CRYSTALLINE - 11. Truth Telling

After their mother had a few drinks and seemed relaxed, Patrick and Dante looked at each other across the yard, nodded in agreement and approached her.

“Mum” said Dante “We have something we need to tell you”

“Yes son, something I can help you with?”

“Sort of Mum, but it’s more of a confession than a need for help”

“Ooo a confession, I like the sound of that. What’s it about?”

“Sex”

“Sounding better all the time”

“I...want to tell you that...”

“Wait” she interrupted “You’re going to tell me your gay, am I right?”

“You’re right, but that’s not what I...that is we...need to tell you”

“I’m listening” she said, then “Wait, I need a refill just in case this is a long story”

“Sure Mum. Patrick refill Mum’s glass, she’s gonna need it”

“In that case you better leave the bottle”

Glass refilled and half bottle within reach, Patricia said “Ok boys, let me have it” and giggled.

“Ok Mum, I’ll start” said Dante “And Patrick can take over anytime. It’s about Dad...”

“I don’t really want to talk about him; especially not while I’m in such a good mood. Can’t we talk about something else?”

“But...ok how about we talk about us?”

“Now that is my favourite subject; my two handsome and caring boys. You know people say twins are double trouble, but you two have just been double the fun of raising sons. Don’t know what I would do without shou”

“That’s nice Mum but please listen to me. Maybe no more wine till we finish”

“Oh no you don’t ssshunny boy” she demanded as she swept the bottle from the table, wrapped her hands around it and held it between her breasts. “You won’t dare tusssh it now, will you?”

“No Mum”

“Now what’s sho important that you have to tell me?”

“Maybe now’s not the right time, you seem a little tipsy”

“I’m not tishpy, just relaxed. Get on with it for fuck’s sake”

“Mum, I’ve never heard you swear before”

“Well then, this musht be the new and improved meeee, shingle mother of two luverly shuns” then added “I’ll drink to that” as she toasted her glass high into the air and spilled most of its contents.

“That’s probably enough wine for today Mum. How about dessert? Patrick, get Mum some of the mousse you made”

***

“Did you ever get to tell her” Thomas asked

“Not that day. We waited till the next morning when we thought she was sober. She was very quiet at breakfast and we thought it was because she was listening intently but it turned out she had a hangover. But we went ahead anyway”

o0o

“Mum, you know how you blamed Dad for involving us in the porno stuff?”

“Yes of course, I can never forgive him for that. I’m glad he’s gone... prison would have been too lenient a punishment for him. Although, if those prison movies and true, he might have got some of his own as punishment in there. For some reason other prisoners don’t seem to like child abusers. What is they call them...yeah rock spiders, isn’t it. Strange name, don’t you think?”

“But that’s just it Mum, Dad wasn’t like that. He never did anything to us, or any other kids, as far as we know”

“But he had video of you two doing disgusting things and I’m told by the police he had lots of photos and other videos this paedophile group shared on the web”

“I suppose he did, but the videos of us, we made them and he didn’t ask us to, we wanted to make them”

“Yeah, but just for a bit of youthful fun, wasn’t it?”

“That’s how it started, then we found out you can make money from them, so we used Dad’s porno account to upload them and we got paid every time someone viewed them. We even did some of them live on webcam where viewers paid extra to ask us to do certain things. And we didn’t do anything we didn’t want to do”

“Yeah but he must have encouraged you to do it”

“He didn’t even know we were doing it until the money started flowing into his account. So he knew from then on and let us keep using his account”

“So you didn’t do this stuff in front of him?”

“No, we were embarrassed at first and just did it in our bedroom with our phones and his camera”

“So he never touched you or forced you to do anything?”

“No he never touched us at all, even the other men didn’t touch us. They were very respectful”

“What other men?”

“The ones at the campsite and later on”

“What campsite and what later on?”

“We performed for some guys that came to our camp. Remember when we had a father and son weekend?”

“Yes, but...”

“Well, we made so much money on one night, we agreed to do it again, so most weekends we went to different places to perform our act”

“You talk about it like you were just playing in a band or something”

“I suppose it’s something like that. We have a talent for it and our audience liked it. We made squillions”

“And where is this squillions?”

