Telia said, “To make his point he called the President like it was no big deal and hung up on him like it was no big deal.”
Robbie scratched his beard, “Well, we always thought it was something like that.”
Matt shrugged, “Well we were a little wrong too.”
“How so?” asked Dana.
Matt said, “Well, he wants to destroy the organization too.”
Johnny was skeptical, “Sure it’s not a trick?”
“Yeah pretty sure. Look, after that, it’s totally obvious to me that we’re small potatoes. They don’t give a shit about our little schemes against them,” Matt said. “Seth’s working with Samantha now, and…. I can’t believe I am saying this: they’re teaming up with… the fucking Sun.” he pointed at the Sun lamp in the library.
Robbie made an exaggerated “what” face and said, “Huh? How the fuck does that work?” He was angry.
Telia said, “I feel the same way. Show them the watch.”
“I’m pretty sure we could buy a few more farms with this thing.” Matt said. He handed the watch to Robbie.
“That’s really nice craftsmanship.” He smiled. “But I don’t get this whole crazy thing.”
“I don’t entirely get it, either. I mean, the gist of it, yeah, but how do you hook up the Sun to any of this?”
Johnny said, “When we pointed the reflector at the sun, you just about blew up.”
Matt nodded. “I know. I brought that up as a concern, they didn’t explain the plan. Really, it’s just in or out.”
Telia said, “But they said if we don’t do it mushroom clouds everywhere.”
Matt said, “I believed him, too.”
“Fuck.” Dana breathed.
Telia gave Dana the necklace. “Here, hon. This is yours.”
“Holy moly.” Dana said.
“Robbie you keep that watch.” Matt said.
Telia took Matt’s hand. “We’re going to go out for a while to talk,” she said. She wiped a tear away.
Robbie said quietly, “Yeah, sure…”
Chapter Ten
Matt and Telia got into the car and drove. They ended up on Chagrin River Road and went very slow, as if time would slow down if they didn’t go the speed limit.
“I think we have to do it.” Telia said.
“Yes.” Matt agreed.
“So, let’s get cash advances and set up a fund for Tracy.”
“She’s too young. Robbie will have to handle the money. I think we need to hide it a little.” Matt said.
Telia sobbed, “Is our will up-to-date?”
Matt grabbed her hand. “Yeah. It’s at the lawyers.”
Telia said, “Alright, I want a fucking car. Let’s use these things and make sure they work. She took out the black card.”
Matt and Telia drove to a specialized car dealership in Shaker Heights. There was no sign, just a brick driveway that went between some hedges. Within the hedge, there was a large barn. Where the horse stalls had been there were vintage sports cars.
A man in a polo shirt and shorts walked out to greet them. “Hi, I’m Dale. Just buzz this if you need anything.” He handed them a little single button remote and left them alone.
“I like that!” Matt said.
“Oh my god!” She said. She found the Austin-Healey. “I’ve always loved these.” she buzzed the buzzer.
“I’ll take it.” she handed him the card.
“Would you like a test drive?” Dale asked. “She’s as solid as these can be, you’ll love it, I know.”
“I already love it.”
“OK. I wish my job were always that easy. Follow me.” They did the paperwork. “Did you want to buy it outright or finance some? Interest rates are ridiculously low.”
“Just buy it.” Telia said.
“Do you care how much it costs?” He chuckled.
“Not really.” She shrugged.
“Alright, then!” he swiped the card. For a second, he considered adding a few thousand to the price, but didn’t go through with it. The machine printed a receipt and Telia signed it.
“I’ll put tags on it, and you’re all set.”
They went to the bank. They tried to get the maximum cash advance, but the bank was unable to come up with the money. They called the service number on the back.
Matt said, “Ragnorok.”
Francis said, “Hello Matt!”
“Say, Francis, we’re trying to get a cash advance using the card, but our bank won’t do it. We can only get $10K.”
“Alright, we’ll send a banker to your home tomorrow. You want all cash? How much do you want?”
Matt shrugged and looked at Telia. “Um, how about ten million. What do you recommend?” Matt asked.
Francis didn’t skip a beat, “For such a large amount, I’d do part cash, and the rest assets, including precious metals, stock, real estate. If you prefer, I will set it all up.”
“Can you put it in my brother’s name?”
“Sure, we’ll send a banker and a lawyer.”
Chapter Eleven
Present Day
The rest of the school week went by very slowly for Morgan and Steve. Tracy and Chloe had been swept up in the homecoming activities during the week and were incommunicado. Thursday seemed like a prison sentence punctuated by bells. Demetria sent them texts when she was bored, which was most of the time. The phone would buzz, and there’d be a picture of Marta posing for her, or Demetria nude on the bed, in the garden, on the motorcycle.
She sent Morgan an angry text. “They wouldn’t sell me groceries. :(“ The attached picture was Demetria standing in line at the grocery store in the nude. He stifled a laugh.
