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Elise is waiting at the cafe just like she said, and I give her a wave that’s cut short when the other person at the table stands up. I stop in my tracks and consider leaving right then and there. I did not want to deal with this today. Or ever, really.
My sister has brought my dad to lunch with her. He and I haven’t really spoken since the outburst the night before his party, and things had been inescapably tense ever since. It’s so obviously a setup that I can’t wait to have Elise alone to give hera piece of my mind. But I’m here now, and I might as well face Dad. I had already dealt with the tough discussion with Roxanne last night, why not just clear everything up in the shortest amount of time possible? Who cares about my sanity, anyway?
“Elise,” I deadpan. “Dad. I suppose I can’t say something has come up and I have to leave?”
“He just wants to talk to you, Andries,” my sister blurts out. “I’m going to go. Call me later.”
“Elise,” I hiss again, but she’s gone in a flutter of skirts, and I’m left standing awkwardly at the small cafe table with Sebastian Van Den Bosch.
It doesn’t look like the best place for a talk like this. The restaurant is small and open concept, the size more similar to a coffee shop than a real dining destination, with dried herbs hanging on the walls and vases of fresh flowers on every table. I lower myself into one of the small chairs and Dad does the same, neither of us speaking.
It isn’t until the server drops off two lemon waters that Dad clears his throat to speak. “You look healthy, son. I suppose you’re staying out of your cups?”
“Just a glass of wine here and there,” I admit, thinking about the half bottle I had shared with Roxanne the night before.
“That’s great. I hope you know I didn’t tell your sister to bolt like that. From what I understood I was having lunch with you both.”
I laugh sarcastically. “I guess we both should have seen through her machinations, but it’s too late now. I’m sure that cutthroat attitude is serving her well at the company, though.”
“She’s… she’s doing far better than I expected. I know I said you were my first choice, but I can admit when I am wrong.”
I sit my fork down from where I had been pushing my spinach salad around on my plate. “You can admit when you’re wrong, huh?”
He makes a sour face, but to my surprise, answers honestly. “Yes, and that means I also want to say that I’m sorry for calling your ex a whore. I had no idea what kind of terms the two of you were on and it wasn’t fair for me to do that. I just had some… actually,a lotof lingering animosity toward her for letting Karl hire that Patricia girl. But the truth is even if you weren’t around at all it probably would have happened the same way.”
It’s so unexpected for him to apologize like this that I don’t know what to say at first. Dad watches me for a moment, giving me a chance to speak, but when I don’t, he continues.
“I never wanted to think my best employee could do something like that. It’s so shameful. You were absolutely in the right to get that Patricia girl the help she needed and to take her to the police. I just couldn’t see that through my own selfish worries.”
“Thank you, Dad. Really,” I manage to say. “I know apologizing isn’t a skill that runs in this family after all.”
He smiles, thankful for the levity I assume. “You’re correct about that. We are a prideful sort.” The smile fades and he shakes his head. “I just don’t understand why these college girls would put themselves into this mess. It baffles the mind.”
I have a little more insight after talking to Roxanne, but I still agree with my dad quite a bit. “Well, it's easy money and they get to enjoy the finest things in life. Nothing new under the sun, really. Have you spoken to Karl since he was arrested?”
Dad shrugs between bites. “Not much from him directly. I’ve been talking to his legal team, though. I’ve heard that the prosecutor might drop the charges.”
My mouth hangs open for a moment before I can snap it shut, the shock running through me real and tangible. “Why in the hell would he drop the charges?”
“Well, it seems like the girl gave Karl mixed signals, she went to his apartment, took her clothes off, and—”
I can’t hold my tongue, causing me to interrupt him and say, “She was drunk, Dad. Drunk!”
Dad looks around nervously when I raise my voice, noticing a few heads turning our way. “Andries, please. Calm down.”
I want to tell him to fuck off, but he isn’t wrong about everyone looking our way. A vision of the tabloid picture flashes through my mind, and I know I don’t want to draw any more unnecessary attention to myself. I bite my tongue, and try to continue eating, even though I’m fuming.
I can’t keep it down, though. The food sours in my stomach, compacting into a hard ball until I can’t stomach anything more. Dad seems on edge, but not nearly as bothered as I am, asking me simple questions that I answer in as few words as possible. All the while my temper is boiling beneath my skin, thinking about how much trouble I had gone through to help Patricia, how much sleep I had lost over the whole thing, and how it had strained any chance of fixing my relationship with Roxanne to the max. How could Patricia be willing to throw all of that away? Surely, the prosecutor will only withdraw the charges if she stops cooperating.
An awful thought floats to the forefront of my mind. Why would my dad be talking to Karl’s legal team if he wasn’t involved himself in this somehow? The thought is almost too much to bear, but I force myself to ask, “Dad… did you ask them to try and convince Patricia to sign the settlement?”
His fork freezes mid-stab, but he shakes off the stillness quickly, like it never happened. “I had nothing to do with it, son.”
“Okay,” I say simply, but I don’t believe him at all. We had been getting somewhere, Dad and I, but he just couldn’t stop himself from lying to me. It hurts more than I thought it would.
Everything rolls downhill from there, and when I bid him goodbye, it’s with a cold handshake and zero eye contact. Theentire lunch has drained me, and I want to throw in the towel and call it a day. The idea of Patricia letting the charges be dropped won’t leave me alone, though, and I make the quick decision to go and see her to try and figure out why this is happening.
I should call her first, but I don’t, and I bike straight back to campus. I text her once I’m outside her dorm building, and after a few minutes, she comes down to let me in. Patricia looks much better than the last time I saw her, with a little bit of color in her cheeks and hair clean and braided. We make small talk on the elevator ride up to her room, but once we’re inside, she looks at me knowingly.
