Chapter 23

The other people at the table looked at her in astonishment.  It took them all some time to recover from the shock they all felt.  “Well”, Brie said with a smile, “I have to admit, that’s rather sudden and I don’t think any of us saw that coming and if Skyler saw anything, he certainly didn’t bother to warn us.  But, it’s welcome news none the less.”  She looked at David.  “Our first great- grandchild, David.”

He nodded slowly.  “Absolutely.”  He looked at his granddaughter.  “Mazl tov, my dear.”

“I’m not done yet”, Miranda said carefully.

“What else could there be to say?” Malachai said.  “You just told your mother and me that we’re going to be grandparents, finally.”  He was coming slowly out of the shock and was rather happy.

“Zack is the father.”

Jaws all around the table dropped.  “Are you serious?” David said quietly.

“Yes, Grampa.  Callan and I have only been together for two weeks and we never did anything.  He wanted to see if there was going to be anything between us before we did.”

The look on Malachai’s face turned from one of joy to one of anger.  “That low life piece of shit is the father of my grandchild?  Where does he live?  I owe him a good swift kick in the ass for this.”

“No, Daddy.  I don’t want any controversy over this.  He’s just going to deny it.”

“No one does this to one of my granddaughters and treats her like shit”, David said.  He was getting angry too.

“No, Grampa.  Please; if you love me at all you won’t make a big deal out of this and hunt him down.  Or in your case Grampa, have someone hunt him down and beat his ass for you.”

“Malachai, calm yourself”, Mandy said softly.  “You’re making a scene in the restaurant.  Are you really going to embarrass us all like this?”

“I must concur with Amanda, David.  You and Malachai are justifiably angry.  Zachary Winfield is a worthless piece of trash that doesn’t deserve to continue breathing, but at the same time we are better than this”, Brie chided her husband.

“If we run into him in public?” Malachai asked his daughter.

“Feel free to lay into him if we see him in public as long as there are lots of witnesses to say that he went to talk to him and he did something stupid to provoke you beating him to shit”, Miranda said.

“Why don’t we change the subject for now, baby?” Mandy said.  “Tell us more about your Marine friend.”

“He’s more than a friend, Mom.  When he comes home from South America he wants to meet everyone and see what it would take to get permission to marry me.”

“You two have fallen for each other in just two weeks?” Brie asked happily.  “That’s wonderful.”

“Actually, Gramma, I think we’d fallen for each other the moment we spoke to each other.”

“How did you meet him?” Malachai asked as he took a sip of his wine.

“We met on the first day of dress rehearsals.  He was staring at me in my Tango dress for the Tango: Maureen scene.  He blushed and apologized for staring before I went out onto the stage to dance.  He was really polite.  After I came off stage, I asked him to eat lunch with me and we talked.  He’s a lifer and he’s EOD.  He likes to make things go boom.”

“How do you know all this?” David asked.

“We gave each other our verbal dating profiles.”

“I guess the biggest question is does he know who you’re related to.”

“Yes.  He’s cool.  For real.”

“The last time you said that you brought home a loser”, Malachai said.  “I’d love to believe you, but after Zack, I’ll have to trust but verify.”

“And I totally understand that.  He’s said that he wants to meet everyone and he’s going to make it a point to do so.”

“Does he know that you’re pregnant with another man’s child?” Brie asked as she discreetly checked her blood sugar and injected her insulin.

“Unfortunately, not yet.  Once I have a chance to have a video call with him, I’m going to tell him.  I just hope he doesn’t drop me like a hot potato after I tell him.”

Miranda had no idea that not only would Callan not leave her, but he would be the man to put his name on the birth certificate to claim the child as his own.  Her son would know a father from the beginning of his life, even if that man wasn’t linked to him by blood.

---------------

After dinner was over, they took Miranda back to her apartment.  On the drive there, Mandy looked at her daughter.  “While you stepped away to the ladies’ room, your father and I discussed it and you’re to come home after the show is over so that you’re surrounded by family when that baby is born.  You are keeping it, right?”

“Well, yeah.  I don’t believe in abortion just because I don’t like the father.”

“Good for you.  Now, bring yourself home after the show is over.”

“Mom, you and Dad worry far too much about me.”

“It’s not up for debate, Miranda Jayde.  You’re to come home after the show is over.  Sublet the apartment or something, but bring yourself home.”

She sighed.  “Ok.  I’ll be home in two weeks then.  Does anyone know if Aunt Kenna is a midwife or not?”

“I believe she is”, Brie said.

“I want her to deliver my baby if she is.  I don’t want a doctor.”

“Ok, that’s fine.  You’ll have to speak to her about it if that’s what you want.”

After they dropped her off and were back at the hotel, her parents and grandparent all sat in her grandparents’ room and shared their thoughts on the news they’d all received.  They weren’t upset by anything other than the fact that her loser ex was her baby daddy.  The women cautioned the men to respect Miranda’s wished.  “I know you want to kick his ass, Malachai, but what would it accomplish?” Brie asked her son.

“For one, it would show him that he fucked with the wrong girl”, Malachai responded.

“No it wouldn’t”, Mandy said.  “It would only get you arrested.”

“Nationwide ‘Make- My- Day’ laws.”

“How are you protecting her if it’s already happened?  I’ve already had to deal with you getting arrested once in our relationship and that was that night at the fair so many years ago.  I’m not doing it again now.  Malachai, you’re 50 years old.  You can still take care of yourself, of that I have no doubt.  But you need to learn to control that temper.”

“I agree with your wife”, Brie said.

“What would you suggest should we run into him tomorrow while she’s spending time with us on the town before the show?” David asked.

“You”, Brie said, “let Malachai deal with it.  You’re 84 years old.  You are certainly not as young as you used to be.  She may be our granddaughter, but she’s their daughter.”  She looked at Malachai.  “And you; try not to be outright confrontational.  Let him know that he’s going to be a father and see what he says.  If he expresses interest in the baby and being there, then that’s something that will have to be worked out between Miranda and Zachary to work out.  If he insults her, do your best to keep your head about you and for the love of GOD, don’t hit him.  Give him a tongue lashing, but do not lay your hands on him.”

“If he should lay his hands on me?” Malachai asked.

“Then beat the hell out of him.”

---------------

The next day they all went sightseeing.  Miranda wanted to show her family some of the places she frequented after they all ate lunch.  As they sat at the table, she marveled at her parents and grandparents.  “I can’t help but feel like the fifth wheel here”, she laughed.

“What’s the matter, Miranda dear?” Brie asked her.

“I’m the only single person at a table full of couples.  It feels a little odd and makes me miss Callan”, she said a little sadly as tears leaked from her eyes.

“Why are you crying?” David asked.

“I don’t want to, it’s the damn hormones.”  She wiped her eyes.

“I hope he can deal with the mood swings”, Mandy said with a smile.

Miranda dried her eyes and smiled.  “I’ll be fine and I’m sure he’ll be ok.”

They continued to sit and talk, Miranda continuing to tell more and more about her Marine.  So far, he was impressing her parents and grandparents and he hadn’t met them yet.  “I want to stop at the mall before we go back to the hotel to get ready for the show”, David said.  “I want to pick something up for the little one there.”

“I think that can be arranged”, Malachai said as something caught him from the corner of his eye.  He watched to see what the movement was, the old training that his uncle had given him many years before kicking in.  He looked to see Zack Winfield being seated with a young blonde.  The girl was in for a surprise.  Malachai looked to the people at his table.  “Excuse me a moment.  I need to go have a talk with someone.”  He stood and walked over to the table, laying his hand on the boy’s shoulder before speaking.  “Well, hi Zack.  I haven’t seen you in a while.  How have you been?” Malachai asked jovially.

