Chapter 13- Still Lingering

Chapter 13- Still Lingering

                Hale hadn’t had time to elaborate on anything he had said. At almost that moment a flash had emanated from the cab and he had had enough of being followed for the night. The couple bade Katia a good evening as cheerfully as they could and waited for the valet to bring their car around.

                The two talked long into the night, but finally realized that until they could make sure that Princess didn’t step in to take Kellan’s side there was nothing they could do. And so life went on until one fateful evening.

                Hearing an odd cry, everyone in the house, including Jackson had rushed into Princess’ room to find her pleading with the grim reaper. She had lived quite a long life, nearing 100 years old.

                The Reaper had not listened to her pleas, and even Jackson’s ghost was unimpressed with his wife’s performance. Eventually, all that was left in the room were the three living souls and an urn containing Princess’ remains.

                “Oh my God,” Whitley wailed. “I’m finally going to get to sleep in that majestic bed! No more Cheeeeeeesseeheeheey!” Her sobs blended with the others’.

                Kellan, however, had made good note of her acceptance of the sleeping arrangements. He had plans of his own as to where he would now be sleeping.

                Kellan was a little surprised to feel a knot of fear as he entered the honeymoon suite of the house. Surely, he had no need to feel a little trepidation entering what he felt he could call his. After all, wouldn’t he own all of it shortly?

                Kellan had seen the grief on Hale’s face, and as he too was genuinely grieving their mother, he decided that he could wait just a little longer before putting his plan into action. He’d long been wondering just how Princess would react to what he would have to do, and had put things on hold until he could work that out. His hold up now was merely that grief could possibly distract him along the way. He could afford to make no mistakes.

                As he climbed into bed, Kellan sighed a little. On the inhale, he noted Whitley’s scent still faintly in the air. To him, it was a promise of the wonderful things that would shortly be coming his way. He would make his own way, just as his ancestors had before him.

                As he closed his eyes, preparing for sleep, Kellan whispered to the still lingering aroma.

                “Good night, my sweet. We’ll be joined soon enough. Only a few separated nights more, then will our union be one historians write about!”

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Hale and Whitley, however, were not willing to wait as long as Kellan was. They were more than willing to wait a day or so for the funeral to be over, but neither was comfortable with him in the house. When Whitley had discovered that Hale was already sleeping in their old bed, before the sheets had been changed even, Hale was more than ready to take Kellan down.

A few days later, Hale’s chance came.

Kellan was working on a painting he said was tribute to their mother. Whitley and Hale had also chosen occupation in the same room in order to keep an eye on him. His snide remarks to Hale were becoming meaner and more frequent. Hale had been secretly practicing everything he could to be ready for this moment for a few weeks now.

Kellan added a few more strokes to the picture, plucked it off the easel and hung it carefully on the wall to dry. Hale looked up in time to see Kellan turning from the now completed canvas.

“Finally finished?” Hale asked. He was hard pressed to keep the sarcasm out of his voice, but he wanted to provoke Kellan as innocently as possible.

Kellan’s face was absolutely blank as he turned toward Hale. He was fighting tears, thinking of this memorial to his mother he had just hung on the wall. The milky white magnolia bloom amongst a glaring, crimson bed of leaves; his mother’s purity standing out from his father’s carnal sins and the darkness it caused in her life.

At first, Kellan could hardly understand what he was hearing from his enemy’s mouth. Surely Hale wasn’t baiting him. But, how then, was he supposed to account for the almost defiant look on Hale’s face?

“And just what is that supposed to mean?” He tried to keep his voice under Whitley’s strumming, but his anger put much more force into his words than he had anticipated.

Hale relaxed his shoulders, leveling his gaze to meet Kellan’s glare evenly.

“It means: are you finished? I’ve been waiting for you to finish that so I can deal with you finally,” Hale said.

Whitley’s song became ever so slightly faster as all her nerves bunched and coiled, ready to spring should the need arise. He had become a far too dominant figure in her life. She was ready for this.

“Deal with me?” Hale’s voice was high pitched with anger. His face red, ears burning. The back of his neck was hot with the rage he felt. “I do not understand you. Surely you don’t have to deal with me brother?”

Kellan took a step closer to Hale.

“I’m tired of you trying to undermine me in my own house,” Hale told Kellan. “That’s right. My house,” he added, seeing the snarl forming in Kellan’s throat. “My house. My wife. My job. My business. My life. I want this over with. I want you out.”

Whitley had actually stopped playing. She was listening so hard, she thought her ears would burst.

