Chapter 18 - Jade #2
I looked at Ilsa, already seated. Mary dished up her food, smiling so happily. I was not going to let my discomfort get in the way of Ilsa getting to know her grandparents and spending time with them.
“No, I’m fine,” I said, straightening my back, and headed into the dining room.
I sat down and dished up a small plate. Brandon sat down next to me, dishing up his own. Mary smiled happily as she took a bite of her chicken. “This is nice.”
I nodded slowly, glancing at Lionel. He hadn’t touched his food yet. He was watching me, his eyes seemed too focused. “So, now that you have your gift, have you decided to start using it and train?”
I paused my fork and bit my cheek. I hadn’t thought about it, but it didn’t seem like anyone cared about that. They all wanted answers.
“I haven’t gotten much time to think about it,” I said softly.
“I think it’s wonderful,” Mary said, offering a smile. “I heard how powerful your fire was, forcing the hybrid back.”
I glanced at Ilsa, who was focused on her food. But the conversation wasn’t something I wanted her to hear about.
“I still have a lot to figure out about it.”
“You don’t have a lot of time,” Lionel said, his voice coming out pointed. “They are already becoming a problem. You should focus on learning your ability and mastering it so you can be useful.”
Brandon’s fork paused, and I felt a sudden rush of heat, becoming embarrassed at his words. I reached for my glass of water and took a sip.
“Lionel.” Mary’s voice was soft, her eyes pleading. She reached for a bowl and handed it up. “More rice?” I could see she was doing it, trying to divert the conversation, but Lionel didn’t bother.
He waved a hand and kept his eyes glued on me. “Don’t you think it’s important to be useful, Jade?”
I didn’t know what to say, but I didn’t have a chance before Brandon spoke up. “Are you implying she hasn’t been?”
The tension was building, and I glanced at Mary, whose lips had formed a thin line now. She looked tired, like she had been fighting something for so long and just didn’t want to anymore.
“I think people can be useful in ways you don’t even know,” I stated simply. “The world is always changing, isn’t it?”
Lionel didn’t respond, and I tried to focus on my food. I was hungry, but I could hardly force myself. The room felt like I was sitting in a battlefield.
“I think over the years, people have grown lazy and forgotten the importance of roles and rules.”
I chewed the chicken, but it now tasted like ash in my mouth. Brandon’s fork went down, and I could see his head turned toward his father.
“Ilsa, do you want to help me grab the ice cream?” Mary said, offering another simple smile.
“I can help her,” I said, needing to step away. I needed a moment to compose myself. Ilsa jumped up, seeming to already know where to go to get it. We walked into the kitchen, and I watched as Ilsa walked toward the stairs to go into the basement.
“It’s in the basement,” she said, not bothering to stop.
I took a few deep breaths in and tried to calm my fast-beating heart. Little had happened, but I felt it all. I don’t know why I thought everything was going to be okay when it was clear that Lionel didn’t like me.
“Are you kidding me right now?” Brandon’s voice was sharp as he snapped. “Did you honestly invite us here so you could interrogate her about her gift?”
“No.” Mary’s voice was soft. “We didn’t invite her for that.”
“I wasn’t talking about you, Mom.”
They were quiet for a moment when Lionel spoke. “She has done nothing useful the entire time she’s been here. She finally has a gift, and she’s squandering it.”
“She gave you a grandchild!” Brandon snapped. “A grandchild that hardly even knows you exist!”
“And I told you not to go near her, and yet here we are. If you had just listened to me…”
I heard something slam onto the table, and I jumped slightly.
“I will never follow in your footsteps. My wife will have a voice. My child will have a voice. They will not live in a world where they think their only job is to be a wife and a mother.”
I heard movement, and I peeked over, seeing that Brandon was getting up.
“Brandon, please don’t leave.” Mary pulled herself up. “We were having a nice dinner.”
Brandon put a hand up, not saying anything to his mother. She paused, her hands dropping to her side. I could see the hurt in her eyes and wondered what she had gone through. How had their marriage been?
“I won’t have you disrespect my wife.”
“The wife you left behind?” Lionel asked, raising an eyebrow. “You can’t swipe away the past, Brandon.”
Brandon’s hands curled into fists. “Whose fault was it that I left in the first place?”
Mary’s eyes widened. “What?” She looked at Lionel. “What’s he talking about?”
“You tell mom,” Brandon said with a shrug. “Tell Mom how you gave me two options. Marry some woman you found for me or join special Ops.”
Mary looked like she was breaking apart, and Brandon turned. I heard Ilsa coming up the stairs as Brandon walked into the kitchen. Ilsa had a smile plastered on her face, an ice cream cone in her hands.
I could see the anger in Brandon’s face, but he quickly placed a smile on as soon as he spotted us.
“I found the ice cream,” Ilsa said, waving her cone.
“Great.” He glanced at me and then back toward Ilsa. “Ilsa, we are going to head home. Mary is coming down with a headache.”
Ilsa frowned. “Shouldn’t we say goodbye?”
Brandon shook his head. “I did for you.”
He pointed toward the other way to the entrance, letting us slip right past the tense dining room. Ilsa shoved her shoes on, keeping one hand on her cone. I could feel eyes on us from behind me, knowing it was likely Lionel. I didn’t bother turning around.
I stepped outside with Ilsa and heard Brandon shut the door behind him as he exited. We all got into the car, and I tried to brush the conversation off, but I couldn’t. It was one thing to suspect how someone felt about you, but it was another to hear it firsthand.
Once home, Ilsa went upstairs to play. I sat down on the couch. I grabbed the remote, trying to look for something to watch. Brandon paused by the wall near the TV and gave me a soft smile.
“You don’t need to listen to what my father said.”
I lowered the remote and chewed on my cheek. “He’s not wrong. I should practice using it.”
Brandon shook his head. “You have more purpose than just a gift, Jade. You gave birth to a beautiful child.”
I loved Ilsa with all my heart, but I had fallen into that tunnel. “But I don’t want that to be all I’ve done. I feel that I’ve been a good mother and I’ve played the wife role well, but that’s not all that I am.”
Brandon frowned. “I never said it was.”
I nodded. “I know. He was wrong to say that was all I was good for and that I was suddenly useful. But he wasn’t wrong in saying I should be practicing because I should be. My gift could save people.”
Brandon walked over, sitting down next to me. He reached out, brushing a strand of hair behind my ear. “No matter what happens, Jade. You have always been useful. I don’t want you to ever think that you weren’t.”
I swallowed, knowing he meant those words. I heard how forward he was with his parents, and I believed him.
“Brandon!” Ilsa yelled from the stairs, and we both jumped apart. I felt my face grow hot as Ilsa stood on the stairs. “Can you help me hang up my picture?”
Brandon smirked as he pulled himself up and turned to Ilsa. “Of course.”
I watched him walk after her, knowing that, as fake as this was, it was real. Every part, every moment was real.