Deadbeat Mother

One More For Lunch

~Neela~

My heart was beating a mile a minute when I sent that email. I had no idea what reaction Mia would have to what I wanted to tell her. Now, watching her, it’s gut-wrenching. Each picture elicits a new emotion, and it’s all devastating. “How long?”

“What’s that?”

“I….I asked how long. How long has this been going on?” I sigh.

“From the very beginning. There hasn’t been a time that he hasn’t done something to me. Those pictures don’t even tell the whole story.”

“Oh, Neela.” Mia’s voice cracks, and the tears are flowing. I didn’t tell her so I could get sympathy. I don’t want her taking this on. This is my burden to bear.

“I don’t want you to dwell on this. I need-”

“You don’t want me to dwell?! Neela, he…he…. HE’S HUR-” I quickly grab Mia’s hand and pull. Her body jerks forward, and that causes her to stop mid-sentence.

“Mia, you can not discuss this out in the open. You CAN’T! Do you understand?”

“I don’t understand, Neela. I don’t get why this is happening. I don’t understand why you aren’t telling someone. It can’t be for the money and fame because you aren’t that person. Why Neela? Why are you dealing with this? Why haven’t you told the authorities or his father?” No matter how many times I practiced, I couldn’t prepare to answer this question. This tells who I really am, and no one in my current life knows.

“If I told anyone, if I tried to leave, he would have my family killed.” Mia wipes her eyes and looks at me strangely.

“You don’t have any family. You’re an orphan are you not?” I put my head in my hand and sigh.

“My……my child and his father. That family.” Mia gasps. I look up, and her hands are covering her mouth. “Mimi, you can’t speak about this to anyone. I mean it. I’m telling you this because when I make a run for it, I need someone to know the truth other than Steven. I need someone to be in possession of the evidence. I may not be able to get out. If something happens to me, I need you to spread the word.” Mia nods her head slowly.

“You’re going to run?” I shrug.

“I think I’m going to try. Nokio knows everything, and he’s trying to help. That tampon has an SD card with pictures and videos of my child. I haven’t seen him in so long. I can’t keep living like this even if I die trying to get out. This can’t be my future.” Mia reaches her hand out to mine, and we intertwined our fingers. I hope that trusting Mia wasn’t a mistake. I feel pounds lighter now that someone else knows what’s happening to me. I feel like I can breathe a bit better and have a genuine smile on my face. It’s been so long since I’ve been able to smile honestly.

A commotion outside the tent causes our attention to shift. “WHERE’S MY WIFE?!” S**t! I should have known this would happen. I look at Mia, and she nods, imitating the locking of her mouth and tossing the key. She taps away at her phone before placing it face down on the table. She uses the back of a spoon as a mirror to dab at her eyes and look presentable.

Nokio seems to appear out of nowhere. He sits at the table and fixes himself a plate. He nods at Mia and winks at me. He starts talking about the shoot just as the tent flaps fly open, and an angry Steven stomps in.

Steven looks at the table of food, and my guests before his eyes settle on me. “Why did I get a call from my men that you were in this tent, and they weren’t allowed to come through?”

Nokio clears his throat next to me, and I know he plans to take this on. I slip my hand under the table and give him three taps on his leg. If Nokio does that, I will carry the brunt of that disrespect, and I don’t want that.

I stand up and walk over to Steven, his eyes never leaving me. “I apologize for that, love. Nokio wanted to have a lighter atmosphere while we discussed the shoot. He didn’t even want the producer in here. I believe she went home.” Steven looks around again, and I focus my sight on his jaw. Just one tick, and I know my evening will be monstrous.

Steven pulls me to him and places his arms around my waist. “I don’t want this to happen again. Wherever you go, they go. Is that understood?” I look, and there’s no tick, but I may not be out of the woods yet.

“Of course, baby. I will make sure they are always in my vicinity.” Reach up and gently place my lips on his cheek. He turns and attacks my lips with his. I feel sick, but I know better than to make that obvious. I let Steven get his fill before letting me go. Steven grabs a chair and sits at the table. I guess it’s one more for lunch.

~Steven~

Rage. That’s the best way to describe my state of mind, how I felt when I got the call that my men had been excluded from the lunch. This piece of s**t across from me is truly pissing me off. It’s always his way to push me out, push my men out.

I look around the table, hoping to catch someone slipping. Nokio is speaking to my wife about the photoshoot tomorrow. She's not paying him too much attention or being overly animated. He’s not looking at her like he wants more, so that’s good.

I turn my gaze to my wife’s weak assistant. Her head is down; something on her plate seems to be fascinating. She doesn’t really interact with me, but something seems off. I wonder what it was I interrupted. Maybe I need to set my sights on her. Perhaps I need to offer little Mia a piece of paradise; then, I can have proper eyes on my wife.

Mia looks up, and we lock eyes. I can’t read anything from her, but I smile at her. She quickly breaks eye contact and puts her head down. Maybe I should have done this before. It seems like she has taken a liking to me, like almost everyone else. Maybe I need to explore that so I can always know what’s going on with Neela.

Mia quickly stands up and excuses herself to the restroom. This may be the perfect opportunity to get close to her. She’s rarely away from Neela, so I need to capitalize here. I get up and walk out of the tent. I stand and look around, wondering where she went. One of my men points to the right, and I nod in acknowledgment.

I walk up to the trailers that are set up. One is labeled restrooms, and that’s the one I wait in front of. I don’t have to wait long because the door opens slowly, revealing a mousy Mia. She lifts her head, and when she sees me, she stops. Her eyes are big, and she looks a bit nervous. “Hello Mia. I think we should talk.”