Love and Other Wicked Games (A Wicked Game Novel) (25 page)

“Uncle.” What was he doing here? Cal gritted his teeth and rolled his eyes. He left the door open as he went back to his washstand to dry his hands and inspect his face. When a moment had passed and his uncle still did not enter the room, Cal turned around and used his free hand to usher him in. “You going to stand outside all day? Seems like a ridiculous thing to come all this way for…”

Uncle George just looked at him.

Cal rolled his eyes again. “You’re already here. You might as well come in.”

Uncle George hesitated a moment as if he was suddenly unsure or if he thought Cal might literally jump down his throat.

“Just come in and shut the door. You’re bad enough but I’d like to finish getting dressed without the whole world seeing...”

“You have somewhere to go?” his Uncle finally asked, stepping inside and closing the door with a quick shove.

Cal shot his uncle an icy glance as he slipped on a crisp, white cotton shirt and worked at the buttons. “Nah. I just like getting cleaned up and staring at myself in the mirror. It’s a fantastic confidence builder.”

“I don’t believe you.”

No shit.
“Oh?”

“I think you’re going to see that girl of yours...” Uncle George pointed a shaky finger at Cal as he stepped in closer.

Cal froze. “Girl?” he asked trying to keep his voice even. “What girl?” He felt his fingers shake a little now as he continued to work at the last few buttons in an attempt to appear casual.

“Oh damn it, Cal. I don’t have time for this and neither do you.” He pulled his worn silver flask from his inside jacket pocket and put it to his lips.

“What do you mean?”

“Well, I’m here aren’t I?”

Cal clenched his jaw and angrily dug through a pile of random cravats he had no intention of wearing while he tried to pretend he didn’t know what that meant. But he did. He hadn’t told his uncle he was here but someone did, and Cal had a guess or two about who that was. “You are here.” He paused. “But why?”

“To warn you.”

“Warn me?” Now that was something he couldn’t ignore. Cal stopped everything he was doing and locked eyes with his uncle. He had a sudden sinking feeling in his stomach. It wasn’t only him they knew about. It was Ellie. Cal had known that was a possibility but having confirmation from his uncle somehow made it more real. “Warn me about what? What are they planning?”

“Nothing yet, which is why I’m here.” Uncle George put his flask to his lips again looking for another ounce of confidence and frowned when he didn’t find any. He went over to the small table and took the tops off of a few bottles, smelling the contents. He frowned again and shook around several bottles. “You have anything that’s not empty?” he asked.

Cal went to him and took the bottle from his hand replacing the top. “Who’s making threats?”

His uncle grabbed a glass and took a step back, holding it out and shaking it. Cal sighed and massaged his temples before he took the glass from his Uncle and opened a drawer in the stand next to the bed. He retrieved a small glass bottle and unscrewed the top, pouring in a generous amount of amber colored liquid. Placing the bottle back inside, he slammed the drawer before offering the glass back to his uncle. But Uncle George just looked at it and held up his forefinger and thumb widening the space between. Cal scrunched up his face and thrust the glass back towards his Uncle.

“Take it old man before I throw the bloody thing at you. I’d like to see you drink it then.”

Uncle George sighed and took the glass, shivering when he smelled the contents.

“So?” Cal prompted.

“What?” his Uncle swirled around the liquid a few times.

“
Who is making threats?
”

“Oh. Why Me.” He tipped the glass back and swallowed the contents in one gulp, gasping at the end. “Of course.”

“
What?
” Cal shoved his Uncle’s chest with both hands nearly sending the old man falling to the ground. Amazingly though, he managed to catch himself after a few awkward stumbles and put his hand against the wall, stabilizing himself.

“Whoa, there,” Uncle George said after a moment, smoothing out his already rumpled jacket with one hand. “I think you have the wrong idea.”

“Oh, you think, do you?” Cal ruffled his hair and leaned towards his uncle with pointed finger. “Why don’t you tell me what it is you mean then?”

Once more, Uncle George looked to his glass with an expression of discontent. He held it out to Cal who forcefully snatched it and went back to his night stand where he refilled the glass’s contents. His uncle reached out for it but instead of handing it to him Cal swirled it around and took a swig of it himself.

