Chapter 1 #2
The moon is high in the sky by the time he leaves his house, and the air is chilly.
It will be a while until early summer turns the evenings warm, and Will can’t wait.
It takes a few minutes for him to reach his destination.
His uncle’s house is the biggest in town, surrounded by a tall stone wall.
A sign on the front gate reads Mayor Ray Walker.
When Will was little, they rarely visited his mother’s stepbrother, who was the mayor even back then.
He used to wonder why they didn’t visit more often, but the older he got, the more he could sense the animosity between his mom and the mayor, even though she refused to speak about it.
The only comment she made was, He never wanted a sister, and he never accepted me as his family.
As his nervousness intensifies, Will reminds himself why he agreed to this deal in the first place.
When Julie got sick and needed the kind of financial support Will couldn’t provide, he turned to the mayor for help.
Despite the man’s disdain for Will, especially after the chaos with Joel, he expected his step-uncle to agree to help, but Ray came up with a counteroffer.
Days later, once Will was done raging and feeling betrayed, he returned to the mayor and accepted the deal. He has no regrets, but it doesn’t mean he has to like any of this.
He presses the button at the gate and waits to be buzzed inside. His uncle opens the door for him at the top of the stairs, though it’s usually his housekeeper, Veronica, who does that.
“William.” Ray blows smoke from his pipe.
He’s wearing a gray vest that complements his thick, gray hair and mustache.
He’s in his early sixties, a handsome man, though his dark eyes are incapable of showing warmth.
He has the kind of deep voice that feels like he’s warning you to behave regardless of what he’s saying.
Will clears his throat. “Sir.”
“You seem tired.”
“I’m fine.”
They step inside the warm foyer. Large paintings hang on the walls, mostly of tragic scenes from the Civil War.
People are talking from the dining room, their voices carrying through the hallway.
He’s usually told to arrive about an hour after the mayor’s guests, around the time they’re done talking business.
“You know everyone here tonight,” the mayor says. “Put your bag upstairs, then come say hello and bring them drinks.”
Will climbs the stairs and enters the bedroom the mayor designated for these events.
He puts his backpack with his spare clothes on the floor, then climbs back down.
In the wide dining room, four men and one woman sit across the long table, illuminated by the light of the chandelier.
All are around his uncle’s age and wealthy enough to be worthy of the mayor’s time.
Only one of them, Doctor Levi, is from Van Buren, while the others are from other towns in Carter County.
The only woman at these events, Roberta, might be from Shannon County up north.
“Evening,” Will says stiffly.
“You’re getting more handsome by the day,” Roberta says as she plays with her pearls.
“Thank you. I’ll go take care of your drinks.”
He enters the kitchen, where Veronica is preparing the food. Her dark hair is held in a ponytail, and her narrow face is expressionless as she cuts meat and throws it onto a pan. She doesn’t glance at him, which is fine, since she’s mental. He wishes to keep all contact with her to a bare minimum.
Down in the wine cellar, the air is thick and the light is dim, with rows of expensive bottles on both sides.
He could probably pay off all of Julie’s medical expenses by selling some of these bottles.
He picks out what he knows the guests upstairs prefer, including one bottle of vodka from a small fridge.
Before going back up, he opens the vodka and takes a few sips, wishing to fog his senses for what’s coming.
He climbs back up and places the bottles on the counter in the kitchen, keeping his distance from Veronica as she moves the meat around the hot pan.
With the chatter of conversation in the background, he makes the drinks and arranges them on a silver tray, then returns to the dining room to place the glasses next to each guest.
“How’s the wood-chopping business going?
” Hal Darnell asks. He owns a chain of convenience stores across Missouri, though he used to own farms for cattle back in the day.
He still walks around with a black cowboy hat even indoors.
His gray horseshoe mustache looks ridiculous, and if there is anyone here who terrifies Will to his core, it’s this man.
“Going well, sir.”
“Chopping wood is so manly,” Doctor Levi says and strokes Will’s arm. The man’s skin always feels cold, fitting with his pale, ghostly complexion.
“But Will doesn’t just chop wood,” Roberta says from across the table. “He’s an important businessman. Aren’t you, darling?”
“It’s just a small business.” She knows that, as well as the others, but they enjoy playing their little games. Complimenting him while making him feel small.
“Private businesses are the heart of our economy,” Doctor Levi says, in love with the sound of his own chipper voice.
“You said the same thing about oil companies last week,” Hal grunts.
“Did I? Hmm.”
“Spring is finally here. It must be a relief working outside when it’s warmer.” Roberta’s eyes travel up and down Will’s body. “I can’t imagine working outside in the cold. How can you even take off your shirt when you’re all sweaty and dirty like a pig?”
Will catches her less-than-subtle meaning and unbuttons his shirt before removing it.
He feels the weight of their gazes, then comes Hal’s palm against his back.
The others join, touching and groping. Will stares at the wall so he won’t see the looks on their faces, but he recognizes each hand.
The mayor watches silently while smoking his pipe.
He won’t be joining, since these events are meant to keep his business partners satisfied.
Will has no idea what kind of business they have between them, nor does he care.
They unzip his jeans and pull them down along with his boxers. Their touches grow more aggressive as they comment on his body and his face. He might as well be one of the pieces of furniture.
Doctor Levi stands behind Will and pulls his head back so he can pour wine into his mouth. Some get spilled over his chest, and Roberta is quick to lick it off.
“I’ll go first,” Hal says. “Got an early breakfast with the wife.”
Even after all this time, Will doesn’t know if he prefers Hal to go first and get it over with, or to go last so Will can leave right after.
He follows the man out of the dining room and up to the bedroom upstairs.
He has lost count of the number of times he climbed up these stairs in recent years.
He wants to believe that he’s numb to all of this by now, but the truth is more complicated.
His stomach still churns and his heart still beats too fast, like this is the first time.
Once inside the bedroom, Will sinks to his knees and unzips Hal’s fly without needing to be told. He reminds himself that nothing is more important than keeping Julie taken care of during her final days, however long they will last.
“Take it deep,” Hal says as he grabs Will’s hair. “We have time.”
Will clears his mind and gets to work.