Page 55 of Into The Light
She laughs. "Oh! All the excitement with my mom and Panzer. I'll be right back."
A moment or two later, her mother comes out onto the deck with the flowers I got her, already cut and in a vase. "These are lovely, Bear. Thank you very much."
I offer her a small smile. "You're welcome."
Noelle hands me the bottle, and I pass it to her dad. "For you, sir."
He accepts it, examining it. "Balvenie Twelve. Very nice. Unnecessary, but I appreciate the gesture." He sets it aside and gestures with his bottle at mine. "If you're not expected to pass any kind of test, I don't think one beer will harm anything, do you?"
I tip my head to one side, considering. "Probably not. Just trying to err on the side of caution."
He nods. "Wise man. Finish that and we'll switch you to soda, then. I appreciate your being forthcoming."
Noelle leans into my side and looks up at me. "You're okay out here?" When I nod, she lets go. "I should go back in and finish helping Mom."
"Go for it. I'm good."
After she disappears back inside, Nicholas spends a few moments flipping and rolling the food on the griddle and then turns back to me.
"So you and my daughter."
"We're friends, sir."
He looks past me through the glass, watching his wife and daughter work together. "She's always been very innocent. Perhaps a little naive. I don't know what she's told you about our beliefs, but we used to be quite...strict. We've loosened up a good bit over the past few years, though.” Here, he lifts his bottle. "Once upon a time, I'd never have allowed myself this, not even one.”
"She's talked about it some. Told me about Brennan."
His expression darkens. "That was very rough on her. She's not the same. That whole business really shook her."
I haven't seen that, myself. His assessment of his daughter doesn't exactly align with the woman I know. "I'm not sure about that, sir. I think she's better off."
He frowns. "Perhaps. She's wandered from the faith, however."
"Can't speak on that, sir. Not a church-going man, myself."
"Are you against it?"
I shrug, shake my head. "Not against it, no. Had some long talks with a chaplain, on the inside."
"So, then, what do you believe?"
I consider his question for a while. "Unsure. If there is a god, I've got some questions for him. Her. Or them, or whatever." I watch Noelle throw her head back and laugh at something her mom says; I feel myself smile a little at the way her laughter lights up her face. "I don't think she's wandered. I think she's…learned. Grown. She just believes a little differently than she did. Than you do.”
Nicholas regards me for a moment, thoughtful, even if I can’t discern what he’s thinking. “I suppose that makes sense. Brennan’s behavior was certainly inexcusable. It hurt her deeply."
A shout in the distance catches my attention: a pair of horses bearing riders are galloping this way, figures hunched over.
"Oh, there's the boys back from their ride," Nicholas says. "We can pick this up later. Hard to have deep conversations with those two knuckleheads around."
The riders haul the horses to a stop mere feet from the railing of the balcony, tossing the reins over the horses’ necks as they hop down. Her brothers are a little older than in the photo at her station. Tall, lean, athletic, and absurdly good-looking, the boys are dressed in joggers, sneakers, and T-shirts, with backward hats and wraparound mirrored sunglasses. While their clothes aren’t identical in color, they are the same style. Without different color clothing, I’d never be able to tell them apart at first glance.
They tie the reins to the railing of the deck, chattering at each other and over each other, bickering playfully about who won.
They tromp up the deck side by side, laughing—their laughter trails off when they see me.
"Holy shit, who the hell are you?" one of them says.
"Nathan Harper. Watch your mouth," Nicholas snaps without looking away from the grill.
