Family Reunion (39 page)

Lena turned her bright gaze toward the young woman across the room, who stood with wide bright eyes like her own, gazing intently back at her.

Lena staggered and caught the counter next to her; her hand went to her heart, then up to her mouth. "Ohhh – my – my God." She drew in a sharp breath, "Ohhh my – God… look at my - my baby…Oh my God, look at you!" Lena was shaking again, making trembling steps toward her daughter, unable to believe her eyes.

"Hi mama…hi-…" Hope started crying as she met her halfway … each caught up in renewed disbelief, they shook until they touched each other. Hope hugged her mother so tightly she almost swept her off of her feet, being three inches taller.

"Mama…mama, mama…" She cried over and over unable to stop.

"I thought you – I thought you'd forgotten me… I thought you all – had forgotten me." wept Lena.

"Never! Not ever! Not for – not for a single moment!" Hope declared.

"I never meant to lea – leave you…I never meant to leave you ... Oh God – I never meant to leave you!" Lena cried, trying to talk through her tears.

"I know mama…they said you deserted me - but I knew better – I knew my – my mother ... my mama loved me...too much - to leave me! No one – no one could make me – forget you…no one…I refused - to forget you!"

"I can't believe - this is really happening. Oh my baby - look at you,
you were just a little girl then, a tiny little girl ... and you didn't forget me."

"Did you ever - for a moment think - that we would be willing to - live without you? Without knowing - where you were? Or what happened - to you? No mama, there was no way - we could go on without you!"

Lena bent over sobbing because she had thought no one would ever know where she was or how she was again. She thought they'd all forgotten her and now the tears poured because they hadn't. Manny sniffed and wiped at his eyes, then chuckled because Carmine's wife was sobbing on her husband's shoulder.

"Carmine I think we need two more of those handkerchiefs, before these women have us floating away in tears!"

"And snot!" Mike threw in. "Mi-i-ike!!" They yelled but ended up laughing anyway, when he said, "Well it's the truth. Nobody come near me until you wipe your noses…blow'em good, until then, keep your distance." He teased, until his eyes located Rory who was standing over in the corner.

Lena at the same time, after blowing her nose, looked up to see Rory watching them all. Engulfed in her joy of having Manny and her other two back, she neglected to include him and was immediately sorry. Breaking away from Hope with a squeeze to her hand, she went to Rory, drawing everyone's attention to him. She stopped before him; her heart felt a stab of pain at the look of him.

"Oh Rory, look what they did to you." She reached up to caress his face; he flinched back embarrassed by her public display of affection. "I'm all right, really ... I'm okay."

Seeing him draw away from his mother caused a stab of anger in Mike, he locked his jaw forcing himself to stay quiet.

"Okay." She accepted, understanding better than any his reasons for drawing away from her.

"We have a lot to talk about hmm? Or rather I have a lot to tell you." His nod was slight, but noticeable to her. "First, there are some people you should meet." She took his hand hoping he would allow it, which he did and led him carefully, mindful of his pain towards his sister.

"Rory, this beautiful young woman is your sister, Golden Hope Webster." He swallowed, "I know."

"I thought as much, but I still had to say it." She then led him to Mike, who was standing with his arms crossed over his chest. "This man before you now is your brother, Michael Ramsey Webster." This time he sighed and reluctantly looked up at his brother's, held in check expression, and thought.
'Aaah hell!'

Lastly she
turned him to the man who was the beginning of them all. "Rory...this is your father. He is the one I kept from you…but you found him anyway. I am deeply sorry that I never told you about him." Then she looked up at Manny. "Here's one I never got the chance to tell you about. He carries the name Sinclair, make him what he truly is, a Webster."

Leaving Carmine's by way of the coach, Lena learned from her daughter that she and Red Crow, Joseph Avery O'Brien, had indeed married, this was the reason for him being there among them.

