Karen & Alexa Ch. 03

Karen looked at her sister levelly. "Would you still have fallen in love with my son under those circumstances?"

Alexa didn't know what to say. She mostly found herself completely frozen, unable to do anything. The chill she felt as her entire life was focused through an entirely different lens she'd never considered crawled through her slowly.

"Jesus, Kar ..." she finally managed to whisper. "You don't pull any punches, do you?"

"I can't afford to, Alli," said the older sister, shaking her head and looking grave. "Because I think you and Alex need to understand exactly what you've got here. My baby sister, born out of time, spirited halfway around the world for two decades and raised in a totally different culture, comes back to me and falls madly in love with my one and only son. What are the odds?"

"If... I'd been born right after you ..." Alexa murmured, her eyes distant, "... what would've happened to Alex and I? Kar, I don't want to think about this."

"Sweetheart, it's all hypothetical," Karen assured her. "I'm not telling you any of this to try and distance you from Alex. I'm pointing it out because I'm saying that this little miracle of you two has been three decades in the making. You, born over twenty years too late, then whisked away for another twenty years, only to come back and meet an irresistible DeBourne man. If that's not Divine Providence, then what is?"

"Okay," Alexa said somewhat uncertainly, trying to trust her sister. "But ... why now, Kar? Why this very second?"

"Because I can almost guarantee one of those two girls who were massaging us yesterday knows exactly who we are, and when they overheard you talking about being married to Alex, they'd head straight to the nearest Blackwell and tell them," Karen said simply. "It'll be worth a lot of money to that girl. More importantly, the Blackwells who are standing against me are now planning to come at you with everything they've got about your 'illegal, incestuous and disgusting' relationship with my son. They'll hammer away on you about disgracing the family, demanding to know why you couldn't have picked someone else, and how I could allow this sort of degenerate behaviour to besmirch our family's name. That's what's going to happen today, Alli."

Alexa was silent, simply staring off into nothing. Karen could tell her little sister was horrified, and she felt terrible. But if this was the life Alex and Alexa were choosing, then they had to be ready, as a team and as individuals, to confront it.

Strangely enough, Karen had complete faith in her son's ability and willingness to tackle this problem head-on, and not give up, because he was a DeBourne through and through. Once Alex's mind was made up, no one short of the Almighty could change it. Of course, there was plenty of Gordon and Blackwell in Alex as well, but when it came to stubbornness and a jovial tenacity, he was his father's son without question.

Alexa, her sister, was still, to some degree, an unknown quantity for Karen. She understood her little sister was a woman of immeasurable talent, but Karen had yet to see how she comported herself in a crisis. The only one they'd shared up to that point had caused her to flee back to Europe, but Karen couldn't fault her there -- Alexa believed, quite reasonably, that her life was in tatters and she had no business staying and hurting her new family.

Here in Quebec, however, hurting her family was something of a necessity. There was no room for a fight-or-flight instinct now.

Alexa still hadn't said anything, apparently lost in her uncomfortable thoughts. Karen put down her tea, stood and went over to the other chair, kneeling in front of her sister and taken her hand.

"Alli ..." she said quietly, smiling.

Alexa blinked and looked down at her.

"Listen to me," Karen cooed, stroking her hand. "Yes, today will be tough, but we've already won."

"We have?"

Karen nodded. "The only way to lose is to give up, to just quit, because we get frustrated and can't take it any more."

"Walking away with umpteen millions doesn't sound so bad, Kar," Alexa said, smiling weakly.

"It doesn't stop there, sweetheart," Karen said gravely. "And now comes the part where I explain why we can't lose. Why we dare not."

"I ... why haven't you told me this detail before, Kar?" Alexa asked, wondering if her sister was using her in a game suddenly.

Karen, of course, had read her mind already and smiled lovingly. "I'm not playing you, Alexandra Blackwell. I held on to this tiny perspective tidbit until the right moment, because then you could use it to greatest effect."

"I could?"

"Alli, if they vote me off the board and all that other stuff, yes, I am a very wealthy woman, and chances are, our family will tear itself apart," Karen continued. "But there's something worse that happens if we lose."