Zack looked up at him.  “Well hello Malachai.  I’ve been fine.  How have you been?”

“Can’t complain too much.  Listen, I wanted to give you a bit of news.  Miranda is pregnant and the baby’s yours.”

Zack looked at Malachai like his nose had grown.  “Are you serious?  How does she know the baby’s mine?  I have it on good authority that I’m not the only person she’s been sleeping with.”

“Oh?  And how is that?  You were replaced in the play.”

“I know.  You’re daughter’s a whore.”

The words of the man that he shared genetics with rang in his head.  Irian Cartwright was a whore then and she’s probably a whore now.  Malachai’s grip on the boy’s shoulder tightened.  “You had better watch your tongue about my daughter”, he whispered in Zack’s ear.  “You have no idea how badly I can fuck you up.”

“Get your hand off of me before I knock your head off.”

“Hit me, boy.  I fucking dare you.  You need a good lesson in manners.  I wanted to let you know that my daughter is having your child.  Stay away from her and my grandchild or I will ruin that pretty little face of yours.  Do you and I understand each other?  I hope so, because I mean everything I said.”

“You can’t hurt me, Malachai.  Miranda is just pulling this to get back with me.  As you can see, I’m with a new girl now.”

“As I recall, she was the one that ended things with you”, he said loud enough for the girl at the table to hear.  “And you almost got your ass handed to you by my sons and nephews.  Now, I’m going to go back to my table and eat lunch with my wife, daughter, and parents and you’re going to leave before I decide to throw my self-control out the window and beat your face in for calling my daughter a whore.”  He stood and looked at the girl that was with Zack.  “Young lady, take it from the father of his last girlfriend- he’s not worth your time.  He’s a stuck up, spineless piece of shit who thought it was funny to hit my daughter in the head when her back was turned and he left her with something to remember him by.  Be careful, or he will do the same to you.”  He walked away and took a deep breath as he walked back to the table they were dining at.  “And he’s been told he’s a piece of shit.”

“I saw your hand flex on his shoulder, Malachai.  What did he say that almost made you lose it?” Brie asked.

“He called her a whore and I heard Jason all over again calling you a whore, Mom.  I wanted him to know that I was about to hurt him.”

“Well, I’m proud of you”, Mandy said.  “You didn’t.  You respected Miranda’s wishes.”

“And I almost wish that I didn’t.  On the bright side, I did warn the little girl that he’s with about him.  She doesn’t look all that pleased with him.  That alone makes me smile.”

---------------

Finally, after making all of the stops Miranda wanted to make, she was taken to the theater and her family was taken back to the hotel to get ready.  It was sure to be a beautiful night.  Arrangements had been made for David and Brie to enter and exit through the back due to their ages and David being as recognizable as he was.

Getting ready for the show was a jiffy for David and Brie.  They showered together and David dressed in the room while Brie dressed and made herself pretty for the show in the bathroom.  She stared at her hair in the mirror as she tried to figure out whether or not to wear it down or up.  The dress she wore was an oriental style that with slits up to the knee and it was made of red silk.  The imagery of dragons was embroidered into the fabric and decorated it perfectly.  She wore low heels with the dress and put chopsticks in her hair.  Simple makeup and light jewelry and she was ready.

David’s suit was black and he wore a blue dress shirt underneath the jacket.  Like the night before, he opted out of a tie.  He really didn’t like them and considering his age, he had the right to be picky.

Brie came out of the bathroom and smiled softly.  “Well, don’t you look dashing?”

“And you’re a vision in red.  What made you decide on that dress rather than the one you wore last night?”

“This is theater, dear.  I would like to look nice.  I might not exactly look my age in it, but considering that we’re in our 80’s and we’re in better shape than we were in our 60’s I think I deserve to show off a little.”

He smiled and kissed her gently.  “You look ravishing, love.  I can’t wait to take that off of you.”

“After the show, David.  Miranda’s expecting us and from what I understand, we have box seats.”

“Fantastic.”

“We should be going.  The limo will be here soon.”

“Then allow me to escort you down to the lobby so that we can catch our limo.”

She grabbed her clutch and took his arm, laying her head on his shoulder as they walked down the hall.  It wasn’t long before they were meeting Malachai and Mandy in the lobby so that they could all catch their rides.

The excitement in the air was nearly palpable.  It was going to be an amazing show; they all knew it.

Chapter 22

“Mom, Dad; I don’t like you two traveling like this”, Jake said as his parents rolled their suitcases into the house from the cottage when Seth came out to pick them up that morning.

“Jacob, get over it”, David said to the medical doctor of the family.

“Who’s going to keep an eye on you two while you’re gone?”

“Trevor’s coming out of retirement briefly for this trip to New York for Miranda’s play”, Brie said as she made herself a cup of tea for the morning and fixed her husband a cup of coffee.

“He’s going to play security?”

“No”, David said sarcastically.  “He’s coming along for the ride to see the sights.  Like he hasn’t seen them already.  Apparently, there’s a new memorial of some sort that’s been erected that he wants to see.”

“Thanks for that, Dad”, Jake laughed.  “You do know that sarcasm is the refuge of the weak minded.”

“Are you saying that I’m weak minded, Micah?”

Jake laughed in exasperation.  “Is there a right answer?”

“Yeah.  The correct answer is, ‘No Dad, I don’t think you’re weak minded.  I’m just being a dumb ass’.”

“Then, no Dad.  I don’t think you’re weak minded.  I’m just being a dumb ass.  I still don’t like you two traveling like this.  Guess there's nothing I can do about it. So, how’s Trevor been doing, anyway?  Will and Travis don’t speak of him much.”

“He’s good.  He’s been dealing with a few health problems, but that’s about it.”

“Like what?”

David looked to his wife.  “What did he say was the problem?”

“I don’t remember.  He said some vision problems and some issues with his grip.  He’s being treated for them, but that’s all I can really remember”, Brie said as she carefully walked from the island counter to the table with the hot drinks.

“Is your memory starting to go, Mom?” Jake teased.

“Yes, just a little.  So is my hearing and my vision.  I think I’ve taken good enough care of myself through life and I think I’m blessed that things have taken this long to go downhill.  Eighty- one years of age and things are just now starting to do south?  I’m doing good.”  She took a sip of her tea and let out a sigh of contentment.  “Ah.  Perfection.”

Malachai and Amanda came into the room.  “Are you two ready to go?” Malachai asked his parents.

“No, Aaron, we’re not”, Brie said, setting her cup down.  “We just got settled in at the table to enjoy our morning pick- me- up.  We haven’t even had breakfast yet.”

“Do you want me to make you some breakfast before I head to the clinic for the morning?” Delilah asked.

“If you don’t mind, Delilah.  My hands just won’t let me this morning.  I can’t feel a couple of my fingers right now because of the carpal tunnel.  I did good to make Dad’s coffee and my tea without breaking things.” 

“Have you thought to have the looked at, Mom?” Jake asked.

“You wanna check it while I sit here, Micah, be my guest.”

She held her hand out to him and he examined her wrist, palpating the tunnel where the nerves became compressed.  “Why don’t you ask Maddie or Delilah to work on this while you’re here?”

“I have an appointment with Damien when we get back from New York, bossy.  I’m going to give acupuncture a shot.  I trust Damien to put needles in me to get my hands to act right.  There’s another kid up there that was on the verge of begging when I was talking to Damien about it and he told her she was out of her mind.  ‘Mrs. Draiman is a family friend and the reason this clinic even exists.  She’s a VIP and I will be handling her treatment personally.  You don’t have near the experience I do and she would never let you touch her.’  I felt so bad for the little girl that I told her that it was nothing against her, but I trust Damien just like if I need a massage I would only go to Delilah or Maddie because I trust them.”

“Not because we’re family, right?” Delilah said with a laugh.

