A Tutor for Samuel Pt. 02

When the music ended, they met back up with Derek and snagged some food for themselves.

"Can you watch my plate? I need to use the little girl's room," asked Linda.

"Sure, Babe," replied Sam.

Linda paused to touch up her lipstick, brushing back a stray hair away from the side of her face. Deep down, she was worried at how much trouble her dad might cause for Sam. Frowning at her reflection, Linda decided she would have to corner her father before the evening was over and make it plain to him that she wouldn't stand for him mistreating Sam or threatening him in any way.

"And I thought my biggest problem was going to be seeing Gina again," she thought.

As if the universe were listening, that was exactly who she ran into when she exited the restroom.

Her older sister looked down at her, the height difference between the two of them exaggerated by Gina's high-heels. Linda noted that her sister was wearing a dress very similar to hers, and felt a pang of jealously at how much better the more voluptuous girl was filling it out.

"Oh! Good! I'm glad I ran into you. I wanted to tell you how happy it's made me to see us all pull together to help Trevor. I think it's the first time since we were kids that we've had a moment like this, two sisters leaning on each other. I hope it's a sign that we can rebuild that close relationship we once had," said Gina.

"Close relationship? When were we ever close?"

"Don't be that way. I know I was a bit of a shit to you in the past. I thought we could start fresh and make this recent challenge a building block for the future. I want to be able to spend time with you and be the kind of sister you deserve."

Gina had always been good at sounding sincere when she wanted something, and Linda wondered at what that might be and whether she could trust her older sibling.

"You've changed, huh?"

"I'm trying, Linda. If you would give me a chance, I could show you. Why, I imagine that you and Sam and I could be quite a threesome."

"Oh, really?" said Linda suspiciously.

"Not that kind of threesome!" laughed Gina, giving her sister a playful shove, "You know, unless you're into that sort of thing?"

When Linda's eyes got bigger, Gina tried to brush her comment off, "I'm just kidding, Silly Goose! You and Sam are perfect together. I should be so lucky."

"Look, Gina. I need to think about all this. You and I don't have the best history, and as much as Mom wants us be friendlier, I need to see more from you. Trust takes time to build."

"I understand perfectly. All I'm asking for is a chance!"

The bigger girl pulled Linda into a hug that she reluctantly returned before she turned on her heels and left, vanishing back into the party crowd.

"Between her and dad, I wish I had skipped my coming home party," mumbled Linda, following in her sister's wake.

Trevor had been temporarily put in charge of managing the kitchen, much to his displeasure, but he never liked to let his mother down, so he did as he was asked. Once all the food was out, he had slipped away to clean up and rejoin the party. This was how he found himself in a prime position to overhear Linda and Gina's conversation outside one of the many downstairs restrooms. He had to bite his lip to keep from making a noise of shock when Gina had professed her willingness to build a new relationship with Linda.

"Yeah, I can tell how sincere you are, Sis. Wasn't that you throwing your naked body at Sam not so very long ago?" he thought.

Still, he wasn't sure it was his place to get in the middle of things.

He waited for them both to leave before exiting the dark edge of the hallway he had been occupying just out of their line of sight. Taking a leisurely walk back to the party, he mulled over whether or not to tell Linda what he had heard. He was so lost in thought he nearly ran right into his father, who was standing smack in his path.

"Oh! Sorry...didn't see you there."

"Head in the clouds, as usual, Son?"

"I have some things on my mind. Important things."

"I'm sure you do. Why don't you run down to the wine cellar and let the steward know we need ten more bottles of the red up here."

Trevor nodded and turned to leave.

"Don't drink anything while your down there," grumbled his dad in a parting shot.

"Why do you have to do that?"

"Do what?"

"Always take a shot at me. Always treat me like a child."

"Is this going to be another therapy session? That French counselor cost me three-hundred-an-hour to tell me you were having issues with authority. Like I didn't know that already."

"Why don't you say what's really on your mind, Dad? What's bugging you? It isn't that I behave immaturely sometimes or that I've had my substance problems in the past. Those were all symptoms of the real problem, and we both know it. Why can't you just say what bothers you about me is my need to be with other men?"

"This is neither the time nor the place for this conversation, Trevor! Just go get the wine."