“You surprise me, Uncle. You come here, to my home—where I’m staying, anyway—and you tell me that you’re threatening me and my—my—” Cal cleared his throat as he tried to keep his tone even. He was still unsure what to call Ellie but also didn’t want to offer any other additional information to his uncle that he might not already know. “I mean you, of all people, Uncle, threatening someone. Threating your own family no less.”

“I’ll explain it all to you. Right after…” he held out his hand towards Cal and motioned for the glass with his fingers.

“Really?” Cal took one more swig of the drink then looked at it. “You want this? You want this do you?” Uncle George nodded and this time Cal did throw it at him.

Uncle George once again displayed amazing dexterity considering the amount of drink he’d mostly likely already had today. He jumped to his right and the glass hit the floor with a loud crash sending shards of glass and amber liquid everywhere.

“God dammit, Cal! I told you it’s not like that at all!” Uncle George hissed as he looked down at his clothes and smoothed his jacket once more. His mouth twitched as he looked at the liquor on the floor and then forced his gaze back up to Cal. He squeezed his eyes shut tight and rubbed them with both hands. “Perhaps threat was the wrong word. I don’t want to hurt anyone, not that I even could. Well, it might hurt but not in the way you’re probably thinking. I mean look at me, dammit! I can barely hold myself up!” His voice cracked at that last part. “How am I going to hurt anyone? The only one I hurt these days is myself…”

And for just a moment, Cal felt guilty. He should have known his uncle hadn’t meant anything like that and Cal’s accusations honestly appeared to hurt him. Regardless though, his uncle was planning something against him and so it was of little consequence whether those threats involved bodily harm or not.

“I want to
prevent
anyone from getting hurt.” He pointed his finger at Cal again. “I want to prevent
you
from hurting anyone. That girl of yours, mostly.”

“You leave her out of this!”

“Oh, it’s too late for that. She’s already involved. And that was your doing!” He pointed at Cal again for emphasis. “
You
involved her in all of this. All I want to do is un-involve her. All I want to do is make sure that she can’t be hurt. That she won’t go through the same things as my Verna.”

“Ellie is not Verna, and I am not you!”
God dammit.
Cal hadn’t wanted his uncle to know her name and he most certainly had not wanted him to know how deeply he felt for her. But it was too late for that now. Cal was certain that the sound of his voice made his feelings for Ellie especially apparent, even for someone in his uncle’s state. Cal’s face twitched.

Uncle George waved his hand and scoffed. “Stop it. I already knew; both her name and your feelings for each other. Couldn’t you make that guess when I showed up at the door? I obviously knew more than you thought I did.”

Cal just clenched his jaw. He should have known, in hindsight he realized he probably had, but he hadn’t wanted to admit that he’d allowed himself to be so careless.

“And I know you’re not me.
I’m
not me. I didn’t start out like…
this.
” Uncle George held his hands out to his sides and looked down at himself with a small sniff. “I started out just like you, Cal.”

“I am nothing like you!” Cal said.

“
You are exactly like me,
” his uncle yelled in a raspy voice.

Cal bit his tongue not wanting to argue that specific point, as much as he disagreed.

“And if you hadn’t involved the woman I might just let this all go. All of it, even your work. Because I’m tired of fighting with you about it all, Cal.
I’m just bloody tired.
The only reason I never did anything more before was because you were alone in this, like you said yourself. No wife, no loved ones. But you’re not alone anymore so I won’t let it go. Not any of this. Not now.”

Cal crossed his arms. “And what exactly do you plan to do about it?”

“Well, that all depends on you.”

“How so?”

“I’m giving you a choice. It’s simple: the woman or the work you’re doing.”

“What?” Cal couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “What do you mean the woman or the work I’m doing?”

“I mean you have to make a choice, God dammit! You can stop working towards this bloody reform and keep your girl, or you can keep the reform and leave the girl. Not both. It’s not safe for her… or you.”

“
You
are telling
me
what to do?” Cal laughed once. “I’m not giving her up, you fool! And I’m definitely not giving up my work! It’s too important.”

