CHAPTER 20 - MONEY BAITING...
DINING ROOM - FIVE MINUTES LATER
BRIAN
He’s ignoring me, both he and Elliott are. Everyone’s seated, with Gus and Mel nearest Justin. Lindsay and Michael are discreetly scowling at Elliott, and for reasons yet unknown, Emmett seems to be trying not to throw the bread basket at them. As for Ted had Blake, the speed with which they got into the seats next to Gus and Mel has me wondering. I look across at Debs, she’s mouths ‘no idea but will find out’; I lower my shoulders and sit down next to Elliott
“What delicacies has Maya cooked for us?” Lindsay asks. “That salad looks interesting, what is it?”
“Watermelon, feta, herb and peanuts with a hot and sour sauce.” Elliott answers, she looks surprised. “I’ve been here a while.”
“I see.” She snipes. “Why don’t you tell us about how you and Justin met, Elliott?”
“It was a couple of evenings back. Following a vigorous amount of love making. Felt I had to feed him since he worked up quite an appetite.”
“My son is sitting right there?!” She snaps.
“What of it?” Elliott retorts. “I appreciate honesty in others, it would be hypocritical of me not to follow suit? That was how we met and as for Gus, he’s not listening.” Sure enough, he and Hunter are having an intense whispered conversation. “Is there anything else you’d like to know?”
“I know I don’t want this person around my son, Justin!” She bitches.
“Lindsay, you don’t need to worry about that.” Elliott continues. “As I fully intend to divide my time between romancing Debs and walking my dog, Whistler. Ah-ah-ah, young-un, he’s my dog and has been for a while.”
“You’re not going to romance my mother!” Michael spits.
“You’re not telling him what to do where I’m concerned!” Debs fumes. “Elliott, Name the day or night and I’ll be there!”
“Well, since Nancy and Ronald will be at the house this weekend…” Elliott begins. Lindsay gets even more pinched. “...how about Saturday afternoon? And before you ask, my dear, if your parents haven’t told you why they’re visiting me, I’m not going to either.”
“Perfect. Let’s discuss logistics later.” Debs chuckles at the outrage etched on Michael and Lindsay's faces.
“Yes let’s.” Elliott beams. “This food is not going to eat itself, so shall we?”
“Yes, let’s. It looks scrumptious.” Emmett passes the salad to Ted with a smile.
“Grandma, you’re going on a date with Elliott, is that right?!” Gus frowns. “And it’s this Saturday? I’m not sure about that.”
“Why not Gus?” Michael smarms whilst Lindsay smirks.
“We’re going to the horse fair on Saturday with Uncle Blake and Uncle Winston, staying overnight, remember? If you go on Saturday, then we won’t get all the details till Sunday afternoon! Promise you won’t say anything to anyone until we get back, Grandma?! And to show me what you’re going to wear?!”
“I promise.” Debs smiles before chuckling. “Let me guess, you two want to go on a hike first?” They nod. “Go on, we’ll put some aside for you!”
“Thanks, Grandma!” Hunter hollers as he and Gus tear out.
“Those boys, so adorable!” She declares, then turns to Michael. “So, did you get much done housing wise?”
“No I was dealing with the situation that came up in the diner…” He curls his lip at Elliott, who carries on eating. “...but I’ve almost managed to buy a car, it is a beauty…” He passes his phone to Debs. “...like I said, a beauty. And, subject to acceptance of my offer, she will be mine by the weekend.”
“May I see?” Justin asks. “Never had you down as a car lover, Michael, what’s the occasion for the purchase?”
“Just felt like it.” Michael shrugs, then catches my eye. “It’s a sexy little number, it's called a…”
“Studebaker.” Elliott states, handing the phone to Justin. “Is it this exact one or something similar?”
“It’s that one.” Michael peacocks. “What car do you have? It won’t be anywhere near as good as this. Remember to take some cab money Ma, just in case.” Only he and Lindsay laugh, he clears his throat, neither look sorry. “I was kidding, she knows that. Ma will be the next person in it, after Lindsay of course.”
“She will be amongst the first, you won’t get anywhere near it. Now the question is, who’s going to be driving...”
“What does that mean?” Michael scowls.
“I see what you mean, Michael. Most recondite.” Lindsay sniffs.
“You mean recalcitrant.” Emmett corrects her haughtily, as he checks out the picture. Although my expression’s neutral, I’m getting frustrated by being in the dark so much. “And he’s not, I understood him perfectly. Now, bagsie me after Mel and Debs!”
“What does Mel have to do with, whatever this is?!” Michael seethes.
“Because that was my car.” Elliott sits back; this is a surprise to me. “It now belongs to Justin. You were competing against him and once again, you’ve been found lacking.”
JUSTIN
Oh, snap! I catch Brian’s eye, the look he gives has goosebumps skittering all over. I can’t wait to get him in the car, especially after what he asked Elliott to do.
“You’ve bought this car, Justin? How?!” Michael’s tone fires my anger. “When?! Why didn't you say you were doing that?!”
