Winchester Legacy 2.2

I finally confronted Dane one night after he came home late. He was exhausted and smelled awful. I demanded to know what was going on.

“Dane, I need to know what’s going on in your life. You don’t talk about your job, you’re gone at all hours of the day and night…what’s going on? Are you…are you seeing someone else?”

“Hey, hey!” he said soothingly as he slipped an arm around my shoulder and pulled me close. I tried not to gag at the funk coming from his body.  “The only woman that I’m seeing is you. Tonya-” he sighed before turning me around and placing his hands on my shoulders.

“I got a promotion tonight. I’m good at my job and this is something that I’ve always wanted to do.”

“But what is it that you do Dane?”

He stepped away from me. “Look, I thought it was best that you didn’t know. It was one of those things were the less you know the better off you are but…I can’t keep lying to you.  Look, I-I not completely on the up and up. I want to make it to the top.  Like Scarface you know? Except without all the killing and my own death at the end. Anyways, I’m a bookie for now but I’m going to work my way up babe!”

“Is that where all this stuff has come from?” I demanded waving an arm to encompass a marble statue along with several other small items that had popped up over the last few weeks. Dane rubbed the back of his neck.

“Yeah, these items are still hot. Look babe,” he said in a rush. “I won’t bring my work home with me again. This is just something that I have to do…at least for right now.”

I gnawed on my lower lip before I looked away. “Dane, just…don’t screw up okay? I’m not just thinking about me here. “

“I know…and I won’t. Trust me Tonya. Please?”

I couldn’t deny his pleading tones or the look he gave me. “Fine, but if the cops come knocking on the door you better hightail it out the back.”

“We don’t have a back door,” he said as he edged closer to me a very familiar look in his eyes.

“Oh no! We are so not doing that right now. You stink!”

Dane opened his mouth to say something but was interrupted by the sound of bed springs. I sighed and pressing a finger to my lips motioned for him to follow me .

Neil was laughing hysterically as he bounced up and down on the bed. We watched in silence as he slowly stopped bouncing to collapse in a heap on the bed. Snoring soon followed.

“Was he doing his lemonade stand again?” Dane asked. I nodded.

“How many customers did he have?”

“One, if you count himself. He kept saying that sitting there was hard work and he was ‘parched’ so he had to take a sip. And then he would say that he had to make sure that all the sugar hadn’t sunk to the bottom as he poured himself another glass. Pretty soon the pitcher was gone and he was zooming around the house on a sugar high.”

“He’s something else isn’t he?”

“Yeah, he is,” I said softly as I gently closed his bedroom door.

Neil and Val had their ups and downs just like any other siblings. Most of the time I ignored their squabbling as I sat on the couch and listened to them yelling at each other outside. I had a lot of paperwork to look over and textbooks to read if I wanted to move up in the ranks. Medicine was always moving and I had to move with the times.

“Hey! Watch what you’re doing stupid! You almost hit me in the face!”

“Neil!” I called through the open window. “Don’t call your sister stupid!”

“Yeah Neil! Don’t call me stupid,” Val said arrogantly. I frowned. I’d noticed that Val had something of a mean streak at times and it worried me that she never brought any friends home with her.

“Val, stop trying to hit your brother in the face!”

There was a pause and I just knew they were making faces at each other. “And stop making faces at each other!”

There was a beat of silence and then: “How’d she do that Neil?”

“Don’t know. Must be voodoo. Next time you try to hit me in the face she’s gonna stick a pin in the doll that she keeps of you. Right in your eyeball. And then you’re gonna start gushing blood and I’m gonna be like: ‘Oh no! Val’s gushing blood! Help! Help!’”

There was another silence and then: “MOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!!”

“Go around back and play! Go!” I snapped as I thumbed through a textbook.

“OOooohhh! Oooohhh! I got the call today, that I didn’t want to hear but I knew that it would come. An old true friend of ours was talking on the phone and she said you found someoneeee…”

“I love that song Neil! Sing it boy! Sing it!!”

“The more I know the less I understand. All the things I thought I knew I’ve been learning them againnnnn…”

And just like that they were friends again. I guess it was the power of the karaoke machine. Or maybe the remake India.Are had done with that song. Whatever it was they were quiet. Well, as quiet as they could be singing off pitch. Chuckling, I had just got back into the textbook when my cell went off. F rowing, I reached down and looked at the alert that was flashing.

“Oh crap!” I had forgotten that I had invited the headmaster of the private school to the house. “Shit, shit, shit!” I muttered as I scooped up all my crap and tossed it into our bedroom.

“Neil! Val! Get in here and take baths! Now!”

“But mom-”

“NOW!!”

By the time the doorbell rang I had gotten the kids washed and dressed and had just opened the door when I realized I still wasn’t dressed. Inwardly I groaned. Outwardly I slapped a smile on my face and greeted him warmly. He didn’t even seem fazed by my partial nudity. Apparently it happened a lot with parent’s trying to get there kids into private school.

I showed him around the house and the kids were doing constructive stuff in their room.  Everything was fine until we sat down for dinner.

“So, I hear that your divorced?”

“I’m remarried now. “

“Hmm…I see, I see.” He took another dainty bite of the food before he cleared his throat.

“I’ve heard…rumors that your current husband is the reason why your first marriage ended. Is there any truth to that?”

“I’m not seeing how this has anything to do with getting my children into private school, headmaster.”

He coughed before carefully placing his fork down and steepling his fingers. “You see, in my opinion, children are the product of their parents and their upbringing. With your, shall we say tempestuous past, I don’t think your children would fit in very well. I’m sorry Mrs. Winchester but I regret to inform you I’ll have to deny your request for admittance into our school. Good day.”

I sat there in stunned disbelief as he walked out of the house before I slowly got up and cleaned the kitchen. The front door opened and Dane came in.

“Watch the kids for a moment will you?” I didn’t even wait for his answer as I walked into the bedroom and closed the door behind me.

I don’t know what happened. I just couldn’t focus. My kids, not being allowed into that private school just sent me over the edge and I had a mini-break down. I don’t remember much or how much time had passed before I came back to myself.