“Oh-ho-ho,” his uncle chanted back. “Oh, yes you will.”

“And what if I don’t? What if I don’t make a choice?”

“Then I’ll make the woman hate you. Leave you.”

Cal’s stomach knotted up into a tight ball. “How?” he asked though he had a feeling he already knew the answer.

“I’ll tell her who you are before you have a chance to tell her. And I won’t paint a pretty picture of it either.”

Cal was fuming and speechless, and this emotion was not lost on his uncle.

“Yeah, I know about that too. I know she doesn’t know who you are because no one else around here knows it. Don’t worry, I won’t tell them and neither will anyone else because that would be dangerous for you. And as you’ve said before, you’re no good to the company if something happens to you… But her, I’ll gladly tell her if you keep putting her in danger. And now that they know about her, I wouldn’t put it past others to tell her either in order to get to you. So, you better make up your mind quickly.”

Cal felt the words bubbling up without thought and unable to stop himself he shouted, “That’s not fair… that’s not right!”

“Well, neither is this world. Just be thankful I’m letting you have one or the other. That sounds fair enough to me.”

Cal punched his fist against the wall. “You have no idea what you’re doing, uncle. Things are not the same now as they were then. I have told you that over and over again. This can work. I can make this work, both the reforms and my relationship with h— “

“Say you’re right, say your shareholders just let this go and you make your reforms and everything in your mills is wonderful. What then? What happens when other workers refuse to accept their lot and rise up against their employers or each other in competition? What happens when other mill owners and factory owners are forced to follow you with reforms—”

“Then change will happen! Lives will be saved. People will live with an honest wage and not die from starvation because even breaking their back working doesn’t yield enough money to buy food for their family…” Cal shook his head and then with fists clenched at his chest, through tight jaw he said, “And I’ll have finally done the first meaningful thing I’ve ever done in my life…”

“Is that how you see it, then? That you’re doing good for the world?” Uncle George ruffled his hair. “Is that how the other mill and factory owners will see it when they’re forced to take a cut of profits to improve the lot of people they find inferior? How do you think they’ll feel about that or you? How will they feel about or you? Or your girl? Money is a great motivator for the rich and poor alike. It makes people do things they would never do otherwise. It always has and it always will. And because of that, this pursuit will always be a dangerous involvement.”

“I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: my shareholders—”

“You’re not listening! Maybe it won’t be your shareholders. Maybe it will be the other mill and factory owners or maybe it will be their shareholders… Or the workers at other mills or any number of other sources. But wherever it comes from, there will be danger. There will always be—”

“It’s still not that simple. This is not black and white which is why—”

“Cal, stop. That doesn’t matter to me. What matters is that, this work of yours is dangerous for so many reasons. Bottom line. No discussion. And because of it, your woman is at risk.”

“Ellie will be just fine,” Cal said, but an old feeling of unease crept up inside and whispered to him that he was wrong.

You are not good enough. You will never be good enough... Especially not for someone as special as Ellie.

“Are you so sure about that?” Uncle George asked as if he could tell Cal’s sudden reservation.

“Sometimes the right thing is the hard thing. And sometimes it’s the dangerous thing—”

“And sometimes it’s just the selfish thing.”

Cal shook his head, but at this moment he wasn’t sure whether it was more for his uncle or whether it was an exercise to fight away his former demons. “Some things are more important than yourself and your own fears.”

“More important than her?”

Cal clenched his jaw in silence. He honestly didn’t know what to say.

“That’s what I thought. And I can’t answer that. Only you can. But you have to answer it.
You have to.
” He pointed at Cal once more. “So go ahead and make the choice before any of us have to find out that the answer is something we didn’t want to know. I’ll be back by later this week to see you and make sure you followed through. And if not…”

Cal opened his mouth to protest but he couldn’t find the words to express the anger and pain and frustration swirling around inside of him. For a moment he imagined punching his uncle in the jaw, knocking him onto the floor. But then what? God, he’d feel satisfied doing it, but he doubted it would change Uncle George’s mind. If anything, it would probably make him more determined to follow through on his threats. Cal dug the fingers of his twitching hand deep into his leg.