Knowing You

A/N: Okay, here is the start of Part Two.........

PART TWO

*Seven Years Later*


Chapter Ten

“Anthony, get down from there!” Mrs. Callone’s voice was harsh enough to cause one’s eardrums to bleed. However it had no effect on the small boy dangling from the monkey bars. The redhead just turned and stuck his tongue out, just to show who was in charge.


“Cute, so you have him for another two weeks?” Taree shifted her position, her feet were killing her. It wasn’t often that she got out but when Joey had suggested that they go hiking she’d jumped at the suggestion. Now two hours after returning her feet were demanding a hot soak in the tub.


“Yes, poor boy. His mother is out of the country for work, and he has no relatives.” Mrs. Callone ran the local daycare, expensive but one of the best in the area. “Now, your Cora, she’s been a dear.”


“Great, she hasn’t been picking again has she?” Taree spotted her little one on the swings, hanging out with two other girls the same age. The blonde head lifted up, she gave a small wave. At the age of five her daughter was already a handful, taking after her father. Cora had a thing about beating up the opposite sex, probably due to Aunt Joey’s urging.


“Nope, whatever you said must have worked. Although, she did slap Tommy Snipes one time, but I think he was pulling on her braid.” The elderly lady yelled at another child that was tossing sand into a girl’s hair.


Joey was waiting in the car for her to grab Cora. They had plans to head to get some pizza, cooking wasn’t an option after hiking since six in the morning. She could only imagine how she smelled, she was in dire need of a shower. Getting clean would have to wait into she got something to eat and grabbed her child.


It still amazed her how things had changed in the last seven years. She hadn’t yet turned nineteen when she’d fled from home. Twenty-six wasn’t that old but it felt that way at times. If not for a few friends, she wasn’t sure how she could have made it on her own. Lydon had driven her over a hundred miles to his home town. Where he’d rented them a one room flat and found a job, despite her arguments.


It had been hard for them both, him being new at the job. Her pregnancy had prevented her from working, he hadn’t cared. Having nothing to do in her spare time, she’d asked to borrow his laptop one evening. Reading had always been a love of hers, she’d found another. Within a week she’d managed to write over thirty pages, that became a best seller a year later. Lydon and Joey had been proud of her, a published author, the money wasn’t bad either.


She smiled thinking of her best friends, or in this case the married couple. During her last month, she’d seen something developing between the two. They hadn’t acted on it because of her being pregnant and feeling lonely. After Cora had been born she’d done her own match making for the two, now they were happily married. All four of them lived in a four bedroom house, with a fenced in yard.


Taree didn’t mind that she was still single, in most ways. Right now she had her career to worry about and she had her daughter. Kale came around whenever he was in town, which wasn’t often. His new job kept him pretty busy, which she understood. What mattered is that he doted on Cora whenever he dropped by.


The only thing missing in her life was her parents, she wondered how they were doing. Kale kept them updated regular on how everyone was doing. She knew that they had asked several times for him to relay a message. He did but it changed nothing, she wasn’t ready to go back.


Why? Because she knew that after a really nasty divorce Dante had moved back in with them. Him and his son were living there, had been for two years. She didn’t know how to approach that gap, she was too afraid. Being older and more mature didn’t stop her heart from crashing into her gut whenever she thought about walking through that door again. It meant apologizing for running away like she did, and for being gone for so long.


“Mommy!” Cora stopped the swing by the use of her sneakers. She excused herself from Katie and Marie, they were too busy talking about their newest Bratz dolls to notice her leaving. She didn’t care, she had her own collection.


Taree grinned, staying where she was. Shame, her child had inherited her frame, making Cora look three instead of her actual six years. “Hey Sweetie, did you have fun?”


“Yes, but Tommy pulled my hair again so I smacked him like Aunt JoJo told me.” She’d smack any boy that hurt her, that’s what Aunt Joey said to do. “Where is she?”


“Oh, she’s in the car waiting on us. Ready to go?” Taree held out her hand, feeling better once the smaller hand was in it. She always worried whenever Cora wasn’t in her sight, she couldn’t help it. “Want to go get some pizza?”


“Yes! As long as you don’t get those nasty white things again, I didn’t like those.” Her little nose crinkled in disgust remembering the last time they’d gotten pizza. She liked chicken and lots and lots of cheese on hers.


“Okay, no onions this time.” Taree waved farewell to Mrs. Callone. It was like walking next to a miniature version of herself, except for the hair. That she’d received from Kale’s side of the family, thankfully. Taree’s hair had turned a shade darker during pregnancy, while she’d let it grow out. Now it reached her waist, whenever she let it down.


“You walked?” The child recalled the reason she’d been left to play at the daycare center. The two had told her they were going on a walk somewhere.


