64. Elliott
SIXTY-FOUR
Elliott
When I walk into the office hours later, I find my father waiting for me in my office again. I’m so not in the mood to entertain him today. Not after the fire and not after getting a call from Sheila asking me not to go into the hospital this morning. Jillian is overwhelmed and needs a day to think before talking to me again. And I can’t call or text her because her phone was lost in the fire. Or so they think. She can’t go in and see if there’s anything they can salvage. But between the fire, the smoke, and the water damage, it’s unlikely there’s much left. They’ll let her in after the investigation is complete and if the structure is sound.
For her sake, I hope this happens fast. Fire investigations could take days for something small and simple or months if arson is suspected.
My father is all smiles this morning. “Come in. Close the door.”
I walk into the office but don’t take a seat on the chair in front of my desk. If I have anything within reach, I might throw it at him. The decorative paperweight on the corner of my desk is looking mighty appealing. I drop on the sofa instead. Nothing to grab but a pillow. Although I could smother him with it.
He swivels in my chair, still grinning. “Have you heard?”
“Heard what?” My voice is dry.
“The building burned down.” He claps his hands. Like this is something to celebrate.
My jaw grinds and ticks.
He goes on, completely oblivious to my decidedly not happy demeanor. “I gave you a week to get her out and here it is.”
What? “What the fuck, Dad. Do you think I had anything to do with it?”
He shrugs. “I don’t know anything. I don’t want to know anything. And I don’t care. The old nag doesn’t have a reason not to sell now. And with all the damage, we can get it cheaper.”
The veil falls from my eyes. All my life I’ve tried to live up to his expectations. To earn his respect and love. But he’s not capable of either. All he cares about is money and power.
I stand up, hands fisted at my sides. What am I going to do? Beat the crap out of my own father? I stop myself. “I had nothing to do with the fire. Two people were in the building. They could have died or been seriously hurt. I care for them.”
He waves a hand in dismissal. “But they didn’t. The news said they were fine and even saved their parrot.” He huffs. “What a stupid pet to have. A bird shitting everywhere.”
I squeeze my temple. Maybe one punch. One tiny, little punch. Right in his smug face.
He stands up. “Get the nag on the phone. Offer your sympathies first. Then go for the kill. This is the time to get the building.” He leaves, still grinning. The fucker even has a bounce in his step.
I close the door behind him. “I’ll call Leonora all right.” I had already planned on calling her. Have to wait to hear back from Grandma first.
My phone rings and Grandma’s face shows on the screen.
“I was thinking of you.”
“Everything is in place. Now we wait.”
I sigh. Relief washes over me like a cool breeze on a hot day. “Thank you, Nana.”
“It’s the right thing to do. I’m glad you called me. Even if you scared me first.” She laughs.
“That f—” I stop the litany of curse words I want to spew. “He thinks I did it. He was in my office, waiting for me. Happy. Giddy, even.”
Grandma sighs. I can picture her shaking her head.
I pace around my desk. “This is the closest I’ve ever seen him being satisfied with something I did. And I didn’t do it. Would never do anything like that.” The words come out before I can stop them. I’ve revealed too much. Revealed how deeply my father’s rejection has hurt me.
“Oh, Elliott. I’m sorry. I don’t know where I went wrong with him.” There’s a crack in her voice.
“You didn’t do anything wrong. He’s an adult and the only one responsible for his choices.”
“Thank you for saying this.” There’s sadness in her voice.
“Nothing to thank me for. You know I’m right. And I’m the one who should be thanking you. Things are going to get messy, and I’m dragging you into the sh—crap show. ”
“No. I should have been more hands on. When we lost Grandpa, a part of me left with him.”
“I think that’s normal. You were together for longer than I’ve existed.”
“Well, time to come out of the woods.”
“Did you have a chance to talk to Nikki and Mandy?”
“Yes. I made them aware this morning. Just hung up with them.”
“And?”
The sound of her laughter is the answer I hoped for. “Oh, they’re more than eager to help.”
“And they understand what’s at stake and the need to keep quiet?”
“They know what to do.”
“Great.”
“How’s Jillian and the boy?” Her question is not unexpected, and yet it hits me like a punch to the gut.
I take too long to answer.
“Elliott? Did you see them again? Is everything okay?”
“Physically, they’re fine. They’ll be released sometime today. I haven’t seen them again.”
“Why not?”
I knew the question was coming. I could have avoided it by not saying anything, but I’m so tired of running around in circles inside my head. Maybe she can give me some perspective. “Jillian doesn’t want to see me. She had her friend call me this morning and asked me not to come to the hospital. Said she needs time to process everything.”
“Then give her time. A day or two or a week.”
“A week?” I don’t think I can go that long without contact .
“You have to respect her wishes.”
“What if she doesn’t want to ever see me again? Not going after her feels like giving up. Or admitting guilt.”
“Now there’s a fine line between giving her space and giving up. And you need to figure out where that line is.”
Fuck my life. Oh, wait. It’s already fucked.