Doves Migration

by Linda Daly

  “Yes of course, but what does that have to do with what I said,” she replied hotly, obviously still upset that Lavinia had not paid sufficient attention to her.

  Annoyed by Vivian’s tone, Lavinia chose to ignore it for the time being and continued, “Well, as I was saying, Isaac was detained and as luck would have it so was James. His excuse was that he was detained at the club with Alfred.”

  Raising her eyebrow, Vivian smirked. “Ah, so now you are wondering where that husband of yours really was, or more importantly, does he know about you and that lusty painter of yours?”

  Lavinia gasped and looked at the older woman with her mouth still opened. “Vivian, why of all the ridiculous …”

  Raising her hand, Vivian stopped Lavinia from continuing her lie. “Oh please Lavinia, do you honestly think for one moment I haven’t known from the start what you and that artist friend of yours have been doing all these months? First off, no portrait takes that long to paint.”

  Lavinia was stunned and didn’t know what to say. Knowingly, Vivian said ruefully, “Personally, I feel it serves James right for leaving such a beautiful vivacious woman alone as much as he does. But after what I’ve observed over dinner my dear, I would be very concerned if your husband hasn’t become wise to your little amusement with your artist friend. And if I’m not mistaken, he has enlisted Alfred as an ally.”

  “Dear God, I think you’re right,” she whispered, more to herself than to Vivian. “So now what do I do?”

  “Why nothing dear. If your artist suddenly didn’t show up anymore, surely it would only confirm his suspicions. But I would definitely make certain that a portrait is completed or nearly complete, in the event you are questioned. I’m assuming this Isaac can paint, right dear?”

  “Yes, of course he can.” Lavinia’s voice drifted off as her mind raced. So if James suspects my infidelities than why hasn’t he tried to stop me?

  So deep in her own thoughts, Lavinia barely heard Vivian say, “Take it from someone who knows. A man of James’ position will not openly destroy his wife’s reputation, especially when he has his own pride to consider among his colleagues. If you don’t believe me, just look at our late president. Mary Todd spent well above her means, but to protect his good name and hers, Lincoln practically blackmailed Congress in paying them off, for the position of his office. Men have a code they must live by and James’s pride would never allow anyone to find out the truth of his wife. That is, unless it serves him too for his own purpose. For instance, if he found someone more desirable in social standing, or unless his wife forced him to by flaunting her indiscretions openly. Which of course you wouldn’t, so then my question would be, does James have his eye on someone else?”

  Lavinia’s heart raced as her eyes widened. That little bitch, Felicity! Well, I’ll just have to inform her cousin of this as well! Trying to control her voice she said, “Why of course not, don’t be absurd.”

  “How foolish of me to even ask such a thing.” Vivian smiled brazenly, raising her eyebrow wondering whom James was interested in.

  Eleven

  Sins of the Past

  Long after the residents had retired for the evening, Tad waited in the shadows of the Honeycutt property for his friend Daniel, as prearranged. Hearing the hooves of a horse approach, Tad stepped out from behind a tree, while Michael in his father’s study, watched his son get into a buggy that had stopped briefly in front of the Honeycutt estate. Shaking his head discouragingly, Michael glanced at Alfred who had sat and waited with him in the darkened room to see what Tad was up to.

  “Just as we suspected, Father.” Striking a match to light his pipe, Alfred drew in several small intakes of breath to assure the tobacco was fully lit in the bowl of his pipe. Blowing out the match, he raised his eyebrow while increasing the flame of the hurricane lamp beside him on the mahogany table.

  “Son, as I said earlier, Tad is a full-grown man. The decision he makes is of his own choosing. He chose to lie, and that Michael, has nothing to do with you or me, for that matter,” Alfred said sternly.

  “That might be so, but the fact that I was not here to guide him certainly contributes to my son making bad decisions. And nothing you can say, Father, will ease my guilt.”

  Sighing heavily, Alfred motioned his son to take a seat beside him in the high-back Queen Anne chair next to his. Obligingly, Michael sat and glanced at his father who was obviously troubled. “Father, what is it?”

