Two

ZORA'S POV

The doctor looked at the clipboard on which he had recorded Freya's vitals. He was a youngish-looking man with a prematurely lined face which I supposed was caused by many sleepless nights and late-night calls. He looked up, smiled at me, and beamed at Freya. 

"You worry too much about your little girl, Ms. Walter," he said. "I  can assure you that she is in the best hands and that we will do everything possible to make sure that she fully recovers." 

He glanced again at Freya who was sucking on a lollipop he had offered her after examining her. She did not seem to pay attention to what the doctor was saying. She kept looking around his office at the gaily colored charts. She mouthed the words on the charts, her legs swinging back and forth on the high-backed chair. 

I sighed. "I would like to believe that, doctor. I really will."

"Please, do. Her vitals look okay. I will look more closely into her case file. Bring her back here in...three days. I will have more definite news for you by then."

I got to my feet.

"Thank you, doctor. We'll be here just as you said."

We shook hands. Freya, who was peering at a beautifully illustrated children's flyer on the doctor's desk suddenly realized we were about to leave. 

"Bye, doctor," she said, coming to stand beside me. She waved. "Mama and I will come to see you soon."

The doctor chuckled. "Of course, precious."

Seeing that she still looked longingly at the magazine, he took one and handed it over to her. Freya was more than pleased as we left his office. When we got to the reception area, my phone rang. I let go of Freya's hand to answer the call. It was Cheryl. 

"Hello? Cheryl?"

"Oh, thank goodness you picked, Ms Zora. We have been expecting you at the firm. You have a meeting with the company that wants you to model their products."

"Oh...right."

"Signature Cosmetics," she reminded me. 

The dime dropped. I hit my forehead with my palm. I had totally forgotten that I had a meeting with them that morning. All I had thought about throughout yesterday and this morning was Freya's doctor's appointment. 

"Can I tell them that you will be here?" Cheryl pressed. 

I hesitated. At the moment, I did not feel like attending any meetings. Though I  really wanted to reschedule the meeting, I knew I could not afford to do so. 

A contract with Signature Cosmetics was a very big deal. Besides, I had already rescheduled a lot of my projects and appointments since moving here. 

"Ms. Zora?"

"I'm here, Cheryl. Tell them that I will be there in-" I glanced at my watch. "- in ten minutes."

"Okay. Good," Cheryl said in a relieved tone of voice. 

I rang off. I increased my pace as we headed to where I had parked my car. I strapped Freya in and quickly drove out of the hospital. 

There was some traffic on the way. I tapped my fingers impatiently on the steering wheel, wishing that I had told Cheryl to expect me in say -twenty minutes. I heard the rustle of paper as Freya leafed through her magazine, staring at the pictures. 

"Mama?" she said after a while when she had gotten tired of leafing through the magazine. 

"Yes, sweetie," I replied, taking my eyes briefly off the road to glance at her. 

"Where are we going now? Home? My school?"

"No. At least not yet. Cheryl called me and said some people want to see me."

"Another..." She frowned as she struggled to find the right words. "brand company?" She finally said and grinned, proud of herself for using a word I so often used. 

I grinned and ruffled her hair. "Right, kiddo. Mama has got to work." 

"Can we get pizza and chocolate on our way there?"

"No, we can't, sweetie. I am late enough as it is. If this traffic doesn't clear soon, I'll be really late."

The words were barely out of my mouth when I heard a thud. My car lurched forward. Freya's magazine fell to the floor. I was a bit stunned for a moment. It took me a few seconds to realize that someone had bashed my car. I hit the dashboard and cussed under my breath, too low for Freya to hear. 

Now, I would definitely not be able to make it in time for my appointment because of an incompetent driver. Freya was wide-eyed, searching for the source of the noise. 

Irritated and angry, I quickly pulled over to the side of the road and got out of the car. I inspected my car. There was a considerable dent on it. One of the headlamps had almost shattered. The car which had bashed mine was a sleek grey Mercedes. 

A casually dressed man got out. He had the air of a man who was acting on orders. I judged him to be the driver. He walked up to me and stretched out his hand. At first, I thought he wanted to shake hands and I stared at him in confusion. Then I noticed that he had a wad of dollar bills in his hand. 

"Here, madam, take this and do whatever repairs you need to on your car."

I glared at his hand and did not take the offered money. I seethed. It was bad enough that this individual had dented my car. Now he or she had the temerity to send the driver to offer me money without an apology! I walked briskly to the Mercedes, meaning to confront the owner of the car. I rapped sharply on the tinted windows. 

After some seconds of this, the passenger door opened and a tall man stepped out. I caught my breath in surprise. It was Elliot. He was dressed in a pinstriped suit. His black hair which was very much like Freya's was immaculate and gelled back. 

He was even more handsome than he had been years ago. He had his dark and cold expression on, as though he had been brooding on something unpleasant in the car. He looked extremely tired. I could spot the signs of sleep deprivation. Those blue eyes widened in surprise when they fell on me. 

We kept staring at each other. At that moment, I forgot that we were on a busy road. It was like it was just the two of us, sharing a private moment. Someone honked and the moment passed. I decided to act as if I did not know him.

"Hey," I said. "You just seriously dented my car. I think you and your driver need to apologize and not just offer me money."

Elliot dragged his eyes away from me and gave an almost imperceptible nod to the driver. He opened his mouth to speak when everyone's attention was arrested by Freya who popped her head out of the window. 

"Mama," she called. "Aren't we going to see the brand company people anymore? What's wrong?"

I felt my heart race when I noticed the way Elliot looked at her. He had a puzzled expression on. I suddenly could not wait to get out of here. I plastered a smile on my face. 

"I er- accept your apology," I said to the driver who looked bewildered. "Excuse me. I have to be on my way now."

Before either of them could say a word, I rushed to my car and zoomed off.

"What happened back there, Mummy? Who were those men?" Freya asked as she strapped herself back in. 

I did not answer. I concentrated on driving. My hands were clenched so tightly around the steering wheel that they hurt. What I wanted was to get as far away from Elliot as possible. 

When I had moved to New York, I had not given much thought to what would happen if Elliot found out that he was the father of my children. Now that he had seen Freya, I was starting to panic. I wished with all my heart that Elliot would not think about what he had just seen. 

When I got to the firm, I was half an hour late. Cheryl, her hands behind her back, was pacing in the anteroom. She stopped when she saw me. 

"Ms. Zora, you said ten minutes," she said reproachfully. She glanced at her watch and pointed at the door of my office. "They have been waiting all this while. What happened?"

I made an impatient gesture. "I'm here now, Cheryl. Here-" I handed Freya, who I was carrying over to her. "Look after her, will you?"

With a wave to Freya, I headed to my office. As I walked, I took out my hand mirror from my bag, patted my hair in place, and applied a little more lipstick. 

With my hand on the doorknob, I paused and took several deep breaths, emptying my mind of the annoyances of the day. Thoughts about Elliot Garrett would have to wait.