“I’ve never been to Disneyland,” she said.
He was on the verge of saying, “I’ll bring you there someday”, but it wasn’t true, and so he bit back his response.
They went in. The front door wasn’t locked anyway. Jessica was floored by the busts of animals. Kyle reckoned it beat having heads of tigers and lions, all enemies of their clan, mounted on the walls like spoils of the hunt.
To his surprise, his father himself strode out to greet them.
“Welcome,” Jericho said in a warm voice, holding out his hand.
Kyle could tell Jessica was floored again, and to his chagrin, he felt a little jealous. His father was a very handsome and impressive man.
Jessica shyly took Jericho’s hand. Jericho pumped hers up and down. Jessica was looking particularly striking tonight, like a voluptuous Rubens painting. Kyle could sense his father’s approval. There was also an underlying patina of unmistakable lust that a mere human would not be able to catch. A hard lump came into Kyle’s throat as he thought of his father’s lithe body entwined with Jessica’s.
He cleared his throat. “Dad, this is Jessica. Jessica, this is my Dad, Jericho Smith.”
“You’re a beautiful young woman.” Jericho never took his eyes off Jessica, who was blushing. “For once, my son was right. He couldn’t stop talking about you and I can now see why.”
Cut the charm, Dad. It doesn’t become you.
“Thank you, Mr. Smith.”
Jericho held his arm out for Jessica. “Shall we go to dinner?”
If it were any other occasion and Jericho was any other normal father, Kyle would have rolled his eyes. But the underlying menace was omnipresent. He wasn’t even hungry. He hadn’t been hungry all day.
The dining room was just was impressive as the hall. A chandelier that cost over two hundred thousand dollars graced the high ceiling and the long table was an antique. China plates from all over the world – a collector’s treasure trove – adorned the rustic walls.
Caleb was already seated at the dinner table. If Kyle had thought Jessica would be surprised to see the family resemblance, she wasn’t.
Jericho said, “Jessica, this is my other son, Caleb.”
Caleb stood up and flashed Jessica a wolfish smile. He took her hand and drawled, “So you’re the one.”
Kyle tensed.
Come on, don’t make me hit you.
“Hi,” Jessica said shyly.
“You’re prettier than my brother made you out to be. In fact, he mentioned you were rather fat.”
Jessica gasped. Kyle was stunned.
Jericho said dangerously, “Caleb, if you’re going to be rude, I’ll banish you from the table.”
“Sorry.” Caleb mock held his hands up.
Kyle stepped up with his fist clenched. He knew his brother was trying to needle him, to provoke a reaction out of him. And he would get one.
“Say that again,” he growled.
“Kyle!” his father’s voice was a whip. “Sit down, both of you. Jessica, I’m sorry you had to witness this childish display.”
“Jessica, I never called you fat,” Kyle said urgently.
She gave his hand a little squeeze.
“I believe you,” she whispered.
They all sat down. Jericho was at the head of the table. He seated Kyle on his right and Jessica next to his son. Caleb took his customary seat on Jericho’s left. The two brothers glared balefully at each other.
Dinner was served by two maidservants in livery. The workers in this Gothic mansion were all sworn to secrecy as to what really happened here, Kyle knew. The soup course was first, and it was a broccoli and asparagus crème. The food here, prepared by Mrs. Ladou, a Creole import who looked after the boys after they lost their mother, was always good. But Kyle’s stomach felt like leather. He stared at the soup, pushed his spoon around and forced himself to take a sip.
“Not hungry, brother?” Caleb said pointedly. He had finished his.
“I had a late lunch.”
“Maybe I could get you some honey for that soup,” Caleb said with an evil smile.
Kyle glared at his brother.
“So tell me about college, Jessica,” Jericho said.
Throughout the next course, which Kyle didn’t eat much of either, Jericho asked Jessica all sorts of questions. He regaled her with tales of his boyhood, which was always extremely interesting to someone who hadn’t heard the stories a hundred times. The main course was a turkey leg basted in Cajun spices and garnished with wild rice.
All throughout the courses, Jericho kept plying Jessica with wine. Kyle kept sharp note of Jessica’s goblet. It was a very fine goblet and it was pure silver. It was also indistinguishable from the other silver goblets on the table, but Kyle knew that Jessica’s contained a hidden compartment at the base which slowly released a concoction when mixed with wine.