“I propose we do this fairly,” Hale had raised his voice slightly hoping to exude some calm he didn’t really feel.

“Fairly,” Kellan spat. “Nothing with you has ever been done fairly.” His sneer rippled clear through him. “What do you propose that is fair between us?”

“A game,” Hale said, indicating the board in front of him. “A game of chess. Winner… well... the winner wins, I suppose.”

A cruel smile twisted Kellan’s features as he crossed the room and flung himself into the chair opposite Hale.

“Very well then,” Kellan grinned. “May the winner, win!”
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Chapter 12- Plastic Smile

Chapter 12- Plastic Smile

                Katia hadn’t heard Hale walk up beside her and Whitley, she had been so focused on trying not to look Whitley in the eye. Taking a deep breath she plunged in, telling Hale what Kellan had told her. Whitley was watching her much closer this time through, as if she was hearing it all for the first time, too.

Hale kept his countenance impassive, listening. There was a paparazzo hanging around the Bistro that night and it wouldn’t do anyone any good to let the media in on the latest family drama.

Katia had finally concluded her tale. Hale was still collecting his thoughts, and a hurt Whitley wasn’t about to help Katia out with this.

                “He needs help,” Katia reiterated lamely. “He needs to see someone and get on some medications, or talk through it all… Something.”

                Whitley had finally looked up as Katia made her final plea. “So that’s what will fix it you think?” There was acid in her voice that cut Katia to the core. “You don’t think that a little time with a brother you abandoned wouldn’t help? Let someone else clean up the mess, hmmm?”

                The Paparazzo must have heard the uncharacteristic tone of voice Whitley had been using; else she had glimpsed the hard and pleading look on her face. Katia stared at Whitley, daring her to go just a little bit further. Almost hoping that she would push her luck, Katia was nearing a breaking point.

                Hale plastered a serene smile on his face, hoping that the girls would take his cue and lighten the tone in public. It might be a serious matter, but it was not a public one as well.

                Katia glanced at Hale, and remembered her childhood training. She pushed a plastic smile on her face that was almost a leer and turned it on the older woman attempting to eavesdrop. She took the hint and quickly hailed a cab, leaving the three to come to their own conclusion; she had drawn her own.

                “I think at this rate, getting him medical help would merely be a Band-Aid on a much bigger problem. We don’t even know how many others he’s told this to. We’re going to have to do something bigger,” Hale said.

                “Something bigger,” Whitley said. “Something bigger is not what you want right now. Right now you want to make this something smaller. If he’s calculating his moves, don’t we need to be calculating our moves as well?”

                Hale and Katia looked at her for a moment silently.

                “If we can devise a move that places him in check, couldn’t we make this smaller before it blows up?” Whitley had an exasperated edge in her tone.

                “I think you might be right,” Katia admitted. “He told me that he believes his art, and the sale of his art, has helped to bolster our family’s wealth. I think he thinks he’s entitled because he helped. We all helped before moving out, but the family always gave the spares a good house and cash as inheritance. Maybe he’s forgotten that? Maybe you need to cut his art somehow.”

                “He thinks his art made the family wealthy?” Whitley was a little confused, again. “He can’t be that dim.”

                “I think that might be just it,” Hale said. “Maybe his thoughts are too simple. Maybe that’s how we can keep it small. Think small.”

                The trio stood silent for a moment. They all forced happy smiles again as a cab pulled up and parked a few hundred feet away with no one getting out. Katia and Whitley began to talk of weather, and the most recent game the local sports team, The Pied Pipers, had lost. Hale didn’t join in the fake chat made to throw a possible paparazzo off the scent. Instead, he stood there, thinking.

                “Whitley,” Hale said suddenly, breaking the flow the girls had gotten into. “You’re a genius. If he thinks this is a chess game, maybe we can make it just that.”

                “Maybe we can fix it, instead of putting a band aid on it. Maybe, we can all benefit.”

                “And what will Mom say?” Katia asked.

                “What will your Mother say?” Whitley echoed.

                “What will she say, indeed?” Though he looked a little depressed, Hale knew that he was on the right track to getting his thumb on top of Kellan.

Chapter 11- Test Subject

Chapter 11- Test Subject

                Katia walked slowly up behind Hale so Whitley could see her. Whitley was known to be a little jumpy if she didn’t see you coming.

                “Hey, Whitley, Hale” Katia asked quietly. She was still so upset she wasn’t sure she could relive the conversation to Whitley and Hale. But Hale had merely smiled at her before walking off to chat with Skyle Blitzkrieg. He must have assumed she wanted girl talk.

