“Did you ever think of trying to get money from Vincent to help you out? He is literally rich. What would be the harm in it? If you want him to know deep down, why not just tell him and get it over with. It can’t be as bad as you’ve made it out to be.”
Mallory shook her head vigorously. There was no way that she would be able to ask him for anything. All of it was already bad enough, without adding money to it. He would think that she was just there because she wanted some of his money. Mallory never wanted to hear that out of his mouth. Never. It was part of the reason that she hadn't come forward yet. What would he think? Most likely he would not be thinking about having a child, he would be thinking about what that child would cost him.
“I'm never going to do that.”
Laura just shook her head. “I guess I understand a little bit of it, but I don't. You know? I mean, how hard would it be for you to just ask for a little bit of money? You're struggling as it is, we're always really late on rent. The Academy charges a ridiculous rate that you can't even afford. At least get him to let Ethen go to the Academy for free. It’s his son, after all.”
Mallory could see that Laura was frustrated with the situation and honestly, she was, too. Mallory knew that Laura was right. If he wasn't a complete jerk about it, he probably would let Ethen go there for free. Or at least maybe at a discount. Some kind of family discount? Whatever it was, though, Mallory knew that it would just be asking for trouble.
“You know that I don't know what I would do without you, Laura, but you know that you don't have to stay, right? I know that it's probably not as good as you had hoped. Things are different now and it’s not as easy here.”
“I was just thinking that when we got to London, things would be a little different. I didn't realize that we were still going to be in hiding.”
“You're not in hiding. I am.”
“Isn't it the same thing?”
Mallory didn't know what to say. She knew that what her friend brought up was valid. They were living like paupers, and they really didn't have to be. All they had to do was say something to Vincent. Mallory just wasn't ready to do it yet. She still wasn't sure how he would react, and if he was mean about it, she didn't know how that would be.
Finally, she sighed, and she said that she didn't know what to say.
“I know it is a crappy situation, Laura. Like I said, I wouldn't blame you if you wanted to take off.”
“You really think that I could just leave you like that? Leave Ethen?”
“Honestly, I'm surprised that you’ve stayed for as long as you have.”
She told Mallory that it was because of Ethen. Laura didn't have any children and never would be able to. She had always loved being around children and had glommed onto Ethen. She had always said that she thought that children brought a lightness to the world that Laura knew was necessary. She had said it many times for Mallory.
They talked for a little bit longer, but nothing was fixed. Mallory still wasn't going to tell Vincent. She was worried, not only just worried about how he would react, but Vincent had made himself a lot of enemies. Anybody that was attached to him, especially his son, could be a danger. She had heard stories about what happened with his family. She knew that it had never been resolved, so it made Mallory leery. She could not put Ethen in danger, just so that he could have some semblance of a father, whether he knew about it or not.
Mallory was worried about how it would all work out. She was convinced that Laura was right. Something was going to come up and she was going to have to do some explaining. Even though Mallory knew it was coming, she wasn't ready for it. It wasn't there, yet, and she was going to put it off as long as humanly possible.
***
Vincent got back from his trip, and he was no closer to finding Mallory than when he started. The people that Nathan had sent to do the job, didn't come up with anything, either. He was sure that he would find her, but Vincent had never been good with waiting. He had more money than some small countries. Vincent didn't like having to wait.
One of the first things that he did when he got back to the Academy was go check on the little kids. While he wanted to say that he was just checking on everyone, Vincent was looking for Ethen. The little boy had really made an impression on him.
When he got there, Ethen was excited to see him and ran up to him again. It warmed his heart every time he did it, and Vincent could feel suffocating pain for just a moment in this throat, making it hard for him to swallow or even breathe. This was what he wanted. Every time he was around the little kids, Ethen especially, it made him want what he didn't have. What he may never have. It made Vincent want a son.
“How are you?”
The little boy said that he was good and asked where he had been.
“Where you go?”
“I had to leave for a little while. But I'm back now.”
“You no go no more.”
It was heartfelt and he told Ethen that he might have to leave again, but that he would always be back.
“Just know that when I'm gone, I will miss you.”
That seemed to make the little boy happy. He had a huge smile on his face.
Vincent asked him how he was doing, and he said in so many words that he was doing well. Vincent had interrupted during the middle of a class. He apologized to the teacher, but nobody said anything. He was the one who ran things, after all.