Alexa just looked at her, wondering what the Hell she meant.

"We're a proud family, Alli, prone to vanity," the older sister stated. "They aren't just using your relationship with Alex as ammunition against me, they'll be offended by it. They'll be offended by a perceived black mark on their name. Alli, if we don't defeat them, then for the sake of their own reputations, they will do everything in their power to drive you and Alex apart."

Her breath caught in her throat and Alexa's sapphire blue eyes blazed with fury at those damning words.

***

2017: Cardiff, Wales ...

Alexa sat in the chair, smiling and holding her mother's hand. She felt strangely serene, given the circumstances. Miranda, her auburn-brown hair now streaked with grey, smiled back at her from the hospital bed. They both knew she wouldn't be leaving this ward. They'd both accepted it. To be honest, Alexa had never really inquired that deeply about her mother's ailment to begin with. Miranda had told her that her father was now at peace, and she would be joining him shortly.

It was strangely reassuring, she thought, that even after twenty years, and despite whatever terror had triggered her flight, her mother still loved her father. True, she'd had lovers here in Europe, but no one had ever held her heart. She'd been a busy woman, and with no time for romantic entanglements. But through it all, she'd only loved Jonathon Blackwell.

Her mother's attitude flew in the face of many of Alexa's millennial sensibilities, but Miranda Gordon was the wisest woman she'd ever known, without question, and that always tempered her own judgments. Alexa saw sense in just disposing of things that served no practical purpose, emotionally or otherwise. Most young people her age felt the same. Was her mother just old and sentimental?

That couldn't have been it, because Alexa herself felt a deep sense of yearning for her father, and the rest of the family she'd never known. Miranda was so much more than Alexa could have hoped for in a parent.

"I'm glad you're such a strong girl, fy nghalon," Miranda said, her eyes gleaming, despite her illness. Alexa had no idea if her mother was in pain. She couldn't imagine her not being, given how quickly the affliction was taking her, but she showed no outward sign of it. "I am relieved to think that before long, you'll be able to relax for a while."

Alexa shook her head. "That's awful mom. You make it sound like my grief will just magically disappear the moment you ... well, we both know it won't. I'm an emotional girl, after all."

"And one of the two strongest I have ever met," her mother said quietly, squeezing her hand. "You and Karen, both so brilliant and perfect."

"Oh, you shouldn't mention us in the same breath, mom," Alexa said, blushing and looking away. "That's akin to blasphemy in my world."

"And what about your world, Alexandra?" her mom asked. "What's to become of it?"

"I don't know yet," the blonde beauty replied, shrugging. "I haven't decided. I'll need some time, of course."

"That's fair, I suppose," Miranda allowed. She was happy that they could talk like this, so matter-of-factly. She was dying, and not slowly, as her husband apparently had. It broke her heart, but she had resolved not to contact Karen, because it wasn't fair to Alexa, opening up a door to a world she might not care to know, except as a memory or a dream. No, she would leave it for her darling daughter, one final gift about how to live her life.

Her thoughts strayed to her eldest. Karen had always been so remarkably strong, enduring all hardships with no signs of regret. Miranda knew that Karen was loved and well looked after by her husband, who was the best man she'd ever known. Even without Miranda and Alexandra, Karen's life would be just fine. If only circumstances had been different ...

She'd moved around Europe for nearly nineteen years now, keeping her whereabouts unknown to both the Gordons and the Blackwells, for Alexandra's sake. To her relief, they'd never been found or contacted, even by Karen and Michael, who most certainly could have if they'd been inclined to disobey her request all those years earlier.

"It seems to me you have two options, really," she said finally, looking at her daughter. "No one would blame you one bit if you simply continued living this lovely life of yours, moving about as you pleased, studying whatever suited you, marrying Freja or someone else, and being the toast of Europe."

"Mom ..." Alexa hissed, blushing again. "No need to be corny."

"Or, now that your father is at peace, you could possibly contact the families, and make yourself known to them," Miranda continued. "It's your right to, after all."

A somewhat hesitant look passed over her daughter's lovely face. "That ... mom, yeah, I guess, but that would involve actually meeting Karen. I ... I dunno if I could do that without dying of fright."

