Ava's Roulette

Chapter 8: Bargain and Seal

You are going to marry Charles. I felt my breath hitch. My heart and brain stopped simultaneously. Like the second of silence before a bomb blast. I trembled with anger, fear, and sorrow. I hoped I would wake up, or that we would all laugh, and father would say it was a joke. Anything. But my father kept going, letting me drown in my poisonous cocktail.

"Well. You will marry eventually. The deal requires you to fake a relationship for a year; get engaged for a couple of months; marry for about another year give or take; then divorce. The divorce proceedings should be quick given that no children or possessions are acquired along the way. So-"

"Children?" Charles mumbles and stands leaning over the table, shocked. It seems like that was the only thing he heard, and he looked terrified.

"Sit down Charles" Mr. Larson warned, and he immediately sat down. Like a well-trained dog. My father stares him down with his mouth frozen where he was cut off. He waits a beat, and then continues like nothing happened.

"No, the contract does not state that. It's best if you don't have any. Just be careful about it." My father continues nonchalantly "This has to be, believable, for Charles' benefit but not to that extreme."

I felt nauseous at the assumption. He had actually thought about it and considered it – us, having a child for some fucking contract. Or did he assume that because of Charles' reputation I would have fallen for him too? His unbothered nature and, again, knowing he planned this and prepared for all scenarios made me sick. I felt like the floor had fallen under me, unfortunately it left me stranded there. He's selling my freedom away like chattel. Tears stung my eyes as the cocktail of emotions threatened to burst out of me. But I stubbornly fought them back, refusing to cry in front of any of them.

"This has been signed by everyone in this room but you two" Mr. Larson said taking the contract and handing it to Charles, seconds later he produced a pen from his pocket and passed it on. I stared at Charles, bewildered, begging him mentally to not sign. He stared down at the pages and read through the contract. He sighed and rubbed the back of his neck with his free hand. I could see a vein popping out of his neck, and some beads of sweat forming at his hairline. There was a deafening silence as he looked down at the last page with our parent's signatures, and two lines reserved for his, and my own. He shot me a quick look.

He signed.

Hollow, he then excused himself from the room and Mr. Larson passed the contract and pen to me. The pristine paper slid into my view, and I held the pen. I watched Charles leave with an unreadable expression on his face.

"This is illegal" I whispered.

"Loud and clear Avery" My father says, impatient.

"This is illegal" I repeated, something finally exploding in my head, spreading fire down my body. Turns out the cocktail was highly flammable. "This is a forced marriage, illegal in the United States. I don't know what England's law states, but this is illegal here." I pointed at the floor to emphasize my point and stood up furiously. "I don't know what you were all thinking!"

"Avery" My father warns in a deep voice.

"But you should all be ashamed of yourselves" I nearly screeched at them. My throat was dry, and my jaw could barely open from how hard I had been grinding my teeth. Looks like I won't have any left when I'm old.

"Avery!" My father boomed as he shot up to match me. Steel eyes cut me down. "Stop with your melodrama and tell us what you want" I was stunned. He sat back down and placed both his hands on the table, he was in business mode. "I understand, Charles has all the benefits. You don't see any for yourself. What do you want?" He asked icily.

The tears I fought earlier threatened to come back as the fire had extinguished, but not used up all the fuel. He really doesn't get it, huh? I sat staring at the contract once more. I pretended to go through the pages like Charles had done, skimming over the points of our relationship. Minutiae meant to weave an illusion around us. Hundreds of thoughts crossed my mind. Yet one point caught my eye. I can't tell anyone, even Rob and Liz. My heart sunk, and I truly could not fight the cocktail entering my lungs. I kept skimming in silence, drowning. He can't love his company more than me, right?  We have never been close, as a family. None of us were ever close. But surely, I was not just property to him, to them. I tried to make sense of it all, why was father so calm about this? Then it clicked. I had to know. I started writing out new points on the last page. Mr. Larson shifted, interested in my reanimated demeanor. When I was done, I read them out loud.

"Mr. and Mrs. Dallinger, co-owners of Dallinger Inc. and identified previously as DALLINGER INC., may not speak to, write, visit, or otherwise contact Ms. Avery Dallinger after this contract is put into effect. This is valid in every instance unless it interferes with the credibility of the aforementioned relationship." My mother perked up tilting her head to listen better. Still, she did not face me.

"DALLINGER INC. may not speak to, write, visit, or otherwise contact Ms. Dallinger for ten years after the signing of the contract." Mr. Larson now eyed my father. My mother turned to me and opened her mouth to speak, but I did not tear my eyes from the last point.

"Ms. Dallinger may not speak to, write, visit, or otherwise contact DALLINGER INC. for ten years after the signing of the contract." I ended and looked at my father, expressionless. No melodrama, as he calls it. He mirrored me.

"Well, if that's what you want." Mother turned in a snap and whispered something to him. But he remained unbothered, his hard gaze moving down from my face to the paper. Mother whispered something more, but he did not turn to face her. Something in my heart broke as I saw this. Fine.

I signed.

Then, out of nowhere the image of Ace forced me to sit up. "I – I forgot to mention, I have a boyfriend." My father stood and walked over to my side. He took the pen, lifted the papers, and placed them in the folder they had come in with a finality I will never forget.

"His name is Charles"

Of course it was.