Vera

Suspicion

Five weeks ago, Millicent Graves noticed a change in her husband's demeanor.  When he came home from work, he often went straight to bed, instead of eating dinner in front of the television.  He hardly spoke a word to her, and there was a constant look of fear in his eyes.  She was beginning to worry.

But every time she tried to talk to him about it, he became defensive. "Mind your damn business, woman." He would say.  He also called her ugly names, and even threw a whisky bottle at her.

She was not the kind of woman who put up with that shit for too long, which is why she was determined to get to the bottom of what was turning her husband into a ornery asshole. 

She grabbed her purse when he walked in the door one evening.  "I'm going out for a while."

Spencer didn't acknowledge her.  Instead, he went into his den and opened can of cold beer. 

Millicent left the house with a sigh.  She drove her Lincoln town car down the dark highway until she reached their fishing cabin, where her son decided that he wanted to live for no apparent reason.

Something was definitely going on between her husband and her son. They hardly spoke to each other anymore. She didn't know if they had a falling out because of something that happened at the job, or because of their rocky relationship.

Whatever the case, she was sick of it.

The porch light came on as she sauntered through the mud to get to the house. The door was opened, and her son stepped out. "Ma," He said, a smile gracing his face. "What brings you out here?"

"We need to talk, Victor."

"About what?"

"May I come in?"

"Of course." He pushed open the door and allowed her to come inside. "Would you like some tea?"

"Yes, thank you."   

Millicent examined the cabin with an amused grin while her son poured her a cup of freshly brewed green tea.  "You've actually managed to make this dump look livable.  Did you hire a maid?"

"Don't be silly, Ma.  This was all me."

"This cabin has a woman's touch."

"Never mind my house keeping skills.  What did you need to talk to me about?"

"Your father."

"What about him?"

"He's been acting different lately."

"Oh? How so?"

"Don't pretend you haven't noticed. I know the two of you haven't been speaking to each other."

"That's not true. We talk at work."

"I see," Millicent closed her eyes and sipped from her cup.  "Isn't it quite the coincidence that your father began displaying his strange behavior right about the same time your girlfriend's family disappeared? It's almost as though the two incidents are related, don't you think so?"