Cantrell: The Early Years, Part Five

Moment of Truth, a Cantrell: The Early Years, Part Five Update

Erik invited a small group of family over to celebrate the minor holiday. His father dropped by unannounced, which gave him the idea. He invited his mother to join them, Adrian, Joey, Aaron, Brianna and Spock. For a test run, he also invited Kayleigh. He hadn’t seen her since he got back from his tour. Everybody came over, with the exception of his mother. “She’s having a bit of a bad day,” Joseph explained. “And, yes, it’s okay for her to be alone. In fact, she prefers it.”

Erik’s heart skipped a beat when Kayleigh came through the front gate. She looked lovelier than ever, the light winding kicking strands of her long blonde ponytail up and to the side.  Smiling she came up to him. “I see you’re alive and well, that’s good,” she said.
“Why would you think otherwise? And thank you for coming.”

“Oh, I don’t know, maybe the lack of correspondence between us these past several months. You do realize adding in the second tour, you’ve been gone nearly two years and a half years. No schedules, second time around, no rendezvouses. No calls, no texts. Nothing.”

“I know, I know, it’s not what I wanted. I was asked to leave you alone, to stay away. I can’t go into it now, but there was a problem with the post, of which I will explain fully when we can have a moment of privacy. It is so very good to see you. I’ve missed you so much.” Erik leaned in to give her a hug, and she gracefully avoided it, turning out of what could have been an embrace.
“No, no hugs right now,” she said.                    

Sighing heavily, Erik said, “Okay, I get it. I’m really sorry.”
“Me, too."

*~~*~~*~~*~~*

The sky was hazy and overcast, but it was still hot.  Erik filled a bucket with water balloons and declared ‘war’ on the others.

After a time, Erik fired up his barbeque and made Elotes for his guests. Being a vegetarian-safe dish, he thought including Spock was the right thing to do. The food turned out reasonably all right, edible at least. He and Spock actually got on well together. Erik vaguely remembered him from his childhood.  Before the party was over he and Spock were good friends. Brianna couldn’t stop smiling the whole time. Told she was experiencing a bout of PTSD; he was glad to see her happy.

Little at a time, the group peeled off and headed to their respective homes. Erik was left to himself. He quickly cleaned up the dishes and things, took care of his animals and went inside. Tomorrow, he was going to pop the question he had been yearning to ask. Realizing at the same time, her understandably cool response today was something he was going to have to contend with, if they were to chase their initial dream of being together. 

He found himself wondering whether taking her out to a fancy restaurant was a good idea, or if he should just invite her over for a quiet dinner. Candles, soft music, a nice fire in the fireplace . . . They did have to address the elephant in the room. The Case of the Missing Letters. Erik sighed.

He sorely wondered just what Drake had been about sending the letters back to him, without even allowing his daughter to know Erik had written. What was the purpose, to totally defame him, so Kayleigh would let him go on her own?  He did finally give his consent — and his blessing. But was it already too late? How was Erik to extricate himself from something he had no control over? Drake appeared to be a Master at it. How was he to shield his soon-to-be father-in-law to keep the peace in the family? Too many questions with no answers. If ever there was a conundrum, this was it.

He ruminated over these things until slumber took him captive. He fell asleep mid-prayer in which he was asking for some divine direction. This problem was bigger than him. This was one area he really didn’t wish to bungle. Seems that’s all I’m good for these days. I have so much to learn, yet. God grant me the grace . . .

*~~*~~*~~*~~*
Daylight smacked him in the eye. Today was the day, he chortled as he pulled out of bed. Checking his schedule, the only thing on his list was to go down to Taygeta Studios to finish cutting the fifteen new songs, already written, to finish that eighth album he’d boasted about. Some of which had already been recorded. This would also fill the time. He quickly sent off a text to Kayleigh, inviting her over to a nice, private dinner for two. He had answers to her questions and they had much to discuss. Please come.

She didn’t disappoint.  She arrived with a bottle of Von Haute Meloire tucked under her arm. Erik’s heart bounced in his chest. Perhaps, that hill just got a little less steep. Smiling, he said, “You look gorgeous.” 

“Thank you, sir. You’re looking good, yourself.” Leading her into the dining room, he held out a chair for her. “This is so beautiful. You even placed flowers on the table. Oh, I love the candles,” she said. He noticed her smile, which warmed his heart all the more.

“Nothing too good for the love of my life,” he said, leaning over and kissing her on the forehead. To his relief she didn’t pull away. “I have to check the steaks,” he said, disappearing out the back door for only a couple of minutes. 

