Episode 50: Scene Five

Adrienne looked around the dark living room. The silence was unbearable. Nevertheless, Adrienne began her search for clues that might lead to Gia's sudden departure. Though Gia had taken all of her things, Adrienne intuitively felt that something had been left behind in her hurried leave. So, she had searched the living room. As expected, she came up with nothing. She felt that Gia wouldn't leave something so important in a place as open to the public as the living room. Adrienne then decided to head back to Gia's room to find what, if anything, had been left.

Turning on the light, Adrienne winced at the sight of the bleak room. The walls were painfully white and the carpet was a dull brown. It was nothing like the vibrant cream and the intense cocoa that it had been when Gia occupied the room. Adrienne shook her head to rid herself of the thoughts of what had been. What mattered was now, or, in Adrienne's case, what would be.

She opened up the closet and found only a small, empty space. Still, Adrienne felt all along the top shelf and searched all corners of the interior. When she came up with nothing, Adrienne closed the doors and did a quick glance-over of the room. Deciding to search elsewhere, she turned off the lights and headed towards the bathroom.

In the bathroom, Adrienne only found a slightly reddened mirror. Thinking it had only been Gia getting careless with the lipstick, she wiped it off without another thought. Little did she know that that would have been her biggest clue yet.

She looked through everything: the bathtub, the dirty clothes hapmper, and even the toilet. Still, she came up with nothing. Adrienne bit her lip in thought. She'd already searched the living room, bedroom, and bathroom. Where else could it be? Though she was about to give up and head to bed, she decided to try one more drawer. At first glance, nothing seemed to be in it. But then, a small white object caught her eye.

Inspecting it more closely, she found that it was the corner of a piece of paper. She picked at it, but it wouldn't move. It wasn't large enough to tug or pull at, so she decided to take another plan of action. Adrienne opened the cabinet below the drawer, and much to her pleasure, she found a small white envelope caught at the back of it. She managed to pry it loose and then opened it. The letter read:

Dearest Gia,

Greetings from your mother, darling. How are things going at Midway? I can't wait until you come home so that we can be together as a family again. Your father sends his love as well. He's foreclosing a big business deal at the moment, so that's another thing for us to be happy about! Trust me when I say that he's so proud with what his little girl has become. Your little brother is enjoying pre-school very much, which I'm sure you'll be happy about. You two always have been close, despite the age difference.

I'm sure by now you've gotten those silly notions out of your head that you used to have as a little girl. By now, you must realize that it was merely your imagination running away with you. Nevertheless, I don't think it would be good if you went around telling others about them. They might not think so highly of you if you told them. So this is my warning, Gia. I love you, but I will not tolerate the spreading of that ridiculous dream.

Love,
Mother

P.S. If my warning wasn't enough, then you can be sure that no one will believe you when you tell them that your father raped you.