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Interview with Beth Brown (a character in Diane Yates' MELISSA'S FATE)


Are you from Sharon, Connecticut?

No, I actually live in a quaint historical place called Falls Village. When I graduated from nursing school, I answered an ad for a nurse at the hospital here in Sharon and was thrilled when they hired me. I moved to Falls Village, only a few miles away and not too far away from my parents’ home in Hartford where I grew up. I like spending time with them. We’ve always been a very close family, maybe because I’m an only child.

So, you would say you have a good relationship with your parents?

They are the most important people in my life and mean the world to me. I used to think their Christian ways were so old fashioned, but now I think they’re the wisest people I know. My dad suffers from uncontrolled diabetes and had to leave his job at the Pepsi Cola company. My loving mom is always cooking and loves it when she can feed you. I get that from her, I think, since I feel at home in the kitchen.

Did you always want to be a nurse?

No. I actually wanted a career in business. When I first moved to New York City, I attended NYU. I had great plans and my future looked bright, but when my dad couldn’t work, I left school. I didn’t want them to have to pay the tuition payments. I went to work for Drake and Webber in Manhattan, but that job ended rather abruptly after only three months. I left New York and sought refuge in a quiet little place where no one knew my location.

Are you married or in a serious relationship?

No! Absolutely not! I’m done with men. I loved someone once, but he wasn’t who he said he was. He pretended to be Phil Davis. Turns out, he was Phil Drake, the owner of the company where I had worked. Well, I didn’t know. When I found out his real name, I discovered he loved someone else. He was just using me. I felt foolish and ashamed.

Why would you feel that way?

I knew his parents were rich, and he was too, but he had lied to me about the real him. I never once suspected. We used to eat Coney dogs in Battery Park across from the office building. I thought he loved hearing about my life growing up. He shared how apathetic his parents were and I believed he yearned for a different life. I thought he loved me and I loved him. Discovering his true identity and seeing him with that blonde broke my heart. I realized I had been duped and knew my parents had taught me better.

What’s your biggest secret?

I don’t normally keep secrets, especially not from my parents, but when I found out I was pregnant, I just wanted to disappear. I wouldn’t consider abortion, and I knew my baby needed two parents, a mother and a father like I had growing up. That’s what I wanted for her. I decided to go away where no one knew me and put my baby up for adoption.

What’s your biggest struggle today?

I became a nurse because I wanted to help people, thinking that would ease the pain in my heart. But these nightmares about my little girl kept haunting me. Then, out of the blue, our paths crossed; I found her, and she needs me. She’s so precious and fragile at sixteen-months-old and things aren’t the way I planned. I fear for Melissa’s safety. I must do something. I feel that I let her down, and I have to fix it!

What can you do?

I don’t know. Everything I’ve tried on my own so far has failed. I believe I have to return to New York and ask Phil for help, but I dread that. I never wanted to see him again. But he’s my only hope and I’ll do whatever it takes to rescue my daughter, Melissa from a horrible fate.

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