Immediately, Lena asked about Josey, and was informed that she too was in New York and awaited word of her. Mike made sure no one spoke anything of the surprise he wished to spring on his mother upon returning to the ship. Away they all went with Lena unaware of the family she still had to meet.

"Maria, what a gracious host you've been but I must be leaving. Lena is probably pacing with worry. I wasn't supposed to be gone this long. Yet, it was well worth the visit to find out her son is also here with Mr. Webster. You can't begin to imagine what this will do for her."

"Mrs. Sinclair, you can't imagine what this will mean to my husband, his father and my sister in law. To them, there has been nothing more important than finding her. You must bring her back here; I promise you they will be here when you return. I cannot wait to finally meet her myself."

"She's going to love you Maria. Lena loves her children and I'm certain she will love you as one of them. Grandchildren! I can't believe it! She has five and another on the way! Oh I cannot wait to
see
the expression on her face!" Sandra exclaimed gleefully, rising from her seat in the large family room. Maria came to her feet with her hand resting on her protruding midsection.

She was in her sixth month, yet her small frame was already overwhelmed with the growing baby. As she was about to escort Sandra off of the ship, they heard Papo and Lolita's voices mixed in high screeches of excitement.

"Maman, mamah, ven-aca, ven-aca, mira mamah, mira mamah!!" He called to her,
'Come here, look mamah!'

"It is grandpa and papah and tia too, they have someone with them
! I think it is our grandmamah! Hurry mamah hurry!!"

They burst into the room screaming, jumping up and down so excited for her to follow as Lolita took off back on deck. Papo grabbed his mother's hand, pulling her down the long corridor to the steps leading up top, with a stunned Sandra following behind.

Esteban was standing at the rail beside the boarding plank with
Celina in his arms and Felix was on the other side of him watching as they began boarding after stepping from the coach.

Mike had the pleasure of escorting his mother aboard the Princess. This would be the first time Lena had seen any of Manny's ships and to see the one bearing her name, left her proud and speechless. Stepping carefully aboard, she gasped at the height of the tallest mast as it towered over all others with its sails tied closed. The ship was huge and magnificent. Surely, she thought, it must have taken hundreds of men to handle such a vessel at sea. Everything was immaculately clean and gleaming, the main deck, quarter deck and forecastle.

Mike walked ahead of her, with Manny behind, who whispered in her ear, noticing how she took in as much as she could of the ship. "Beautiful isn't she?"

Lena nodded in complete agreement. "Oh yes Manny, yes she is."

"She's ours Lena, yours and mine. On this ship, there is nowhere we can't go with plenty of room for our family. It serves no other purpose than that. She will never serve any other purpose than to convey us wherever we choose."

Now on the deck, where her son took her hand, Lena became conscious of her appearance and felt awful about her hair and clothes, especially with the children staring at her, making her more aware of her dishabille. As she smoothed her hair, she wondered who they belonged to since no one had told her anything of them. Even though on the ride over Hope and Manny were bursting to tell her something but Mike insisted that they remain silent.

"Oh Michael look at me, I'm such a mess." She whispered up at her son who only smiled and eased her hands from fixing her hair, to hold them, as he whispered down to her. "You leave yourself alone. As you are, you put all others to shame at their best."

Rory, Leon, Hope and Joe boarded the ship behind her, making their way to a better position to view her reaction to the rest. She wondered why they’d stopped where they were. She turned to Manny, only to see him take a tiny girl from an attractive dark young man to hold in his arms. It was then that she started to really take a close look at the children.

"Now let's see, is everyone here." Mike began. Lena stared wide eyed as Papo and Lolita moved before her, then Felix next to Lolita. Esteban stood on the side observing his grandmother with admiring eyes for the first time.

