PULL THE PIN

Chapter 3

Cousins. First cousins, at that! Thirteen years of believing she had no one other than the three that treated her like she was nothing. Now she had a cousin, who also happened to be her best friend. Overcome with emotion, Cordelia burst into tears.

"Come here, little cousin," cooed Anita as she enfolded Cordelia into a comforting hug. As Anita rocked Cordelia in her arms, she thought about everything she had been told about Cordelia's childhood. The neglect, the abuse, the emotional trauma. It was no wonder Cordelia was sobbing like a baby.

It took a while, but Cordelia finally regained control of her emotions, sat up, blew her nose, and wiped away the tears. "I think I am going to lie down for a while. I'm exhausted. Thank you for everything, Anita." Saying this, she went to her room and closed the door.

Anita waited for a bit before checking on her to find her cocooned in her quilt, deeply asleep. Back in the living room, she dialed a number and waited for her call to be answered. A deep voice answered the call.

Smiling, Anita spoke softly. "Brother, you were right. Is Grandpa there? Can you put me on speaker?" Hearing a positive response to both her questions, she continued. "Silas, Grandpa, you were right. Cordelia is our first cousin. I am so glad I sent you the photo of the two of us. I swear, it's like looking in a mirror! And she is the sweetest soul. I can't wait for you to meet her."

They chatted for a few more minutes as plans were made for her grandfather and brother to come to Nova Scotia. "I promise I won't say a word to Cordie. Let me know when you land, and then when you get to your suite in the Mary Ann building. Okay. See you soon. Love you!"

The day Cordelia finally met her mother's family, her real family, was etched permanently in her memory. It was three days after she and Anita received the results of their Ancestry DNA test. It was the Thanksgiving weekend, and Anita insisted that she was taking Cordelia out for dinner, since neither of them were able to spend the weekend with family. And while Anita was sad about not seeing her family, Cordelia was thrilled at not spending the holiday at the family home in Bedford. If she had her way, she would never go back there as long as Gordon, Margaret and Ebony lived there!

Saturday, mid-afternoon, Anita received a message notification on her phone. "Hey Cordie, I just got confirmation of our reservation for 5:00 today. Let's get ready, so we can be there on time." Her excitement was infectious as both girls hurried to get ready.

Cordelia put on one of the dresses she had purchased on a recent shopping spree. She was very careful with her finances, but she found the need to update her wardrobe as most of her clothes were old and were getting threadbare. She was an expert at thrift shopping for herself. After all, that was basically how she had clothed herself over the past number of years. She and Anita had hit every thrift clothing store in the Halifax area. At one store in particular, they had just received a delivery of clothing that had been donated by a high-end retail store. Every item still had the tags affixed, so everything Cordie purchased was brand new, but super inexpensive.

The dress she wore today was a 50s style with long sleeves, a fitted bodice that showed off her feminine assets to perfection. The skirt skimmed her hips and flared gently to her knees. The emerald green color enhanced her hazel eyes. She had curled her blonde hair in gentle beach waves that now reached her lower back. Her only makeup was waterproof mascara and a soft rose lip gloss. She slipped on low black pumps that matched her small black purse. At seventeen, her sense of style was classy and what Anita referred to as "restrained, yet sexy as hell".

In contrast, Anita wore a soft blue, long-sleeved linen dress that belted at the waist and fell to just above her knees. Over the summer, she had cut her hair into a short pixie which had a tousled look for today. Her makeup was a bit more dramatic than Cordelia's, but still on the restrained side.

"All set to go?" questioned Anita as Cordelia left her bedroom. "My goodness! You look gorgeous, little cousin. We need to go out more often just so you can show off how beautiful you are!"

Cordelia laughed, and responded with a shake of her head. "Yeah, yeah. You're just saying I'm beautiful because we look exactly alike. Meaning you are beautiful too! Which you are! Now let's not waste all this beauty. I am starved. Fine dining, here we come!"

Locking the apartment door, they took the elevator to the main floor, and exited the building. The girls chatted as they walked to Anita's current year's red Jeep Compass which was parked at the end of the parking lot. A couple of guys in Anita's class happened to be leaving at the same time, and they stopped to talk to her, all the while, eyeing Cordelia. The braver of the two asked for an introduction, and then asked if they wanted to go to a party with them.

Anita shook her head no, and backed it up with," Thank you for the invite, but no. My cousin is underage. She is not going to any party where alcohol is available. Not going to happen!" A friendly wave of her hand, and the girls entered the Jeep and took off for their dinner reservation.

"Thank you so much for saying no to them. That is just not a scene I want to get involved in. I can't afford to lose my scholarship just for the party lifestyle so many first year students succumb to. Not going to happen!" Cordelia was very firm on this. Her university degree would help free her from the clutches of the Andrews.

"I hear you on that one," Anita responded, with equal firmness. "My family insists I have a 3.9 or above GPA, and partying is not the way to do that. Meanwhile, let's enjoy our Thanksgiving weekend." Anita turned her concentration to navigating the downtown Halifax traffic. It didn't matter the time of day, or the day of the week, traffic was always heavy and required her full attention.

Since Anita hadn't told Cordelia where they were eating, she wasn't surprised when Anita used a key card and pulled into the underground parking lot of the Mary Ann building. She was aware that Anita's family was well-off and owned a couple of units in the building on the 9th floor, so that would explain Anita having a key card.

Once parked in the designated spot, Anita didn't immediately exit the Jeep. Instead, she took hold of Cordelia's arm, and turned to face her. "Cordelia, please don't be upset with me."

Puzzled, Cordelia looked at her newly-discovered cousin and asked, "Why would I be upset with you? I mean, you are feeding me, aren't you?"

"Well, yes. We are definitely being fed. But first, I have a surprise for you. I wasn't going to say anything until we got there, but I'm not sure how you are going to react to the surprise. And just in case it upset you, I didn't want that to happen in public."

"Anita. You are kind of scaring me. What's going on?" Cordelia's voice was shaking with nerves.

"Don't be scared. I am hoping you will actually be quite happy with your surprise." Anita took on a pleading tone.

"I think you had better tell me what the surprise is, or I am not getting out of the vehicle. Even in the short time you have known me, you know I do not like surprises. So you better tell me now!"

Anita sighed. "Okay, okay. You win. The other day, after you lay down for a nap? I called my family. They are here, upstairs in the suite."

A raft of emotions flew across Cordelia's face. "Family? As in who "family".

"Well, for starters, my brother Silas, our grandfather Allistar, my parents, Sean and Callie. In other words, our family is waiting to meet you."

Stunned by this news, Cordelia sat and stared at Anita. Finally, she was able to speak. "Okay, I can do this. I can meet my real family." Then, with eagerness, she opened the vehicle door and got out. "What are we waiting for? Let's go!"