“I thought you couldn’t cook,” she teased as Erik brought in two plates. Steak, baked potato. The wondrous aroma of grilled food filling the air. Erik could feel his mouth watering.
“The barbeque and I have come to an understanding,” he said, with a wry grin and a small shrug of his broad shoulders.

Kayleigh smiled, “This looks delicious.” Erik poured them both a glass of wine. “I recall the first time I had a glass of wine like this,” she said. “I felt all giddy ...”

“I’m feeling a tad giddy myself at the moment,”  he confessed. “We were out on a date, and my mother showed up at the very same lounge . . . that was so profoundly embarrassing. I suddenly felt five years old.” Erik chuckled, bringing Kayleigh’s laughter along with his.

“Those were good times,” she said. “You, me, the Paparazzi we had to avoid and the world. Oh, my. I’ve missed you.”
“I’ve missed you, too. And it was never my intention to stay away. Mixed signals, I fear.”

Erik set his glass down, after taking another sip of the Meloire. “This is a difficult subject to bring up, but I wanted you to know I did write to you. Once a week, or sometimes more often, when I got unbearably lonely for you. It is possible, in retrospect, that I should have texted you directly. For that miscalculation I apologize. I never once stopped loving you. I hope you know that. And, now if you’ll forgive me, there’s something I have to do,” he said. He grabbed up the bottle of wine, and their two glasses.

Walking through the archway into the foyer, he turned into the Livingroom on the right.
“I’ll just take care of these dishes,” she said.
“I’ll be in the Livingroom, please join me there.”

*~~*~~*~~*~~*

Kayleigh heard the crackle of a fire in the fireplace. She came through the hallway to the Livingroom, saw the light of the fire dancing over Erik’s face and on into the room, as he leaned into it. “Erik? What is that you’re hastening to burn— are those letters? Whose letters? Who is she, Erik?” Erik tossed the ones in his hand onto the pyre and stood up. 

Taking another one from the stack, he held it out to her. “You,” he said.  “She is you.” Kayleigh took it in her hands and studied it. “This is addressed to me. What do you mean by taking my personal items and burning them like this?”

“Yes, they are addressed to you but see this?” he pointed to the large words in red stamped across the envelope. “Return to Sender,” he said, when she made a face. “This makes them my property.” he furthered. “Obviously, they were intercepted somewhere along the line, possibly on your end. So, to preserve peace in the family I have chosen to dispense with these. It’s my way of letting go of a rather painful past. I pray it is enough for you to know that I continued to write to you while I was on my second World Tour.”

Kayleigh turned the envelope over and over in her hands. “Yes, this is your handwriting, you always make this amusing squiggle at the end of your L’s. I’d know it anywhere. But 1— I never received them. Why would the postal service send them back like that? And why must you destroy them? What peace are you trying to keep?” You really did write to me.

“So many questions.” He allowed a small grin. Taking her hands in his, he said, “Is it not enough for you to know he finally gave me the permission I sought?  I am trying to tell you; he and I have made peace between us. Whether or not we’ll come to genuinely like each other, I cannot say. I can only promise to try. What I won’t abide, however, is open hostility between you and he.”

“He? Are you saying Daddy is the one who intercepted these? All of these?” her large blue eyes grew watery. Erik cast her a sympathetic glance. I’m bungling this. 

Drawing in a silent breath, he let it out slowly, "I know he’s made some really abominable choices and that he’s hurt you many times over, — for which I could hate him, but for the sake of the family, our family, this must stop here and now. We can’t argue over what no longer exits. The letters are the peace offering,” he said, holding up another batch. “Action over words. I am letting go of the all the pain and misunderstandings of the past. I want our future to start out clean.”

Selecting a certain letter from deep in the final stack, Erik handed it over to Kayleigh. “Here, you may keep this one, if you wish. So that you will know firmly what’s on my heart. And just how much I truly love you. I just wish you’d learn to trust me.”

“I do trust you.” 
Getting down on one knee, he gazed up at her, “Enough to consent to be my bride?”

“You mean daddy finally gave in?”
“Yes, that’s what all of this is about. So, you can see why it’s imperative we make peace. All of us. I want us to have a brand-new start. A fresh start. So, what do you say? Will you marry me?”

“Oh, Erik. Yes, yes, I’ll marry you.” She said, slipping the ring he offered onto her finger.
Tapping his lips, he said, “All right then, seal it.”

Seeing one last stack of missives on the coffee table, Kayleigh reached over and picked them up. "May I? I want to show you I'm fully on board with this." Erik smiled and gestured to the fireplace.

All for now, thanks for reading!