Gabriel parted with Claire after the quiet morning as he went to the company building. Claire hesitated. She had her own things to do, but there was one thing she didn't mention to Gabriel.
After the occurrences of the past few days she didn't had a chance to check in with Katherine, or rather Diane, and she felt like she owed her at least a visit and an explanation since she pushed her to be a part of it all without a single bit of warning.
Claire knocked onto the hotel room door and Diane opened it within moments.
"Hi." Claire said awkwardly.
"Hi." Diane seemed odd in some other way.
"Can I come in?" Claire looked around worriedly. Diane nodded and let Claire into the large room. "I came to see you. I came to check on you, actually. I-…" Claire stuttered. "I should've told you or warn you and it wasn't fair." Claire's eyes darted to the suitcase on the bed that was quite clearly being packed. "Are you leaving?"
"You won't understand." Diane said quickly as she walked across the room and clumsily closed the lid.
"No, I don't think I would." Claire admitted. "Your children thought that you were dead. They mourned you. Now they know that you're alive. Isn't that a good thing?"
"I never asked for this. I escaped this prison for a reason."
"Prison? Is life near Gabriel and Eva a prison?"
"Life where he is is a prison. Life where he held me hostage for years, abusing me and my children. That is my prison." Diane's tears run down her cheeks as she zipped up a suitcase.
"I'm sorry." Claire mumbled feeling like she screwed up.
"You had no right to meddle in my business. I know that you care about Gabriel. I can see it. But… you just don't know."
"I understand. I didn't really think it through. But then, maybe you don't have to keep running to be able to live. You won't have to once he is rotting in prison."
"But he isn't, is he?"
"How do you know?"
"Because it is impossible to take him down. You should never stir the pot if you don't know what is in it."
"Diane… what do you mean?"
"You thought testing on people without their consent was bad? I can tell you that there was much more than you even know. Moore Pharmaceuticals was a cover up to create chemicals and tech that can be used for warfare. They did everything inhumane and unimaginable. And Michael? There is no end in his wickedness."
"You could help us so that we know what we are facing!"
"Your mother will die. Then your family. Then you. And then, is it all going to be truly worth it?" Diane looked at Claire in a way that Claire understood. Diane was terrified and she thought that she was saving them. "Besides, I already crossed the line. Once you fake your death, once you start anew, there is no going back. Sooner or later, their hurt will come out and they will start hating you. No one can forgive the pain you have caused them by vanishing, no matter how much they love you. They will never trust you again. But maybe you have to live through it to see it."
"Gabriel loves you. He will forgive you just to have you back again."
"No, Elise. Or is it Claire? It doesn't matter how much he loves me, I am no longer Diane Moore, I have become Katherine Miller. I am no longer a mother he remembers and knows. I loved years as someone completely different. I am now a journalist and a writer, not the philanthropist and a wife to an abusive husband."
"Gabriel knew that you will choose your new life but he was ready to welcome you with his open arms if you were to choose to come back." Claire struggled to work out her feelings.
Diane smiled sadly.
"My son has become a man that I always hoped he will be."
"He…" Claire smiled through the tears that went down her face. "He is incredible and it is you who made him that way. You raised him well through all the bad that you endured. He speaks so kindly of you."
"Thank you for saying that. It gives me so much hope for his future." Diane came over and hugged Claire. "When I saw you in the coffee shop, I knew I recognised you, but more so, the way you looked at the tv whenever Gabriel came up made me wonder… I am so glad that he has you. I am sorry that you had to go so far as to vanish to keep safe. I am sorry for what you had to go through."
"I am sorry." Claire hugged Diane as closely as she could.
"Shall we get one last coffee?"
"Absolutely. When is your flight back?"
"In a few hours." Diane responded.
They sat down in the coffee shop just opposite the hotel and spoke quietly in the corner. Claire painfully told Diane of her own death and Diane told her of her own struggles when she first moved. It was a heartbreaking moment to walk away knowing that Gabriel was abandoned by his mother who still feared her husband beyond any comprehension and probably for a good reason.
She then went to speak to Samuel of the new work arrangement. It was nice that he didn't quiz her and was his usual self as they spoke of different projects Claire could do whilst working from overseas.