Shunned Ch. 01

She nodded, and like my mother a few moments before I could see tears welling up in her eyes. She turned and moved for the door, but paused before opening it.

"I really am sorry, Victor. We didn't have a choice."

"I don't care," I said, and sat back down. She left, closing the door gently behind her.

I waited there, in silence. Hours passed, though I sensed it only with the changing of the light in the room as the sun got lower in the sky. Eventually there was another knock, and then the door opened. It was my mother.

"Your father wants to speak with you."

I stood up, stretched out the kinks from having sat for so long, and pushed past her. She was dressed finally, but my arm brushed against her breasts as I passed and I could feel her nipples beneath the fabric. I couldn't believe she was so wanton that she wasn't even wearing a bra, especially with me in the house. No matter.

I made my way back down the stairs and headed for the obvious choice: my father's study. He never held court anywhere else in the house. If he wanted to speak with you, that's where you were summoned.

Unlike my childhood, I didn't knock. I pushed the door open. He was seated behind his desk, hands pressed to the surface of it. His eyes were closed when I entered, but slid open as I walked inside. He watched me for a moment, as if waiting for something, and that's when I noticed it: someone was kneeling underneath his desk, her head bobbing up and down. From the walnut-brown color, I knew it was Cara. This was his flex on me, apparently. He'd hold court while my sister sucked his cock.

He smiled as he saw the recognition in my eyes. I felt an urge I had never actually felt before: to come across his desk and beat the shit out of him. I frowned as it nearly overwhelmed me. I was a few inches taller, but he looked at least a few pounds heavier than me. But I was sure I could hurt him before he had a chance to retaliate. I kept the urge in check, but I let the hate blaze in my heart. I waited for him to speak.

My father had long exerted his authority on me with silence. It was one of his many ways of instilling fear, trepidation at what was to come. He would sit, quietly, and wait until I spoke. When I was a child, I would often try to prod at what the reason for summoning me was, sometimes outing myself for mistakes I had made. It was a tactic that worked incredibly well on a frightened child.

It no longer worked on me. I wasn't scared of him anymore.

He waited nonetheless, though the effect of it was somewhat dampened by the slurping and sucking sounds of Cara's blowjob. Eventually she brought him to climax, and he closed his eyes and grunted as he shot his load into her mouth. She stood up from between his legs, nude and willowy and sexy as a woman could be, and leaned down to kiss him. It was a brief peck, and she walked around the desk and past me, though she caught my eyes and smiled wickedly as she left.

"You'll be attending university, I presume?"

I shrugged.

"Use your words, young man."

"Fuck you, old man." I said.

He smiled at that. It was, I thought, the first genuine smile he had ever shown me.

"I'm glad to see you've finally grown a backbone." He leaned back in his chair and zipped up his pants. His cock was still hard. I smirked as I realized my earlier guess was accurate.

"Your schooling for the next four years will be paid for entirely. You may elect to stay in whatever housing you prefer, campus or otherwise, and it will be paid for. You will receive a monthly stipend of one thousand dollars--"

"Three thousand." I interrupted.

"Very well, three thousand dollars. When you graduate in four years, you will receive a half million dollars to do with as you wish. You may continue your education, or start a business, or buy a home. Whatever."

"And?"

His nostrils flared. It was a sign he was growing impatient with me. He wasn't used to me talking back or treating him with anything short of utter respect and fear.

"This will only happen under two conditions: you attend school out of state, and you never attempt to contact anyone in this family again."

I didn't hesitate. "Done."

He nodded. "Very well. The cab is still waiting outside. He'll drive you to the hotel you'll be staying at until you've made a decision as to what school you'll be attending, at which point you will be given a plane ticket to the city it is located in, and your monthly stipend will begin. You may do as you wish until the school year begins."

"Fine." I turned to walk away.

"And Victor."

I glanced back at him, and the smile had reappeared.

"I'll know if you reach out to them."

"Don't worry," I said. "I won't."

I walked briskly to the foyer, glancing up at the stairs as I left. Tabitha was there, watching me. She had been crying. I looked away. I grabbed my suitcase and opened the front door to what was once my family home. I closed it behind me with a sort of finality, and got into the cab. He began driving.

Ten minutes later I realized we were on the freeway, heading in the direction of the airport. I glanced over at the driver.

"Sorry you were kept waiting so long."

He turned down the radio and glanced back at me. "What was that?"

"I said, I'm sorry you had to wait so long."

"Oh, no worries man," he said. "They gave me three hundred bucks to wait, so I'm not gonna complain."

I grunted in response and went back to watching the city flow past. Eventually we exited the freeway and turned toward the Hilton. We pulled in to the portico and stopped.

"Thanks," I said as I climbed out. He didn't respond, merely pulled away after I closed the door. I dragged my briefcase behind me as I entered the hotel.

My room, it turned out, was the penthouse suite. Why the airport Hilton had a penthouse, I had no idea, but I wasn't going to complain. It had two bedrooms, a jetted tub in the master bath, and a full kitchen. The view of the airport wasn't great, but I got the impression I would spend a lot of time watching planes come and go over the next few weeks. I was booked for two months, just long enough to find the right school and leave, it would seem.

I ordered room service. I hadn't eaten anything substantial in nearly two days, and the alcohol earlier wasn't helping matters. I ate it in the dining area, quietly. It tasted like nothing. My mind was blank, nearly serene. I had set aside the day's events much as I'd had to do frequently as a child, put them in a box until they could be handled later, if ever.

When I finished, I put the dishes in the sink and went into the master bedroom. Laying back, I stared at the ceiling, the room slowly darkening as dusk gave way to evening. Exhausted as I was, in every way one could be exhausted, sleep found me swiftly. I closed my eyes, and fell into a dreamless slumber.