Chapter 68


    #Chapter 68 – Grandpapa


    “Daddy!” They yell, wrapping their arms in hugs around his legs. Victorughs, greeting them, feeling


    his stress almost melt away.


    “Hey boys, good day at school?” he asks.


    “Yes, it was awesome,” Ian says, grinning up at him. The door creaks again and Victor looks up to give


    Evelyn a smile as well.


    “We got in trouble, though,” Alvin says, clearly more worried about it than his twin. “The teacher found


    our insect collection…”


    Victor looks at Evelyn for rity. She rolls her eyes and puts her bag up on the table. “They’ve been


    studying bugs in ss and your sons decided that the best way to do this was to collect all the bugs


    they could find in some of the teacher’s desk drawers.”


    “Oh,” Victor says, raising his eyebrows and looking down at them. “I imagine she didn’t like that.”


    “I don’t see why it was such a big problem,” Ian says, rolling his eyes dismissively. “They were


    organized by genus and species.”


    While Victorughs at his boys he feels something cool in his hand and looks down to see Amelia


    pressing a ss of whiskey into his palm. He sighs, nodding his thanks to her to be polite, but he has


    no intention of drinking it. He really does need a clear head.


    “What’s up?” Evelyn says, frowning both at the drink and Victor’s mussed hair. “You’re not yourself.”


    “Just…a bunch of stressful conversations today, with Wird and Annabeth Prath.”N?velDrama.Org: text ? owner.


    “Oh,” Evelyn says, raising her eyebrows. “That sounds…intense.” Victor nods, chuckling a little at the


    understatement and sliding his ss of whiskey onto the counter.


    “Well, I could use a perk,” Evelyn says, smiling at him. “Do you want a cup of coffee? We could talk it


    through.”


    “Actually,” Victor says, intrigued by the idea, “coffee sounds like precisely what I need.”


    Evelyn smiles at him and squeezes past Amelia, who does not move to make room for her. Evelyn


    moves to the coffee maker and begins to brew.


    Victor turns his attention to the boys, who open their backpacks to show him ss jars filled with the


    insects that they were asked to remove from the ssroom. As Victor talks to them, he passively


    notices Amelia staring at him for a few minutes. Then, she grabs his whiskey off the counter and pours


    it slowly into the sink, holding the ss high so that the liquid sshes obviously the metal.


    When she’s done pouring, Amelia drops the ss into the sink as well, where it shatters. Everyone in


    the kitchen goes silent, turning to stare at her as she walks slowly from the room.


    Victor watches her go but, somehow, can’t find the will to chase after her.


    “Hey Mrs. Kay,” I say the next day, giving the boys’ Kindergarten teacher a smile. “Did everyone have a


    good day today? No more bugs?”


    Mrs. Kay looks at me, confused, and gives me a sort of half smile. “Um, yeah everything went fine…”


    she says, helping a little girl on with her backpack and pushing her towards her own mother at the door.


    “Good, d to hear it,” I say, looking around the room for Alvin and Ian. I hope they’re ready to go – we


    have a lot of errands to run after school and I have a clienting this afternoon. We have to move


    fast. “Are they ready to go?”


    Mrs. Kay continues to give me a sort of nk stare and a weird smile.


    I blink, realizing, suddenly, that somethings off. “Mrs. Kay?”


    “Evelyn,” she says,ing forward to ce a hand on my arm. “The boys were picked up half an hour


    ago, as nned.”


    “What are you talking about,” I say, ripping my arm from her touch and spinning to look around the


    ssroom. Is this some kind of joke? Where are my children?


    “Yes, they were picked up half an hour early. I got word of it this morning from the office, it was all


    nned.”


    My mind races, trying to find an exnation. Did Victor? But no – he would have told me –


    I snap my eyes back to Mrs. Kay’s face, feeling my emotions turn to steel. “Where are they.”


    “Like I said, they were picked up,” her face starts to contort with worry. “By their grandfather. A very


    nice man – tall, white hair –“


    I take two steps forward and grab her by the shirt. She gasps, “Evelyn – I – please! –“


    “Tell me his name,” I growl, shaking her a little.


    “Walsh! He introduced himself as Mr. Walsh!”


    I drop the fabric from my hands and storm out of the room. That woman had better be happy to see me


    go, because if I every eyes on that i***t ever again, I’m going to tear her to pieces.


    I rush through the hallways of the school, dodging children. When I reach the parking lot I break into a


    run, heading for my car. My phone is already in my hands, dialing Victor’s number.


    “Evelyn?” He seems surprised to hear from me, but not unpleased.


    “Victor,” I say, my voice shaking with fear, panic, adrenaline, everything. “He took them, Victor –“


    “Who.” Victor interrupts, his voice suddenly cold.


    “My father – he picked the boys up from school – half an hour –“ I say, almost panting as I pull my door


    open and slip into the car. My hands shake, trying to lift the keys to the ignition.


    “Drive towards home, Evelyn.” Victor says, taking control. “I’ll meet you on the road.”


    I nod and drop my phone, not bothering to hang up. I twist the keys and, as soon as the engine


    rumbles to life, I throw the car into gear and fly from the parking lot.


    Fifteen minutester, I see a brigade of ck hummers on the road and pull over, jumping from my


    front seat as they pull up. The first one skids to a stop next to me and Victor pushes the passenger


    door open from the inside.


    “Get in,” hemands, “leave your keys on your front seat.” I toss my keys back into my car and can


    see a Beta emerging from the third hummer in the line, preparing to take my car home. I climb into the


    front seat of Victor’s car, ncing back to see two Betas sitting prepared in the back seat. One of them


    is Victor’s secretary, Beta Stephen. I nod to them, and they nod back, all business.


    As soon as I close my front door, we peel away.


    “What do you know,” Victor says, eyes on the road.


    “Nothing – not much. They were picked up half an hour early from school – but it was all arranged,


    apparently since this morning.”


    “Your father?” He asks.


    I nod. “I mean, I assume so – I didn’t see him. But she described him. Victor,” I say, my voice shaking.


    “He wants to keep them, I know he does. He’s going to take my boys from me –“ My voice rises in


    pitch, moving towards hysteria.


    Victor swiftly puts a hand on my shoulder, pulling his eyes from the road to look into mine. “I’m not


    going to let that happen, Evelyn. Legally, he has no control over them. They’re mine. Ours. We’re going


    to take them home and make sure he never touches them again.”


    I nod, still frantic, but trusting him. He nods back, just once, and turns his attention back to the road.


    Victor ces his foot on the pedal, increasing his speed. We’re heading west on the highway, straight


    towards my childhood home.