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Recovery II

Friday passed much the same as Thursday afternoon, with Adam and Aurora going through workbook lessons. She had prepared workbooks to test his language and mathematical abilities.

Adam wasn't happy about that, as he had rarely gone to school before and felt uncomfortable with the workbook lessons. More than anything else, he was worried that Aurora would scold or laugh at him for not knowing the answers.

The books said the exercises should have taken fifteen minutes, but it was almost half an hour later, and he still wasn't halfway through. Adam couldn't help looking at Aurora and the clock. He wanted the exercises to be over. The more the clock ticked away, the more restless the boy became.

"What's wrong?" Aurora asked, looking up from the book she was reading.

Adam hung his head, staring at the pages of equations in front of him.

"It's okay to skip the ones you're having trouble with. We can look at them later." She reassured him.

The boy looked up at his mother; her face had the usual welcoming, pleasant look. There was no anger or annoyance in her eyes. He nodded and continued working. When he handed over the workbook for Aurora to check, anxiety ate away at him. Adam was waiting for her to get angry or laugh at him. Instead, she said he did well, but she also noted they had to work on some things. She promised to hire a tutor to help him so that he wouldn't have trouble when it was time to go to school.

Aurora felt right. In his heart, Adam wished again that she really was his mother. He wanted to forget that woman; he wanted all the memories of her gone. He only wanted Aurora as his mother. Adam scribbled on the notepad and handed it to Aurora.

'When will you adopt me?'

Aurora smiled at the note. "We have to discuss it with our lawyers first. We have a meeting scheduled with them soon. Are you worried?"

The boy shook his head and scribbled on the notepad again. 'I really want you to be my mom.'

"So do I, piccolo." She gently rubbed his back.

On Saturday morning, the swelling in the boy's throat had gone down. While he still had a whistle when he breathed, it was less frequent and not as loud as when it first started. The pain in his throat and chest had also lessened. Aurora no longer needed to stay in the care room, and she and Adam moved their activities to the living room.

By mid-morning, there was an unexpected visitor at the gate. It was the Kaufmanns. Initially, Aurora didn't want to meet with them; however, the couple stated they both had important matters to discuss with Logan and Aurora.

It was the first time since Thursday that Logan and Aurora met face-to-face. She didn't cry when she saw him, but she still kept some distance between them while holding onto Adam tightly.

The Kaufmanns' entered the Jordahls' home with wide smiles and cheerful greetings, while Logan and Aurora greeted them civilly.

"Logan, I'd like for us to speak privately." Mr. Kaufmann stated, pointing to one of the exits.

"Anything we need to discuss can be said in front of my wife and son."

Mrs. Kaufmann gave a nervous chuckle at Logan's declaration. "Uh, Aurora, why don't we leave the men to talk while we—"

"I'd rather not be alone with you, Mrs. Kaufmann." Aurora said, pulling her hand from her former friend's grip.

"Aurora?" Mrs. Kaufmann was surprised by Aurora's rejection.

"You saw firsthand what happened last Friday. A week later, your son is in collusion with him."

"Richard was just looking out for me." Mrs. Kaufmann said defensively.

"You insult my family." Logan glared at the older woman.

"I don't appreciate your tone towards my wife, Logan."

"You don't need to; this is my house. I'd rather you leave."

"You'll lose your contacts if you don't listen to me today." Mr. Kaufmann threatened.

Logan laughed maniacally. "I'll lose my contacts? He raped my wife! He overdosed her, endangering her life! He almost killed my son in front of me! And you think my biggest concern is contacts?"

Aurora winced at Logan's outburst and held Adam close to her, covering his ears. The boy hugged his mother in response. Hearing the rapid, unsteady beat pounding in her chest, Adam squeezed her tighter.

Calmly, Logan stepped closer to the older man, his smile fading. "I'm glad you came to us today. I was uncertain about losing our relationship before. I want nothing to do with you ever again. Go ahead. Take the contacts, cancel the projects, and kick me out of the clubs."

"You'll regret this, Logan."

Logan pointed to his family. "I already have what I've wanted in life. You and your contacts and projects were a means of taking care of them. He almost took them from me. The only thing I'll regret is maintaining any kind of relationship with you. Get out!"

Mr. Kaufmann grabbed his wife and stormed out of the house. Logan turned to his family; he gave Adam a reassuring smile, but when his eyes connected with Aurora's, his smile dropped, and he turned away, leaving for his office.

"Logan, wait."

Aurora approached her husband with her hand outstretched but stopped short of touching him. A minute of silence passed before Logan continued to walk. Aurora wrapped her arms around Logan's waist and laid her head against his back. "I'm sorry, my love. I promise I'll make it up to you with Nikolaev."

Logan touched Aurora's hands and shook his head. "Everything I've worked for was to give you the perfect life." He turned around and cupped her cheek, stroking his thumb back and forth gently. "How are you?"

Aurora pulled at his shirt and looked down. "I'm okay," she said softly. "We can't fight him."

"I know."

"I got you both hurt." She said as she carefully picked up his injured hand and kissed it.

"We're okay. But he's worse off than we are, right, Adam?"

The boy nodded enthusiastically at his parents. Rather than return to his office, Logan stayed with Adam and Aurora.

Jaromir showed up after lunch and was devastated to see Aurora's hair. He ran his fingers through her hair with horror etched on his face.

"You promised I'd be the only one to cut your hair." he reminded her.

"I know. A lot happened, and I needed it cut instantly."

The stylist immediately got to work, and by the end of the session, he had shaped the uneven locks of Aurora's hair into a uniformed bob cut.

Logan rubbed a lock of Aurora's hair between his fingers. "I wanted to ask why?"

"The first thing he did was grab my hair."

That night, Aurora joined Adam in his room and promised to read him a story every night, which he readily accepted. They agreed to read the book they had started from start to finish.