  “Son, what I’m about to tell you, I had never intended for you to know. However now, under the circumstances, the truth must come out.”

  Frowning, Michael looked at his father, allowing Alfred the time he needed to gather his thoughts. “Before I begin, I need to tell you Michael, that the man you have become, I value as my greatest accomplishment. Now, hear me out …” Alfred said, seeing his son ready to respond. “I don’t say this as a means to console you, but rather to point out why I feel I can trust you with what I’m about to reveal to you now. Understand?”

  “I believe so… Please go on.”

  “As you know, your mother has always been a high-strung woman, requiring a great deal of attention. I knew this when we met and fell in love. In truth, that is what I fell in love with, her zest for life. When I took my bride back to England to meet my family and friends, never had I imagined it would nearly destroy our marriage and her in the process. Looking back now, I suppose they resented your mother not just because she was from America, but they had hoped I would marry another woman in our set. It didn’t help that your mother was not as demure and cultured as those that my family associated with. After months of watching your poor mother struggle to fit in and win the love of my mother, which she never could, since your grandmother was so rigid in her thinking, Vivian and I left England after a terrible row. My father, heartbroken and fearful he would lose his son as did his friend William Phelps, funded any business adventure I wanted to start. Up until that time, in truth, I dabbled in business but never took it serious. I was young and was quite fond of enjoying life of the gentry.”

  Stopping to take a pull from his pipe, Alfred continued. “That all changed though upon returning to America. Feeling as if I had something to prove to my father, I became obsessed in my work while your mother was determined to improve her image. At the time, I thought your mother was merely trying to impress my mother and friends so she would be viewed as worthy. So involved in my own quest, I never realized how much she needed my approval as well. As it turned out, I was extremely fortunate and my investments paid off; all the while your mother built a lavish home for us, spending the money as quickly as it was made. Over time, we drifted further and further apart, me working long hours and then stopping at the club more frequently to unwind and avoid her complaints of me never being around. That all changed though when you were born and for a few years your mother and I were genuinely happy. She was busy tending to you while I kept building an empire, never satisfied with what I had, always wanting more. Before long, we both drifted apart from one another again. Then the worst day of my life happened when I discovered your mother was having an affair with the artist who painted that portrait.” Alfred’s voice trailed off, pointing to the painting that hung above the mantel.

  Michael, so shocked at what he was hearing, looked up at the familiar painting that had hung in his father’s study for as long as he could remember. In a low voice barely above a whisper, Alfred spoke again. “That afternoon I had just closed a deal that was sure to make me quite wealthy and I came home early to share my good fortune. Stopping by the nursery, I saw you were playing quietly with your nanny so I tiptoed to your mother’s boudoir to surprise her. There I found her engaging in sexual activities with the man I had commissioned to paint her portrait. Stunned, I stood watching that bastard gratifying himself on your mother as she watched me looking on. I’ll never forget the look in her eyes … cold and scornful. When I stormed in and flung him off her, your mother just lay there not even trying to conceal her n
akedness. It was as if she had wanted me to find out what I had turned her into.”

  Stunned and angry, Michael lashed out. “For God sakes Father, I don’t know what to say! You certainly didn’t force mother into betraying you.”

  Alfred glanced back at his son coyly. “Didn’t I? Michael, I had ignored her needs and desires to satisfy my own greed for power and wealth. Leaving her day and night for years alone, knowing full well, her insatiable zest for life, but not giving a damn.”

  “What did you do? I mean following that afternoon?” Michael asked hesitantly.

  “Do? What I had done our entire marriage; made a business arrangement. After hanging up that damned portrait, more as means to torment her as a constant reminder of her infidelities, I made a deal with your mother. If she continued to raise you and appear as a happy couple for my business associates, in exchange, she could do as she pleased as long as she was discreet.”

  “Are you telling me father that since that day to this, you and mother … .”