“I could care less that you’re my son’s wife.  If you can’t give a massage, you don’t touch me.  Just like if Maddie couldn’t give a massage she wouldn’t touch me.  The fact that she’s my daughter has nothing to do with it.”

“Good to know.  So can I have Bethy put you in the book for an hour when you get back?”

“Yeah, have her put me down for Maddie and you can work on stubborn ass over here”, she said, nodding her head in her husband’s direction.

“What if I wanna work on you both?”

“The put us down for consecutive, I don’t care.  I just said put us both down so that we could have a couple’s massage.  I think we deserve it.”

Delilah smiled.  “You certainly do.  I’ll do that when we get into the clinic.”

----------------

After eating and finishing their drinks, Malachai and Amanda took David and Brie to the airport with them.  They were all off to go see Miranda star in RENT.  Brie had been quietly humming “I’ll Cover You” as they rode to Denver.  She had her arm looped through David’s and her head on his shoulder.  Malachai looked in the rearview mirror at his parents.  “Mom, what’s going on in your head?” he asked.

“Oh, not too much.  I’m really excited about seeing this play”, she responded.

“She’s back here humming something”, David added.

“I’m humming ‘I’ll Cover You’, the Angel and Collins duet.  It’s one of my favorite songs.”

“How well do you know this play?” Amanda asked.

“I know the movie version of the play and I know there are songs that the movie left out.  I look forward to seeing the play in its entirety.”

“You do know that Miranda’s not in that scene, right?” Malachai asked.

“Yes son.  I know.  She’s playing Maureen.  She has a duet with Joanne, a solo and she belts with the company.  I know how it goes.”

“Ok.  Just making sure.”

Brie went back to humming her song as they drove.  “Why don’t you share the music with the rest of us?” David asked.

She laughed softly.  “Nah, I’ll hum thanks.”

“Are you going to sing along with the songs while we watch the play?”

“No.  I might lip synch, but I won’t sing aloud.”

“Ok.  Just wondering.”

“Are you looking forward to this?”

“Well, yeah.  It’s our granddaughter.  I’m excited to see her perform.”

“Well, once I park this beast we’ll be one step closer to achieving that goal”, Malachai said.  “She’s been excited about us seeing it and was hoping that the two of you would be in the country when it debuted.”

“Well like your mother told her the night Ira and Levi graduated, the only thing that would keep us from this would be death itself.  We’re still breathing, so we’re there.”

“She’ll be happy to see you too.”  Malachai found a parking spot in the parking structure and they unloaded.  “Shall we get underway?” he asked with a smile, waving down the shuttle from parking to the airport.”

The driver recognized both David and Malachai right off, even though David was in his 80’s.  “Wow, this is an honor”, he said.

David looked at him.  “What’s an honor?”

“Having you and your son on my shuttle, as well as your darling wives.  My dad’s going to have a heart attack when I tell him that I met you both.”

Malachai helped his mother into the shuttle, giving the 20 something year old a dirty look.  “You know who we are?”

“Well, yeah.  You’re Malachai Draiman; guitarist for Reckless Disregard.  The older gentleman is your father David Draiman, formerly the vocalist for Disturbed.”

David chuckled as he got situated in the seat next to his wife.  “Wow, kid, you know who we are.  You had to be about 5 or 6 when Disturbed retired.”

“I was, but my Dad is a huge fan.  He’s somewhere in his 40’s.  I don’t know how old exactly.  I know every Disturbed song starting with your first record, ‘The Sickness’.  I know every Reckless Disregard song starting with your first record, ‘Civil Disobedience’.”

Brie chuckled softly.  “Sounds like the kid is a super fan.”

“I am, Mrs. Draiman.  Both bands have pulled me out of some dark holes in my life.”

“Sixteen years after we retired, and Disturbed is still relevant”, David chuckled.  “That’s awesome.”

“Well, yeah.  I know there’s no hope for another record or a tour because the other guys have passed on, but even after you’re all gone you’ll still be saving lives with your lyrics, Mr. Draiman, sir.  Your words and Jordan’s have kept a great many tragedies from happening over the last few decades, I’m sure.  I know in my life you’ve saved me.  I know there’s a song on one of the Post- Occupation records that you wrote for your wife.  It helped me to keep faith that there is someone special out there for me.”

David smiled.  “I’m glad it could help you.”

“So, to check in, I assume?”

“Yes”, Malachai said.  “We have places to be today.”

“Right away.”  The young man took off after everyone was in the shuttle and took the two couples to airport check in to check their bags.  He had a million things he wanted to say to both men, but he didn’t want to seem like he was being obsessive or unprofessional.  He had a job to do, but when they got to the airport he’d ask if it would be possible to get a picture with both men so that his father would believe that he’d met them.  That was the only prayer he had of getting one up on his old man and he knew it.

---------------

They took pictures with the young man when they reached the main gate to check their bags.  They didn’t even have to stand in line to have their bags weighed.  Malachai and David’s infamy- as well as David and Brie’s ages- got them rushed through the line.

The wait for the plane was the worst part of the whole thing.  David and Brie did what they always did and read different books or periodicals as they waited.  Malachai, however, spent the entire wait talking.  He talked about the break that the band was taking and how it felt weird to be home so much after so long.  They’d taken breaks before, but never indefinitely.  It felt strange.  As he spoke, Brie started rubbing her temple gently.  She was getting a headache from how much Malachai was talking.  She finally looked up and snapped at him.  “Malachai Aaron, I love you until the end of time but do you ever shut up?” she asked impatiently.  She reached down and grabbed her carryon so that she could get some Tylenol.

“I’m sorry Mom.  I thought you’d want to know how weird this feels for me.”

“It’s not that we don’t want to hear it, Malachai”, David said, “but you keep going on and on and it’s giving us both migraines.”

“Oops.  I’m sorry.  It’s really weird, but I’ll contain the weirdness for now.”

“Very good idea”, Brie said.  “Don’t you have a book of something to keep you occupied?”

“I think I finished my puzzle book the last time I was flying.”

After getting a couple Tylenol to kill the headache to kill the headache she had, she handed him her android tablet after pulling up the puzzle app.  “Here, Malachai.  You can choose what kind of puzzles you want to do.  There are logic problems, crosswords, word finds, Sudoku puzzles; you name it.  Occupy yourself before you drive me to the brink of insanity.”

He chuckled.  “Yes ma’am.”  He took the pad from her hands and started doing puzzles as they waited for the boarding call.  Finally, they boarded the plane and they were off.

The flight itself was relatively short all things considered.  David and Brie both caught naps while they were in the air, making Malachai and Amanda both smile.  He looked at his wife.  “I think I’m going to have to talk to the rest of the band about possibly retiring soon.  We should be grandparents soon and I’d like to enjoy any grandkids our children give us for a long time.”

She smiled softly.  “If that’s what you want, Daddy, then do it.  I’m sure that Logan will agree with you.  I don’t know about Caleb and Jordan, but I’m sure that Logan will agree.  Dani and Heather are both hoping you guys will retire soon, I know.”

Malachai nodded.  “Yeah.  Logan’s been hinting that it would be nice.”

“Well baby, why don’t you talk to them when we get back home?  I’m sure it will be a welcome conversation.  I mean, thirty years is nothing to sneeze at.”

“I want to go at least as long as Dad did, though.”  He sighed.  “I don’t know, Mandy.  I’m conflicted about it.”

“Well, talk to the rest of the band about it.  That’s my advice.”

He smiled softly at her and kissed her temple.  “What would I do without you, babe?”

“I have no idea, love.  You’d certainly be lost.”

