Chapter 19 - Cercare le Verite

"Pronto," Danielle answered her phone. "Mariah, how are you sweetheart? Did the packages arrive alright?"

"Hi Danielle," Mariah replied. "Yeah, everything got here OK. I... um... looked through the pictures you sent."

"Oh, good," Danielle said carefully, then threw caution to the wind. "Are you OK?"

"Yeah, I'm..." Mariah started, then fell quiet. 

"Mariah?" Danielle prompted gently.

"They brought up some old memories," Mariah admitted. "Old feelings... and new ones."

"I tried to let you know what to expect, in the note," Danielle said. "Was I wrong to send them? I hoped..."

"No, you weren't wrong," Mariah said quickly. "You weren't. Actually, I'm really glad you did. I... I needed to look at them. I... I shared them... with my friends here... and I told them. I told them about dad."

"Oh sweetheart," Danielle said softly. "How did that feel?"

"It was good," Mariah breathed. "It was really good. Danielle... mama... thank you."

"Mama," Danielle whispered. Mariah had never called her that before.

"Anyway," Mariah continued, the mask of brusque confidence falling back into place, "I was thinking... do you still have the research we were doing? On my dad, I mean."

"Yes, I do," Danielle said with a deep breath. "Do you want me to send it to you?"

"Would you?" Mariah said eagerly.

"Of course," Danielle agreed. "I'll send them to you right now."

"Thanks," Mariah said.

"Mariah," Danielle hesitated. "If I asked you to be careful and to stay out trouble, you'd just lie to me won't you?"

Mariah considered for a moment before saying, "Yes."

"Please be careful and stay out of trouble," Danielle said.

"I always stay out of trouble," Mariah lied.

Sitting at her computer, Danielle brought up her notes on the death of Anthony 'Big Tony' Basso, late owner of Basso Shipping and Carting. Mariah's father. 

She remembered Tony Basso, vaguely, as a charming, amiable man who she sometimes saw walking along the waterfront. He hadn't been someone she'd known, really. Just someone to exchange polite greetings if they happened to pass. She'd been shocked by his death and later curious about the wall of silence that had fallen around it. 

There wasn't much to go on in her notes, but there was enough. Enough to hope, devoutly, that Mariah would be careful. For a moment, Danielle debated keeping some files back, but she knew she couldn't do that. To hold back would be to betray her daughter's trust.

After everything, Mariah deserved to count on her and on Londyn. 

She deserved the truth.

 

Chapter 18 - What Happened

"What happened?" Aadi asked softly.

"Wow, where do I start?" Mariah wondered. "I was angry about this for so long...

"I told you guys I grew up in Tartosa, with my dad and Janet... I loved my dad, and looking back now I know he loved me.

"He was a big, important businessman but he always made time for me... he even helped me with my homework. He always said how important a good education was. 'You're going to do great things, passerotta.' That's what he called me... passerotta... sparrow.

"The night it happened, I remember, he had some kind of business meeting at the house. It's funny, the way you remember things. They were talking and I was watching TV. I wanted to tell them to be quiet but dad always told me to polite when he brought business partners home. Me, the polite little girl. Can you imagine?

"No," Aadi grinned.

"Shhh," Genie hushed him.

"He went out late," Mariah continued. "He always worked so late. I was supposed to be in bed, but I stayed up... stayed up playing with my toys and hoping to see him when he got home. 

"Janet came running into my room... I expected her to scold me for staying up late. She was always scolding me for something. Instead, she told me to pack a bag... everything I needed... because we were going away. Quickly, quickly...

"It wasn't until we were outside that I realized dad wasn't there. I asked her... I asked where he was and she said," Mariah's voice shook, "she said he wasn't coming. She said he was gone and he was never coming back."

Mariah took a deep breath, "She never said... she didn't say anything else about it. She just rushed us to the airport. The next thing I knew, we were in Sulani. She never talked about him again.

"I thought he'd left us," Mariah continued. "For years, I believed it until...

"It was after... after Sulani... Actually, it was not long after the summer I met Miranda."

"I remember," Miranda said gently. "I remember when you called and told me."

"Right," Mariah sighed, "Anyway, I was looking for Danielle for some reason... I think it was dinner... Londyn sent me to get her... she was working on a new novel... Love in Silence."

