Page 105 of Fracture
“This will only take a few minutes.”
“I don’t c-” I stop short when I see a man in a suit standing by my car, dark sunglasses on, and the wire of an earpiece snaking down his neck into the back of his crisp white shirt. I turn to face Oswald, who still has that indulgent smile on his face. I jerk my head in the direction of my car. “Your employee I suppose?”
“Yes, he is as a matter of fact. Just looking out for your safety.”
“Sure you are.” I cross my arms over my chest. “I’m not interested in talking to you.”
“Stella, I am not here to cause you harm.” He ambles closer, infuriatingly calm, his hands pressed into his pockets. “I am here simply as a father, concerned for his daughter. And for his granddaughter.”
“I am not your granddaughter.”
Oswald sighs, bouncing on the balls of his feet as he gazes up at the swaying trees. “You know, I always liked you. You were a good kid. I never liked your father much, but then again, my daughter has always had extremely questionable taste in men.” He sucks on his teeth and shakes his head. “Levi. What a name to pick for your kid. I told Gloria that biker was no good. Posing as a poor man when he was rolling in money, trying to becool.”He jerks his fingers to sign out quotation marks, and scoffs. “And then he goes and gets himself killed on that stupid bike, and leaves my daughter a widow, and my grandson fatherless.”
“I don’t care about any of this. Leave me alone.” I turn to head to my car, and I swear to god I’ll punch this idiot standing by it square in the face if I need to.
“I know you’re in love with my grandson.”
I stop short, and take a deep breath. When I turn back, Oswald is still looking up into the bright green foliage, squinting lightly in the sunlight.
“And because you were always a good kid, I’d like to look out for you in a way I should have looked out for my own daughter.”
“I don’t need you to look out for me.”
“Oh, I think you do.” His gaze drops from the trees to land back on me, and he ambles closer, totally relaxed, in no hurry at all, as though he’s completely assured that I’ll stay right here and listen to what he has to say. “The fact is, Stella, I can make all of this go away. Everything. It will all stop.”
“What do you mean?” Dread snakes its way up my throat.
He holds out an open hand in the direction of the French cafe we’re standing in front of. “Please, come and join me. Letme buy you a coffee.” His demeanor is more terrifying than if he was outright menacing. This portly old man smiling at me, eyes crinkling, only the beard missing to transform him into a friendly Santa Claus - it’s enough to have ice running down my neck and goosebumps breaking out over my arms.
Every instinct in me screamsdanger, dangeras I take leaden footsteps into the cafe.
It’s busy inside as well, wait staff rushing around and servingcroque monsieurand cafe au lait to the chatting patrons. Oswald and I take a seat at the back, and I’m sitting ramrod straight, eyeing him uncertainly as he leans back in his chair and gives an order I don’t even hear to the smiling waitress.
Why am I here?I should run. I should get out of this cafe and run home and start packing my shit. I should insist that Levi, Dylan and I get the fuck out of this town right now.
Instead, I stay where I am, staring at the old man who takes out his phone, then pats his pockets looking for his glasses. He withdraws them from the pocket of his jacket, and places him on his nose, looking down at his phone and swiping his fingers across the screen.
“Technology is truly incredible,” he says with a dry laugh. “My god, when I remember how excited my brothers and I were when we got a phone installed in the house. We used to sit on the floor and just stare at it. And if it rang, we all ran like it was going to eat us alive.” He eyes me over the rims of his glasses. “Your generation has no idea, growing up with all this stuff at your fingertips.”
“Lucky us.” My knuckles are probably white under the table, digging into my purse in my lap, but I refuse to let him see how nervous I am. “So, what did you want to talk to me about?”
“Ah, yes.” He puts his phone down on the table and leans back in his chair. “My grandson. My daughter informs me youand he are, well… To put it delicately, Gloria says she caught the two of you in a compromising position?”
“You could say that.” I raise my eyebrows at him. “That’s what you wanted to talk about? You want details or something?”
Oswald's lips twitch into a smirk. “You don’t mince words, do you?”
“No point mincing anything besides my opponent, first rule of law school.”
He raises an eyebrow. “You see me as an opponent, Stella?”
“I don’t know, are you?”
I keep my eyes locked on his as the waitress comes and sets down two coffees and two almond croissants. Oswald only breaks his gaze to smile up at the waitress and thank her, before turning back to me.
“You know, I was there for my daughter’s interview, the one that’s airing Saturday.” He reaches for the sugar dispenser and pours a generous amount into his cup, stirring it slowly with the silver spoon. “I sat in that studio, and had to listen to my child recount just what she had gone through in that marriage. All the terrible things her husband had done to hurt her. The humiliating things he subjected her to. Things a father should never have to hear.”
“They’re all lies.”