Page 63 of Marley
“Gotta say, little sister Georgia that I’m with you. Mum just wouldn’t do that ... surely mum wouldn’t do that?”
Please don’t let my mum have done that.
I shook my head and continued. “I don’t know if I’m overthinking things, but now that I’m thinking about it, she has gone out of her way over the years to stop you two from having any kind of contact.”
There’d been a few occasions when she’d called me to make sure that I knew Maca wasn’t invited to whatever family gathering or function we were attending if George was also gonna be there. I always assumed it was because she was worried about how George would react to seeing Maca, but now I was worried that there was something else going on.
“I just thought it was to protect you, George, and then after that Sunday the other month...” I trailed off as I watched Maca pull her tighter into him. I think on the memory of that shitty day, yet another one where I fucked up, big time.
I cleared my throat and carried on, “... After the way you reacted that Sunday, I thought that she’d done the right thing.”
My heart rate accelerated and my hands felt clammy. I’d stood on a stage in front of thousands of people. I’d performed live on television shows with audiences of millions, but I’d never felt as nervous as I did right then. However, my next sentence could’ve had the possibility of blowing my family apart. I felt sick and absolutely gutted at what I was about to do, but I didn’t see that I had any other choice.
“I thought she was being a bit irrational when she told me not to give you our address, and then how pissed off she got when you found it out anyway. It makes me think now that she may have had her own agenda—that maybe there was more to it than protecting you? What if it was more about hiding what she’d done? I don’t know, I’m just surmising...” I trailed off again when I took in the look on Georgia’s face. She frowned, her mouth opening and closing again as she shook her head no.
“I don’t understand, Marls?” I didn’t hear much else for a few seconds after that, realisation crawling up my spine. Could I have unknowingly played an even bigger part in my sister and best friend’s misery over the past four years than I thought?
“Ours, mine and Maca’s. She told me not to give you our address. She said that she was worried that you’d start stalking him.”
I feel like such a dick. I should’ve thought about this more at the time. I should’ve spoken to Jimmie. George may have been a little fucked up over their break up, but stalking? Yeah, that just wasn’t her thing. Maca, yeah. Knowing how he felt about her, I could’ve seen him going there, but not George.
Georgia’s expression had gone from shocked to angry as she looked around the room at each of us. “Marley, I have no fucking idea where your place is, and I had no idea that you and Sean lived together.” She took a deep breath in through her nose, as if she was trying to calm herself down.
“Fucking hell.”Len silently mouthed to me from beside where Maca was still sitting with my sister in his lap. His arms were wrapped around her like he had no plans of letting her go, ever.
The room was silent as we all tried to get our heads around what was going on.
“George, did you never go to the boys’ place and try and get past the reception area?” Jimmie asked in a calm, even voice. “Did you not go there and scream abuse at the doorman and try and kick the doors in when they threw you outside?”
I’d actually forgotten my mum telling us about that. Obviously, the drugs and alcohol I’d consumed over the years had taken more of a toll on my memory than I thought. Perhaps my mum did have valid reasons for protecting George, and then I look at my sister’s face and I knew in an instant that she was telling the truth, and whatever Jimmie had been told was a lie.
“Are you all deaf or just fucking mad? I have no idea where Marley lives, and I had no idea that Sean lived with him. No fucking idea.”
Georgia’s face crumbled for a minute and I thought she was about to cry. “Where is this coming from? Who told all of you that I had been there causing trouble?”
Her mouth was turned down and her bottom lip trembled a few times, but she held back the tears.
Jimmie looked around at each of us before shrugging her shoulders and saying, “Your mum, George. Your mum told us.”
“Oh babe,” Maca said as he kissed G’s temple. She drew in a few deep breaths before letting out a loud sob.
“Why Sean?” She looked from him, to around the room at each of us. “Why would she do that tome? Why would she do that tous?”
I wish I knew. I wish I’d had an answer to give my little sister. She’d been hurt so much already. I was just thankful that Maca was there that night, that they were together and he was the one holding her and telling her that no matter what, they’d always have each other.
Over the next few hours, an elaborate story of lies and deceit unfolded in Jimmie and Len’s house. My parents and eldest brother turn up and George had to be held back as she unleashed what she knew on my mum. I was torn, totally torn in half as I watched my mum shake while Georgia confronted her.
And when she held her head in her hands, I wanted to tell George to stop shouting at her. She’s my mum. She may have made an almighty fuck up, but she’s my mum and she shouldn’t be spoken to like that.
I’d been in her shoes. I had a fucking good idea of how shitty she must’ve been feeling right then.
“Did you do it?”My sister screamed.
“What’s going on, George?” My dad finally asked. I’m surprised he’d stayed so quiet for so long. “Bern?” He turned to my mum who still had her head in her hands.
My mum looked up and right at my sister. She knocked back the drink Len had just passed to her and said very quietly and with complete conviction, “I did what I thought was right.”
Georgia flew from where she was sitting in Maca’s lap, but he and Bailey caught her before she reached her.