---------------

After landing and checking into their hotel rooms, David set up the dinner reservation while Malachai checked with Will on when they would be out of rehearsal.  Everyone was looking forward to seeing Miranda and watching her performance.  They wanted to hear about how rehearsals went with her ex being in one of the starring roles along with her.  Will informed Malachai that he’d met with his older brother and father to discuss the protection of the family that was present.

Once Malachai was finished on the phone he looked at his father.  “What time is the reservation for?”

“Eight.”

Malachai gave a sigh of relief.  “Good.  Miranda doesn’t get out of rehearsal until 6:30 or 7:00.  It all depends on how nice the director is feeling.”

“Well, we’ll see her then.  Your mother and I are going to rest and relax until we need to get ready.  You need to go to your room and do whatever you please as long as you’re not in here.”  David bent down carefully to unlace his shoes so that he could lay down in the bed in the suite he was sharing with his wife.

Malachai chuckled.  “Alrighty then, I know when I’m not welcome any longer.”  He left without another word.  David and Brie both stretched out and relaxed, choosing a movie to watch.  During the hours of down time they had, they enjoyed each other completely before getting ready to go to dinner with their granddaughter and her parents.

Brie wore a simple dress without sleeves with a matching jacket.  It was elegant enough that it was fit for not only the restaurant, but if she had chosen the play the following night.  Her once nimble hands carefully applied her makeup and wound her hair into a claw clip.  She couldn’t do a lot with her hair anymore.  Her hands just wouldn’t allow for it.  Arthritis and Carpal Tunnel made her hands scream in protest every time she did more than they wanted her to do.

She walked out of the bathroom from where she was getting ready and received the same reaction from David that she always received.  He coughed and thumped his chest lightly.  “Do you ever stop amazing me?” he asked once he relearned to breathe.

She smiled.  “The day I stop amazing you will be the day you and I need to file for divorce”, she laughed.

He laughed as well and shook his head.  “What would be the point?  We’re both too damn old to look for anyone else.”

She smiled.  “Well, what about you, David?  Where do you get off looking so devilishly handsome?” she asked, remarking in the coal gray suit and black dress shirt.

“Well, if you’re going to look nice, then so should I.  I have to look like I should be in public with you.”

She chuckled softly.  “I thought that was my line, Mr. Retired Rock star.”

“It used to be; now it’s mine.”

She slipped her shoes on and reached for her purse.  “We need to get downstairs to the lobby.  Malachai and Mandy are waiting on us to come down and we’re picking Miranda up in the limo on the way to the restaurant.”

“Then why don’t we head down there.”  He held his hand out to and led them toward the door once she’d taken it.  They met their oldest child in the lobby and were shortly thereafter ushered into the waiting limousine.  A stop at Miranda’s studio apartment to pick her up then they were off to dinner.  Morbus and his sons were in a car following the limo.  From there it wasn’t a long drive to the restaurant.  When they made their way in, David spoke to the host.  “Draiman, party of 5.”

The young man smiled and grabbed the menus.  “Right this way, Mr. Draiman.”  He walked them back to their table- which was private- and let them get seated.  A bottle of wine was ordered, but Miranda didn’t partake.  She wasn’t much of a drinker.

She smiled at everyone.  “I’m so happy to see you all here.  I can’t even express how happy I am.”

“We’re glad to be here”, Brie said.  “So, tell us dear; how have rehearsals been?  Has Zachary given you any trouble since things started back up?”

“He did the first day, but the director took care of that.  He was fired.”

“Good for your director”, Malachai said.  “What did he do?”

“He hit me in the head a couple of times and talked trash about the family.  The director apparently knows Uncle Marc and he told Zack that if he kept talking trash he was fired and if he hit me again, he was fired.  This was after the first time.  I think he’s going to be black balled.”

“I hope so”, Mandy said.  “No one should treat you the way he did.”

“Well, I did meet a rather nice young man that same day and I think he would meet approval.”

“Oh?” David asked.  “Who might that be?”

“His name is Callan Maguire.  He’s a Marine.  He’s in Venezuela at the moment on deployment.”  She sipped at her water, her nerves evident.

“Miranda, what has you so nervous child?” Brie asked her granddaughter.

“Gramma, Grampa; Mama, Daddy- I have something I need to tell you.  I don’t know how you’ll take it.”  She looked at her hands as she spoke.

“Well, come on”, David said.  “Out with it, dear child.”

She nodded slowly, taking a deep breath to steady her nerves and looked at them all.  “Mama, Daddy; Gramma, Grampa- I’m pregnant.”

Chapter 21

Instead of getting calzone, they ordered Chinese and Callan paid.  “I don’t make much because I’m enlisted, but I get enough and it’s only polite that I asked you on a date so I should pay”, he said when she made the call for dinner.

“You’re even paying for Will’s food?” she asked skeptically.

“He’s here to protect you.  That’s his job.  He deserves a good meal for that.”

“You.  I don’t know what to think of you”, Miranda said as she shook her head.  “You’re something new.  That’s for sure.”

“I’m a Marine and I know how to act like an adult.  That boy that was escorted out of the theaters is exactly what I called him.  He’s a child.  He wouldn’t know how to act like an adult if it bit him on the ass and shook.”

She laughed.  “I like that.  I really do.  You’re something different.”

“A new breed of animal?”

“Sounds like something my grandmother would say, but yeah.  That’s what you are.  You’re a new breed of animal, at least for me.”

“Not used to people treating you like a lady?”

“Not used to people outside my family- and that includes the extended family- treating me like a lady.  That’s what’s so crazy.”  She sighed and curled up on the futon with her blanket and as they waited on the food.

“You’re not used to it and I don’t know any other way.  Isn’t that interesting?”  He sat down on the couch next to her with a huge boyish grin on his face.  “So, Miranda, since I started the confessions earlier why don’t you start us off and tell me about your family.”

She laughed.  “I have a huge family.  We’ve been called Mafia- like and it’s pretty much run that way.  Grampa is the Don of our little Jewish Mafia.  Uncle Jake is the Capo.  Uncle Jeremiah is like his right hand man.  The rest of my uncles and my Dad all act as enforcers, so do my brothers and cousins.”

“Wow.  Can I share something with you?”

“Sure.  We’re being honest here, aren’t we?”

He nodded.  “True.  What you just described to me doesn’t make me think Mafia.”

“Oh?  What do it make you think?”

“COC; Chain of Command.  Think about it this way.  Your brothers and cousins are all like Corporals and Privates.  They all follow orders and report to their superiors, being your Uncles or Dad.  They report to Uncle Jeremiah, who reports to Uncle Jake.  Uncle Jake reports to Grampa.  Grampa is the General, right?  That would make Jake his Colonel and Jeremiah would be a Captain.  The other uncles would all be various ranks of NCO’s.”

She giggled.  “Wow.  I never thought of it that way.”

“Interesting way to think of things, isn’t it?”

“It is.”

“Now, my question is who all’s permission of I have to marry you should we become that serious?”

“You know?  I don’t honestly know.  I would assume that you have to have my Grampa’s permission because he’s at the top of the Chain of Command and my Dad’s because- Duh! He’s my Dad.  I’m not sure if you’d need Uncle Jake’s permission or not.  Uncle Jake will be taking over once Grampa’s passed.”

He nods.  “So, this is one of those things where we’ll have to play it by ear.”

“Yeah.  I get to be the one to set precedence in the family because I’m the oldest granddaughter.”

“Well, I can’t say I envy you.”  He laughed.  She liked his laughed.  She liked the way is sounded and the way it made his face light up.

“I don’t envy me either”, she laughed and tucked a lock of her brown curls behind her ear.  Her laugh was music to his ears.  She was beautiful, but he wasn’t sure how to let her know that’s what he thought.  All he wanted to do was take her into her room and do naughty things to her, but he was the one that asked that they don’t become intimate until they knew that they were going to go somewhere.  She was gracious enough to agree so he had to be strong enough to deny the urge.  He was almost positive that she felt what he was feeling- the electricity in the air between them, the awkwardness they were both feeling- but he didn’t want to take it anywhere that it didn’t need to go immediately.