                ‘Fine,’ Katia thought. ‘I’ll run it by Whitley first. At least one of them will know, and if nothing else, Whitley can tell Hale.’

Taking a deep breath, her mind reeled. She still wasn’t sure where exactly to begin.

 

“Kellan hates Hale.” She blurted out. ‘Smooth.’ “That… What I…” Katia sighed heavily. “Can I, can I just start over?”

Whitley looked a little blankly at Katia. The two had always gotten along well, and Whitley had thought that Katia was quite different from Kellan in the weird and unexpected department. Maybe she had judged a little too soon.

“Ok, so Antony has been asking me a lot of questions about Hale. It seems that Kellan put him up to it. So I ran into him at the park and asked him to cut it out. I didn’t get why he would do that, but I thought it was just another of Kellan’s attempts to get close to me again.” This time, Katia’s words tumbled from her mouth as if she had found her footing and was anxious not to lose it again.

                “So, I left him at the park and came to eat, but he followed me. Before I could get in the door he told me he wanted to tell me a secret. I figured he was just trying to clear his part in Antony asking me funny questions but he was really trying to tell me what those questions had meant. In his opinion, at least, what those questions had meant. He didn’t make a whole lot of sense most of the time and I’m really worried about his mental health. His whole state of being really isn’t in a good place.”

                Whitley had pulled out her stand-by expression when someone was over her head and she couldn’t grasp exactly what was going on. She looked blandly at Katia, smiled, nodded. ‘Maybe I’ll ask Hale what’s she’s going on about when we get home,’ Whitley thought. ‘Maybe she wants to take Kellan to med school with her as a test subject.’

                “But, I was wrong about what he was going to tell me. Well, partly. He was trying to clear Antony, but he also wanted to tell me why he had Antony asking those things. It seems that Kellan has decided that he would be a better leader and he wants to oust Hale from the hereditary CEO’s spot in the Blue Empire and take it himself.”

                Katia had finally gotten Whitley’s full attention. Whitley wasn’t entirely sure how, or where, the first part of Katia’s speech had come from, but her conclusion made her cold. Kellan wanted to take over from Hale by force? Whitley wasn’t even aware that her jaw had dropped and that she had been silently staring at Katia for nearly a full minute.

                “Please don’t be mad at me,” Katia begged. “I had no idea Kellan was planning that. I told him straight away that it was a stupid thing to try to do. I also told him it would never work and that he needed to go out and get a life.”

                “What?” Whitley had finally found her tongue. “Get a life? What does that have to do with him wanting to kick Hale out of the business?”

                “It sounds like he’s been going all over town asking for dirt on Hale,” Katia sighed. “He wants to use that as a means to get Hale to either step aside, or to use it to get the board to give him a vote of no confidence and put Hale in in his place. But there’s more to it than that...”

Katia took a deep breath before slowly saying: “Are you having an affair with Kellan?”

                “Am I WHAT???” Whitley had almost shrieked the words, causing Katia to step back. “I beg your pardon! I thought you just asked if I was cheating on Hale… with a straight face! Whoever you are listening to-“

                “It’s not something I believe,” Katia quickly interjected. “It was something Kellan said. I didn’t want to even listen to it, much less believe it, but I needed to be sure. Ok? I don’t think anyone in town would honestly believe you would find anything in common with Kellan.”

                “I love Hale. I could never do without him.” Whitley said softly.

                “Good. That’s great,” Katia said. “I couldn’t really make much sense of the part where he mentioned you. It was all kind of garbled. But I think the gist of what Kellan said was that he wanted you by his side when he kicked Hale to the curb.”

                “What did y’all do to him as a child,” Whitley burst out incredulously after a moment of thought. “Seriously! Did y’all rip the head off his teddy bear or something? ‘Cause this is messed up.”

                Katia listened, trying to see it from her perspective. They hadn’t done anything to him as a child; the problem was they hadn’t done anything for him as a child.

                “Look,” Katia said. “I completely agree with you. It’s incredibly messed up. I’m just glad he told me. Because now I can tell you and you can tell Hale, or Mom, and something can be done about it. Maybe get him his own place, a job somewhere else. Invite Maksi over more, I don’t know what all, but get him away from you two.”

                “See,” Whitley began. “I don’t think that’s enough here. Just getting him away from us, Kellan will just spread whatever gossip around the rest of town without us being able to defend it. I can’t believe he made you think I was in love with him. That… That’s almost my breaking point. The little pervert creeps me out. It’s just too much.”

                Katia was so glad Whitley was finally taking her seriously that she almost missed Whitley’s next question.

