Hendrix and the children walk out into the arrival hall to be met by the chauffeur in Heathrow. Hendrix had gotten an emergency permission for his private jet to land in Heathrow because the flight was on such short notice. This reunion or what does it mean when you are going to meet the husband of the woman you have loved all your life? Fuck if he knows, is going to be something for the history books.
The children, all four of them, had stayed with him for the remainder of their time in The Hope, with their grandmother fussing over them, incessantly. They have so much of their mother in them so, so much of her, but he saw the nuances of his traits in Arthur and Astor too. Astor has that wild streak of Ife’s and Arthur like him is a whizz with numbers and formulars.
‘Hello.’ Zachary answers a call that comes through on his mobile phone but even before he answers he knows who it is, who else would have a ping on all their phones so they would know the moment they turned it on. ‘Hello dad.’ They are just getting into the waiting car, their luggage having gone in the car ahead. ‘We’ve just arrived in London we are heading home so we’ll see you shortly.’
‘Where have you guys been?’
‘We went to Scotland.’
‘You what!?’
‘We had to do something dad.’
The chauffeur pulls out of the airport to join the flow of traffic departing, Christmas travellers scrambling for their flights, the holiday well and truly here.
‘We just touched down in Edinburgh,’ Tristan says, ‘I’ve been calling you all week.’
‘What are you doing in Edinburgh?’
‘He’s in Edinburgh?’ Zoya asks.
‘Put him on speaker.’ Astor says and Zachary obliges.
‘You’re on speaker.’
‘We have just touched down in Edinburgh on our to St Margaret’s Hope.’
‘We’ve just come from The Hope, and I’ve a feeling the person you are going to see is not going to be there.’ Arthur’s cheek did not go unnoticed by the other. Zoya stifles a laugh.
‘What the hell is going on?’
‘We went to see Hendrix.’
Silence on the other end of the phone, and on their end. Hendrix looks at the faces looking back at him, a smile tethering.
‘You have Hendrix with you?’ Rellie asks.
‘Hendrix are you there?’
‘Yes I am.’
‘Shit.’
‘What the hell have you guys been up to?’ Tristan asks his children and if they were standing before him, he would send them to their bedrooms without dinner for the night. Not that they ever would bother to listen since they have their own apartments outside the family home, they would simply leave.
‘We told you, we had to do something, and I think you’d agree we had to go meet him.’
‘We had everything handled.’ Tristan says still not addressing Hendrix.
‘So did we. We had a plan and everything.’ Astor says, rolling her eyes.
‘Go home and stay there. Do not leave.’ Dial tone.
‘How old does he think we are?’ Arthur’s question is not directed at anyone in paritcular.
‘He’s your father.’ Hendrix says and four eyes swivel to look at him with raised brows. ‘Point taken.’ He raises his hand peaceably.
Three hours later, Tristan, Rellie, Zainab and Jacob walk into the house after a crazy few hours, and when they walk into the living room, they come face to face with a past, a present, and strangers who will become family.
‘Before you go getting mad, dad- ’
‘I’ve been worried sick about you, all of you.’ He pulls Arthur, the closest to him into a tight hug. ‘You left without a word.’
‘Sorry.’ Zoya hugs her father and the other two pile on.
Rellie, Zainab, and Jacob too exchange hugs with Hendrix.
‘It’s good to see you man.’ Jacobs says.
‘And you mate, twice in six months and you couldn’t let me in on what you had planned.’
‘We thought we had everything figured out, but she’s thrown a spanner in the works, so you know- ’
Someone cleared their throat behind them.
Tristan walks forward to meet Hendrix.
‘Hello Hendrix. I’m Tristan.’
‘Hendrix.’
Both men shake hands, and the chill in the air starts to fall away.
‘Can you give us some privacy?’ Tristan says to the others, and they file out leaving the two men with one woman between them, and a shared past, behind.
‘Listen it’s not what you think. I don’t know what the children have told you-’
‘Enough, about me being their father which knocked me for six, but I’m over the initial shock now.’
‘You must know that Ife didn’t have a choice. You might want to sit down because there is a lot to talk about.’
Hendrix takes a seat on the armchair next to the fire, if the last few hours was anything to go by, he will need a cushion and the warmth.