Brave Story - Miyuki Miyabe [103]
“Selfish…yes, he’s quite selfish,” Grandma admitted, grabbing a napkin and wringing it in her hands. “But Akira isn’t the only one at fault here, hmm? You heard what she said. I remember her too. Of course, I didn’t care for her much back then, but she was dating Akira for quite some time. They were in love, those two. I had already gotten used to the idea that she would be his bride. But then along comes this Kuniko and six months later they’re married. A hare caught by a fox, that’s what it was.”
“Quiet, Ma,” Uncle Lou said with a glance at Wataru. “That’s all ancient history now.”
“It’s not history if it’s going on right now. Kuniko conned Akira, no two ways about it. I knew there was something fishy about how she suddenly got pregnant, and then, once he’d agreed to marry her, she had a miscarriage. I never did believe that one.”
“Ma!” Uncle Lou shouted. “Wataru doesn’t need to hear this!”
“It’s okay,” Wataru heard himself say. “I already know that story.”
Grandma wiped away a tear with her napkin. “Akira is a fool, that much is certain. A big, dumb fool. But no matter how foolish he may be, he’s still my son. When a man his age wants something so much, why not give him a little happiness? If Kuniko says she won’t give him up, then I’ll just have to beg her. I’ll go down on my knees if that will satisfy her, I’ll do anything.”
Grandma began to weep openly.
“What about Wataru?” Uncle Lou said, his voice barely a whisper.
“We’ll take him in,” Grandma said decisively. “He is the only heir to the Mitani name. And it’ll make things easier for Kuniko to remarry, won’t it?”
Wataru felt dizzy. He was afraid he wouldn’t be able to sit in his chair. He felt like he was going to fall on the ground.
Just then, the bedroom door opened, and his mom walked out, drifting like a ghost.
“Go home, please,” she said, staring straight at Grandma.
Wataru’s mother looked like she had shrunk to half her weight in only half a day. But her voice was firm. “This is my home, and Wataru is my son. Go home.”
“Kuniko?” Grandma said, standing up. “This is no time for you to be coming in here and telling us what…”
“I won’t let Wataru go,” she said firmly. “I’ll raise him—and I won’t divorce Akira, either. We are a family. You have no right to impose your decision on us.”
Grandma thrust her crumpled napkin down on the table. “Who’s imposing? You know what’s happening here? You’re reaping what you’ve sown, Kuniko. You brought this on yourself. Akira said you tricked him. He knows!”
Wataru’s mother faced Grandma without fear. For all her fiery resolve, the older woman took a step back. The air swirling around Wataru’s mother seemed to have dropped twenty degrees.
“I have been a wife, and a mother, for twenty years. If I had really tricked him into anything, how could it have lasted so long? It would’ve fallen apart years ago. That’s not what this is about. Akira’s dredged up this old story to justify his infidelity. That’s all it is: an empty justification. You know as well as I do how he works. He has to have a reason for everything, even if it’s the wrong one.”
Grandma scowled. “That’s my son you’re talking about. No wonder he’s run off to another woman, with you saying things like that!”
Wataru’s mother stared her mother-in-law down. “Go home. Leave this house. Now.”
Grandma moved to step toward Wataru’s mother, but Uncle Lou stopped her. “Ma. Kuniko. Stop this. There’s been enough fighting today.”
Grandma waved a fist in the air. “Satoru, we’re leaving. You come too, Wataru.”
Wataru’s answer was crisp and firm. “I’m staying here. I’m staying with Mom.”
Grandma looked pained, as though she’d been stuck with a knife, and Wataru had to look away.
“Right. Kuniko, we’ll leave for tonight,” Uncle Lou said, grabbing his mother by the arm and walking toward the door. “But, please, think about this when you’ve had a chance to cool down. I don’t want anybody to do anything foolish. Okay? Wataru, I’ll be back tomorrow.”
Wataru and his mother were left alone, the house