                “So when are you going to tell Hale?”

                “Honestly,” Katia began, the smile of relief sliding off her face. “I was just going to let you tell him. I kind of figured you didn’t want too many people involved, and I don’t like to be involved with Kellan in the first place.” She paused for a moment, looking anywhere but directly at Whitley. “I know that kind of leaves you two in a sucky mess, but I just can’t deal with him anymore. I was always the one cleaning up after his messes growing up. I cannot clean up this mess. It’s not about me.”

                “You’re kidding me, right?” Whitley’s voice was tight. “I don’t even understand half of what you told me. Kellan hasn’t divulged his ‘great and mighty plan for domination’ to me. He told it to YOU, and you actually understand it. You need to tell Hale, and you need to tell him soon.

                “And Katia?” Whitley continued. “It is about you. You’re a Blue, whether you claim Kellan as a brother or not is not the question. You would be affected by this just as much. You do know that, right?”

                “I can’t do this anymore Whitley,” Katia sighed. “I just can’t do it with Kellan anymore. Sorry.”

                “Can’t do what with Kellan anymore?” Hale asked.

Chapter 10- Boiling Out

Chapter 10-Boiling Out

                They caught up with her just as she was about to enter the town’s fussy bistro. Kellan ran up to Katia, shouting her name causing others to stop and stare at him as he ran up to her. Antony had hung back to pay the driver, and Katia had not seen him.

 

                “I swear I just left you at Wiggles Park,” Katia gaped at Kellan as he ran up to her side.

                “Yeah, but I wasn’t done talking to you.”

                “Takes two for a conversation, Kell,” said Katia, turning to enter the restaurant.

                Kellan seized her arm pulling her back, knowing that if he didn’t say this quickly, she would give him a spectacular black eye for touching her. Katia did not like to be touched.

                “I gotta tell you this,” Kellan said. He didn’t see that Antony was now standing behind him, out of sight of Katia also. He again checked the crowd, making sure no one would hear what he had to tell his sister.

                “I had my reasons to ask Antony to ask you about Hale. It wasn’t that I was trying to come between you two,” Kellan began. “I’m trying to get dirt so I can knock Hale out of the CEO’s spot.”

                “Kellan, that is bar none, the craziest thing you have ever come up with,” said Katia. “Quit wasting my, and my husbands, time.” Katia was about to turn away, again, when Kellan’s rage came boiling out against her.

                “You should be supporting me! You should understand what I’m trying to do!” Kellan’s shouts echoed back making them more threatening than he had intended. Behind him, Antony tried to slink away while remaining unnoticed by the two. Maybe he could slip into work late without his boss noticing. Get a shift in.

                “I’m tired of being less than Hale! It cannot go on! I’ve worked hard enough for this! And I will have it. Hale doesn’t deserve to shine my shoes much less run a large conglomerate! And you, of all people, should recognize my talents! Not just my artistic talents, but my talents for getting people to do what I want them to do!” Kellan had lowered his voice so that instead of shouting, he was growling and snarling at Katia.

                “I’m going to take everything from anyone who stands in my way! I’ll give it all to Whitley! And control everything in this town, including you my dearest sister,” Kellan spat. “I’m not standing in between you and Antony, you are standing in the way of your own safety!”

                Katia took a deep, steadying breath, stepping away from Kellan and the darkness that clung to him as an aura. Her mind was reeling trying to understand what Kellan had just unleashed. She was shaking, though not as badly as Kellan.

                He too was trying to master himself again. Kellan just wanted her to understand, and to stand up for him. She had never stood up for what he believed in, or even for him. She had never been there to stop the taunts, the bullying, the childish cruelty inflicted on him. But it wouldn’t do him any good to alienate her; he needed her support just as he needed Princess’ support and Whitley’s love.

                Katia regained control of herself before Kellan could even begin to think of it. For a moment she was still able to meet his eye, hoping he would take heed of the glare she threw at him. Seeing that it merely bounced off his skull, Katia decided to take a different tack.

                “Kellan,” she said softly, leaning in towards him. “You know this is wrong. No, seriously, look at me.” She begged as he threw up a large, fake yawn. “You cannot do this. There is a reason Hale is running the family business. And I have no idea what you mean about Whitley, but Whitley loves Hale. She’s not going to leave him any time soon.”

                “Kellan,” Katia pleaded. “Please. You’ve got to stop planning whatever it is you’re planning. It’s not going to work. Get out of the house! Get a job! Spend some more time with Maksi, she really does love you, you know.”

