Page 69 of Axton
Mikey?
I shook her hand. “I’m pleased to meet you, Pammy.”
“I decided to stop by because I just heard a rumor from my daughter, Kayla. I had to see it for myself. My son has never lived with any women but myself and my daughter. I was curious to say the least.”
I let go of her hand and Michael walked over to stand behind me. His hands rested on my shoulders. “My brother is actually staying here as well.” I said.
Her eyes darted between mine and Michael’s and she smiled. “My son is smiling. That must mean something.” She said.
“I am dating her, mom. Of course I’m smiling.” He squeezed my shoulders just a little.
“Your son is a good man and I’m lucky to have met him.” I said.
She looked at me and her eyes softened. “I have an amazing son. I doubt he has said much about me, and that’s not surprising. I wish I could claim responsibility for how he has turned out, but Mikey wasn’t just born a protector, he was also born as a very loving young man that is resilient and very stubborn.” She laughed a little then looked up at him. “I may have birthed him after twenty five hours of hard labor, but I wasn’t the one that gave him life. Everything you see around you is what he built and the relationships he also built without my influence. Mikey, I’venever seen you smile so much. I know it’s not my visit making you this happy, so I presume it’s this young lady?”
“We were enjoying our second date when you arrived, as a matter of fact.” He was obviously giving her a hint.
“I should be going then, I’ve found some extra time on my hands since we were so quickly moved inside the gates temporarily and I’ve had to take time off work.” She walked toward the door. “Remember what I said, Mikey.”
“Just stay out of it, mom.” He warned her.
She gave him a wink and as smile as she stood with her hand on the doorknob. “Goodnight my sweet boy.” She then looked at me. “It was very nice to meet you, Belle.”
“You too, and have a good evening.” I said.
She left and I turned to look at Mike.
He sighed. “I realize she wasn’t what you may have expected.”
“There’s some tension there with her.” I was curious but he didn’t have to share if he didn’t want to.
“Well, in your world what we are about to do tomorrow isn’t real, but it’s a legal marriage and you deserve to know about my family and the name you’re about to take.” He walked over to a bag and pulled out some command strips for the garland.
“She looks much older than I suspect she is, so yeah, if you want to share, I’d like to know about your family.”
He walked upstairs to the loft, and I was looking up at him.
“Pam, my mother, was born into a good and hard working middle class family. They are devout Catholics in Charleston, West Virginia. That’s how my parents met. Dad, Michael Dale Axton, was a pretty good kid growing up in a crappy family. He met my mom, and they had me at eighteen, before theygraduated high school. Mom dropped out, but my dad finished. Their plan was for dad to go into the military, but before he was to ship out to basic training something bad happened. My dad worked hard, but he just couldn’t make ends meet, so he moved my pregnant mom in with his family. I was born shortly after, and it was three weeks before he was to leave when there was a major drug raid and every adult in that house was arrested. I was taken into foster care, my parents were in jail, and he was still in jail when he was due to leave for Basic training. Dad didn’t drink or do drugs, but he was being punished as if he did. Neither one of my parents were drug users, but they were idiots for choosing to live with his parents. My mom’s parents offered to take me and my mom, but dad was not welcome, so that’s why they went to his parents to live. Thankfully, I was placed with my grandparents in Charleston for the first three years of my life. The charges against my parents were severe. It wasn’t just drug charges, but also prostitution and everything everyone was charged with although they never even tested positive for drugs and there was poor evidence against them.” He was wrapping the garland around the railing as he spoke.
“I am sorry, Michael.”
“Well, it is what it is, I guess. Anyway, dad wasn’t allowed in the army with that serious of a conviction. Both of my parents accepted a plea bargain so it would always be on their records. Dad took a job in the coal mines and mom as a waitress in town. They saved and finally had enough to rent the house where I grew up. They got me back when I was three and mom was pregnant with Kayla. Dad hated the world after that and started drinking, and he was a very mean drunk. He started to do drugs with his brothers, drinking all the time and he resented mom for some reason. Mom drank some, but nothing like my dad. He took his anger out on mom and she always either had a black eyeor needed to be sewn up. I can’t remember her never having a mark on her. When I was eight, dad learned mom was unfaithful with a man from town and it was like he turned into a demon. He already threw her across the room, but stormed toward her with his arm pulled back to deliver a punch that probably would have killed her, but I jumped between my parents and his fist landed on my temple.”
I gasped and already felt the tears forming. My father may have been a lot of things, but he hated violence. It was why he would grant annulments if a husband ever became abusive. He would have also shunned the husband, and he would never have seen his wives or children again.
“I died, Belle. Three times my heart stopped, but I was revived, and a helicopter flew me to a Children’s Hospital in Virginia. They told my mom I was brain dead and were trying to tell her to pull the plug on my life support. Mom refused, and while that was happening, my dad was arrested, and Kayla was taken into foster care. They called me a miracle child because I eventually showed signs of life and was able to breathe on my own in only a few weeks. I had to live in a rehab center for several months so I could learn how to walk and improve my speech, but I made a full recovery. Not too bad for a boy who had several broken ribs from the CPR given to me every time my heart stopped.”
“Michael.” I was crying, but I could see he was just trying to focus on getting his story out and he wouldn’t look at me as he wrapped the garland around the wood..
“My best friend lived in the house next door, and I remember being more concerned for her and Kayla than I ever was for myself. My dad was sentenced to twenty years in prison. It took over a year for him to go to trial and I had to testify against him, which my mother resented. She wanted him back home with us. By the time I was ten, mom was drinking, staying outall night partying and I was raising Kayla. She had sober days, which were great, but I hated when she drank at home or with the neighbors. They had a daughter my age and she was my best friend. We were really poor and my grandparents in Charleston tried to help, but eventually mom became estranged from them. I worked from the moment I learned I could do things to make money. Eventually, I was the only one to take care of mom and Kayla…well Natalie as well.” He had the garland wrapped almost all the way down the railing on the steps.
“Natalie was your best friend?” I asked.
“Yes. Anyway, I was seventeen the first time mom went to rehab on her own without a court order, but she failed at sobriety several times, but the last one seemed to really help her. She has been sober for six years and still has a sponsor and attends AA.”
“What happened to Natalie?” I asked and I saw his entire body tense up and he paused from his work for just a moment.
“She’s dead.” He obviously didn’t want to say anything else about her.
