Antonette was shocked. She had forgotten that even though she was Simon’s daughter, Simon didn’t care at all about her, let alone Diana’s child.
All the family talk made Antonette realize that, strangely, she kind of missed her own mother. When was the last time she visited Jenny? Antonette couldn’t even recall.
So, Antonette stopped in a taxi and went to her mother’s place.
It was instantly evident how much things had changed in the area, with the dismantlement of most of the houses. Antonette looked around at the place she had once called home. The building Jenny’s apartment was in stood alone in the rubble, making it rather eye-catching.
As Antonette walked up to her mother’s apartment, she ran into a neighbor.
The woman looked at her and greeted her warmly.
“Antonette! I haven’t seen you for such a long time!”
Antonette smiled awkwardly. She didn’t know what to say.
“Antonette dear, can you please persuade your mother?”
Antonette was confused. “What’s wrong with her?” she asked.
“She is refusing to move, so our building hasn’t been torn down. We would have received the compensation already if she had agreed to move. Is that fair on us?” The neighbor complained bitterly. “I am waiting for the money. I need it to pay for my son’s wedding. Antonette, do something! Please!”
Having said her piece, the woman continued on downstairs.
Antonette wondered about her mother. She didn’t know why she would refuse to move. Wasn’t it better to get the compensation?
She walked to the familiar apartment. The door was open. Upon entering, a strong smell invaded Antonette’s senses, and she covered her nose instinctively.
Suddenly, a small, skinny woman rushed to her from within the darkness.
“Damn it! You were raised here! And now are you sick of it?”
Jenny stared at Antonette with a maniacal look in her eyes. She was rather pale and looked unwell.
“Mum, why don’t you move out?” Antonette demanded.
“It’s none of your business. This is my house!” Jenny shouted.
Jenny raised her hand as if to strike Antonette. But Antonette swatted her hand away with ease and pushed her aside.
“Don’t mess with my mother. I need that compensation money!”
“The compensation is for me. It is mine! What the fuck were you expecting?” Jenny screamed hysterically. She was shocked by Antonette’s behavior.
Antonette sneered at her. “Look at you! You don’t even look like a real person!”
Jenny saw clearly the disgust in Antonette’s eyes. She was surprised at how much it affected her.
“Why did you come back?”
Antonette waved her hand impatiently. “I will leave soon. I just want to know why Simon won’t accept me as his daughter,” Antonette asked angrily.
Jenny was angry now. She shouted at Antonette, “I told you not to go to see him! You didn’t listen! You just didn’t listen!”
“Why shouldn’t I? Why does he hate me so much?” Antonette said angrily.
She grabbed hold of Jenny’s shoulders.
Jenny sighed. She was tired of all this. Tiredness had replaced the meanness in her eyes.
“Oh God… he didn’t accept you because he didn’t believe you are his daughter,” Jenny murmured.
“Why?” Antonette asked confusedly.
“Because I was with another man at the same time. He was asking me to marry him,” Jenny said slowly.
Antonette squinted. Simon didn’t accept her because he didn’t believe her. So, if she could prove that the little girl was Brian’s daughter, Simon would definitely take action!
This was all the information she needed. She said impatiently to Jenny before leaving, “You’d better move out of this horrible house. I’m going to get that compensation!”
“Money! Money! You only care about money! It is my money!” Jenny shouted in anger. The emotion made her frail face look more terrifying.
Antonette smiled coldly. “Once you die, the money is mine anyway.”
Antonette’s words seemed to hit Jenny hard. She began coughing crazily, and her face turned red. But Antonette didn’t make any effort to check she was ok; instead, she walked out with her hands covering her nose.
Jenny slid down to the floor in despair. She couldn’t help thinking she deserved all this. When Antonette was still a little girl, Jenny hated her because of how things ended with Simon. And so she beat her and yelled at her every day. Now, understandably, Antonette despised her.
Jenny stood up slowly and stumbled to the table near her bed, trembling. She picked up several white pills. But she was shaking so much that she couldn’t hold onto them and dropped them on the floor.
Jenny slowly collapsed down on the floor beside the bed. She was panting heavily. She was only in her forties, but she looked like an old woman.
She picked up a piece of paper from the bedside table; it resulted from a recent hospital visit. The doctor told her that she had liver cancer, and there was nothing they could do to save her.