Chapter 6 - Ava’s Secret
We spent the afternoon at Mark’s home trying to give Ava a semblance of normal life. Mark had grilled burgers on the patio, and Ava had spent an hour throwing tennis balls for his German Shepherd, Duke. Her laughter was music to my ears, but I could tell there was still a shadow hanging over her.
Around five o’clock, while Mark was taking a call in his study, I found Ava sitting on the floor of the sunroom, drawing with colored markers.
She had drawn a picture of her ceramic unicorn. It was colored bright purple and pink, but across the middle of the drawing, she had used a black crayon to scribble violent, jagged lines.
I sat down on the rug beside her, cross-legged. “That’s a beautiful unicorn, sweetie.”
Ava didn’t look up. Her small hands gripped the black marker tightly. “Mommy? Did Aunt Nicole take Daddy’s watch because I was bad?”
My heart stopped. A cold, nauseating ache ripped through my chest. I gently took the marker from her fingers and pulled her into my lap, wrapping my arms tightly around her.
“Ava, look at me,” I said softly, lifting her chin. “Why on earth would you think that? You are the best thing that ever happened to me and Daddy. You did nothing wrong. Ever.”
A tiny tear slid down her cheek, pooling at the corner of her lips. “Two weeks ago... when Grandma brought Aunt Nicole over while you were at the dentist... Aunt Nicole came into my room.”
I stiffened, holding my breath. “What did she say, baby?”
“She told me that Daddy died because he was tired of working so hard for us,” Ava whispered, her voice trembling. “She said that Daddy’s house was too big for just you and me. She said that her kids were the real family because they were boys, and that Daddy’s favorite things belonged to her sons. She told me if I didn't share my savings with her, she would tell everyone that Daddy didn't love me.”
Pure, unadulterated fury washed over me. It was like a volcanic surge of heat that made my vision blur at the edges.
Nicole hadn’t just stolen from Ava. She had poisoned my daughter’s memory of her father to manipulate her. She had emotionally terrorized a seven-year-old child in her own bedroom while my mother likely sat downstairs drinking tea in my kitchen.
“Ava,” I said, looking directly into her eyes, my voice steady, fierce, and full of absolute conviction. “Your father loved you more than the entire universe. Every single day Daniel was alive, he told me that you were his greatest joy. Aunt Nicole is a very sick, very selfish person who tells lies because she has darkness in her heart. She will never, ever step foot inside our home again. And nobody will ever hurt you like that again. Do you hear me?”
Ava leaned her face into the crook of my neck, her small arms wrapping around me with all her might. “I love you, Mommy.”
“I love you more than all the stars, baby.”
I held her until she fell asleep in my arms, and then I carried her up to bed, tucked her under the soft comforter, and kissed her cheek.
When I walked back downstairs into Mark’s study, the look on my face must have been terrifying, because Mark immediately set his coffee mug down and stood up.
“What happened?” he asked.
“Nicole told Ava that Daniel died because he was tired of taking care of us,” I said, every syllable dripping with cold, razor-sharp rage. “She told my baby girl that her father didn't love her.”
Mark’s jaw twitched. A dark, dangerous shadow passed over his eyes.
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“Clara just sent over the complete financial audit of your parents’ accounts,” Mark said, his voice dropping an octave. “You’re going to want to see this. We don’t just have Nicole. We have Robert and Martha, too.”
***
