Chapter 15

Malachai took a deep breath as he reached up to ring the door bell.  He and David stood there at the door and waited for the owner to open the door.  David put a hand on Malachai's shoulder.  "It's going to be ok, Malachai.  Just breathe and try not to freak out too badly."  Malachai nodded as the door swung open.

The man that answered the door was tall with blond hair and green eyes answered the door.  "Can I help you?"

Malachai cleared his throat.  "Are you Jason Iverson?"

"That I am.  And you are?"

"My name is Malachai.  I'm your son."

Jason blinked at the young man standing in front of him, then glanced behind him to David.  "What the hell are you doing here, Draiman?"

"I brought you a present, Iverson!  I brought you the son you denied." David said

"DAD!" Malachai said over his shoulder.  "Could you not antagonize him?"

David laughed.  "Oops.  I'll be nice", he whispered back to Malachai.

"Malachai looked at the man who fathered him.  "Are you going to let us in or are we going to stand here like a bunch of retards?"

Jason stepped to the side and let Malachai and David inside.  "So, Malachai, what brings you here?"

"I have some questions that I want to ask you."

"And why is the lead singer of Disturbed here behind you?"

"Because he raised me for you and I asked him to be here.  Are you done being an ass so that I can ask MY questions?"  He took a seat on the couch, keeping David in his peripheral vision at all times.  David was just walking around the living room and looking at the pictures.

Jason looked at Malachai.  "You're worse than your mother, boy, you and your mouth.  Let me guess, you want to know why I wasn't there for you growing up?"

"For starters."  Malachai watched as his Dad clasped his hands in front of him to keep from losing his temper.

"Because Irian Cartwright was a whore when I met her and I highly doubt she's changed."

Malachai stared at the man.  "My mother is NOT a whore, and that doesn't excuse you nopt taking care of me.  You and my mother can have whatever feud you want but I was your responsibility too, you piece of shit."

"You don't speak to me like that, Malachai, I'm your father."

"Correction, you're my sperm donor.  You didn't raise me, David did.  My legal name isn't Malachai Aaron Iverson, it's Malachai Aaron DRAIMAN.  My father's name is David Michael Draiman.  You haven't earned the right to be called my father OR my Dad.  You have no right to tell me how to speak.  If I step out of line, I'm sure that my Dad will tell me that I'm wrong.  All I want to know from you is why you abandoned me and my mother after I was born and why you allowed another man to raise your first born child."

"Like I said, Malachai, your mother was a whore then and she's probably still a whore now.  How was I supposed to be sure that you were my child?"

"My mother is nothing but kind.  She's faithful to my Dad and you, sir, are a worthless piece of shit.  I could see the resemblance between us when you opened the door."  Malachai stood and gave Jason Iverson a hard look.  "I hope you rot, you piece of shit.  You will never know true happiness after I leave this house and I doubt you truly ever have known happiness in its true sense.  Mom and I have been fine the last eighteen years thanks to that man."  He pointed at David.  "You are a worthless piece of shit and I hope you rot in hell, you bastard."  Malachai went for the door.  "Dad, come on.  I got what I came here for."  David was silent as he followed on Malachai's heels and went out the door.

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"WHERE THE HELL DID THAT SHIT COME FROM?" David asked as he and Malachai headed to their rental car.

"What do you mean, Dad?"

"You know what I mean, Malachai Aaron Draiman."

"Oh, the part were I told him he wasn't my father he was my sperm donor, or the part where I laid a curse on his retarded ass?"

"Yeah, both of those."  David pulled the keys to the car out of his pocket and hit to button to unlock the doors. "Especially that last bit."

Malachai opened the passenger side door and got in the car.  "Well, the first part, I'd been planning on saying if he turned out to be what you and Mom said  The last bit?  I'm still trying to figure out where that came from."

"Well, Malachai, I have to say, I'm proud of you."  David started the car.

Malachai looked at him as he put the car into gear and pulled away.  "What do you mean, Dad?"

"You didn't let the fact that he's your biological father intimidate you and you told him the way you saw things."

"I did just like you and Mom taught me to do.  So what?  He fathered me.  Good for him.  That doesn't earn him anything because he didn't earn it.  Respect is a two way street and he hasn't earned it from me.  He get nothing but the cold hard facts from me.  You didn't raise me to be a punk bitch and let someone run over me because of their title.  Fuck that wannabe piece of shit.  I hope he dies and burns in the deepest recesses in hell for what he did to me and mom."  David tried desperately to find words to respond to what his oldest son had just said, but there were no words.  There was nothing but an overwhelming sense of pride that the things that he'd tried to instill in his children had taken and that he was finally starting to see the results of his 13 years of being with his wife.