"No! I want to talk about this now! You're always ducking me! Are you so ashamed of me you can't face even talking to me about it?"

James Siler turned to leave, ignoring his son. Momentarily enraged, Trevor tried to grab him by the arm, but the bigger man reacted angrily, pushing his son's arm aside and shoving him back. Trevor doubled over, grabbing at his still very sore ribs.

"Jesus! Trevor! You don't just grab people like...Hey...What's wrong with you? I barely touched you," said James, finally showing a hint of concern at his son's red-faced look of pain.

"It's nothing," he replied in a tight voice, fighting down the urge to throw up.

"Look...Trevor. We can discuss your situation at a more appropriate time, okay?"

"Afraid I'll ruin the party, Dad?" he asked, still rubbing his side.

James frowned, "Just get the wine, huh? And don't be such a pansy. I got shoved a few times when I was younger and never whined this much."

"Right...Whatever you say, Dad," answered Trevor bitterly.

He left his father standing in the hallway, watching him shaking his head in disappointment.

By the time he arrived at the wine cellar, his pain had abated somewhat, so he could offer the steward assistance in bringing up the wine. He carried a box of four, careful not to drop the expensive bottles.

"Dad would take their cost out of my hide," he thought.

The kitchen had settled down from the madhouse it had been earlier, and he set the box on the edge of the counter, stopping to take a breath.

"Are you okay?"

Linda let the swinging door to the kitchen shut as she came over to her brother.

"Sure."

"You look at a little pale."

"My ribs are still giving me some trouble. It's nothing to worry about."

"Should I get Derek to take a look?"

"Hm...Now there's a thought! Maybe you could bring him to my room. I feel the need to lie down," said Trevor, melodramatically throwing a hand across his eyes.

"Seriously," said Linda, trying not to encourage him by laughing, "are you sure you're okay?"

"I'll be fine, but it's sweet that you care. Speaking of Derek and by extension, Sam. Where are those two strapping young fellows?"

"They discovered the billiard room and were pretending to be pool sharks the last time I say them."

"Maybe I will go give them a lesson in how it's done."

Linda had pulled one of the bottles from the box Trevor had brought up, turning it in her hand and watching the light play off the deep red liquid.

"You know, Gina came to me trying to make up. I still don't know how I feel about that woman. I mean, she is my sister and all, but there is something there...I just can't bring myself to trust her again."

"Go with that feeling," said Trevor under his breath.

"What?"

"Nothing...I think I'll go have that game of pool."

Linda stepped in front of him, cutting him off from leaving.

"What do you know?"

"I know something?"

"Don't be coy with me, Trevor Siler. I know when you're hiding something. You're a crap liar."

"Really, Linda? The things you accuse me of...ouch!"

She reached across the counter and grabbed his hand, twisting his pinky finger.

"This is such bullshit! You were always torturing me when we were kids!"

"And you always folded like a cheap card table. Now! Out with it! What do you know?"

"You're not going to like it."

"I'll be the judge of that."

Trevor sighed and told Linda what he had seen and heard at her apartment the afternoon Sam had shown up looking for her. As his tale unfolded, Linda's face darkened into a mask of fury that made him take a step backward.

"That bitch..."

"Now, Sis. We both know Gina has always been the selfish one. The good news is that Sam kicked her to the curb! So, no worries, right?"

Linda didn't answer but spun away, heading for the door with her fists clenched.

"Well...probably safer to stay here, but then again, I wouldn't miss this for the world," said Trevor quietly to himself before following after her.

He entered the main living room, one with enough square footage to be most people's primary residence and quickly spotted Linda headed out one of the glass doors to the back lawn. Sprinting across the room, dodging around a waiter carrying a tray of empty wine glasses, he reached the door just in time to see what Linda already had, that Gina was standing outside near a long, white cloth-covered table containing a huge crystal punch bowl. She was talking with one of their fathers business partners, brushing back her hair in a flirting gesture.

Trevor opened the door and darted outside himself just as Linda reached their sister and grabbed her by one arm, spinning her around.

"Linda! What the hell has gotten into you?"

"Want to rebuild our relationship, huh? How are you going to go about that, Gina? Is chasing my boyfriend all over town and stripping for him part of the plan?"