  “What I am saying Michael is, I forced that beautiful woman you see up in that picture so filled with life to change into the bitter, conniving woman she is today. Never to know pure happiness or contentment. I’ll hand it to her though, Vivian kept her promise and from that day to this, if she had other affairs, I knew nothing of them, nor did I care. Sadly though from that day to this, we have never been intimate.”

  Michael’s mouth dropped. “Father, that had to be more than thirty-five years ago.”

  “Forty-three actually. From that day to this, never have I allowed her or myself to be forgiven for what we have done to one another and to our only child. And for that I am truly sorry, Michael.”

  Puzzled Michael asked, “I don’t follow …”

  Interrupting his son, Alfred said, “You were raised by two people who cared more to fill their home with materialistic fineries to impress others and keep up appearances, rather than show one another love. The only thing of value that resulted from this shameful existence is you! And for years I’ve been a hypocrite, telling you that loving another was the greatest possession a man had, while living a private life and not giving a damn if your mother did or not.”

  “Are you telling me that you had affairs, Father?”

  “Countless women who meant nothing to me. Their names I would prefer to keep private.”

  Michael nodded to his father not really wanting to know them by name.

  Acknowledging his son’s gesture, Alfred added. “After you went off to college and returned with a wife to live with us, for the first time in decades there was warmth and genuine love under this roof. Was it any wonder your mother resented your marriage? Not only had Vivian been taught not to be accepted by my mother, but also over the years I had taught her how to be manipulative to get what she required. What Vivian wanted most in the world was what you and Emily had, and that was something your mother could never have at any cost. After Emily’s tragic death, your mother came to me pleading to at least let her raise her grandson since I had denied her a life she deserved. So I did. Again, my selfishness overruled my better judgment, convincing myself that it was best for all concerned. Over the years, I made it easier for you to leave Thaddeus with us. Then when Tad went off to college, you were spending more and more time in Fairfax and it became clear to me that you had again found love. With Tad away, I kept telling myself that you deserved some happiness. Frankly Michael, I lived for your happiness, even envied what it must be like to risk your own life for the love of a woman. When Miranda came to live with us, my heart soared at discovering what a fine and decent man you had become despite your parents. Then it suddenly occurred to me that all the while I had been appeasing your mother out of my own guilt and shame, I had prevented your son from knowing just how truly wonderful his father actually was. In addition, I prayed that God would allow you to return and not punish me any further. So you see Michael, if anyone is to blame for Tad’s lack of character, it’s me!” Alfred’s voice cracked, as he looked at his son for forgiveness.

  Shaking his head, Michael leaned over and patted his father’s hand. “Don’t be so hard on yourself, Father, I could have stood up to you and mother, but I chose not to. I took the easy way out, not able to face my grief losing Emily, and I hid behind my work. That is something I shall live with for the rest of my life. If it wasn’t for Sarah, hell I might still be …”

  “I don’t believe that, son. From what I’ve heard and seen since your return home, I’ve observed a woman who has endured your mother’s hateful tongue and schemes simply out of the love she has for my son. That love was based on two people finding one another and sharing their heart, not just one. My only advice to you now is, don’t get so caught up in your own pain Michael, that you lose sight of what your wife’s needs are, son, like I did. When you and Sarah move into your new home, allow Tad to witness how a man and a woman should treat one another, rather than what he has known living with us. If your son learns what you have achieved with your Sarah, I can tell you Michael, no matter how successful he may become in the life he builds for himself, what will matter the most when his life is nearly over is how he loved. Don’t get me wrong, I’m very proud of your accomplishments, but I envy your ability to put what matters the most to you first in your life. If only I had been able to see that loving another came before my career, perhaps things could have been different for your mother and me.”

  Seeing the pain in his father’s eyes, Michael wanted to ease his tormented mind but somehow he knew what his father needed the most was to finally release his pain by exposing the truth. Alfred, looking up at the portrait of his wife as she once had been, lovingly smiled.

  “By God Michael, do you see how beautiful your mother was? Instead of punishing her, this portrait is now a constant reminder to me of how I had chosen my own ambition over her needs. How I wish to God I could change our pasts.”