“Yes, we went for our hike. I think my feet are broke, I walked very far. Thank you for letting me go out and have some fun.” Taree opened the latch to the gate, it made a loud squeak as it swung outward. She wasn’t about to let Joey talk her into going for another hike anytime soon. Power walking was one thing but hauling her ass up steep hills was too much. It would be understandable if she were in dire need of losing any weight, but she wasn’t. Becoming a mother had taken care of that problem, she’d lost plenty of weight during the first five months. So much she’d been put on a high risk program for being severely underweight. Then after Cora was born she’d joined a gym, she still went twice a week.


“Your welcome,” Cora spotted her aunt leaning against the blue Lexus. She let go of her mother’s hand to skip towards the rounded woman. “He he, you look funny.”


Joey looked down at her stretched out tank top. It did look odd trying to cover up her obvious baby bump. Being five months along she was finding it harder to cover up the evidence. Hiding one might have been possible but her aggravating other half had impregnated her with two. “I tried to put on a girdle but damn buttons popped off of it.”


“What is a guddle?” Cora had never heard this word before.


“A girdle, it’s something a woman puts around her middle and hips to flatten them. It helps to make a woman look skinny.” Taree had worn them at one time, what had she been thinking?


“Oh, you’re not fat Aunt JoJo, you just got a big tummy. It’s da babies that are fat, not you.” Cora was sure this was the case, she thought her aunt was very pretty.


“Thanks kiddo, you’re my favorite niece now.”


“I know.” The child brightened, not stopping to think that she was also the only niece.


“So pizza?” Taree leaned in the back to make sure Cora had the seatbelt on. She wanted to choke parents that let their children ride in a vehicle without proper precautions. Due to Cora’s weight, she still had her daughter in a booster seat.


“Can we hit the buffet? I’m starving, I’m eating for three you know.” Joey pulled the seatbelt over her rounding stomach. Pretty soon she’d be so big she wouldn’t be able to strap herself in. If not for wanting children she’d have thrown herself off of a bridge.





Dante pulled into the parking lot, slamming his truck into park. His phone was hastily shoved into his shirt pocket. Worry kept him from locking the vehicle, he didn’t care at the moment. His work tools were sitting in the cab, none of that mattered.


A nurse greeted him, a bright smile plastered on full lips. This went unnoticed as well, his gaze focused on the double doors. The large sign screamed Emergency Room, where his parents would be. He scrambled to the entrance, unsure of what he’d find.


Twenty minute ago he’d received a call from his stepmother, she’d been hysterical. All he’d managed to make out was that Tate had been rushed to the emergency room. That was all he’d needed to hear, he’d left work a few minutes later. His son was a top priority, the boy had never been that healthy. Dante liked to blame this on his mother, who’d drank and smoked her entire pregnancy.


The doors slid open for him, the air conditioning hit him square in his face. A chill rippled under his skin, seeing his stepmother standing next to the reception desk. The tears on her face made his worry spike, he couldn’t let anything happen to his son.


“There you are!” She rushed over and gave him a quick hug, needing the contact. “Your father is back there now.”


“What happened? What’s wrong, you didn’t say much on the phone?” He’d choke the woman if this was an ear infection or a cold.


“Well, Tate has been saying he’s tired lately, we thought nothing of it. Then this morning after you left for work I went to wake him for breakfast. He had a high fever, too high, so we brought him in. I was hoping they’d just tell us it was a virus that’s going around. It’s not, your father came out thirty minutes ago after the doctor had left. They are running tests but they think he might have a form of Lymphoma, the good news is they don’t think it’s Hodgkin’s disease.”


“How the hell can he have that? What else is wrong with him?” Dante was sure he’d have noticed if something serious was wrong with his child.


“Well, he’s got the fever, they found some swollen lymph nodes under his arms. Plus, they weighed him, he’s lost a few pounds. The doctor said as soon as you get here they can schedule a few more tests. I know we should have called you as soon as we brought him. I just didn’t want to worry you if he just had a bad cold or something.”


“Fine, I’m going to head back and see my son.” Dante whistled at the nurse that was busy gossiping on the phone. She shrugged and hit the button to open the doors leading to the back. He was upset that they hadn’t called him immediately and had waited over five hours after his son had been emitted.


He stopped at the nurse’s station long enough to ask which room his son was in. Seconds later he was pushing aside the curtain hiding his child. It almost broke his heart seeing the small frame laying on the bed. An IV was attached to his foot, held in place by miles of tape.


“Bout time, he’s been asking for you.” His father glanced up briefly from his spot next to the bed.


“How long has he been sleeping?” Dante went to the other side, making sure not to hit the machine. There was a few dots of sweat clinging to the tiny face.