"I don't know what you're talking about!" snapped Gina defensively.

"I think you two need some space," said Harland Mathers, the business partner, who beat a hasty and prudent retreat.

"The other day at my apartment? You were coming out of the shower? Ring any bells?"

Gina licked her lips in thought, trying to decide how much of the truth to tell, but given the look of anger on Linda's face, she opted in a rare moment for honesty.

"Okay...So maybe I got a little carried away. Can you blame me? Have you looked at Sam?"

"After what happened with Greg...How could you try to do this to me again?"

"Ever hear the story of the fox and the scorpion, Dear? I can't help my nature."

"That's it? That's your excuse? No apology?" shouted Linda.

Their altercation was starting to draw the attention of many of the other guests, some of whom began to stroll over in their direction to see what was going on. Linda ignored the growing crowd keeping her attention focused solely on her duplicitous sister.

"Oh! For God's sake, Linda. Nothing happened! Sam wasn't interested, okay! Heck, you should take it as a long-overdue win. It's the first time you ever managed to hang on to a boyfriend when they could have had me."

What happened next, Gina never saw coming. In all their years together, she had only seen her younger sister run when things got bad between them. Linda was the type that avoided confrontation, that hid her head and pretended that it didn't bother her when Gina had swooped in and took something that belonged to her even when that something had been someone's heart. It was the way things had always been between them, but she didn't recognize how much her sister had changed in their time apart, or more specifically, in the time since Sam had come into her life.

Their height difference presented a challenge, but Linda overcame it by simply jumping straight up and smashing her fist right into Gina's nose.

Caught completely by surprise, Gina was thrown backward, tripped over her heels, and ended up crashing into the table behind her sending one very expensive, antique punch bowl and all its contents to the ground. Bright red liquid poured across the grass, nearly matching the color of blood that was pouring out of Gina Siler's injured face.

"What the FUCK! I think you broke my fucking nose!" yelled Gina, trying to staunch the flow with the sleeve of her dress.

"I'm just getting started!" yelled Linda, tackling her older sister back onto the ground.

The two women began to wrestle back and forth, getting covered in mud and punch in equal measure while the other party goers looked on in horror.

"What in the blazes is going on here?" yelled James Siler as he arrived to find his daughters locked in mortal combat. He froze at the unexpected sight, the two women now up on their knees and pulling at each other's hair.

Before he could react, an arm suddenly slipped around his shoulders, and he turned to stare into his son's grinning visage.

"And you thought I was going to be the one to ruin the party!" said Trevor.

The guests had gone. The party ended prematurely by Linda and Gina's impromptu cage match on the back lawn.

Now, the three siblings stood shoulder to shoulder together in their father's study while he paced angrily back and forth in front of them. Standing at the back of the room, Marion Siler, Sam, and Derek watched quietly.

"Humiliating! Fucking humiliating! People will be talking all over town about it! This family will be living down this embarrassment for years!"

"I don't know, Dad, give Gina a chance I'm sure she can whip up a scandal to distract the masses," offered Trevor.

"Screw you, Trevor," snarled Gina.

"I don't need any smart ass comments from you!" said James loudly, stopping to shove his finger in Trevor's face before stepping over to Gina.

"As for you! Would it kill you to keep your legs crossed for once! Jesus Christ, Gina! Why can't you try to fuck a guy who isn't with someone else? Is that too hard for you to wrap your head around?"

Gina started to cry, winced, and put a hand on her swollen nose.

"What about what Linda did to me?"

James puffed on his cigar for a moment, pulling it from between his teeth and looking at the ground before he answered.

"I...uh...hate to say it, but that was probably deserved. Honestly, I didn't think you had it in you," he said, finally looking up.

His tone indicated approval, and Linda pushed a smile onto her face.

"I am sorry about the party, Dad."

"Yeah, well, you can bet you will be paying your mother back for that punch bowl! God! What were you thinking? If you wanted to kick Gina's ass, couldn't you have waited until after the party?"

"That's what you really care about, isn't it? Your reputation! This family's reputation! When Gina slept with Greg, all you cared about was keeping the whole thing quiet."

"That's not true!"

