Obedience Lessons

Chapter Fourteen

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- Ender Xen

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Dylan's POV

The coordinator gave me the slightest of signals while I was on stage babbling away about students who needed creative outlets and for all the world thinking about Liam. How his creative outlet had been carving... lines into his skin. His torso, upper arms and thighs had all been marked by a weaving tapestry of self-inflicted pain. All because he had been too tightly controlled by my father.

I was interrupted briefly when a note was slipped into my hand by a nimble and familiar young woman who made a slight gesture towards the coordinator, as she apologetically backed away. I read it as I continued speaking.

"Mr. Ryman is here. Introduce him when you're done."

I dropped the slip of paper so that it flew across the floor. I stopped speaking. Casting my eyes around the room in alertness while the cold built in my stomach. Why? Why was he here, this wasn't the plan, it's not even his event! He hates the arts, this was Liam's program, he had no right. Of course, he had every right since it was actually his money.

My mouth had begun to pain me from the generic smile I had pasted on automatically while I gathered my wits. A darkness built up inside me. I had to get this over with, and soon or there would be no end of trouble. I continued my speech.

There he was. I found my father's tall, broad figure as he sipped his wine. He was talking to, was that... it can't be...?

It was. I picked out the messy blonde hair and well-fitted suit, knowing it was Andy. Of course my father knew exactly who he was. I was dumb enough to invite him over to the house after all. Maybe he was just here to prove a point.

Focus. I breathed in deeply. If anyone could stand his ground, Andy could, right? He's not like the rest. My father wouldn't be able to scare him away too. I smiled my phony smile that was supposed to make up for my talking gibberish. I couldn't finish this speech. I would lose my mind.

"Because this is how HiCaliber gives back to the people that build up the world. And here with us is the man who runs it all, my father," I wanted to hurl so bad. "Nelson Ryman."

I didn't hear the applause. I still can't remember leaving the stage. The next thing I knew was bending over a toilet, throwing up violently, again and again. Small hands patted my back, and offered tissue. "I'm fine, I'm -" I began to lie.

"No, sir. You're not fine." It was Louisa. Probably one of the last persons I'd expected to see. She stuck the tissues in front of my face and looked at me expectantly.

I took the Kleenex, wiping my mouth and flushing the toilet. "This is the Gents' room."

"No. It's not," She replied with a frown, as if wondering if I'd hit my head. Fuck. Maybe it was the Ladies' room. "I won't tell. I've locked the door."

I nodded. The gratitude would've tasted bitter in my mouth, since she probably helped my father spy on me. "Why?"

She knew what I meant. Why was she being nice, why was she helping me, why now, why not my brother? She shrugged, looking away and for the first time appearing defeated. This was a game. Some kind of trick. I began to think of ways I could manage to fire her. Say she sexually harassed me? Accuse her of fraud?

Then she spoke. "I know you."

"The fuck?" I rose up. I didn't want to be on my knees over a shitty bowl. I wanted to remind her of my position. I only slowed when I realised that doing that would make me exactly like my father. "What do you think you know about me?"

"I know you're gay. Like your brother was." She got to the point, not seeming to realise how easily she had restarted the ache in my chest. "I know that it's a problem for your father. A big enough problem that he's willing to hire an investigator and pay staff that are close to you to keep tabs on you."

"I knew that part too."

"Yeah. And you were a dick to me." She leaned back onto the counter and looked me up and down, shaking her head. "You're a pretty boy Mr. Ryman, but you've got the worst mean streak I've ever seen. And yes, I know about the dog."

I sucked in my breath. Seems like if everyone already knew about Spotty that Andy hardly had any blackmail material. I was fine with his kind of blackmail. Andy doing it turned me on, strangely enough. "So what now? You hand me Kleenex in a bathroom, give me a rundown I already knew and try to blackmail me too? What's it now, you want a fucking raise?"

Her eyes flashed a dangerous looking green and she folded her hands. "What is it with you Rymans and fucking money? Maybe I want to be treated like a decent fucking person, you ever thought of that!" She paused, breathing heavily and leaning over the sink as she regained composure. When she started again her voice was like iron. "I feel like shit, reporting on you like that.... And don't think I haven't tried being nice to you, I did. You were just having too much fun wearing your ass as a hat. And fucking Stanley of course. Bad move. He took most of those pictures."

I wanted to throw up again, but I refused to. I hated her seeing me like this. Her personality felt too sharp, like a hot knife in butter. And maybe she was right about knowing me. "That... that makes sense... But why would my dad fire him?"

"Friends with benefits wasn't in the spying contract, your father is an evil sonofabitch but he won't sell you. But don't get warm and cuddly yet, he won't do that because you have his last name, not because he loves you."

There it was. I knew he never loved me. He hadn't loved Liam either. My father always had such a perfect vision for the future that he never saw right in front of him. Liam's future was so bright that he'd forgotten both about Liam's wants, and completely about me for what was the best twenty-four years of my life. "So where does all this go from here? Since you know me so well you must have some ideas on how my story ends. Do tell... will Dylan end up in a ward? Or is he going to jail? Or do I have to wait for the next episode of Psychos -"

Her face fell and she looked worried now, casting her eyes around, looking for surveillance bugs? "Well, we are in the ladies' room," she muttered then sighed, deciding to speak. "Dylan I don't think you even realised how deep this shit goes but I've finally started to put the pieces together. That Christmas that Liam died. I don't think he committed suicide...and Dylan. You already know this part. Your brother was murdered."

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A/N: So you've noticed I love cliffhangers!

Lol, yeah, I'm a little sadist when it comes to humans :)