“You should have gone to a male cashier.” SEND
“Why would that matter?” she wrote back.
“Hey Morgan!” the study hall teacher snapped. “No texting. Give me that phone.”
“No.” Morgan said matter of factly. He realized some of Demetria’s tone snuck into his voice.
“OK, but just put it on mute…” the teacher said.
Morgan was surprised at the effect. He wasn’t really sure how it worked.
“Bored!” she wrote him. “Come, now?”
“OK.” SEND he got up from his seat and walked out of the building. The Audi was parked in the school lot. He clicked the remote to unlock the car even though the top was down. He just loved the sound it made. He fired up the engine. The car roared to life. The V10 engine rumbled like an angry animal. He pulled onto the road and headed to her house.
He rang the bell. Marta answered the door in a French Maid outfit. “Mr. Morgan, nice to see you.”
“You too, Marta.”
Demetria ran up to him. She had been working out and was in a sweaty shirt and short shorts. She hugged him. “I missed you so much.”
“Me too.” he said.
She looked into his eyes and said matter of factly, “Morgan, I can tell you are starting to love me. Really love me.” She walked him back to the den.
“I admit, I am having feelings for you. I’ve been wondering about what it means to ‘be your consort’.”
“Oh, it is the best relationship. We’d be married, but you’d be no husband, and I’d be no wife. Marta, come sit with us.” She sat down between them. Demetria stroked her hair.
“Not a husband but married?”
“The bond surpasses that.” she straddled his lap. “For you, it is a chance to grow into who you are really meant to be. I’m distilled, over and over into a very pure, strong thing. You are mixed and confused, but real and beautiful. We could be together until the end of time, you’d outlive this feeble vessel.” she touched his face and lips. “I will show you more today…”
“More?”
“Yes. Marta can you call them?”
“Yes, Demetria.” Marta left the room.
“What is it?”
“You’ll see.”
About a half hour passed then Marta entered the room, “Miss,
they are here.”
“Send them out to the garden.” she said to Marta. “Here come.” she took Morgan’s hand and led him to a balcony.
A handful of teenage girls walked into the back yard and started singing. Their voices were eerie and beautiful. They wore sheer white gowns that clung to their bodies.
The harmonies were alien to Morgan’s ears. She held his hand. “These songs are praises for me. They are ancient songs of harvest time.”
He nodded. “It’s beautiful.”
“You see it in them. I can tell. It’s their devotion to me that’s so lovely. They could be as devoted to you, too.” She held his hand, then bit his ear and whispered in a husky, tickling voice, “Pick one, or two, or all of them.”
Morgan smiled dreamily, the girls were like a box of candy. “Which one do you like?” he asked her.
“You know my type,” she smiled and eyed Marta.
“It works for me, too.” One of the girls was like a younger version of Marta. Demetria called to her, “Child come.” The girl clasped her hands together in ecstatic joy and climbed the steps up to them. The other girls continued singing and tried to conceal their disappointment. “You will all have a chance. Don’t be sad!” she called out to the rest of them and blew a kiss.
Marta led the girl to the bathroom and bathed her. Demetria led Morgan to the bed.
“What should I wear to this homecoming dance?” She asked him.
“Clothes are not my department, as you might have guessed.” he pointed to his outfit. He wore jeans and a sweatshirt.
“Do you understand this homecoming ritual?” She asked.
“I hadn’t thought about it that way.” Morgan looked puzzled, “But yeah it is one.”
“The warriors fight on the field to honor the god. It’s a blood sacrifice.” She laughed, “Sometimes the victors were honored by dying for their god. Blood sewn into the field.”
“That really makes no sense at all.” Morgan said.
She giggled. “There is a certain logic to it, no?”
“Hmmm…. Yeah, if their blood contains their power.”
“Also, the king and the queen of this homecoming dance should go fuck in the fields and the people should watch, then join in.”
“There is a certain logic to it--I mean, it’s crazy, but I think I understand.”
“I knew you would. You really understand. So many pretenders.” She kissed him. “I have something to confess to you. I hope you will still love me. You see all this,” she gestured to the room, “All this opulence. It’s actually a cage.” her face hardened.
Morgan sat up, “What do you mean?”
“The explanation will have to wait.” Demetria smiled at him. The naked girl walked into the room. She covered her chest as if she were cold. “Oh don’t hide yourself. You are lovely.” Demetria stood up and walked around the girl.
The girl smiled and looked at her adoringly, “Thank you Demetria.”
Demetria gestured at Morgan, “This is my consort-in-waiting, Morgan.”
The girl eyed him with the same wild eyed devotion. He felt a slight tingle and energy from it.
“Have you seen a man naked before?” Demetria asked her and stroked her silky black hair.
“No,” she shook her head.
“Well, this will be a real experience for you.” Demetria kissed her.