“Few minutes, think the medicine finally kicked in. They gave him something to bring down the fever and the IV because he was dehydrated. Doc did some blood work and his white blood cell count wasn’t normal, so they started checking around since they couldn’t explain that or the fever. Nurse noticed the slight swelling under the arms, so they are tossing around some theories. They have scheduled an x-ray already and a biopsy is recommended if they can’t find anything.”


“Alright,” Dante digested the information. So there would be an x-ray and maybe some more stuff done. The doctor obviously told his father what the possibilities were. Whatever the problem was, they’d deal with it. “Will you go find the doctor for me?”


He waited until he was alone to let his worry show. Dante knew his father was scared, it showed on the old man’s face. If it were something serious he wasn’t sure how they’d handle it. His father and stepmother were very protective of their grandson. It didn’t bother him knowing that one reason for it was because they felt the need to know another of their grands. They gave his child the love they couldn’t give to another. He didn’t blame them for their attachment, he was glad for it.


Sheila had left not long after their son had been born, saying she couldn’t handle being a mother. What she’d really meant was she wasn’t ready to give up her freedom. Being a wife and mother would never suit her, she shouldn’t have played at either. He didn’t hate her, he felt sorry for the woman that had given up her child. It had cost him severely to get complete custody of his son, she had made him pay for his own child.


He’d given her more than enough in the divorce, in return she’d signed over her rights to Tate. Being near bankrupt he’d moved back in with his parents, needing a place to start fresh. The last year he’d gotten back to where he was when he’d gotten divorced, still far from where he wanted to go. Sheila had left him with a large amount of debt to take care of. He was out of debt but still couldn’t afford to get a place of his own.


Part of him didn’t want to leave home. He wanted to remain, it was nice having his family so close. Only one person was missing, he didn’t want to think about her. No, he didn’t want to talk about her either. She hadn’t contacted them in years, happy doing whatever. If she didn’t care what happened to their parents then it wasn’t his problem, he’d take care of them.


Did she even care about the strain and commotion she’d caused with her declaration and departure? Probably not, if so she would have found a better way to discuss the problem. If one could call her accusation of him sleeping with her a problem. Yes, he could remember waking up from that drunken stupor but still couldn’t recall anything else. Had he slept with her or had it been a lie to cause ill feelings? Would she lie about something like that? Deep down he didn’t think she would but that meant accepting her words as truth. He couldn’t until he spoke to her again, which was impossible.


The curtain was shoved aside to allow an elderly bald male into the room. Dante assumed this was the doctor, thoughts of his lost stepsister was pushed into the back of his mind. The room was deathly ill as he listened intently to the man’s suggestions on how best to proceed.




“Ack!” Taree almost spit the cold liquid back into her mug with much distaste. She hated cold coffee, it was gross and left an aftertaste. The distant pounding on the front door went ignored by her. The others were home so they could answer the door, she was busy.


The clock read after midnight, who the hell was knocking this late? Probably a friend of Lydon’s, they often stopped by whenever the mood struck them. She had to get to work, she had a deadline and she was seriously slacking. Her editor was pushing her, the fourth book in her series was due out in ten months. Which meant she had to get past chapter two!


She wasn’t sure what her problem was, but she was suffering from a serious case of writer’s block. Joey claimed she needed to get laid, a few times. It’d been sixteen months since the miracle had last happened. Taree had made another mistake and had dated her editor. She swore there should be a law against sleeping with the wrong men.


The screen flashed at her, the computer was trying to go to sleep, it tends to happen after thirty minutes of not being used. She let out a growl and moved the mouse vigorously in circles. The document was still staring at her, it was laughing.


“Taree!” Joey’s voice penetrated the bedroom door. First the scream then the timid knocking, which should have came first. “Are you still awake?”


“Yes, and if I had been sleeping, I’d be awake now.” She grabbed the cup, aiming to grab a fresh cup after sending her friend away.


“Sorry, I didn’t want to disturb you but Kale is here. He says he needs to talk to you about something.” Joey wondered if it had something to do with the woman he’d been dating lately. Her brother wouldn’t feel the need to ask permission but the two discussed who they dated because the person would eventually be around Cora.


“This late?” She stormed out of her bedroom, she needed caffeine. What the hell did Kale want this time of night? If he was drunk she was going to sic the bird on him! Lydon’s voice came from the living room, where he was entertaining his brother in law. “This better be good.”


Kale grimaced noticing the scowl directed his way. It almost changed his mind about relaying his information. It wasn’t his free weekend but he felt that Taree would want to know about what was going on. Even if they both disliked Dante, one had to feel sorry for the child.


“Coffee, or he dies.” She walked into the kitchen, he could wait. Her brain was already stressed trying to figure out how to get her hero and his lady together, that wasn’t overdone. Nights like this she seriously considered just tossing them both off a cliff. After all, love was for fools and no one had a happy ending.


“Nice to see you too, mind if I get a cup?” He knew he was pushing his luck but could use it after the drive.