"Oh, is that one with the artist who falls in love with the crime boss's daughter?" Genie said, then winced. "Sorry, I love that one."

"Fangirls," Mariah rolled her eyes. "I'm surrounded by fangirls... but yeah, that's the one. She had just started researching it and she always gets caught up and loses track of meals when she's working... so Londyn sent me to get her and there it was, a picture of my dad on her computer. 

"I lost it. I don't know what I was thinking... like I thought she was hiding things from me. I barely remember, but I know I was yelling at her... accusing her of horrible things...

"She was always so patient with me. She waited me out, talked me down... deep breaths... just breathe. Then she sat me down, and we talked.

"See, Danielle and Londyn didn't actually know much about my birth family. The State sealed the records, when I was adopted. What they knew about Janet, beyond the basic facts of my case, was what I'd told them. They didn't know anything about my dad.

"Danielle had been researching for her book... looking into the culture of the Families and the Code of Silence."

"I remember from the book," Genie said. "People don't talk about the crime families and their activities. When the lovers were on the run from the crime boss... no one would help them or even acknowledge they were in danger..."

"No one talks," Mariah nodded, "because they're either loyal to the Families or afraid of them... usually both. It's a real thing, especially in places like Tartosa where the Families have influence stretching back generations.

"So, Danielle was researching the mysterious death of Tony Basso, a prominent local businessman," Mariah said. "A death she remembered, from years before, but that no one had really talked about. My father's death."

"I told her what I remembered, about my dad and how he'd run out on us. About the night we left...

"Danielle said that this proved my dad hadn't left us. The timing lined up... he hadn't run out. He died.

"Anyway, we dug into my dad's story as much as we could," Mariah continued, "but there wasn't much more to find. It had been more than six years and news reports from the time didn't say anything about how he died. His obituary didn't even mention he had a daughter. There was nothing... but, Danielle said, the fact that my dad hadn't abandoned me. He loved me."

"It... it was part of everything in my life changing." Tears shone in Mariah's eyes as she looked at Miranda. "There was this crazy strega who said she loved me. Danielle and Londyn loved me. It turned out, my dad really had loved me. For the longest time I didn't believe people really cared about me... not really."

"I care," Miranda said.

"I care," Genie smiled.

"Girlfriend, you know I love you," Aadi said, "even if you do wear ratty boxers. Honestly, we have got to get you some lacy things!"

"Aadi Bheeda, you stay out of my underwear!" Mariah shouted, laughing away her tears.

It was true, she thought. They did care about her, loved her in their own ways. 

She was worthy.

Breathe.

Just breathe.

Chapter 17 - Pictures from the Past

 "So, yeah, I think we had a good holiday," Miranda was saying, "Right?"

"It was good," Mariah smiled reassuringly. 

"Snow, an old country house, a roaring fire and a shiny tree with mountains of presents," Aadi laughed. "Girlfriend, tell Aadi the truth... you escaped from a holiday movie, didn't you?" 

"It was pretty... magical," Mariah said.

"What about you guys?" she continued. "Do I need to mess up any creepy old guys for you, Genie?"

"No," Genie laughed, "I could handle the businessmen, politicians and lobbyists. Now my parents and sisters, that's a different matter..."

"What about you, Aadi?" Miranda asked.

"Well, no holiday movies for Aadi," Aadi said. "We don't celebrate Christmas like you guys... but it was good. Got together with some friends and karaoke'd the night away."

"We should do that," Miranda smiled.

"We should do what now?" Mariah blinked.

"Go into the city some weekend and do karaoke," Miranda said. "It would be fun."

"Madonna! Don't listen to her," Mariah said, her panic only half-pretend. "She breathed in too much mountain air... gone loopy."

"Karaoke night!" Aadi cheered in a sing-song voice.

"Don't look at me," Genie said, "I don't know any of you people."

"Well," Aadi laughed, "That's for later... What I want to know is what's in that giant pile of presents a certain Tartosan temptress got?"

"It's stuff from Danielle and Londyn," Mariah said, "and what are you doing poking around my room? If you've been in my underwear..."

"Girlfriend," Aadi grinned, "there are two very good reasons why I would never go there... and they are both that I have way more style than your ratty boxers. You need some lacy things, girl. Stat!"

"Proco cane, what do I need lacy underwear for?" Mariah shook her head. "It's underwear. No one's supposed to see it."