Chapter Twelve
“Wakey wakey!” Chloe whispered in Tracy’s ear and nudged her shoulder. Tracy’s room was still dark. Only the trickle of light from the kitchen down the hallway illuminated the side of Chloe’s face.
“Whaaaa….” Tracy stirred. “What time is it?” she mumbled into her pillow.
“It’s five in the A.” she whispered.
“Already? Ugh.” she pulled the blankets over her head.
“We have to get you ready for your coronation!”
Tracy laughed and it turned into a groan. “I really hope you are the queen Chlo. I hope you practiced your wave for the parade all night!”
Chloe held a hand up by her face and rotated it back and forth. Tracy giggled, then sat up. “Alright, I’m up.”
Keith was awake already, too. There was a big breakfast on the counter with lots of slices of fresh fruit, pancakes, and scrambled eggs and bacon.
“There are two queens at my table! Ma would be so proud of her son, entertaining royalty in his condominium.”
“Well, we don’t know if we’re royalty, yet. And frankly, the homecoming queen doesn’t have a lot of power, does she?” Tracy said.
“It’s not about power. It’s about attitude.” he said.
Chloe pointed at him, “I don’t know what you mean, but I think you’re right.”
Keith shrugged, “It’s too early to form a coherent thought. I’m going to eat and drink coffee for like, hours this morning.”
Tracy looked at the schedule, “Wow, there’s a lot going on today.”
Chloe guffawed, “Football supercedes school work, I guess.”
They ate breakfast at a quick pace. “Let’s go get pretty.” Chloe said.
He took a picture of the girls before they left to go get styled. He sat on the couch and drank coffee and wondered about how The Old Stone Gathering Hall led back to Marcus Rice and Susan Cantoe. He texted Rich Simons. “Possible local involvement in case.”
His phone buzzed. Rich wrote back. “In office at 8:30. Come any time after.”
Chapter Thirteen
“Hey Rich,” Keith poked his head into the office.
“Keith! Come on in. Coffee?”
“Sure. Got up at four thirty this morning. The girls are in the homecoming court and they started getting ready at six. Can you believe it?”
“You must be so proud.” Rich smacked Keith’s arm.
“No doubt. They’re both stellar. Just amazing girls.”
“So, you mentioned possible local involvement.”
Keith sat down, “Rich, this thing could be big. I mean, I hate to jump ahead, but wow, some crazy shit is going on.”
Rich nodded. He took out a notepad. “OK. Give me the story.”
Keith put photos of the Old Stone Hall onto the table. Then pictures of Reichstaff, the Sheriff, and the Judge. He pointed at them. “So the Cantoes led me to this guy, and this guy led me to the sheriff and the judge.”
“Hmmm…. That’s, well, that blows my mind.”
“I won’t even tell you the rest of the story unless you tell me what’s going on with your people.” Keith said.
Rich sighed. “Alright, Keith, this is just between us, OK.”
Keith nodded, “Fine.”
Rich said, “What you’ve found is so far beyond the pissant bullshit my clients wanted. They wanted some leverage to force Ralph to resign and retire. But, now the Sheriff’s involved. It looks like a conspiracy! I’m going to need to bump this up to the prosecutor, now.”
Keith said, “No way.” he took the photos.
“Keith, we have to. This might need to bubble up to the state level, maybe the feds.”
“Rich, you have no idea how far, or where the rot might go. It’s flat out dangerous, not only for you, but for me, too.”
Rich pounded his fist on the table, “Keith, it’s our duty to confront this shit. If we don’t who will?”
Keith rubbed his face with his hands. “Dammit, Rich! I hope you’re right. You need to keep me informed every step of the way, now, and you really need to be careful.”
“I’ll let you know what happens. I’m going up there now. I need that evidence.” Rich said. Keith handed over the photos and his binder. “Keith, you did excellent work. You’ll get a bonus. I’ll bring it over later.”
“OK. I guess I’m done for now. Give me a call. I’ll probably be at home today.”
Chapter Fourteen
Flashback
Matt and Telia sat with Robbie on the patio. He was still in a daze as they continued to unload on him. Everything they’d worked on for years was suddenly moot
.
They were waiting for the lawyer and banker to arrive.
“I don’t want Tracy to be spoiled.” Telia said. “She shouldn’t get the money until she’s able to handle it. I won’t put an age on it. I leave it up to you. Make her work, get to understand the value of it.”
Robbie said, “I just can’t believe this is actually happening.” He tossed his cold coffee out of the cup onto the ground, then tossed the cup at a tree. It popped into fragments.He put his hands on his head.
“Neither can I.” Matt said.
Telia wiped a tear from her eyes, “Tracy’s smart and strong. She’ll be OK.”
“You really want me to take care of her?” Robbie said.
“She’s pretty independent already. She got used to being away from home at Tweedy.” Matt tried to rationalize it. “Besides, who knows how long we’ll be gone.”
The Chardon Chronicles: Season One -- The Harvest Festival Page 32