“Well that is a problem and maybe you can help us with that. You see Dad had it in an account for us. He gave us a bit for spending money, but kept most of it for later so we could buy a car or something big”

“I was thinking of buying a motor bike with my share, I’m old enough to get a licence now. I’d like one like Uncle Mario’s. What is it Dante?”

“A Ducati”

“That’s it, they’re Italian made you know”

“Yeah that’s all very well, but your father got in trouble for it and I...that is he’s now...gone...and what was it all for? Just because you two little bastards thought it was a bit of fun and you wanted to make money from doing disgusting things in front of other scumbags. You destroyed a good man and didn’t tell me till it was too late”

“Sorry Mum, that’s why we wanted to tell you now, to clear our consciences”

“I’ll never let you forget this and you’ll never have a clear conscience. I hope this will haunt you for the rest of your miserable lives. I never want to see you two again. Tomorrow I’ll pack you off to Maria. She can deal with her brother’s offspring”

“But what did we do? I thought we were going to support each other through this and be family forever”

“Not anymore boys. You’re on your own now”

“Then we want our money”

“What money?”

“The money we earned and dad was keeping for us”

“I don’t know where that is....wait a minute....when the court granted your father bail I rounded up all our savings and some cash advances to add to the money in an account your father had in his name. It was an account I didn’t know he had. Maybe that was it. Well it’s gone now, put up for bail and he never fronted court, so I guess the government keeps the bail. Sorry boys” she concluded with a Cruella de Vil grin.

o0o

“Mum carried through with her threat and took us to aunt Maria’s the next day. Naturally, she was shocked at Mum’s actions and her attitude, but willingly took us in for the sake of peace in the family and our welfare. She assumed it would only be short term, but she was wrong” Patrick told Carol.

“So how long did you stay with your aunt?”

“Until we were eighteen, then as adults, we moved back to the family house”

“With your mother?”

“No, she had left the house two years earlier and it remained empty for all that time. But we went there regularly to mow the lawns and keep the place tidy. We quite enjoyed looking after it and knowing that one day it would be all ours”

“You mean when your mother dies, you and Dante will inherit?”

“Well, officially then, but for practical purposes it is ours now. But I’ll explain more about that later”

“So where does your mother live now?”

“In care”

“But is she that old she needs care?”

“Not because of age, a sort of disability”

“I’m sorry to hear that, so do you visit her regularly?”

“No, she refuses to see us and the doctors say it’s best not to antagonise her by visiting against her will”

“I don’t understand Patrick”

“My mother has been scheduled because of her condition”

“Scheduled for what...surgery or something?”

“No, scheduled means declared by doctors to be mentally incapacitated to the point of being unable to take care of herself or think rationally. In short she’s been declared insane”

“Oh shit, that’s truly awful for you and Dante...and her of course”

“We have learned to live with the situation and try not to let it affect us too much. There’s absolutely nothing we can do about it and as much as we don’t want to forget our mother, we try not to dwell on it and lead as normal lives as possible” Patrick explained as he fought to hold back tears.

“Patrick...I’m sorry I asked you about your parents. I didn’t realise it would be so difficult for you to talk about it”

“That’s all right, maybe talking about it has made me feel emotional, but in some ways....” he paused to wipe away the tears “...maybe it’s for the best that I’ve let it all out and that is thanks to you. I love you Carol and don’t want any secrets between us”

“I love you too Patrick and now feel so much closer to you. Although it was obviously painful for you, I thank you for telling me”

***

Dante took Thomas by the hands and said “We don’t see our mother because she’s permanently cared for in a state mental institution. She can’t be released as she could be a danger to herself and those around her. Her doctors say there is no hope of rehabilitation and she is on constant suicide watch”

“When did you last see her?”