They kept talking and she learned that he was raised in North Carolina and though he was a Mormon and held the “priesthood”, he was more spiritual.  “I just don’t believe that any organization should be able to tell anyone that I can’t have tattoos or that I can’t do this or that.  Or better yet, I have to go to church every Sunday to worship God.  What if I’m in the middle of a freaking War Zone on Sunday?  What am I supposed to do?  Ask the people shooting at my to hold off for an hour or two so that I can go to church?  Let’s be reasonable here.”  He said as he tossed his Sweet and Sour Pork in its little carton.

She laughed.  “I understand that, I guess.  I’m totally agree.  I was pretty much raised that way.  We were all taught to respect and honor our heritage on all sides of the family but we were never, like, dragged to Temple on Friday nights.  Though I have heard a story where my Grampa threatened to make all of his kids go one Hanukkah because they wouldn’t stop fighting.  I my parents had just told everyone that Mom was pregnant with my twin and me.”

“That’s funny.  I can’t imagine David Draiman threatening to make his kids go to Temple.”

“Well, the story my Dad always tells is that the band had come out, meaning Disturbed, and Gramma and Grampa had stepped out to go do some last minute Hanukkah shopping.  Well two of the quads- my Uncles James and Jeremiah and my Aunts Meagan and Makayla- were fighting and Aunt Maddie was in on it, Uncle Jake was complaining about something.  Great- Uncle Danny was trying to make sure that everyone was behaving.  Well, Grampa got onto people and the day progressed.  By that evening before sunset, Grampa had had enough and made all of his kids under that age of 18 go to their rooms to think about their behavior.  Uncle Jake, Aunt Maddie and Aunt Jordan all had to write essays on what Hanukkah means in general and what it meant to them and that was the only way he was going to reconsider making them all go to Temple on Shabbat.”

“That’s messed up.  Temple as a punishment.”

“Yeah.  And here it is, nearly 30 years after the fact and we’re expecting my grandparents to leave the earth for good any time now.  And the entire family may end up having to go to a Temple in Israel for their services.”

“Who’s older, your Grampa or Gramma?”

“Grampa by three years.”

“Cool.”

She smiled.  “If you say so.  They’re my grandparents.  What I think is so awesome is that they’re still so in love in their 80’s.  They’re more in love now than they were 15 years ago.”

“How do you know?”

“Other than hearing them say it?”  He nodded.  “Well, I’ve got a confession to make and I’ve never told another soul.”  She looked over her shoulder to see where Will was.  It seemed that he was making his routine check of the building to see if there were anyone that might want to harm her, so she leaned in and whispered to him.  “When I was about 12 or 13, I was walking down the hall after taking my little cousin Miri to the bathroom and I walked past their room on the way back.  The door was cracked and I was hearing my grandmother moaning and sighing so, being a nosy little Leo I peeked in the cracked door and saw them making love.  There was such passion there.  I moved so that if one of them looked to the door they wouldn’t see prying eyes and I put my back to the wall.  At the time, I was playing Christine in Phantom of the Opera and there was some element of ‘Point of No Return’ that I couldn’t get my hands on.  As I sat there in the hall and listened, I imagined the choreography to the piece and singing it with the guy who played the Phantom and I knew what I was missing.  I was missing passion.  The kind of passion that not only burns and consumes, but soothes and comforts.  When I heard that they weren’t making any more noise, I went to the bathroom and cried until my Dad came looking for me.”

“Wow.  So you know the meaning of passion from spying on your grandparents?”  He was shocked.  “I don’t know what to say about that other than suddenly I’m curious as to what it means to have that kind of passion in my arms.”

“Well, you’re the one that requested that we not be intimate and I don’t want you to think that just because I have rock star relatives that I’m easy.  But, yeah, I’ve kept that to myself for 16 years.”  All Callan Maguire could do was look at her in shock.

---------------

Callan and Miranda spent the night together. The tall slender majesty of Miranda Draiman awed Callan Maguire. What amazed him more was the fragility under the tough exterior. She was from one of most notable families in the nation. She had to learn to be tough out of the gate. But, she was more in touch with herself than any of the other girls he'd been with. He liked that about her.

They lay in her bed and he held her close to his chest. He was beginning to really fall for the woman against his chest. She was strong, beautiful, kind. She had a strong family background. She was everything he was looking for in a future wife.

Miranda had started having strange dreams about babies. She couldn't make sense of it. Unlike a select group of her family, she'd never had prophetic dreams. Her dreams had always been obscure and had little to no meaning to them. So, to be dreaming of babies was something new. She had to admit to herself that she'd been feeling off since she came back to New York from homestead in Colorado and she was a couple weeks late for her cycle. She still wasn't very worried about it. When she had the time she would take a pregnancy test.

The next week would go in the same way. Miranda and Callan would walk to the theater together with Will accompanying them and they would walk back to Miranda's apartment to hang out for the night. Their last night together was tearful for Miranda. She wanted to go with him but she couldn't. "I want to go back to San Diego with you when you leave."

"I know. I want you to go, but I've gotten my orders already. I have to go to Venezuela from 29 Palms for four months. I'll come home after that. You have a play opening in two days. Your grandparents will be here as well as your parents. Stay here with them and let them see you shine. You're a marvelous actress. Let them see it."

She smiled sadly. "I know. I just don't want you to leave."

"But I have to." Be brushed his knuckles down her cheek. "Will it help to know that the entire time I'm away I'll be thinking of you?"

"If you're going to be in hostile territory, then no. I'll only distract you."

"Miranda, you could never distract me."

She smiled. "You sweet. I can't wait to tell my family about you."

"Doesn't your brother Isaiah already know?"

"Yeah. He seems to like you."

"Miranda, can I just say that the past week has been the most magical week I've ever had?"

She smiled shyly. "Really?"

"Yeah. The best week ever. I would love to make a habit of it."

"Me too. That would make me very happy."

"Well we can't do too much right now, baby. But, if you'll permit it, I would love to sit on the couch and hold you for a little while."

She smiled at him. "That sounds like a plan to me." She curled up next to him on the couch and laid her head on his shoulder as they watched TV. They say in silence until dinner arrived. Miranda paid this time around. It was the only night Callan let her pay. They ate and laughed as they shared stories about childhood. "There was one year that I was disappointed around Halloween. That was the year my Uncle Jake and Aunt Delilah got married. I didn't get to go trick or treating because their wedding was Halloween night. I was so pissed", Miranda said.

"I can imagine. How old we're you when Uncle Jake got married?"

"Well, they'll have been married for 23 years this Halloween, so I was like 7 I think."

"Wow. They've been together a long time."

"My grandparents have been together for over forty years."

"Wow. I wonder if we'll find anyone like that."

"I'd like to think so. If you ask me, I'd say I already found it."

"Really? What's his name so I can kick his ass?"

"His name's Callan Maguire. I don't know if you can kick his ass. He's a Marine", she giggled.

He looked at her. "Seriously? You think that highly of me?"

She nodded. "Something that my parents and grandparents taught me from the cradle was never to say things I don't mean."

"Well, if I may be so bold as to say how I feel, I believe the same thing."

She smiled. "Is there a way for us to stay in contact while you're in Venezuela on deployment?"

"I'll take your number along and call you from the sat phone and we'll have a comm station that we get a couple hours a week on to call home and video chat."

She smiled. "I'd like that. My phone has those capabilities."

"See? We can make it happen. Over the past few days, I think I've grown closer to you than I have any other woman I've ever been with. I really do care for you, Miranda."

"And I care for you, Callan."