Miranda smiled and shook her head. "So very alike and yet unalike, you girls. She is not a goddess, Alexandra, she's your sister."

"I know, but my whole life, I've looked up to her, I've built her up in my head, based on everything I've ever known and that you've ever told me," Alexa protested.

"Well, nobody told you to do that, silly," her mother laughed before wincing slightly. Alexa did her the courtesy of not noticing. "And what makes you think Karen won't have her own hesitations about meeting you and not measuring up?"

"Mom, it's your pancreas going crazy, not your brain," Alexa giggled. "Look, I'll admit, it's very tempting to contact my sissy and connect, but it's terrifying, you just have to accept that."

"Oh, I do," Miranda assured her. "I cannot begin to tell you how hard it was to not contact Karen once I knew about Jonathon. But it still terrified me, to think of contacting her after eighteen years, out of the blue."

"So why didn't you?" her daughter asked.

"Because it needs to be your decision, Alexandra," Miranda said in a quiet but firm voice. "I wasn't about to force a world you've never known on you if it didn't suit you. I was indeed aware of the rose-coloured glasses you always perceived this world I told you about through, and if for some reason, reality didn't match expectations, what then? Would you have just turned your back on them and come back here to Europe?"

"Well, no, I couldn't have done that," Alexa admitted. "And I understand what you mean about letting it be my choice, but ... what if I have no place in their life, mom? What if they don't want that bandage torn off? What if Karen and Mike have kids of their own, and are living perfect lives?"

"Alexandra, the one thing I can say with absolute certainty is that you coming back into Karen's life will not impact it negatively," the older woman said, her voice full of conviction. "I know you both, and I remember the look on her face when she held you in the hospital for the first time. She was every bit as in love with you as I was, my dear. And then, one day, you were simply gone."

She looked at Alexa levelly, and her eyes were sad, knowing that even if she'd made the right choice, she regretted the hardship it had brought. "Trust me, even if there is a bandage in place, that wound has not healed in all this time."

"So you think I should contact her?" Alexa asked, hoping her mother would make this decision for her. No such luck.

"I think you should follow your heart, Alexandra," Miranda said quietly. "Only you know what's best for you. I made a hard choice eighteen years ago, and it was the right one, but I still regret having to make it. You've led a beautiful life, and you're so wonderful just as you are. The decision about which door to go through is yours, child. Not mine, not Karen's. Yours. And there is no wrong answer."

Miranda then eased herself back onto her pillows and looked at the far wall. "I need to rest now, darling. Don't worry, I'll be here tomorrow, my time's not up yet. And you have several things to attend to."

"I know, mom," Alexa agreed, placing her mother's hand on the sheets and standing up. "Keep your tablet handy, and we'll talk tonight. I'll be back tomorrow after my classes, okay?"

She leaned down and kissed her mom on the forehead and poked her nose. The older woman scrunched up her face and smiled. It was a tradition they'd had for some years now, and she would miss it when her time came.

And then Alexa was gone from the room and she was alone. She felt a single tear trickle down her cheek as she thought of her husband and her daughters ...

***

The sisters strode down the corridor toward the boardroom, side-by-side. Karen's face was stoic, but her eyes were glinting with resolve. Beside her, the normally bright and cheerful Alexa's expression was one of defiance, her sapphire eyes flashing. Her lips were pursed, and she gripped her attaché case tightly. She calmed herself and matched Karen's confident stride, keeping the rigidity out of her body language.

Karen's business suit was slate grey, with subtle silver threading that made the wearer's movements flow almost hypnotically. Alexa, on the other hand, was wearing a completely white pantsuit, her hair done up behind her head, the exquisite lines and features of her face easily seen.

At a receptionist's desk in the hall, a woman looked at them both and nodded. "They're waiting for you, ma'am."

Karen nodded and kept walking. The receptionist pushed a button and the door to the boardroom opened as they approached. Inside, the family members were waiting in silence, although Karen could already sense the tension in the air.

She'd been right, they knew. Her stomach turned to ice, and she had to remind herself that she was counting on them already knowing about Alex and Alexa. It was part of the plan. Strange as it sounded, everything was proceeding according to her plan.