"Michael? Who are these children?" Lena asked slowly. She stared
from the twins gold eyes, to Felix's blond hair and brown eyes, then from him to the little girl with the gold eyes and gold hair in Manny's arms. It occurred to Lena that it was as if she were looking at Hope as a baby, all over again. There were so many, she didn't know who to focus on first and then she looked at the young man who stood tall at her side. He had disarming good looks, his skin was a darker brown than her own, smooth and clear, his hair was glossy and black as coal, heavily waved to his collar, and his eyes were...her mouth fell open...blue/green, Manny's? Mike's? It took her a moment to see past his coloring to note, that he had his grandfather's features, or Mike's for that matter.

Lena's hand rose to her head, stroking the hair back from her brow as she looked from him to Manny, who shrugged his shoulders, then nodded in the direction of her son. Lena turned to look up at Mike, who was grinning broadly and proudly.

"Michael?" Lena called his name in an obvious question to the children. He nodded. "Yes mama, they're mine, all five of them." Lena could not believe her eyes. "Would you like to meet them?" He asked, slowly giving her time to digest the news. Lena nodded, dumbstruck. "Okay, well, the two you see here, are the twins…" The introductions started again with the younger four, ending with Celina. Lena could only stare at her astounded as Celina asked. "Grandpa, is she our grandma, Esteban say he think she is, is she grandpa?" Lena swallowed as Manny's eyes held hers.

"Little chicken, that lady, standing before you, is none other than, Princess Ceś alena...your grandmother." Celina smiled as the little girl tilted her head, impulsively bowing from within her grandfather's arms, believing that was the correct behaviour before a princess. Coming back up, she said. "Buenos dia, abuela." And the others, outside of Esteban echoed her welcome.

"Buenos dia, abuela." Lolita curtsied, Papo bowed and Felix looked at Papo then did it too, somewhat late, making everyone laugh out.

Lena shook her head, dazed.

"An-n-nd mama, standing here beside you, is my first son, my eldest, Esteban, or Stephen Royale Webster." Esteban stepped before Lena, gently grasped her hand, and bowed from the waist, touched her knuckles to his lips, then rose, nodding his head again. "Buenos dia, abuela, I am most happy to finally meet you. Welcome back grandma, welcome back."

Manny stood more proud than he had ever been in his life, to have her back with him, on the ship he had built for her, with their children surrounding them.

Lena reached up and caressed Esteban's cheek, "Hijo, gracias, y
buenos dia a lo!" She shocked Manny and Mike with her reply in Spanish, continuing fluently, she went on to give the other children her thanks for such a welcome. She had never imagined she would reap such a bountiful return in children. "I didn't know you spoke Spanish." Manny whispered down to her.

"That's because you never sought to know." She returned, with a catty smile.

"Echm, yes well…” he turned from her to Mike, “…um, son, aren't you forgetting someone?" Manny cleared his voice nodding towards Maria, as he dragged his bewildered gaze from Lena. "Oh no I’m haven’t.” Mike returned. “Maria come over here; no hiding." Maria blushed, feeling a little shy to finally meet her husband's mother. There she stood with five children and another on the way. It was then that Manny noticed the young woman, standing beside Maria and he wondered who she was and what she wanted.

Lena turned to Maria and was stunned to see Sandra over her shoulder. For a moment, she overlooked her daughter in law.

"
Sandra
!!? How? What are you doing here!?"

Sandra smiled with a shrug, wondering at Lena's obvious disarray, but knew then was not the time to question it, resigned to the fact that what was done was done; she redirected Lena back to her daughter-in-law. "I'll explain later, first meet your wonderful daughter-in-law."

Nodding, Lena turned her attention to Maria with apologetic eyes. She saw her round belly and said the first thing that came to her mind, "Dios mio! Hijo, she is just a little girl!" Lena walked up to her with immediate acceptance and sympathy, understanding her dilemma. After all, she thought, remembering, Manny had done his best to keep
her
in such a way. Maria was an inch shorter than Lena’s five foot, five inches.

Immediately she took her under her wing.

"She's no little girl, she's my wife!" Mike defended with good humor. Maria was always shy and quiet around new people, finding it hard to come out and speak at first but Lena's smile and caring eyes comforted her.