It’s a mistake.Lachlan just can’t see thebreadthof it yet.
Jules gives a nasty smile.
‘Ibet.Well.I’m gonna shower then sleep.Fuck off, Bodyguard.’
Lachlan does so.
But when he’s outside, door gently closed behind him, he hears the dulcet crash of something breakable thrown at a wall.He informs cleanup via comms and dares to hope the kid found some catharsis from whatever he destroyed.
?
The following week is awful.
Alistair lingers after the party is officially over.He says he wants tospend timewith his children.The older man’s presence in the Estate, even if he does keep to his own wing, is like a thunderstorm that refuses to burst.Metallic oppression of stubborn power in the air, and nothing can go on as normal until it passes.
He talks privately with Lachlan once after the party and further insists that the public “punishment” was to set an example to the others.He also tells Lachlan, who expected no such explanation, that Jessamine was kept inside so long because Alistair was debating keeping her existence a secret entirely and when she was born, he had not yet bought and paid fordrone-freeairspace around the Estate.
It’s not unheard of.
People of such stature often release ridiculous fake names for their children when announcing them, if they announce them at all.It troubles Lachlan, though, who always thinks of the cats and the girls and the way theLuposmiled when he said they stopped fighting, stopped trying to escape entirely.
Alistair gives Lachlan a bonus cheque.
‘For your excellent handling of the party,’ he informs him, the pair sitting with that lavish desk between them four days after the party.‘I read the rundowns this morning.You had to change clothes due to bleeding?’
‘Yes, sir.I popped a stitch.’
‘How?’
‘Ballistic layer snagged it.’
‘I see.’Alistair sips his tea from a china cup.‘My daughter is quite taken with you.Have you wondered why I do not discourage it?’When Lachlan hesitates, unsure of how to answer, the old man goes on.‘The truth is a strange thing to own.Ilikeyou, Lachlan.You’re exactly what I’ve been looking for.Yes, you are young and you cause minor issues now and then, yet your synergy with my family is unmatched.I would be very loath to lose you.I must ask, are you happy here?’
‘Yes, sir.I am.’
‘Tell me why.’
‘I’m learning new things all the time.The longer I stay, the more secure I can make the East Wing, the more I can improve safety for the children and effectively manage your son.’
‘And that makes you happy?’
‘I’m well paid and good at what I do, so yes, sir.’
‘Tell me about your life before you enlisted.’
God, Lachlan would rather die than endure a “friendly” conversation like this, but he’s faced worse and he knows what Penhalyx is after.‘I was raised poor by hard-working parents.Didn’t do well in school, but I scraped by.The house was small.The town was even smaller.’
‘Tell me about your father.’
Lachlan’s vagus nerve clenches.‘He worked the scrap yards in Dockside.’
‘Do you miss him?’
‘No.’
‘Why not?’
‘He was a mean drunk.’