“Suit yourself,” she grabbed a spare cup from the cabinet. Lydon was nursing a bottle of water, while giving Joey a look that told her not to think about asking for a cup also. “What are you doing here so late?”


“Got off work and came on up. Thought you might like to hear the news that I heard.” Kale leaned against the counter, making sure he had her attention. He also had the couple’s, they were being nosey. “I was on my lunch break and I ran into your mother. Before you ask, she didn’t ask about you again but I noticed she looked tired. Well, they’ve been staying at the hospital for the last few weeks. Dante’s son is in, he’s been diagnosed with Hodgkin’s disease.”


“What the hell is that?” Joey eyed the steaming brew, knowing she’d hear it if she dared. Instead she settled for snatching the bottled water from her husband’s hand.


“A disease that starts in the immune system and spreads, it’s kind of rare.” Kale took the plain black coffee being offered to him. “It can be cured if found in time but it all depends. From what she said it has spread and the boy will probably need a marrow transplant.”


“A what? What kind of transplant?” This came from Taree, she wasn’t very medical smart. She’d never heard of the disease before but the idea of a small child being sick didn’t sit well with her.


“Bone marrow, it went into his bones. It can spread into the liver, etc, which it hasn’t yet. Your mother said they have started therapy.” Kale took a sip, looking directly at her.


“That’s good news, right. I mean they can treat it.” Lydon placed a hand on Joey’s hip, pulling her against him. Hearing about a child being sick wasn’t good for a woman expecting. She’d be upset, if only for Taree’s sake.


“Yes, they can but,” Kale wasn’t sure if he should discuss the rest with everyone. “I was wondering why they hadn’t done the transplant yet. Your mother also let it slip that she was heading to the bank. Well, I did a little calling, Maria works in the financial department in the bank. Your mother applied for a loan, using the house as collateral. I’m not sure what kind of insurance your stepbrother has but most will only pay for so much.”


“You think they need the money? I mean they’ll perform it without it, won’t they?” Joey couldn’t imagine them not giving the boy surgery due to insurance.


“No, it’s not life threatening. They’ll also send him home and stop therapy if it comes down to it. If they can’t fork a certain percent of the bill then he’ll be released.” Kale didn’t agree with the policy but it didn’t change the fact that it was there. They wouldn’t continue to let the boy stay and wrack up a large bill if it wasn’t life threatening.


“That’s a bunch of bullshit, they can’t do that!” Joey scoffed that a hospital could just kick a child out due to money. It didn’t matter if it wasn’t going to kill the child now or ever, he needed treating. “How much is the loan for?”


“Well, she’s asked for fifty thousand. I told Maria to hold off on filing the paperwork until I’ve made a few calls. They could get a loan but the rates would kill them. His father isn’t working anymore, retired two years ago. Your mother is still working, but only part time. It’d leave Dante to make the payment, and he’s already handling the normal bills. Plus, I’m not sure how much he’d be working, I figure he’d want to be with his kid.”


“Yeah, I wouldn’t blame him there.” Taree couldn’t imagine Cora going through something that terrible. She didn’t wish that on anyone, a child was innocent. True, they had parted on bad terms but she didn’t want anything horrible to happen to his son.


“Well, I’m not sure if you want to help but I thought you’d like to know. At least go home, I think your parents could use the support. It might help if you are there now. They’ve grown rather attached to him and she was really upset. Just a thought,” Kale knew she was already thinking about it. He didn’t know much about her financial situation, had never asked.


As far as child support went, he didn’t pay any. He’d offered but she had refused, had flat out torn a check up in his face. Said she didn’t need the money and he could show his support in other ways. He bought Cora gifts and clothes when he saw something he thought she’d like. On weekends he took her out and spent time with his daughter. Taree was happy with the set up and so was he. He had never thought of taking the girl to court for custody, he wouldn’t win it, he wasn’t stupid. His daughter was taken care of and he had a feeling that she had more money than he did.


“Yeah,” The idea of going back made her want to vomit. Taree placed her cup on the counter, the need for it now gone. Could she go home? No, this was home now but could she face them again? Would they want her to return? There was a strong possibility that they wouldn’t want her there. Still, could she just sit back while her parents chanced losing their home?


She knew that they would put their house up as collateral without a second thought. Even if the bank took it they wouldn’t regret it, not when it would help their grandson. Would they accept her help? Dante would probably toss her offer back in her face. How could she possibly help them? “Joey, could you keep Cora for a few days?”




A/N: Thanks for reading! And I mean for the second half to be a tad different. Also the info about the disease I did most of my research online, so if any is incorrect I'll shoot my browser. Second, about the hospital, I just added that due to seeing it done on a few movies, think one had Denzel on it and was about his son. So, I'm not sure how far off based it really is, so bare with me. Thanks....

Next Chapter: Taree arrives at the hospital....