“Why would I tell you what I’m spending my money on?” I reply coldly as I help myself to the chicken. “It was pure happenstance that we were bidding on the same thing.”
“Happenstance?! You’ve lost me money!” He exclaims, throwing his napkin on the table.
“How so?” Mel frowns whilst I see Brian trying not to grin; he knows the terms of sale for that car.
“Michael, apologise.” Elliott states firmly. “Justin had nothing to do with you losing money; the bids were sealed and as well as final, non-refundable. Which I thought was a rather good move by the intermediary, tests the seriousness of the bidders.”
“Non-refund…” Mel begins. “...how much did you offer, Michael, and why would you do that?”
“What it was worth according to the market. And I thought I would win.” He growls then snaps his fingers. “I want my phone back.” His scowl deepens when it's slid to him. “How much did you offer him?” He demands.
“We’ll never know, that’s the beauty of the sealed part of the arrangement.” Justin sits back smugly. “Surely, it was an amount you could afford to be without, or do you have a way to get that money back?”
“Of course it was and I do! I would’ve liked to have the car, obviously!” Michael spits.
“You really thought it would be only you bidding on that fine piece? Oh the arrogance.” Debs drawls. “Do you want us to keep you a plate, once you’ve finished your call?”
“If that's not too much trouble. I’m going to use your study, okay Justin?”
“Even if you said please, it’s not okay. I don't want you using it as a library. You can use the office in the barns. Gives you an opportunity to check your goats, won’t it?”
“Yeah, I suppose so!” He sighs. “Lindsay are you coming?” With a nod and a glower at Mel she follows him out.
“Give me a second.” Debs states. “Just want to make sure they don’t get lost on the way.”
DEBS
They’re not fooling anyone, especially this old broad! I’m waiting for them to pass the hallway window. As they do, I hear a click followed by a guffaw. “Debs!” Maya hisses from the kitchen. “Go and get the platter! Be quick and act nonchalant!”
I hurry to the dining room. “Will explain in a bit!” I tell them before heading to the kitchen; I find Maya giggling and taking out a dish out of the fridge, “What did you do? And is that what I think that is?”
“You’ll hear soon enough. And yes, it is.” She replies. “Gus asked me to make it.” I can’t resist a spoonful. “His is in the fridge. I’ll bring the rest of it in shortly.”
As I head back, my thoughts turn to the ‘protective’ behaviour of Ted and Emmett over Mel. Something is happening; as I said to Brian, I will find out what. As I retake my seat, I see Justin putting away his phone with a satisfied smile. “What have I missed?” I demand.
“Oh, just asked my attorney and his friend to keep a couple of people occupied for a few hours.” Justin replies as he digs into the watermelon salad.
“Brandon? Wh…”
“Nothing for you to worry about yet - either of you.” He blows Mel a kiss. “I just want to start making some changes. Now let’s plan your date.”
TWO MINUTES LATER
MICHAEL
“Can you believe that?!” I kick the limo tire. “I was looking forward to taking you for a ride in it!”
“I know you were.” Lindsay squeezes my hand, her touch soothes me. “Let’s get back inside; that library comment has piqued my interest!”
“Mine too!” I declare, and with a scornful look at the barns, we make our way back to the front door. “How did you find out about the safety latch?”
“Pure luck. I thought the door was closing on Maya, and was looking forward to her being on the outside as she should be, always; but she clicked the latch. She didn’t see me, so here we are.” She crows as we approach. “And speaking of here, why not call Craig and tell him we're going to be in the study soon?”
“Good idea.” I reply but he’s engaged. “Let me try Jennifer.” I frown as she’s busy too. “Let’s call them once we’re inside.”
“Helps if we are!” Lindsay grouses. “It’s not opening; I don’t understand, I did exactly what she did.” I squeeze her waist, she moves to the side. With a smile, I flash my keys at her, but she shakes her head. “The keys will register, remember? That’s why I did the latch.”
“Shit.” I grumble, then look through the window. Maya is heading to the dining room; she glances over her shoulder when I knock. I move to the door and try the Taylors again; they’re still busy. I ponder what’s taking Maya so long; checking through the window, I see her by the dining room door. “Oh, come on for god sake!” I mutter as it starts to get chilly.
DINING ROOM
MAYA
I can feel his frustration from here, oh how it warms my soul. One of the many benefits of this house is the layout. There is a short corridor between the hallway and the dining room, but it’s only noticeable if both doors are shut, and since those two wassocks only notice themselves, they don’t realise where I’m standing. Debs comes for the platter and I slide the panel to my right open. Her snickers fade as I head down the passage to the garden; they don’t know about that either!
LINDSAY
“What is taking her so long? All she has to do is put it down and come back. I hope he’s not said she can join them to eat, I hate it when she does that. Sets a bad precedent.”
“I agree, staff should know their place.” Michael rubs his arms. “Wish I had brought my jacket.”
“Oh, for Chrissake, this is ridiculous! I’m calling her!” I fume, then almost kick the door as she’s busy. “Try Mel.” I order.
