Waiting by Erin Dennington ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Chapter 35 Matthew showed up about 15 minutes later, grumbling about missing his lunch break. Irritated at his behavior, Christina asked him to stop by McDonald�s to pick up a Happy Meal for the children. He turned up his nose at that suggestion, saying it was not a healthy decision for the kids, and he�d take them all to Subway, where they could get their lunches. Christina ignored his jab and said that they could run in, pick up the lunches, and then go home. The kids had already missed half a day of school and she feared that they were still too shaken up to attend the rest of the day. Luckily, Matthew didn�t argue with her for once, and was strangely silent as he accompanied them into Subway and then drove them home. He kissed Becca on the cheek and rubbed Tommy�s head as he walked out the door; he tossed a goodbye over his shoulder to Christina and an admonition that the kids weren�t supposed to watch any television during the day. It wasn�t until Matthew was gone that Christina realized she didn�t mention the interview she and the children were supposed to attend this evening. Sighing, Christina leaned against the door, watching her two children. Becca met her gaze and then, pulling Tommy by the arm, went into the kitchen, where she set out placemats for their lunches. Christina gathered herself and joined them, grabbing three juice glasses and filling them with apple juice. �When you�re done with lunch, Tommy,� she said, �go ahead and put Superman back on.� �Yay!� Tommy yelled, bouncing around on his seat. �I get to be Superman again and it�s not even bed time!� �Guess again, short stuff,� Christina said. �You�re going to take a nap. You guys were both bounced around pretty badly today.� Tommy pouted. �What about Becca, then?� �Becca can take a nap, too,� Christina said. �But she�s older than you, so it�s up to her. I want both of you to have some quiet time for the rest of the day, okay?� Becca nodded and picked up a crumb that had fallen off of Christina�s sandwich. �You�re being messy, Mom,� she said. Christina instinctively stiffened, but then she caught the gleam in her daughter�s eye and realized that her staid daughter was actually teasing her. �Moi? Messy?� Christina asked. �Last time I saw your room, I thought I had landed in a war zone!� Tommy laughed. Becca frowned, obviously trying to come up with a comeback. Just then the telephone rang and Tommy sprang to answer it. ��Ello?� he said, then listened. �Sure, Daddy, hold on.� He held the phone out to Christina. Christina warily accepted it and, placing it up against her ear, spoke into the receiver. �Yes, Matthew, is something wrong?� �Now why must you assume that something is wrong?� His voice, if not his tone, spoke volumes. �No, my dear wife, nothing is wrong. But they are interviewing that woman that hit you this morning, and I thought you might be interested to hear where she works.� Christina sighed, realizing that this was another of Matthew�s shameless games of control. �And where would that be, Matthew?� she asked. �Kramer Institutes,� he answered. �Isn�t that something?� Knowing that she shouldn�t let that thought bother her, she tried to think of how this could be anything but a coincidence. Christina had worked there before she had begun to suffer from depression and had been forced into hospitalization. Kramer Institutes was an advanced genetics research lab and she had left more than one enemy there when she had left them. There was no lack of hard feelings. It was a tight knit field in the genetics research field; there were not that many scientists around the globe that had been involved with the kind of thing they had been doing. Even if she felt like returning to work there, Christina knew she would never be wholly respected again as a scientist. That�s why she had accepted a position in the retail business, working for one of the major clothing lines. Christina realized that her husband hadn�t said a thing in a minute, and neither had she. Mentally shaking herself, she told him that she had to go and, hearing a hesitation in his voice, she paused. �Christina, I love you. I don�t like it when things happen to you or the kids.� Accustomed to his need to protect her and the children, she said, �Goodbye, Matthew, have a good rest of the day. I won�t be home for dinner; I am going to be interviewed with Davis Jackson, the man who rescued me.� �Fine,� he said, all trace of pleasantness gone. �We won�t hold dinner of you then.� �That�s fine with me. Love you, bye,� she said. She couldn�t hide a feeling of triumph when she placed the phone in its cradle. Trying to compose herself, she leaned her head against the kitchen wall and tried to think. �Mommy?� she heard Tommy ask. She realized that there was not a sound in the room and she glanced over her shoulder and saw that her children were standing behind her. Simultaneously, they both reached up and gave them a hug. Surprisingly, Becca even returned it. �Yes, sweetie?� �We love you,� he said. Christina smiled. �I love both of you very much. Who�s ready for a cookie?� They both said that they were, so Christina handed them one, and sat down to the rest of her sandwich, determined to put Matthew�s revelation out of her mind for the rest of the meal. Later, after the kids went to go rest, she would turn on the radio and listen to the news broadcasts of her accident. In the back recesses of her mind she knew that today�s accident was not as innocent as it appeared on the surface. 21:03 - 11.10.02 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
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