They finished their dinner in silence and went back to cuddling on the couch.  It felt so natural for them to sit like they were.  It was second nature.

When she drifted off to sleep he gently scooped her up his arms and walked her to her bedroom, lying in the bed next to her.  Once he was good and comfortable, he brushed her hair from her face and kissed her temple.  “We’ve only been together for a short period of time, but I’m in love with you Miranda Draiman”, he whispered softly into the silence of the bedroom.  “I don’t know what this spell is that you’ve cast on me, but I don’t want you to lift it.  Eventually, I will make you my wife.  I promise you that.”

---------------

Once Callan was gone, Miranda was back to sleeping in her big lonely bed all alone all over again.  It was something that she was going to have to get used to if she was going to be a Marine Corps wife.  She just got up and showered- upset that she had to wash his scent off of her skin- then got dressed to go to dress rehearsals.  She and the rest of the cast were trying to get used to a new Mark in the mix.  He was working out rather well.

“525, 600 minutes.  525, 000 moments so dear.  525,600 minutes, How do you measure, measure a year?” the cast sang together at the beginning of rehearsal.  Miranda’s stomach was turning violently but she managed to keep it in control until she got off of the stage.  She ran to the bathroom the moment she stepped off of the stage and hit her knees, vomiting up everything she had on her stomach- which was a steak, egg, and cheese biscuit she’d picked up at a bodega on the way as well as a cappuccino.  Tasting the food and coffee again sucked.  Once she was dry heaving she got her breathing under control, washed her face and went to get her purse so that she could brush her teeth.  Something wasn’t right.  Her period was still absent now she was puking.  Top that off with the fact that she’d been feeling weird since she got back from her visit home to see her younger cousins graduate and she had a feeling she knew what was going on.  She was going to have to take a test to be sure, but she knew her problem.  But, how did she break it to her family?  Better yet, how did she break it to Callan?

She went on with rehearsal as planned.  She danced her tango, jumped over the moon in protest of Cyber Arts, and mourned the loss of Angel like she was supposed to.  The day was going the way it was supposed to.

At lunch, she called her Aunt Kenna and asked her what she suggested for an upset stomach and vomiting, seeing as she was an OB nurse.  “Saltines and Gatorade, Miranda.  That’s my suggestion.  Do you think your pregnant?”

“Yeah.  I might be.  I don’t know just yet.”

“You need to take a test, Miranda.  If you are, do you know who the father is?”

“Yeah.  That douche I brought out for family photos.”

“Ooh.  You’re father’s not going to be happy about that.”

“No, Aunt Kenna, he’s not.  Dad’s going to want to kick his ass.  But I’m not worried about telling Dad as much as I am about telling my new boyfriend.”

“New boyfriend?  Name?”

“His name is Callan and he’s a Marine.”

“Gramma will like him”, Kenna Draiman laughed.  “You do know her late brother Matt was a Marine, right?”

“I’d heard.”

“Well, best of luck to you, Miranda.  I suggest getting a pregnancy test as soon as you possibly can and eating things with salt.”

“Ok.  Thanks Aunt Kenna.”

“Your Uncle is looking at me like I’m keeping nuclear secrets.  What do I tell him if he asks me what the sudden call was all about?”

“Tell my nosy Uncle James that I was just calling for a little advice.  Don’t tell him about what.  I’ll tell him when I tell everyone else in the family if I’m going to be blessing Gramma and Grampa with their first great- grandchild or not.”

“Ok.  I’ll tell him.  Just take it easy, Miranda.”

“Yeah right.  My play premieres in day after tomorrow.  Mom and Dad will be there.  Gramma and Grampa will be there.  I can’t take it easy.  I can’t be flat or sharp.  I can’t miss a step or a cue.  I have to be perfect because this is the first time Gramma and Grampa will see me perform professionally.”

Kenna laughed again.  “Take it as easy as you can.  I’m not saying that it’s going to be easy by any stretch.  You’ll be fine, Miranda.  Let us know what you find out.”

“I will Aunt Kenna.  Give the twins and Gabe my love.”

“Will do, Miranda.  Go finish your rehearsals for the day.”  They hung up after saying goodbye, and Miranda snacked on the fruit and cheese at the catering table rather than eating something big and asked if Will could run to the bodega and get her a Gatorade.  He did what she asked really quick.  She’d pick up the test on the way home.  She didn’t want to freak anyone in the cast out.  The last thing she needed was to have her cast mates tripping over themselves to be careful of her if the test said what she was sure it would.

---------------

When she got home from the theater, she ordered dinner and she and will sat and watched movies all night.  She hated television.  There was never anything good on.  The movies weren’t very original anymore either, so they were watching what he Uncle Marc would call Cult Classics.  They were movies that had been out for many years that had made good money at the box office.  If anyone would know, it would be Uncle Marc.

As they waited on dinner, she stepped into the bathroom and pulled a small plastic pregnancy test from her pocket.  She was nervous.  She didn’t need this right now.  She needed not to be pregnant so that she could wear what she wanted to wear and dance in her 5 inch stiletto heels.  There was a company of dancers that were auditioning and she wanted to put in her head shot and audition, but that wasn’t happening if she was pregnant.

Still, she pee’d on the little stick and waited the agonizing five minutes it took for the little lines to turn blue.  Much to her mixture of horror and relief, that’s what happened.  Two little blue lines.  She was pregnant.  Now, to break the news to everyone.  Her parents and grandparents were first.  They’d be there the following day.  She was going to have dinner with them when they all got there.  She’d even heard that Will’s father- the infamous Morbus- was coming out of retirement so that her grandparents weren’t left without protection.  Will would be staying with her, Travis would have her parents, and Morbus would have her grandparents.  It was a one night only occasion.  It wasn’t often that people were able to get David and Brie Draiman out and about anymore because of their ages.  All they wanted anymore, from what Miranda understood, was to live quietly and die surrounded by family.  They knew that there would probably be a time when one would live briefly without the other but from what their own children speculated they would die together.  Probably in each other’s arms.  No one knew.  She just hoped that they would be around long enough to greet their first great- grandchild.  She wanted her child to feel the love that their great- grandparents.

When she walked out, she had a strange look on her face.  “What’s wrong, Miranda?” Will asked as he set the pizza down on the table after tipping the delivery boy.

“Well, Will… I don’t know how I should take this news, but I just took a pregnancy test and I’m pregnant.”

“Whoa.  Are you going to tell your parents and grandparents when they get here tomorrow?”

“I’ve kinda got no choice.  They’ll be here tomorrow afternoon and we’re getting together for dinner after rehearsal.”

“Are you ready for this to be done?”

“The play, you mean?” she said as she sat in her chair and grabbed a slice of pizza.  She was feeling a little better after throwing up earlier that day.  She’d picked up crackers, cheese, and Gatorade on the way home from the theater.  She had something to help quell the morning sickness until the play was over.

“Yeah.  Are you ready for the play to finally end?”

“Oh yeah, I’m ready.  Thankfully, we’re only doing a week so I don’t have to do too much worrying.”

“I’m almost willing to put money on the fact that your parents will want you to come home for the entirety of your pregnancy.”

“Oh, I’m sure they will too.  I know my mother.  She’ll want to be there every step like Gramma was there every step for a LOT of my Aunts and Uncle’s kids.”

“Didn’t your grandmother actually deliver a few of them?”

“Yeah.  She aided in Ira, Abby, and Rina’s births, and delivered Ash and Matt.”

“I heard she helped with you and Isaiah too.  She held your Mom’s feet when she was pushing you and Isaiah out.”

“I’ll have to ask about that.”  She took a bite of her pizza.  “How do you know so much?”