“She does not allow us to visit her”

“That is very sad and I really don’t know what to say”

“Just say you don’t think any less of me because of my background and my family situation”

“Of course I don’t think any less of you; in fact I love you all the more”

“Because you pity me”

“Fuck Dante! Do you really think that? I love you all the more for having shared with me. It must have taken a lot of courage. For that I admire you so much”

It was now Dante’s turn to sniffle as the tears welled up. As he attempted to wipe them away Thomas said “Let it all out, I’m here for you, no matter what. And that goes for Patrick also if he needs support”

“Thank you, now please pass me the tissues and do one more thing for me”

“Anything”

“Make me a good strong cuppa”

“Sure you don’t want something more fortifying?”

“Not at present, my Aussie grandmother used to say, when there’s a crisis or you’re feeling low...put on the kettle as a starting point”

“I think I would have liked your grandmother” Thomas concluded as he passed the tissues and headed for the kitchen.

<>

While having their tea, Thomas asked “Whatever happened to your family house?”

“Oh it’s still in the family. Mum became sole owner when Dad died but then it became complicated when she was taken into care. We can live there as long as we like, but can’t own it because Mum is still alive. It’s held in a trust at present. However we have a case under consideration for the ownership to be transferred to Patrick and I as beneficiaries of Mum’s will. Our solicitors just need to convince the court that Mum will never be released and consequently never be able to administer her own affairs. The doctors have already issued statements to that effect, so the court has put a five year waiting period on the decision. If Mum’s condition does not improve by then, we expect ownership will be transferred. In the meantime it is leased out so the property is maintained and the proceeds go into the trust account”

“Well that’s something to look forward to”

“Yes, a small light at the end of a very long tunnel”

“I wonder how Patrick and Carol are doing” Thomas asked

“I just hope Carol is as understanding with Patrick as you have been for me”

“Don’t underestimate the woman. Sure, she’s young and inexperienced but I think there’s resilience built into her DNA. She really cares for Patrick and I don’t think she would react negatively or let him go easily. Look how she picked herself up after her disappointment over you. And even if she does have any issues, she’ll seek advice from Cook and deal with them. In many ways Cook has been like a mother or more of a big sister to Carol since she’s been here”

“You seem to know everyone here very well”

“This might seem a strange household to those on the outside, but to those within it has always been a close, if extended, family. That’s the way I’ve always felt here. Maybe it has something to do with Virginia and Jonathan having no children. Instead they focussed their attention on their staff and treated us as family. Speaking of Virginia, that reminds me, we haven’t taken up her offer to use the house at Mallacoota”

“So what’s stopping us?”

“Nothing other than fitting it into the diary. I’ll fit it in between project meetings and before the opening gets too close”

***

Despite his confidence of the night before, Thomas still wanted to check on Carol to ensure she was coping. He and Dante breakfasted in the flat so he went over to the kitchen afterwards on the pretext of getting some supplies from the pantry.

“Good morning Cook”

“I hope you’re not expecting anything more than cereal for breakfast at this time of day”

“I’ve already had breakfast thanks. Dante and I did our own thing. But I can stay for a coffee if you’ve got time”

“Lovely, as soon as I get this lot in the dishwasher”

“While you do that I’ll just get a few things from the pantry, we’re running a bit low on basics at the flat”

“By the way, have you seen Carol this morning” Cook asked

“No” Thomas called from the pantry “Didn’t she come for breakfast”

“No, and that’s fine, but she needs to start work sometime. She seems a little too fond of playing lady of the house since she and Patrick coupled up”

“Neglecting her duties is she?”

“Not entirely, but she seems to run on her own time lately. That’s not how I like to run a house”

“Do you want me to have a word with her?” Thomas asked

“No, I can manage. You’ve got enough on your plate with this resort thing”

“I’m glad you mentioned that. We need to have a talk about some changes that will happen around here as a result of that”

“OH!” she said with raised eyebrows.

As Thomas came out of the pantry he noticed the hands on the hips and said “NO! It’s nothing like that”

“Like what?”

“I know what your ‘hands on hips’ stance means”

“I don’t do that”

Thomas gestured towards Cook with a baguette, Cook looked down and upon noticing where her hands were, immediately started brushing her apron clean of the invisible whatever. “Damned flour gets everywhere”

“Yes, Cook”

“Well, now that’s settled, ready for coffee?”