"Isn't it? You never said a word to comfort me until after I agreed to keep the divorce quiet and not make a big deal out of it. I think you were happy that I decided to leave town so there wouldn't be any friction between Gina and me at the social club."

"Linda...That's not fair. We stood by you through that whole mess. I paid for everything and..."

"I didn't want your money, Dad! I wanted you to care! I wanted you to protect me! I was your little girl, and all you were worried about was whether the story would make the local papers."

"That is such an oversimplification, Linda. It's just like you to be so caught up in your problems you miss the big picture! If I could just have one kid that understands the importance of this family's place in this community."

"Like you have any idea what being a family means," grumbled Trevor.

"I've had enough of your mouth for one day!" blasted James rounding on his son so harshly that he bumped into him. Like earlier, Trevor winced in pain and gripped his side. Derek broke away from the door and came over to steady him.

"Lean on me," he said, and Trevor managed to smile despite his ribs.

"Gladly," said Trevor, putting one arm around Derek's broad shoulders.

James rolled his eyes at the look the two men were sharing. An expression that wasn't lost on Linda.

"Trevor was hurt because of you."

"What are you talking about?"

"Linda...don't..." wheezed Trevor.

"No...He needs to hear this. Trevor got jumped several weeks back by some bullies who beat the crap out of him. He reached out to Sam and me for help, and all through that ordeal, all he was worried about was what you would think. What would happen if the police or the newspapers found out? You've drilled it into him for so many years that all that's important around this house is our reputation, so much so he would rather have died in that parking lot than gotten real help."

James looked back and forth between Linda and Trevor, his face turning pale.

"I didn't know anything about that. Is that why he was staying with you?"

"Oh! Trevor!" cried Marion, coming over to put a hand on her son's arm, "You should have told us! Can you help me get him to the couch in the other room? I'm going to call Dr. Seever to come over and take a look at you."

"Now just a damn minute! Seever is a club member..."

"Seriously, Dad?" yelled Linda.

James Siler rarely got stared down by anyone, but if looks could kill, the one in Linda's eyes would have blown any man to pieces. He stopped short of what he had been about to say and just nodded as Derek and Marion led Trevor out of the room.

"Let's go, Sam."

Linda turned her back on her father and made her way to where her boyfriend stood waiting patiently by the door.

"We're not done here, Linda! We need to talk about this."

"No," said Sam, speaking for the first time, "We are done here. It's been a long day and high time I got Linda home."

"This is just as much your fault. I knew you were going to be trouble..." James started to say.

"Shut up, Dad," said Linda tiredly, letting Sam slip his arm around her waist.

"I won't be talked to that way by you!" said James, but Sam threw him a look that nearly matched his girlfriends in the intimidation department.

"Watch what you say next. This is my family you're messing with," said Sam in a low, menacing tone.

Linda looked at him with wonder on her face, then snuggled closer as he led her out the twin doors of her father's study.

"Family?" she said with a tilt of her head and a knowing smile as they walked together back up the long hallway.

"Well, no rush, but..."

She laughed, squeezing his hand.

"I love you, Sam."

He hugged her closer and kissed the top of her head.

They found Trevor lying on a couch in the den, Derek close by his side and holding his hand.

"Thanks for sticking up for me back there," he said.

"It was my pleasure. Are you going to be alright?"

"Doctor Derek here thinks so, and that's good enough for me."

"I think he will be okay, but we should probably let a real doctor be the judge of that," said Derek.

"A real doctor is on the way," said Marion, entering the room while putting her cellphone away.

She joined Derek and Trevor on the couch, stroking Trevor's hair back out of his face.

"I'm so sorry, Sweetie. Sorry that you didn't feel like you could talk to us about what happened. I promise things are going to change around here."

Sam noted the angry tone in Marion's voice and suspected that James Siler was in for a bad night.

"Linda and I were just heading out. Derek?"

His friend smiled at Trevor before answering, "Don't worry about me. I'll get an Uber back to campus."

Sam shared a smile with Linda before nodding, "Sure...No problem."

"Let me walk you out," said Marion.

Linda kissed her brother on the cheek before joining her mother and boyfriend. The trio stopped at the massive front doors, and Marion reached out to both her daughter and Sam at the same time.

"I know this wasn't exactly the heartwarming welcome home party you deserved."