She took everything in instantly -- everyone was looking at them, measuring them. Rodney had that insufferable smirk on his face. More importantly, his son Ripley had resumed his place at his father's side, in the seat Alexa had been using. Clearly, they were so confident in their hand that they felt they could push their position early. Karen had anticipated this, however, and was ready. She was certain she'd anticipated everything possible and had a response. Even now, they were counting on her not knowing that they knew. She could see it in Rodney's expression. He could hardly wait for the reveal.

I'm so sorry, Roddy, for what's going to happen. But it's you or my sister and my son. I'm sorry.

She strode into the boardroom, Alexa right behind her. Without a word to anyone, the sisters proceeded to the head of the table, and Karen sat in her chair. She was mildly surprised that Roddy had resisted the urge to sit there himself, but chances were he wasn't ready just yet to risk the wrath of the other board members with such a presumptuous act.

Alexa, conspicuously, just stood beside her. Rodney and Ripley both smirked, as if they'd won a victory in making her stand. Alexa had no intention of sitting, however. For what came next, she wanted to be standing. Let Ripley have his chair; it would doom them all the quicker for their false confidence.

"Well now," Karen said, committing herself to her course and pushing away the butterflies in her stomach. "Before we get down to company business, maybe we should --"

"Point of order, Karen," Rodney interrupted, smiling toothily. "But we all believe that there is some business to attend to that relates to the company directly and should be addressed immediately."

Karen looked at Rodney, then around the boardroom. "Are you referring to my sister's relationship with and pending marriage to my son Alex, or are you referring to the roughly eighteen percent losses posted by your son and Greg this morning when Streak Derivatives folded on its investors without notice?"

Rodney was given pause at her question, and he could feel everyone's eyes on him suddenly. Eighteen percent was an unforgivably large loss to swallow, and certainly was a black eye for the family business. Greg had been warned to not invest so readily in derivatives without the backing of the central accounts, and Rodney had let Ripley invest alongside him.

"That's ... no, it's about your sister and your son," Rodney stammered, trying to gain his footing, but he felt Greg leave his chair nearby and hurry out into the hallway, his cellphone in hand. That was one ally out of the loop for now. Beside Rodney, Ripley sat uneasily, aware that things already were going awry, and it had partially been his doing. "It's about the illegal relationship between your sister and your son, and how it looks for the family."

A few murmurs could be heard around the table. Karen sensed her uncle Alistair looking at her, not quite sure what to think. She'd let some more line out, play them for a bit, to borrow one of her husband's fishing terms. She would set the pace, not respond to it.

"Well, if you must know, we're working to get the avunculate marriage laws changed in Ontario," she answered simply. "They're not married, as yet, and we're certain that the laws will be correct by the time they get married in Paris in the near future."

The majority of people didn't quite know what to make of this news, mostly because it was Karen who had told them about it, and they'd expected her to be blindsided that they knew at all.

"And let's be honest here," she continued. "Civil law hardly compares to the ridicule involved by the business community at large for our folly with Streak, does it? My father warned you, Roddy, and yet, here we are, posting more losses, and inevitably dipping into Central to solve the problem."

"This isn't about Streak, Karen," Rodney said angrily, irked that he'd been put on the defensive. "This is about a scandal that besmirches the family name! How could you let this happen?"

"I do my best not to interfere in the investments and dealings of the partners, Roddy," she said, shrugging her shoulders while her hands remained clasped on the table. "Sometimes --"

"Not me, Karen!" he almost hissed, slapping the table with his hands, his face colouring and then pointing at Alexa. "Her! Your dear, long-lost sister, with her bohemian fancies and disrespect for decency! Your mother, that hippie Gordon woman we all warned Jonathon about, clearly brought her up with loose morals and --"

"Be very careful what you say about my mother, cousin," Alexa said quietly, her hands behind her back, but her eyes flashing. "One shouldn't speak ill of the dead."

"Rubbish!" he spat, half-rising out of his chair and glaring at her. "You haven't even been back in this family's lives a year, and you're already compromising our integrity! I --"