                But Katia’s words fell on deaf ears. Kellan’s attention had wandered as he put all his effort into his fake yawn. The only thing distracting him now was his rumbling stomach.

                “Wanna grab a burger or something?” Kellan asked Katia, oblivious to the hurt she was feeling.

                Kellan could not understand why Katia had hung her head. He’d offered her food, and bared his soul to her. And now she was… crying?

                Katia heaved a heavy sigh, a single tear falling onto her cheek. Kellan took a step back, and turned to go and eat. Standing there alone, Katia’s mind continued to reel. She could hardly wrap her mind around it, and could not put the puzzle completely together.

                Feeling alone, and exposed, Katia squared her shoulders, and lifted her head. No one would ever know how bad Kellan had rattled her. As she turned to hail a cab though, she spotted Whitley and Hale. She supposed the two had come here for a date and had been chatting to friends behind her as Kellan had revealed his sick and twisted scheme. But now, she’d ruin their evening, even as Kellan had ruined hers. After all, what was one bad night for a few people, compared to a bad life for all?

Chapter 9- People I Can't See

Chapter 9- People I can’t see

                Antony then told Kellan that Katia was at the park too. She had been taking part in a chess tournament in another area and had no idea that Antony had asked Kellan to meet him there.

 

                “I’ve got to go to work now, but why don’t you go and talk to Katia,” Antony told Kellan. “She says she’s worried about you.” He then turned and left Kellan standing on the sidewalk, noticing for the first time the woman standing looking intently at him.

                She made him quite uncomfortable, and he decided he’d rather risk an angry Katia that some crazy old bat who probably recognized him from the tabloids. Those tabloid readers were a totally different breed of crazy in him opinion.

                He’d managed to catch up with her shortly before she descended into the subway station near the park’s entrance. For a moment Kellan thought it was going to be just like old times where Katia was still his biggest supporter, as well as the only one who had understood him. If he hadn’t been watching her eyes, he might have even missed the spark that flashed across them right before she opened her mouth.

                “What the hell is your deal,” Katia demanded of her twin brother. “Antony starts asking about my childhood. I thought it was totally innocent. I was telling him about my memories. Do you know what happened?”

                “Kellan! I thought he was asking about me! I thought my husband,” Katia’s voice faltered and she had to pause for a moment. “I thought my husband was asking about me. He wasn’t focused on invisible people I can’t see. He was alert and attentive.” She purred slightly thinking about Antony this way.

                ‘But, no,” Katia suddenly snarled. “He was asking because you wanted him to ask. I told you when I moved out that I was done with you Kellan. I cannot handle the drama you cause in my life. Med School is enough for me to handle, then you come along and see if you can’t get my husband to pretend to try to distract me. It’s not going to work. Back off.”

                Katia hurled the last two words at him with such force he almost had to take a step back. But his mind had slipped away from Katia. He’d heard those words not too long ago. “Who had said that?” Kellan wondered inwardly.

                Katia noticed that she had lost Kellan’s attention, and was determined not to let him slip away from her.

                “Did you hear me Kellan?” The concern in Katia’s voice brought Kellan back to earth sharply. “I asked you to back off. Stay away from me and Antony.”

                “This is my shot at a sunny day, Kell,” Katia sighed. “Please.”

                Deciding to change tactics and throw Katia off balance, Kellan glanced around him to make sure there was no one near enough to hear.

                Seeing no one within hearing range, he crooked a finger at Katia beckoning her closer. He didn’t want anyone to hear what he had to say.

                “I think Antony might be my first real friend,” he whispered in her ear. “But don’t tell anyone, even him. I don’t want my reputation to be spoiled if people find out I’m capable of liking others.”

                “Aw, Kell,” Katia said. “You know I wouldn’t do anything to lose you any friend of yours.” She didn’t see Antony walking up to the pair behind her; she didn’t realize he had skipped his shift.

                “But I swear that if you try to come between my husband and I again, I now have the medical know how to be able to rip your nut sack out through your throat.” Katia’s sudden turn had completely taken Kellan aback. “Got it? Once again, back… Off.” Katia demanded, jabbing a finger hard into his chest.

                Katia hadn’t bothered to turn to the subway station behind her, and instead headed for the sidewalk and hailed a passing cab. Kellan’s mind was whirling. He needed Katia’s support; he had never been without it. They had always been connected.

                Kellan made a snap decision. He would tell Katia everything. That should get both men off her hook, and might even get her on Kellan’s side. He ran forward a few paces, grabbed Antony’s arm, and hailed the next cab.

                “Follow that cab!” He bellowed, shoving Antony inside.