Saul
We stood scraping the food from the plates when I noticed how shit Seth was at it. He had gone soft being married all these years. Katya probably wiped his arse for him when he was at home. I glanced at the plate my dad put in the dishwasher. His was the cleanest, and he had almost forty years of marriage behind him. Mum still seemed to like him.
“Any words of advice for me, Dad?” I asked, aware of the ring burning a hole in my trouser pocket.
“Don’t fuck it all up like your brother. His was a close call,” he said with a grin.
Seth scowled at us before he tossed a gravy-covered Brussels sprout at my head. I batted back towards him with the palm of my hand, but it flew over his head.
“At least I didn't need to kidnap Katya,” he retorted, and my Dad paused in, putting that cutlery in the dishwasher.
That lousy, big-mouthed bastard .
“You weren't joking earlier, were you?” My Dad said as he slowly stood upright to glare at me.
“It’s a joke, Dad—” I began to say, but the dickhead cut me off.
“He’s been stalking her for five months and engineered her divorce,” Seth added spitefully. “So I think you will find he is the major fuck up.”
I turned to swing at him, but my Dad grabbed the back of my sweater.
“Cut it out, the pair of you. There will be no fighting on Christmas Day,” he snapped as he pulled me back. “You're going to be thirty-seven in a few months. Act like adults. I don't want my grandchildren to end up bickering like you two.”
“Harsh, Dad,” I muttered while giving Seth a quick middle-fingered salute. He ran a hand through his hair in frustration.
“, can anything come back on you or the company?”
I turned to face my Dad’s dismay, but his lips were curled upwards in amusement, and his blue eyes twinkled.
“I was very careful, Dad, and it's blabbermouth over there that will get me caught,” I said with a clenched fist and thumb pointed over my shoulder at Seth. “Sirah doesn't know it, but I got her out of a really shitty situation.”
I was surprised that my Dad was taking my criminal activities so well. He released my sweater and patted me on my shoulder.
Why was he taking this news so well?
“You're both more like me than you know. I didn’t waste time closing in on your mother, but I did remove a few obstacles she didn’t know about. I knew she was mine the first time I laid eyes on Evelyn,” he said before he began to casually empty some vegetables off a platter dish and into a plastic tub. “Love, respect and trust. It all continues to grow as long as you nurture it.”
I glanced at Seth, who had a sheepish look on his face. He would look better with a black eye.
“You never let your obsession lead you to the point of madness,” my Dad said, grabbing my attention. “Do whatever you must to deal with it, but keep that side of you in check.”
“Geez, thanks, Dad. Where was this advice when I needed it?” Seth grumbled.
“You boys kept your situation quiet, but when your mother found out, she took charge and kept an eye on you. I didn’t need to interfere. Plus, I think she enjoyed watching you squirm since you made us wait so long for a grandchild,” he said with a grin before he passed the plastic boxes to Seth.
I watched Seth put them in the fridge before putting the leftover turkey in the oven.
“A baby girl. It’s your mother who will be descending into madness for the next six months,” my dad said with a chuckle. “I have a remedy for that, though.”
“Ugh, gross, Dad,” Seth said when my dad wiggled his grey eyebrows up and down.
I smiled and wondered who my niece would look like. We didn’t have enough girls in the family. My uncle lived in Canada, and our cousins were all boys. I thought about my selfish plans for my week with Sirah and took my phone out of my pocket to add a new note to my kidnapping plan. I wanted to see her smiling and laughing outside, not trussed up at home.
My heart began to pound against my chest as it dawned on me that I could see myself growing old with Sirah. Her beautiful, serene smile while being surrounded by our children and grandchildren. Those hazel eyes would be full of love for our family. A warm glow spread across my chest as it accompanied the exhilarated rush that took my breath away.
“Oh, damn, he has it bad,” Dad said as he stared at me. “Breathe, son.”
I took a deep breath before I quickly took another few.
“Dad, I really can't fuck this up,” I said in a wild panic gripping his arm. “I can't let her leave.”
I thought of the handcuffs lying in the sex toy box beside my tree. They would work for a short while, but I couldn't keep her handcuffed to my bed for the rest of our lives.
No, I wouldn’t let my panic get the best of me .
Someone slapped my face, and I glared at Seth before rubbing my cheek. It wasn't as good being on the receiving end.
“Cut it out, Seth. How bad is it?” Dad asked as I winced at his question.
“I may have gotten carried away,” I murmured while Seth scoffed.
“Mmm, tell me what you did, and I can run a censored version past your mum,” Dad said before he turned to face the sink to wash his hands. “And pick up the damned sprout from the floor.”
∞∞∞
When Sirah left the dining room, my dad whispered in my mum’s ear. Her eyes flew to mine, and they widened in shock before she gasped. Seth was cosying up to Katya, probably to rub his ‘victory’ in my face. He wouldn't be laughing when I moved his shit around in the office. It would drive him nuts trying to find anything in his carefully organised drawers.
“Before you take things further with Sirah, you are going to see a therapist,” my mum said to me angrily. “Or a priest, whichever works the best.”
“Yes, Mum,” I said, sticking my hands in my pockets while ignoring the tittering twits in the background.
I pursed my lips and frowned at my Dad because he was supposed to give her a censored version. It was just as well that I hadn't told him everything.
“Honestly, Sterling, where did we go wrong? Did you know he took her hair and attached it to a Christmas angel for his tree?” she said as she stood up. “I need a drink.”
“I don't know, darling, but he didn't get it from me,” he said innocently as he took her hand and left.
When Seth took Kat’s hand and walked towards me to follow them out of the dining room, I used all my willpower not to smack him.
“I will get you back for this,” I told him before following them into the hallway.
“Now you know how it feels,” he said cheerily with his arm around Kat’s waist.
I glanced around, but Sirah wasn't there or on the staircase. I checked the front door, but it was still locked. With a heavy sigh of relief, I went into the drawing room. I needed a stiff drink to deal with the escalating situation.