25
Governor's Mansion
Football practice at the high school ran longer than usual, so Timothy Jr. was late for dinner. As he walked toward the dining room, he felt a palpable unease in the air.
"Feels like someone dropped a tension bomb in here," he said as he turned the corner. "What's going — oh." He quietly slid into his seat across the table from his sister, Tamika, who was sitting beside their Aunt Mallory. At the head of the table sat his father, Timothy Tedesco Sr., and beside him, Elise — that woman whom his father wanted to marry. He hadn't actually told them that himself. Timothy Jr. had found out from his sister who had overheard their father talking about it with Aunt Mallory. That made Timothy Jr. wonder why Mallory hadn't spoke to them about it on her own. She was their mother's sister after all. He would have thought that she would be on their side — if it came to taking sides, that is.
Aunt Mallory jumped up from the table and hurried into the kitchen to retrieve Timothy Jr.'s plate from the oven.
"Good evening, Timmy," said the governor.
"Evening, Dad," mumbled Timothy Jr.
"You remember, Mrs. Mason."
Timothy Jr. squinted. "Yes, I do," he said. Get to the point, he thought. There was news coverage for a week. Of course, I remember her.
"We are really sorry about your loss," Tamika said. "We lost our mom the same day. So, we know how it feels."
Timothy Jr. couldn't decide whether Tamika was being sincere or whether she was just trying to make their dad and Elise feel guilty.
"Thank you," said Elise quietly. She looked down at her plate of deep-fried chicken, grilled rice, and mashed potatoes which was largely untouched. "I heard about your mother, and I'm really sorry... I wish things were different. That we had met under happier circumstances."
Aunt Mallory came back in, breaking the unease in the room by making a lot of noise setting Timothy Jr.'s plate down in front of him.
"Now, we're all here," she said as she sat back down in her seat. "Y'all eat up. Food's getting cold. And I believe we have a little family matter to deal with." Mallory gestured toward her brother-in-law with her fork.
Footsteps suddenly sounded in the hall, and Demas Tedesco walked in dressed in a sharp black suit and tie. "Now, we're all here," he said. "Wonder why I was not invited to this family meeting," he muttered staring pointedly at his father.
"I thought you would be busy," said Governor Tedesco.
"Well, I was busy," said Demas, "but family is important. I wouldn't want to miss whatever..." He paused for a moment and glanced at Elise. Tamika thought she saw a flicker of compassion in his eyes. Demas grabbed a chair and dragged it to the other end of the table across from his father. He sat down.
No one seemed to be eating.
Governor Tedesco cleared his throat and folded his hands on the table. "This is not going to be easy for any of us," he said. "About seven months ago, our families met with tragedy. Elise lost her husband and we lost your mother, Helene. Helene was...a wonderful and caring person who was a blessing to us as a family. But we were without her for many years before she died."
It sounded to Timothy Jr. like his father was making excuses for the growing distance between him and their mother. "Not really," he interrupted. "She was not without us. Me and Tamika saw her everyday — and Demas, when he could."
