me tight and let me return to Sam, who pulled me to his lap.

'Now all the emotional stuff is down. Who is for a coffee and that peach cobbler.' I say, getting off Sam's lap and heading to the kitchen.

'We can order takeaway for dinner if you wish to stay and talk some more; Bethany and I live here until our house is done. Do you want to stay the night with us?' Theo offered, and I looked at Sam, who nodded in agreement.

'Yeah, that would be good. Some family bonding is needed.' I disappeared into the kitchen, and it felt odd not having Mother in here complaining about something or other, and I smiled because she wouldn't be making me feel like I was in the wrong ever again.