“What about Lizzie?” I ask.
“What about her?”
“You can’t take her with you. She’s got to go to school.”
“Oh,” she chuckles. “I’m not taking her with me. She’s all yours. You always did think you knew best with my daughter.”
I don’t argue. It’s true.
“Now you can deal with her. If you don’t mind, my flight leaves in two hours.”
“And dad?”
She walks up to me, gives me a wicked grin, takes my shoulders and squeezes hard. “He’s a vegetable. Face it, Percy.” Her stale coffee and cigarette breath make me nauseous.
“Well,” I tell her, stepping backward. “I won’t keep you.” I turn to walk away but when I get to the door, she calls out my name and I stop.
“He’ll bring you down a notch, you know.”
I don’t turn to face her.
“Like you deserve.”
“Have a good trip, Irina.” I walk out the door, refusing to engage. She spews poison. It’s her special gift in life. I go to my father’s room and am surprised to find it freezing as I approach. When I enter, I see Lizzie closing the window.
“Why is it so cold in here?” I ask, going to my father, pulling another blanket up over him.
Lizzie shakes her head and turns to me. “Mom said she wanted to air it out. Hide the fact that she was smoking in here is more like it,” she says, looking at dad. “I turned the heating up. It’ll warm up fast.” Apart from this room, Lizzie’s room and, of course, Irina’s room, the house is cold. We can’t even afford to heat the place anymore.
“Thanks Lizzie.” I study my half-sister. She looks more like her mom than our dad, but she has his bright-blue eyes. “How are you doing?”
She shrugs a shoulder and turns to me, pulling the sleeves of her sweater into her hands and wrapping her arms around herself.
I think how much older than fifteen the makeup makes her look but, in her eyes, I see a little girl. A sad, scared little girl.
“I’m fine. Happy she’s leaving.”
I’m sure she’d be happier to have Irina be a real mother to her. “Why aren’t you at school by the way?”
“Canceled. Snow.”
“Already?”
“Yeah. I’m spending the night at Marigold’s.” Marigold lives closer to their school. “I’ll go over for dinner.”
“Do you think that’s a good idea? I mean with school—”
“You’re not my mother, Percy,” she snaps and walks to the door.
“I didn’t mean—”
“I’ll take the bus so you can stay with dad.”
“I can drive you.”
She shakes her head and stops, turns to me. “It’s fine.” She shifts her gaze over my shoulder to our father and I see how her eyes glisten with tears. “He knows we’re here, right?”
“He knows. I’m sure of it.” I’m not.
She walks out of the room without another word.
4
Persephone
Having changed into an old, worn hoodie and yoga pants, I’m on my way downstairs searching for a number for the club to find out what’s going on with my father when the doorbell rings.
I check the time. Sotheby’s is sending trucks to pick up the antique dining and living room sets today, but they’re not scheduled to come until late afternoon. I wonder if it’s the snow that’s got them out here early.
But when I get to the door, I don’t see a truck. Instead, a man in a suit is standing at the front door. He looks vaguely familiar, but I don’t know from where and I wonder if I shouldn’t have left the gate open.
I open the door and he stands up taller.
“Yes?” I ask. “Can I help you?”
He holds out a large black envelope with the letters HM embossed in decorative gold at the center.
“Ah,” I look up at the man again and I remember. “You work at the club.” He’s the one who’d let me in this morning.
“Yes, Ms. Abbot. Mr. Montgomery sent this. He said you’d know what it is.”
“He didn’t waste any time, did he? I was just searching for his phone number.”
“You’ll find what you need inside. I need to get back.” With that, he turns and begins his return to his car which I can see now is parked along the curb.
“Wait. I need to get in touch with Hade—Mr. Montgomery.”
“He’s left instructions.”
Before I can get another word in, he’s gone and I’m standing in the doorway holding the ominous black envelope.
I glance over at the Montgomery house next door, thinking how beautiful it once was. I shake my head, closing the door behind me. Walking inside, I go straight to my father’s study. Since the accident, I’ve taken it over. I sit behind the desk and open the envelope, take out the single sheet inside.
In the few minutes it takes me to read it, I feel my ears burn with growing rage.
“No wonder it didn’t take him long to draw this up,” I say out loud, turning it over, looking for a phone number. When I don’t find one, I peer inside the envelope for a card but it’s empty.
His instructions, however, are clear, and the reality of what I did—our conversation from this morning—slams me in the face.
This new contract gives him exclusive rights over me, my time, and my person in any capacity he chooses. I am to submit to his commands and make myself available for his pleasure.
For his pleasure!
In exchange, I will be given the right to live rent-free in my own home as Mr. Montgomery’s guest.
“How generous, you fucking asshole.”
The doorbell rings again.
I get up, fist the contract in my hand, assuming it’ll be the same man who just delivered this. But when I get to the door, I find two men from Sotheby’s standing outside. The shorter one is holding a clipboard and smiling at me.
“Ms. Abbot?”
“Yes, you’re from Sotheby’s,” I say, my mind on that idiotic contract. He wants me to be his whore in exchange for living as his guest in my house! “Come in.”
“We’re here to pick up the dining and living room sets and—”
“It’s fine. Just…I need to do something.”
“If you can show us where the things are, we can take care of it.”
Lizzie appears at the top of the stairs. I look at her, see how her face falls at the sight of the men here to take our things. This isn’t their first trip out here. I’d left her room as intact as possible, but we’ll need to sell everything.
Unless I sign the contract in my hand.
“Lizzie, I need to go. Can you help these men?”
“Where are you going?”
“Into town.”
“But I told Marigold I’d be there by five. I don’t want to be late.”
“I’ll be back in time and I’ll take you. Please don’t leave dad alone.”
“I wouldn’t. Christ, Percy. I can’t believe you think I would!” Annoyed, Lizzie turns to the men. “This way.”