By the time Claire, Apollo and Wilder made it home, it was well beyond dinner time. Claire’s house was empty, but the backyard was noisy.
The moment Claire stepped out there, she stopped.
".... What the hell?"
A feast was underway.
Long folding tables stretched across the yard beneath strings of lights. Mountains of oysters sat in steaming trays. Two grills smoked lazily. One had steak, the other oysters. Rice, cornbread, mashed potatoes.... more food than necessary for a normal dinner, if you asked Claire.
And right in the center of the feast.... Maddy! She was being spoon fed by Donna!
It looked like a mother spoon feeding her toddler.
"Open wide, sweetheart."
"Aaaah." Maddy obediently opened her mouth.
Donna placed a perfectly cooked oyster into it.
"AAH!" Claire exclaimed in horror.
Apollo leaned towards her and whispered, "Your stalker sure knows how to take advantage of your mother. Has Donna ever fed you like that?"
Claire shuddered. "Why would I be fed like that? I am 28, not 8 months old. This...whatever they are doing, it’s creepy."
Apollo snorted. "Creepy? Come on Eclaire, we both know what this is. Your mother is loaded with guilt, and she keeps trying to overcompensate by giving you all the love she couldn’t give to baby Claire. But you are an adult and you don’t have time to play pretend baby. You find her overly emotional nature a little bothersome, even. Maddy on the other hand longs to be pampered. She is willing to play pretend baby. One wants a daughter to dote on, and one is willing to be doted on. Those two are a perfect fit."
Claire watched in horror as Maddy kicked her feet happily. "Mom, you’re such a good cook. You are the first mom to cook for me."
"No wonder you are so skinny," Donna complained. "From now on, I will fatten you up. Open up."
Maddy opened her mouth wide. "Aaah."
Another oyster vanished and Maddy kicked her feet, shaking her shoulders and making "mmmm" sounds.
Claire shuddered again. Apollo chuckled.
Wilder walked forward and found a seat next to Donovan. "Whose bright idea was this?"
Donna looked away from Maddy. She noticed her mother and saw Claire. "Oh, you’re back. Sit down and tell us everything." Then she immediately turned to Maddy. "Chew carefully, dear."
Claire looked at Apollo.
Apollo looked at Claire.
Neither knew what to say.
Meanwhile, the quadruplets were stealing glances at Maddy and competing to impress her. Which was ridiculous because she looked at them like amusing puppies.
Bennett had apparently spent the last ten minutes arranging oyster shells in a crown that he placed on Maddy’s head.
"Queen Maddy."
Maddy immediately accepted the title. "I shall rule wisely."
"Open up," Donna ordered.
Claire groaned. "I feel like I have walked into some kind of bizarre episode of a cartoon I can’t even name. This is weird, Apollo."
Victor set down two chairs and waved at them. "Claire, Apollo, come join us. We were not expecting you all to return so soon. How was the party? How much trouble did your grandmother stir up?"
Claire had no choice but to join them and Apollo followed. Her brothers switched their attention to her for a moment, yelling "Captain Carrot."
Maddy batted her eyes at Claire and grabbed Donna’s arm.
Claire rolled her eyes. If Maddy had found someone else to bother, then she was more than happy for her. Claire had a business to build. She needed to go fishing as often as possible. She would not have the time to spend mending Maddy’s childhood trauma.
"I can’t believe you went to meet Claire’s in-laws while dressed like this!" Rochelle shouted to Wilder.
"And what’s wrong with this?" Wilder asked sharply.
That’s when Claire noticed Rochelle, Theresa and Prim. Theresa was sitting at the far end of the table. For a woman who had experienced something devastating that week, she looked relaxed.
Prim was currently stuffing bread into her cheeks. The child resembled an angry squirrel.
Suddenly, Wilder and Rochelle broke into an argument.
"You started it."
"It was definitely you."
"You old bat."
"You rusty shovel."
"At least I don’t smell like mothballs."
Wilder slammed the table. "My smell carries wisdom."
The argument continued. Nobody intervened. Experience had taught them it was safer this way.
Claire made a plate for herself and watched her family. Everyone was loud. Everyone was talking animatedly. There was no fancy wine or foods whose names could not be pronounced. Just Victor, the grill master, a fresh breeze and a barrel of beer.
"Mom, can you slice my steak?" Maddy asked coquettishly.
Claire turned, slowly. Very slowly. "Maddy," she called out, with a warning in her tone.
Maddy’s smile vanished. "What? Mom’s not complaining."
Donna nodded. "I am not complaining. I can cut your steak too," she offered eagerly.
Claire went back to looking horrified, and Apollo burst into laughter. The idea of Claire Dane letting someone else cut her steak was unthinkable. The woman treated steak like contracts. She cut it carefully, with precision, as if every little piece needed to be perfect before it could be eaten.
Her answer was exactly what Apollo expected.
"I think Maddy is still hungry, you can cut hers." Claire said, steering her plate out of Donna’s reach. In her mind, she was wondering what else her mother would do if she let her cut her steak. Would the woman offer to feed her next? "Grandpa," she called loudly, "I would like to borrow your boat tomorrow. Is that possible?" She wanted to take more food with her to Driswen, tomorrow and her small boat wouldn’t be enough.
Donovan nodded. "Considering that I use mine for leisure fishing two or three days a week, just take it. You don’t need to ask me when you want to take it out."
Nobody but Apollo noticed Claire exhale. She had been holding her breath in, as if she was anticipating a rejection.
"I volunteer to be your co-pirate." Benedict said.
"I want a pirate hat." Benjamin leaned forward.
Wilder rolled her eyes. "Benedict, don’t you get seasick?"
Benedict smirked, "I am strictly volunteering spiritually."
Everyone laughed. Jokes multiplied. Stories were exchanged. For almost thirty minutes everything remained peaceful. Prim approached Claire and gave her a bracelet carved from wood. The first thought on Claire’s mind was whether the wooden bracelets could be sold in Driswen.
As the laughter died down, Claire rose to her feet. She had more goods to buy. The things on her boat needed to be moved to her grandfather’s boat. The golden toilet needed to be cleaned because she wanted to sell it to Prince Stellan.
Others could relax, but not her. Not right now. Not when she had a business empire to build.