Chapter 8: Forgiveness

A house phone rings in Gianna's room. "Hello?" Gianna responds.

"Gigi! It's been a while!" a recognizable voice responds. "Everything alright?"

"Dad?" Gianna responds frantically. "You're alive?!"

"Of course I am alive, Gianna." Zenon says. "Is Joshua Brown over the house right now?"

"Yes he is." Gianna says. "You want me to pass him the phone?"

"Yes, of course." Zenon says solemnly. "Someone wants to apologize to him after all."

Gianna hands Joshua the phone. When Joshua answers he hears a familiar tone.

"Is this Josh?" the caller asks.

"Yes it is." Joshua says. "Who is this and why do you want to apologize?"

"It's me Josh . . . your mother." Daki says while holding in tears.

"Mom?" Joshua starts to tear up. "Is that really you?"

"I know you have several questions Josh but that's not really important as of right now." Daki says as she gets straight to the point. "I'm sorry Josh, for enabling your father, the outbursts, making you go to the god forsaken school, everything" Daki says while crying.

"It's okay Mom." Joshua says. "After all, I knew that you didn't want this for me at all." "I know you wanted me to fight crime." Joshua holds back tears. "I looked up to you, I always have, that's why I never wanted to stress you out." "Even with the outbursts, I looked up to you."

Daki starts to break down, even after all she has added to the abuse that Joshua faced, he still looked up to her as a role model. Daki couldn't hold back her tears anymore. The forgiveness she so desperately needed. She finally got it.

"I will come home after this whole ordeal with the school is over." Daki says with her voice breaking. "I will come home just this once. . . just to see how much you have grown up."

"I will be waiting for that moment, Mom." Joshua says. "If someone dares try to kill you, i will put a stop to them."

"I know you will live up to that Joshua, you are my son after all!" Daki says while smiling. Daki's mind is finally at ease, but her stress hasn't ended yet. Until Joshua's father and brother are found beheaded, she will never rest. She will never forgive him for destroying Joshua's world view.