POV: Raphael
“It’s deeper than you can ever imagine, Hawkins boy!
I’ve made a promise to a lot of people, lives will be lost if the truth comes to light. Families will be destroyed and a lot of people will have their lives destroyed by the damn truth. Everything I’ve worked for will be destroyed!
I won’t do it, I can’t let that happen!” she said, her voice trembling with anger and sadness.
“A promise, huh?
A promise that is costing you the relationship you have with your and your entire family. You need to act fast because that promise is costing you your daughters’ love and trust,” I replied to her, my tone firm yet emotional.
“You need to be the one to tell them. They deserve to know who they are and it’s only fair that they hear it from you and not the press, or Miguel. This is your mess, and you need to clean it up before it gets worse.” I told her. Silence hung between us, it was so thick and heavy that we both felt it in our hearts. Eloise’s gaze dropped to the floor, her strength seemed to be wavering.
Just like before, she looked as if she wanted to follow my advice, she looked as though she fully understood my points and as if she saw reason in my words. I thought I’d gotten through to her, I almost smiled at my progress with her. But before I could see one more word, she switched immediately and her fury returned as she glared daggers at me.
“You would like that, wouldn’t you?
You have always wanted my daughter all to yourself, haven’t you?
You stand in front of me and pretend to care about my feelings and about my relationship with my daughters, but I can see through you, Raphael Hawkins. I know what you really want, and it’s my daughter Victoria. Well, you can shove your advice down your throat or down your ass because I can’t do it, I won’t do it!” she said firmly, her voice sounding furious.
“You can’t and you won’t, huh?
So you choose to lose them instead of the truth, Eloise. Is that how stubborn you can be?
What exactly is your problem, Eloise, what is it about this secret that you don’t want them to find out. Is there more to this matter that I don’t know apart from their adoption or possible kidnap, is there something else you did that is making you so scared of letting them find out the truth?” I asked her, squinting my eyes to stare at her fixedly. She made eye contact with me for a brief second, but she quickly looked away as if I would see the truth she was hiding in her eyes.
“There is nothing more won’t, Ralph, I’m just being emotional because I don’t want to lose my girls. I thought you understood that, I thought you were on my side, why are you trying to create more problems for me?” dye asked me sadly, looking as if she wanted to cry. I groaned in frustration because it was so difficult to understand her anymore.
“I can’t bear to see their faces when they find out, Raphael. It would break me if they end up hating me.” She sobbed sadly. Like I said earlier, it’s getting difficult to understand her with each passing minute. I could swear that she is not as sad as she is trying to portray herself. One minute she’s sad, the next minute she is furious or emotional or even raving mad. I don’t know if she is faking it or not, I don’t know if she is truly remorseful or just trying to get me to leave her room. But I didn’t have a choice, I had to pretend to believe her. I just can’t conclude that she is lying, for the sake of her daughters, I have to give her the benefit of the doubt.
“I don’t care what you think you have done that is unforgivable. But one thing I know is that it is better they hear the truth from you than from a stranger, or from the press. Soon the press will begin to ask questions about Miguel’s presence in the city and his reasons for hanging out with Victoria. Would you prefer if they find out that way that you have been lying to them all their lives?
Mind you, Claire is still angry because of the little things she found out while she was away. She has refused to come back home after hearing that there is a possibility that you may not be her mother. What do you think is going to happen when she confirms it that you are not her mom, don’t you think it would be fair if she hears it from you first?” I insisted, reminding her of Claire’s anger so she would agree to my advice and do right by Victoria before Victoria got this angry at her too.
“You have to trust that they will understand you. They love you, Eloise. It will be easier to convince them before the truth gets out there. They will defend you, I know they will because they love you.” I told her, smiling warmly at her. She looked up at me, tears glistening in her eyes.
“What if they hate me, what if they never see me again?” she asked sadly.
“They won’t. They might be hurt, but they will appreciate your honesty. It’s time to stop hiding.” I assured her, smiling at her. She took a deep breath, her hands trembling as she wiped away a tear.
“I don’t know if I can do it I don’t know…”
“You can,” I told her, my voice steady as I tried not to infuriate her further or make her cry again.
“You’ve been strong for so long. Now, be strong for them, be strong for you beautiful girls. Let them see that you have their best interest at heart, let them see that you are the best mother they could ever have. I know how much you care about them, Eloise. Now it’s time to put your feelings aside and take care of them. You are their mother, let them see it in your actions.” I coaxed, my face full of smiles. Her expression shifted, it felt right because she looked as if she were ready to do the right thing now.
“You’re right, Raphael Hawkins. I have to tell them the truth, I have to do it myself.” She said with determination.
“Good,” I said with relief washing over me as I took in a deep breath, glad that she was finally agreeing to follow my advice.
“I’ll be here to support you, Eloise. You’re not alone in this. I will make sure Victoria listens to what you have to say, I’ll make sure she forgives you because I know that you are a good mother to her and you did your best to take care of her. You even willed your company and other assets to her. That shows how much you care about her.
Dominique and I are in the process of patching things together. I’ll make sure he advises Claire to come back home tomorrow, so she can have a heart-to-heart talk with you. I’ll make sure she comes around before Victoria leaves for her lunch date with Miguel tomorrow. We don’t know what he could be planning, for all we know, he could be planning to tell her everything over lunch. I will make sure you have your chance with the girls before Victoria leaves home for lunch.
You have to tell them before she leaves, you have to make sure he doesn’t tell her the truth before you I will do my part and get them to see you tomorrow morning. That is your only chance to come clean, Eloise, no more lies. Anything you say to the girls will determine what happens after that. I suggest you use your one chance wisely. If you do the right thing before things escalate, then everything is going to be fine.” I assured her.
As she nodded her head, I felt a sense of hope. The truth is so difficult to hear, but it was also a chance for healing for Eloise and the girls too. It’s her chance to make up for her past mistakes and let the families she had taken their kids to heal and find closure if that is even possible. She still refuses to look into my eyes, but that’s fine. The deal was to get her to listen to me, and now that she is doing just that, there is no need to worry about anything else.
“Thank you, Raphael, I knew I could count on you. You are a fine gentleman, the media is so wrong about you. They need to get to know you better and see that you are indeed a great man. But, are you so sure that Claire will listen to Dominic, will she come home tomorrow?” she asked me softly, her voice steadier now.
“Claire loves Dominic now. I’m pretty sure that she will do anything he says to her. Just promise me you will do it exactly how we planned it, promise me you will tell them the truth tomorrow” I replied to her, trying to be sure that we were on the same page.
“I will Raphael, I won’t let you down, I promise. You won’t regret helping me, you won’t regret it, I promise.” she vowed, her gaze fixed on me with a smirk on her face that I couldn’t quite understand. I wanted to say something about her weird smirk, but I thought against it and just said my goodbye to her with a genuine smile on my face.
With that, I stepped back, allowing her the space to gather her thoughts. I left her room like she has always wanted and she shut it with a bang, turning the looks to keep me out of her room. As I left the room, I couldn’t shake off the feeling that something was terribly wrong with her. This is an event that would change everything for Victoria and Claire. But why does it seem like I’d made a mistake by coming to see her. I did achieve my aim, didn’t I?
The goal was to get her to agree to speak with the girls and tell them the truth. And that is exactly what I did here, so why am I feeling like a moron that just failed, why does it feel like something bad is going to happen soon?