“My Dad was your grandfather’s bodyguard for years and I was raised around the family.  I think you and Isaiah are only less than a year younger than I am.  My siblings and I are all Irish twins.  Well, I guess we’d be called Irish triplets.  There’s a year between Travis and Melody and about a year and a half between me and Melody.”

“How is there so little time between all of you?”

“My Dad was in a hurry to have all of his kids, apparently.  He only wanted 3 and that’s what he got.”

“Nice.”

“Back to the subject at hand.  How are you going to break the news to your parents and grandparents?”

“I’m just going to tell them.  What else can I do, Will?  I can’t hide it.  Gramma and Mom will notice that I’m picking at my food and not really eating.  Grampa will notice that I’m ‘glowing’.  He’s noticed it about each of my Aunts when they were pregnant.  Dad will notice something; he always does.  They’ll all ask me if there’s something I want to tell them.  I have no choice Will.”

He nodded slowly.  “What about that guy that’s been staying here?  You gonna keep seeing him and if so when are you going to tell him that you’re pregnant with another man’s child?”

“I’m going to keep seeing him and I’ll tell him the next time I talk to him.  He had to leave to report to 29 Palms this morning.”

“Oh yeah.  He’s a Marine.  That’s right.  I totally forgot about that.”

“You’ve been pre- occupied trying to keep me safe from the moron that fathered my child.”

“So that Zack loser is the baby daddy?”

“Yeah.  I’m not thrilled about it either.  And I get to tell my family about it tomorrow evening at dinner after we meet them at the airport.”

“Oh shit.  Not fun.  When do you expect to hear from Mr. Marine again?”

“I don’t know.  I’m sure I’ll get tons of emails from him, but I’d rather break the news to him face to face and I don’t know when I’ll get a video call from him.”

“You’re going to tell him that you’re pregnant over a video call?”

“Is there a problem with that?”

“Not the way I’d want to learn, but then again.”

“Will, much as I consider you family, I really am not asking for advice.  I know what I have to do and I’ll do it the way I think is best.”

He nodded to her with a smile.  “Good for you.  Tell me to but out.”

“Butt out, Will.  It’s my problem, not yours.”

Chapter 20

Finally, Miranda could go back to having a normal life.  She was ready to get into rehearsals and get this play over with.  After RENT was over, she was going to take a sabbatical and go home for a little while.  It would be nice to be around her family for a while.  She needed the rest.  She was just feeling so tired and stressed recently.  She wasn’t even worried that her period was late.  Her hormones were always weird when she was stressed.

There were days that she was grateful that she lived just down the block from the theater they were performing at because it saved on cab fare.  The big pain was having Will with her, though she understood that it was a necessary evil.  He was there in case Zack decided to be a pain in the ass.  He was her protection.

When they arrived, she went straight back to the dressing room and greeted her cast mates.  They asked her how her break was and if anything exciting happened.  She told them that she got to take family pictures and that she and Zack broke up.

She was in her red Tango dress for “The Tango- Maureen” standing off stage right when she felt eyes on her.  She tried to dismiss it and bent over to adjust the strap on her shoe when the gaze intensified.  She whirled around and looked at the man who was staring at her.  “What exactly are you staring at?” she asked.

The man’s face turned red.  “You”, he said as he blushed.  “I’m sorry ma’am.  I shouldn’t stare.  It’s impolite.”  His southern drawl captivated her.  “I’ll go back to work now.”

She smiled.  “I’m sorry.  I’ve had a bad day so far.  I shouldn’t have snapped at you like I did.  When we have lunch, would you mind sitting with me?” she asked.  “It would be nice to have someone other than my brother and my Dad’s bodyguard to talk to.”

He grinned a little lopsided.  “Sure.  We can talk at lunch.  I do apologize for staring at your ass though, Miss.  It was rather rude of me.”

“It’s ok, sugar.  I’m not offended.  I’m actually kinda used to it with this dress on.  I’ve got to go on now.  I’ll see you in a bit.”  She took her dance partners’ hands and whirled out onto the stage as the song played.  “She cheated (she cheated), Maureen cheated (fucking cheated), I’m so mad that I don’t know what to do”, Joanne and Mark sang as Maureen tangoed with another man and another woman.

The young man watched at the guy playing Mark intentionally hit the girl he’d just had an exchange with in the head as he danced with the black girl.  The girl tried to play it off, but her wince was too visible and the director called cut.  “What happened?” the man yelled.

“Either Zack or Keisha smacked me in the head as we were doing the scene.  It’s bull shit, Frank”, the girl said loudly.

“Has something happened in the last few days or weeks that I need to know about?” the director asked.

“Zack met my family and was nearly escorted off my grandfather’s property by my uncles and father.  He committed one of my grandfather’s cardinal no-no’s and disrespected me by acting like a fucking moron.”

“Your family shouldn’t have put their nose in our relationship, especially not your nosy ass brothers and cousins”, the man on the stage said

“Watch how you talk about my family, mother fucker.  My Dad’s body guard won’t be able to get up here fast enough to keep me from beating the hell out of you in this skimpy ass dress.”

“ENOUGH!”, the director yelled.  “One more unnecessary crack about the Draiman family, Zack, and I’ll replace you with your understudy and you’re fired.  Hit Miranda again, and you’re fired and your understudy will take over.  Think I’m kidding, try me.  Marc Draiman is a close friend of mine and I know what the family is like in passing.”

When he heard the last name, he was stunned.  This tall, statuesque woman is a member of the infamous Draiman family?, he thought to himself.  I think that I’ve heard that name before in connection with a Master Guns that became notorious in the Corps for his kill count as well as a great deal of other things.  Cartwright was his name.  Master Gunnery Sergeant Cartwright.  I wonder if they’re related.  That would really cool.  I’m for sure curious where our talk over lunch is going to lead.  It would be long before he found out.

---------------

When lunch time rolled around, Miranda sat next to the sweet young man she’d been hanging out with before her cue to go on.  She smiled at him.  “Hi”, she said as she sat next to him backstage.

He looked over at her.  “Hi.  I was hoping you weren’t kidding when you said you were gonna sit with me at lunch.  I really didn’t want to eat lunch with my ignorant brother.”

She laughed.  “You’re funny.  I like you.”

“Thank you.”

“So, I’ve never seen you before.  Are you a new hire?”

He shook his head.  “No.  I’m here helping my brother with some set production.  I’m on two weeks leave right now and trying to make the most of it.”

“You’re on leave?  Are you in the military?”

“Yes ma’am.  I’m Staff Sergeant Callan Maguire, USMC.  I’m in EOD.”

She smiled.  “You’re a Marine.  I like you more.  I’m Miranda Draiman.”

“So, which of the infamous Draiman’s is your parent?”

“I’m the oldest daughter of Malachai Draiman, the lead and rhythm guitarist for Reckless Disregard.”

“So, you’re David Draiman’s oldest grandchild?”

“One of the oldest grandchildren.  I’m a twin.”

“Oh.  Nice.  I was really young when the man died, but was one of your grandparents related to the late Master Gunnery Sergeant Matthew Cartwright?”

“Yeah.  My Gramma is his baby sister.”

“Wow.  That’s pretty cool.”

She smiled.  “You’re not intimidated are you?”

“No”, he said with a grin.  His voice and face contradicted what he was feeling inside.  Her grandfather was David Draiman and she was the great- niece of the most infamous Marine in the history of the Corps.  It was just a trifle intimidating.  Was he up for the challenge?  He was always up for a challenge.

She grinned back.  “So, you’re a Marine.  What’s it like to have two birthdays?”

“I don’t actually.”

“You don’t?”

He shook his head.  “Nope.  I share my birthday with the Corps.  My Dad always used to say that I was destined to be a Marine.  But, I’m not just a Marine.”

She laughed.  “You’re not?”

