Broken Pieces

Untitled Episode 13

Walking into my office, I jumped and screamed" What the hell? How did you get here? You scared the s**t out of me. Sorry, I didn’t mean to give you a heart attack. The guard let me in to see my fiancé. Great. I will have to fire the guard for getting tricked into letting strangers into my offices after hours. No need to fire the guard. I’m a very persuasive man, so I get my way. I can see that from you sitting in my office uninvited. Well, I haven’t heard from you since our last dinner. You have to stop calling me a stranger. What would you like to be called? I have already told you to call me Lorenzo. You like the flowers I sent you. Yes, Lorenzo, the flowers are beautiful, and thank you for them. Lorenzo, can I ask you a question? Ask away. I will answer every question you have. What will you do if the DNA test comes back? I’m not Mrs. Masino’s granddaughter. You asked me on a date for the reason that I would be your wife through some inheritance agreement. So, what will you do when the test comes back and you are wrong? Reiley, that’s a good question that I don’t have an answer to because I know you as my soon-to-be wife. What, why me Lorenzo? I’m so confused about everything. You need to start to think of the fact I’m not the one you will marry.

The elevator dings open, the guard brought me my dinner. Have you eaten dinner yet, Lorenzo? I always order more than I can ever finish. It's after 9 pm, and you are just now eating dinner? Hey, hey, let's not judge me on my eating habits when I’m working. Raising his hand in defense, no judgment from me. Opening the bags of food, I set everything out on the coffee table in my office. Let me go get silverware from the break room. I will be right back. Grabbing the silverware and 2 bottles of water, I headed back to my office. Sitting down next to Lorenzo, so let’s finish talking while we eat. Sounds good to me. Ask away so I can explain everything. Why is an arranged marriage part of an inheritance clause? I mean, how do you expect someone to just agree to marry someone they don’t know? Reiley it is to protect you from all your father’s enemies. Your father was a very powerful man. You are set to take over everything he owned. Before you ask, I know you are his daughter. Here look at this and tell me that it isn’t you. He opens his wallet and pulls out a picture. I took it from him and froze.

Why do you have a picture of me in your wallet? Reiley, this picture was sent to your father. Your birth mother sent him this in a letter. She wanted him to send her money. He told her he would give her the money to disappear and leave you with him. She took off with you. From that day forward, he searched for you. He didn’t know you existed till he got that picture. The day he passed away, he gave it to me to find his princess to give her a better life. The reason he could never find you was because your mother hid you. Then she lost you to adoption, so he was never able to find you because the adoption was sealed to protect you. Looking at Lorenzo with tears in my eyes, how do you know all this? How could she not give me to my father, who wanted me? I’m sorry this is so much to handle. I’m full-blown crying now. She was so horrible to me. Why did she hate me so much to use me for her own gain?

I felt hands wrap around me; my face being pulled into a hard chest. I sat there for a few minutes letting myself calm down. Pulling back from Lorenzo’s embrace, sorry I’m so emotional. I don’t like to remember the years I spent with my birth mother. The trauma I have I bottle up. My parents spent a year getting the nightmares to stop. Now to find out I had a father that wanted me and could have saved me. I still have problems now as an adult from everything I went through while being with her. My world is crashing down and here I’m falling apart in front of a man I met a week ago. I don’t trust easily, so tell me how you knew my father so well to honor his promise. I have known your father since I was a boy. My father was his best friend. I was 16 when my father died, so your father took me under his wing. We became closer from that day forward. Everything I have is because of your father. So, when he asked me to find you and take care of you, I didn’t think twice about doing everything in my power to find you. Let me take you home. You need to rest. I want to make you get home safely.

The ride to my townhouse was very quiet. I’m so lost in my thoughts of all the added information I have received tonight. I close my eyes, there is still a 50/50 chance I’m not his child. My birth mother was a master liar, she was an evil person. If the test comes back that I’m his daughter, my whole life changes. I will have to learn to trust them, Reiley, we are here at your house. Opening my eyes, I see my house, thank you for the ride home. Thank you for being honest with me. Promise me two things please. What is it? Promise me you will not get your hopes up because although you have that picture and the letter. Just know she could have messed with you for money, so she could get her next fix. I don’t want you to be upset when the answers you have been searching for are wrong. Promise me you will not contact me till we find out the results of the DNA test. I need space to work out everything in my head. Lorenzo grabs my hand, looks me in the eye. I will promise you I will give you space. I can’t promise anything other than that. I opened the car door and walked to my house. Turning to shut the door, I watched him drive away and lock my door.

I have been working from home for the last week. I have blocked out the world since my talk with Lorenzo. I have contacted the caseworker about my half-siblings. They have been adopted into a family. She asked me if I would like to meet them. I told her no. They didn’t need any more added to their lives. One day, if they find me, I will deal with that when that time comes. Banging on my door brings me out of my thoughts. Opening my door, I saw Ava and Eva standing there with food. What are you guys doing here? Girl, it's Friday and you have locked yourself up for the last week. I have texted and talked to you both all week, not like you missed anything. Very true, we are here to take you on a girl’s weekend. So, you can relax and enjoy yourself. We booked a beach house in the Hamptons. So go take a shower and pack a bag. Have you been in pajamas all week? Yes, Eva, I have worked from home in my pajamas for the last week. You know, I love to be comfortable and if I could wear my pajamas to work I would. She laughs at me as I’m making my way to my room to shower and pack a bag.