"Well," Miranda flashed her a teasing look.

"Anyway," Mariah blustered. "I'm going to check out those packages. Danielle said she found some old pictures..."

----------------------------------------

"Anyway, Danielle's note says she found this memory stick while she was going through some old boxes from when I first moved in," Mariah said, booting up her laptop. "You know, it's probably just a bunch of old junk. You guys probably won't be interested..."

"Girl, you know me," Aadi drawled, "Aadi is always interested."

"If you don't want to open it up with us all watching, that's cool," Genie elbowed Aadi, "we can go."

"No, it's cool," Mariah said. "Probably old homework and stuff."

"You did homework?" Miranda teased.

"Hey, I do... Dio santo!" Mariah gasped.

"Look at you?" Aadi laughed. "I bet that jacket came with a pleated skirt and knee socks too."

"Wow," Miranda grinned. "Stylish."

"Madonna!" Mariah groaned.

"Who's the other girl," Genie wondered.

"That's... Emi," Mariah said, flipping to the next picture. It didn't help.

"Emi, as in your first girlfriend?" Miranda said with a gentle smile.

"Yeah," Mariah nodded.

"She's cute," Genie said.

"Girlfriend, you have a type," Aadi grinned.

"What are you talking about?" Mariah demanded, flipping pictures again.

"Please," Aadi rolled his eyes.

"You have to admit," Genie said.

"Admit what?" Mariah snapped. "I'm not admitting anything."

"Well, I'm just glad I dyed my hair blue that summer," Miranda smiled.

"Anyway," Mariah grumbled, moving to another folder. "Oh mio Dio!"

"Is that you?" Miranda grinned.

"It's Pippi Longstockings!" Aadi crowed.

"Yes, I had braids," Mariah couldn't help but laugh. "I was ten."

"Ooo, who is the hunk 'o hunk?" Aadi asked as the next picture came up.

"That's my dad," Mariah's voice softened in wonder. "That... that's my dad."

A sudden hush fell over the friends as Mariah looked at the picture, her eyes shining.

"Are you OK?" Miranda asked gently.

"Yeah," Mariah sighed, "I'm good. The note said there were pictures of him on here. I... it just caught me off guard... seeing him, you know?"

"Oh look," she added with a hint of bitterness as the next picture came up, "the whole family."

"You look happy," Genie said.

"What can I say?" Mariah sighed, "I was a dumb kid."

"What is that outfit?" Aadi put in, transparently trying to save the mood. "Was your dad a gangster?"

"No," Mariah allowed herself a grin, appreciating their effort, "he was a businessman."

"Sweetie, with that look, your daddy was either a gangster or a spy," Aadi insisted.

"Who is that?" Miranda asked as the next picture came up.

"I... I'm not sure," Mariah admitted. "I kind of remember him, though. I think he was in business with my dad." 

"I know him!" Genie almost shouted.

"What?!" Mariah demanded. "What do you mean you know him? You know my dad?"

"No, the other man," Genie said. "Oh, he's got a funny name... like a music name. Allegro? Soprano? Alto! Mr. Alto... He was at the Christmas party. He's one of my dad's contributors."

"This is so weird," Mariah sighed, getting up from her desk. "I mean... my dad's been gone for years... and here you know someone who's in a picture with him. Someone you saw just a few days ago."

"You sure you're OK?" Miranda asked again.

"Your dad... you said he died," Genie said gently.

"Yeah," Mariah nodded. "It's actually... for years, I thought he'd just split but, just a couple years ago, I found out he'd died. It must have been... the same year these pictures were taken."

"What happened?" Aadi asked softly, all trace of their habitual mask set aside.

Chapter 16 - New Years Eve

What a Wonderful World by Louis Armstrong

I see trees of green / Red roses too
I see them bloom / For me and you
And I think to myself / What a wonderful world

 

I see skies of blue / And clouds of white
The bright blessed day / The dark sacred night
And I think to myself / What a wonderful world

The colors of the rainbow / So pretty in the sky
Are also on the faces / Of people going by

 
I see friends shaking hands / Saying how do you do
They're really saying / I love you

 

I hear babies cry / I watch them grow
They'll learn much more / Than I'll ever know

And I think to myself / What a wonderful world

Yes, I think to myself / What a wonderful world

 

Ooh, yes