“But that doesn’t get us in the study.” He grumps. Whilst he has a point, it’s starting to rain.
“There’ll always be...oh, Gus and Hunter are coming back!” I sigh in relief. “Let’s wait in the garage.”
“Race you!” He declares taking off.
“Oh, you cheater! You will pay for that later!” I giggle as I run after him.
MAYA
I heard what she said and know that when Justin finds out that they will both pay in ways they can’t imagine! As I stomp down the drive to my cottage, I see Raven sipping coffee in the doorway; this cools my temper. “Hey, she looks great! Thanks again, you really didn’t have to!” I declare as he’d been valeting my car. As he steps aside to let me in, the heavens open. “Oh, that was perfectly timed! Is there any left?”
“Yeah, just made. And thanks, it was a pleasure, though your tank needs filling. I can do it for you, if you want?”
“No, it's okay, I need some things in town. Thanks again.” He waves that away and puts on his jacket. “Heads up, you’ll have company when you get back to the garage. Michael and Lindsay got locked out, the poor things.”
“I doubt it.” He replies with a smile. “Since they don’t have keys.” He grins at my frown. “He kicked Lucille. I would’ve locked them out anyway, but kicking Lucille gave me an actual reason!”
“How do you know that?”
“Saw them when I was moving your car from behind the garage as the back door was open. When they left, I locked it tighter than a snare drum.” He grabs an umbrella and turns up his collar. “Also, secured the barns.”
“You did? Want another coffee?”
“You know what, I think I will.”
FEED STORE - TEN MINUTES LATER
HUNTER
We stopped to feed the otters’ who’re thriving. G says that Ethan checks them every day. As we headed up the trail, it started to drizzle but we weren’t bothered; then it got cold so we took shelter in the nook we found behind the waterfall, another place he wants to show his dad first. We turned back as it got colder; thankfully we got inside just as the heavens opened.
“I think it’s stopping!” G calls from the window. “Yeah, it is definitely stopping. I’m starved, how about you?”
“I could eat.” I admit. “So what’s this salad of awesomeness that you asked Maya for?”
“Oh that! It's cauliflower and clementine couscous, a favourite with everyone, especially those two, which is why she doesn’t make it that often.”
I nod in understanding. “I like the sound of that! Let’s go, you played starved, I raise that with famished!” We laugh as we make our way back to the house, splashing in the puddles and shoving each other.
“Gus! Where have you been?!” Lindsay’s bellowing kills all the fun.
“In the barn, what happened to you two?” He asks; they’re drenched and shivering. “Where did you walk to get that wet?”
“We didn’t walk anywhere!” Michael snaps from under the very small awning where they are huddling. “Go and open the door, we need to get inside before we catch pneumonia!”
We laugh as we run to the house though he does look annoyed. “To be fair, I would be miserable if I was soaking wet…”
“It’s not that, they make the worst patients!” He grouses. “It’s open!” He yells, which brings everyone out of the dining room. They all arrive together; Aunt Mel bursts out laughing, much to their annoyance.
“Don’t come any further, you’ll soak the floor!” Grandma declares.
“Maya!” Lindsay shouts. “We need towels!”
“You’ll have to shout louder than that, she’s in her cottage.” Justin smirks. “Gus, Hunter, get them some towels. Debs, would you mind making them a hot drink before Raven takes them back to Lindsay’s?” Everyone goes still and quiet. “What’s the problem? They don’t have clothes here, and need to change out of those wet things…”
“There’s some sweats in the van, they can use them for now.” Emmett decides. “You can give them to Debs to return. She’ll wash them for us won’t you, Debs?”
“Of course.” She replies.
“One second!” Blake sprints to the van. As it is parked very close, he’s not long.
“This is ridiculous, Justin!” Michael chatters. “For this one time, just let us stay and get warm, we could get pneumonia!” Blake shoves the sweats into their chests so hard that they wince and stagger. Gus and I exchange looks, something is definitely wrong. Blake is not like this.
“No.” Justin retorts; although Gus looks surprised, he also looks proud. “It won’t be the one time though, will it? It’s not within you to do it just once, you’ll do it again and again, both of you.”
“I’ve called Raven, he’s bringing the car out front.” Grandma declares. “Go to the bathroom and get changed, I’ll get a bag for your things and do you a flask.”
As they head to the bathroom, Justin clears his throat. we all look at him. “Debs, boys, I’ll sort them out. I’ve got just the bag for them. Please everyone go and eat. And as for you two; it’s up to you where you want to be from this point on. Either on my side, by my side, or in my fricking way. Choose wisely.”
BRIAN
As everyone files back to the dining room, I hang back to make sure those two are behind the closed door. “Justin, whilst you’re finding their bag, get Maya to pack yours.”
“I already did.” He grins, then heads to the kitchen.
Watermelon, feta, herb and peanut salad with hot and sour dressing:
Cauliflower and clementine couscous salad:
https://realfood.tesco.com/recipes/cauliflower-and-clementine-couscous-salad.html