“Oh no.  I’m also a Scorpio.  I enjoy long walks on the beach as long as they involve cadence, good music, guns, and making shit go boom.  My dislikes are tools who think it’s funny to hit a female in the head.  I’m looking for a good woman to stand by me.  Not in front of me and not behind me.  She needs to be family oriented, strong and independent because I am a lifer in the Corps, and want a family of her own.”

Miranda laughed out loud.  “Where is the signup sheet for this?  I’m in.”

He laughed.  “Really?  I just gave you my dating profile.  Why don’t you give me yours?”

She took a deep breath.  “I’m a Leo.  I too like long walks on the beach- but they don’t have to have cadence to them, good music that’s NOT my dad’s band or the musical stylings of my Grampa.  I like watching things go boom.  My dislikes as also tools who think it’s funny to hit a female, as well as assholes who have no spine.  I’m very family oriented and I need a man who is as well.  My family is the most important thing in the world to me.  He also needs to be supporting of my career.  I want to act.  That’s my passion.  I want to be able to stand beside my man and I want him to stand beside me.  I want a marriage like my grandparents have.  They’ve been perfect for each other since the day they met, from what I understand and I want that.  You’d have to see my grandparents together to understand what I’m getting at but when you see it, you’ll know.”

He nodded.  “Do you have a problem with a man that’s gone a lot?”

“Nope.  My Mom’s had to do it with my Dad his entire career, my Gramma had to do it with Grampa.  It’s only fair that one of us carries on the tradition.”

“Ok, I just have to know.  Is your family as big as everyone says?”

“My family is huge.  My grandparents had 10 kids.  I have five siblings myself.  I think all together, my grandparents have 27 grandchildren.”

“HOLY SHIT!  THAT’S ENORMOUS!” he shouted.

She laughed.  “That’s my family.  Imagine all of us piled around a single table during the holidays.  And my Uncle Jeremiah’s in- laws live nearby and usually join us for Thanksgiving and Hanukkah.”

“So celebrate the high holy days?”

“No.  Just Hanukkah.”  She looked at him.  “How do you know so much?”

“Well, I’m curious for starters.  But, I was raised a Mormon.  Obviously because I just shouted ‘Holy shit’, I don’t practice anymore.  We’re all about tradition and stuff like that.  I had a really good buddy in high school that was Jewish and he told me all about the High Holy Days and even invited me to his bar mitzvah.”

“Did you go?”

“Sure did.  My parents gave me 50 bucks to give him.  Mother fucker was rich that day.”

“That’s too funny.  You should tell my grandfather that story should you ever get to meet him.  He’d get a kick out of that, I think.”

---------------

They were doing the second run through of the show.  The scene was “La Vie Boheme” when everyone was dancing on the tables in the diner.  The scene was carefully choreographed to prevent people from getting injured.

Callan was having trouble focusing on what he was doing.  He was too busy watching the girl he’d just spent lunch talking to and getting to know.  Was this what it felt like to be in love?  And if so, was it love at first sight?

As they ran through the scene, Callan watch and saw something that would piss him off not only as a man but as a Marine.  The worst part was that at the moment there wasn’t too much of anything he could do about it.  As the scene played he watch the guy that had hit Miranda earlier in the day do so again and try not to make it obvious.  He jumped like he was going to go after the tool only to be stopped by his brother.  “Let the director handle it”, his brother whispered.

“He’s a punk, Kade, and he needs to be dealt with.”

“I agree, but let the director handle it.  Technically, she’s not your problem.  She’s not your woman, so don’t go all Marine on everyone’s asses and jump this tool because he’s assaulting Miranda Draiman’s honor.  From what I understand, she can take pretty good care of herself and she has a bodyguard with her.”

“Bodyguard?”

“Yeah the youngest son of her grandfather’s long time bodyguard, Morbus.  His name is Will.”

“He’s not doing a very good job of body guarding her.”

“There’s only so much he can do from the audience, Cal.  Give him a break.”

Callan sat and fumed as he listened to the director chew the guy’s ass then the bodyguard came up on the stage.  “You’d be wise to just stay away from Miranda.  I’ll be here with her through the end of the play and if you show your face here or at her apartment, I will shoot you.  Don’t think I won’t.  I couldn’t do it because you were in the cast.  Show your face at the theater again and you will regret it”, the bodyguard said as he waited for the douche to grab his things so that he could be escorted out.  He heard the familiar sound as the hammer of a gun clicking back and smiled.  I like the bodyguard all of the sudden, he thought as he watched the guy who hit Miranda get escorted off of the property at gun point.  I guess it’s true that you don’t fuck with the Draiman’s because one way or another, they will fuck with you.

---------------

Rehearsals for the day were over and Miranda was ready to go home.  It was just her and Will in her apartment now that she was back at rehearsal and Isaiah was teaching classes at Julliard.  It wasn’t like she wasn’t having a good time with Will.  He was an interesting guy.  But, the fact of the matter was that he was there to protect her to the best of his ability from Zack.

As she walked out of the front of the theater with Will in the lead, she checked her phone for any messages.  She’d have to make it a point to call her parents and let them know what was going on with the Zack drama.  She was looking forward to doing the play with Gordon, the understudy for Mark.  “Miranda”, she heard a familiar voice call from behind her.  She stopped and turned to see who it could have been.  It was Callan.  “Hey, glad I caught you.”

“I see that.  What’s on your mind?”

“I know this is probably a really long shot but while I’m in town, you wouldn’t want to go out sometime would you?”

She smiled and tucked a piece of hair behind her ear.  “Sure.  Sounds like fun.  How long are you in town for?”

“My leave is almost up and I’ve only got about a week left before I have to report back to 29 Palms.”

“Oh, so you’re stationed permanently in California?”

“Yep.  San Diego area.”

“That’s pretty cool.”  She pulled her phone out.  “I’m available the rest of the week after rehearsal.  Any time for me is good to be honest.”

“You wouldn’t want to go out tonight, would you?  I know that douche may have gotten to you a little bit overwhelmed, but I figured I’d give it a shot.  I would really like to get to know you better.  You’re an amazing person.”

She smiled brightly.  “I don’t really feel like going out tonight because of the douche, but if you want to come to my apartment, we could just hang out.”

“Can I just put it out there that this is a getting to know you thing and I really want to wait until we at least know there’s going to be something between us before we are intimate?”

“Oh, that’s perfectly fine.  I’d really like to take it slow rather than rush things anyway.  I rushed things with my last boyfriend and that’s the reason he’s my ex.”

Callan nodded.  “Ok then.  Let’s go to your place.  Do you cook at all?”

“Not really.  I know how, I’m just never home enough.  I’m either here all the time or I’m with my parents in Colorado, or I’m flying out to Israel to visit my Grandparents.  I don’t that one often, but I do it upon occasion.”

“Fun.  Well, I’m going to run and grab my bag so that we can leave.  Do you live far?”

“No.  I live a block away.  It’s convenient like that.”

“Cool.  I’ll get my bag and I’ll be right back.”  He jogged away and she watched, looking over her shoulder at Will.  “I’m having company.  Is that a problem?”

“Not at all.  I’ll just hide in a corner or something and let you two get to know each other.  You’re fine”, Will responded.

When Callan came back, he had a duffel bag thrown over his shoulder.  She wanted to ask what was in the bag, but wasn’t going to for the moment.  She’d wait until they got back to and were eating something before she went asking too many questions.  She wasn’t very hungry, but it was always good to eat.  To be perfectly honest, she was feeling a little sick.  She wouldn’t find out what was actually going on with her until the night they opened.  By that time, not only would the man walking beside her be her man full time, but he would be gone.  Breaking the news to him would be frightening, but he would handle it a lot better than she thought and it would impress the hell out of everyone in her family as well as Miranda herself.