Inside Man | ONC2023

4. Brothers

(Author's Note: this chapter is dedicated to lhansenauthor and her paranormal sci-fi story for the ONC2023, Bones on Mars. One of the most supportive authors on Wattpad!)

Rik Maddon sat back in his chair and watched as Georg paced up and down before him. His short blond hair stood up on end where he had run his hands through it and his face was pale with anger. A spot of red blazed on each cheek.

"It's not fair, Rik! I should be the one to take over the business at Avalain, not Tyler. I've spent weeks getting up to speed on the work they do there, I've studied the contracts until my eyes bled and I've got a good relationship with all the crew bosses. I've worked my butt off for this for nearly a year, ever since I heard Jutko was planning to retire. Dad knows that full well. He has no right to give the job to someone else."

Rik knew Georg had a point. He had worked hard, finally taking his part in their business seriously. But Rik knew his father couldn't forget those earlier years so easily, where Georg had been unable to settle, jumping impatiently from job to job without mastering any of them.

Georg stopped pacing and stared defiantly at Rik. "I feel like he doesn't trust me!"

"I don't think that's quite fair, Georg," Rik protested mildly. "It's only that he wants you to have more experience before you take on a senior role like that. Talk to him about it, but calmly this time and-"

"Oh, it's all very well for you!" Georg interrupted hotly. "Mr Perfect. He thinks the stars shine out of your arse!"

"That's enough!"

Realising he'd taken a step too far, Georg spun on his heel and stormed out, slamming the door behind him.

His brother sighed and rubbed his forehead. That was exactly the sort of behaviour which stopped their father giving Georg more responsibility.

There was only a year between them but today it felt like ten. And when had their relationship turned so antagonistic? Growing up they had been best friends, looking out for each other, having each other's backs, but now...

He spun his chair around and stared out the window. All of Syden lay before him, the old quarter to his left, its quaint coloured buildings stubbornly hanging on to their wooden roofs and the modern section to his right, tall structures of steel and plascrete, reaching for the sky. Rik saw none of it, his thoughts searching back over the past.

Was it when their father, Chris Maddon, had taken Rik into the company as a junior director while Georg was still finding his way? Well, that certainly hadn't helped, but relations had been strained before then.

He refused to believe it had been when he'd decided, that although he liked girls well enough, he liked boys more. Well, men to be precise. Surely Georg was better than that. His father had taken the news with barely a murmur, only a brief wistful comment about wanting grandchildren to carry on the line. Rik had lost no time in pointing out that the two desires were not necessarily incompatible, not these days. No, he didn't think that his sexuality was the cause of fraternal friction.

Perhaps it stretched right back to the events of that summer, six years ago, when Rik had been kidnapped and held for ransom. Fortunately, he'd been rescued more or less unharmed, mainly as a result of clever detective work on the part of Lisa and Hetha, two older women who'd also been on the camping trip. But that experience had changed him. Looking back, he thought he'd grown up. Before then, he and Georg had been boys together, young for their age, perhaps a little spoiled by their father's wealth and power.

Ironically, the camping trip had been chosen to expose them to a wider world, one where they were out from the sheltering umbrella of their father's influence. A trip where they would learn some independent living skills and self-reliance.

Well, it had certainly done that, though not quite in the way everyone had expected! The fear and humiliation of being completely in another's power for those few days of captivity had inspired Rik to vow that would never happen to him again. Next time someone attacked him—if there was a next time—he would be ready, able to defend himself. He had enrolled in self-defence classes and taken his fitness seriously. He'd even toyed with the idea of joining the Patrol for a few years to build up his skills, but that scheme had been squashed firmly by his father.

"You won't have time for that, Rik," he had said with a touch of impatience. "I need you working in the business now."

Rik sighed. Much as he valued being part of the family business, it seemed there was a lot of screen time and not much action. He was only twenty-four, for stars' sake, reaching the peak of his physical fitness, ready to climb mountains and explore remote sections of Belus, yet here he was stuck behind a desk. Only his fingers got to stretch themselves.

He sighed again. Sometimes, he felt as if life was passing him by.

His console unit buzzed a distinctive tune from the desk and Rik spun around, suddenly interested. An external source wanted to speak with him directly.

"Rik Maddon?"

"Speaking."

"Lieutenant Kohl here, from the Syden Patrol Unit. I'd like you to come in and see me, today, if possible. Seems we have something here that belongs to you."

"To me?" Rik was wary. "What is it?"

"A bag full of money."