  Then looking at Michael, his tone became more urgent. “For some unknown reason, Miranda has taken an interest in your son. And one thing I know for certain is that young woman has no tolerance for conniving or deceitfulness. If Tad is fortunate to ever truly win her heart, he will have to be honest with that woman or lose her. And if he loses her, it will haunt him forever. Take it from someone who knows. So rather than be consumed with the past in which you have no control of, help Tad to become the man I feel he truly wants to be. We both have more than enough money for him to live in comfort. What he needs more than wealth is to feel loved and to be able to love. You, Michael, can teach him that.” Alfred’s voice, so full of emotion, cracked.

  Suddenly Michael saw his father as more than an untouchable successful businessman, but as a vulnerable man with a life full of regrets that tormented him, and who was now reaching out for the love of his son.

  “Father, thank you …” Unable to find the words to express all that he was feeling, Michael knelt in front of his father and said, “I love you.”

  For the fist time in Michael’s life, he saw his father cry as he whispered, “I love you too, son.”

  Tenderly patting Michael on the shoulder, Alfred said, “Go to your Sarah and let me wait up for my grandson tonight. We have a few things to talk over.”

  Nodding, Michael stood, wanting to ask him what he intended to discuss with Tad, but instead decided whatever it was that his father wanted to share with Tad, he knew it would be beneficial for them both.

  ~

  As Alfred waited for his grandson, Tad was fighting for his life across town in the alley behind Jake’s with Daniel Hobbs looking on. After Daniel picked up Tad, the two of them waited in the shadows of the alley being informed that Gilbert would be there after midnight. Just as they had thought, Gilbert, along with a fellow worker at the Ice Company, showed up soon after the church bell chimed twelve. As the two Irishmen came into the passageway, Tad walked out in plain view.

  “O’Flaherty, I’ve got a proposition for you,” he called to him. “Oh yeah! And what would that be, you
r Lordship?” Gilbert remarked snidely.

  “Give me back my money and stay the hell away from Miranda, and I won’t make any trouble for you.”

  “The hell I will, you cheating bastard! As a matter of fact, that fair little lassie is far too good for the likes of you, so I think I’ll be winning her from ya too.”

  Infuriated, Tad charged at Gilbert, but expecting his assailant, Gilbert easily stepped to the side, causing Tad to lunge into the wall of Jake’s. Gilbert’s friend laughed, goading Tad into a rage as he stumbled to regain his bearings. Grasping hold of a jagged piece of board, Tad swung the board at Gilbert and his friend.

  “I’ll wipe that smile off your damned face, you slimy bastard!” Tad yelled, taking Gilbert by surprise and clipping him in the ribs, which caused the wind to be knocked out of him. Hunched over, Tad punched him in the face, throwing the man onto a rusted iron tub used by the brewery to discard empty whiskey bottles.

  “Get up, you son of a bitch,” Tad said derisively, hovering over the stunned man, not noticing that Gilbert’s friend had pulled an ice pick from inside his weathered coat and was inching his way closer to Tad to strike.

  “Tad, watch your back!” Daniel yelled.

  Jerking around just as the man lunged, Tad began struggling for control of the pick. Feeling his forearm slashed by the tip of it, Tad managed to knee his assailant in the groin while still struggling over control of the tool. Suddenly the man yelped as the pick pierced through his side. Seeing the stranger’s eyes widen, Tad looked down in disbelief, as Gilbert, who had regained his bearings, struck him over the head with a bottle, causing him to fall to the ground.

  Then Gilbert turned and looked at Daniel who had done nothing up to this point to defend his friend. “This wasn’t part of the deal,” he shouted. “Hell, me mate could have been killed!”

  “Yeah well, who the hell told you to flap your jaws? What in the hell did you expect, when you threatened to go after his woman, you stupid son of a bitch?” Daniel shouted back at the outraged Gilbert while walking over to him. “All you had to do was promise him a chance to get his money back and we could have wiped him clean of next month’s spending money too,” Daniel snarled.