Chap.14- Mindreader
The sweet smell of homemade pancakes slowly made its way through all the rooms of the house. As the scent wafted into Vaughn's room, his stomach growled hungrily and he opened his eyes painfully, now aware of the strong rays that shone on the floor of his room.
He lifted himself into a sitting position and stared at the full sun. Smiling, he realized that he hadn't slept so long or so well in a long time. Feeling the comfortable sheets and looking around the room of his childhood, memories of the past flooded into his mind.
His stomach, growling once again, reminded of his constant hunger pains and he got out of bed to rush downstairs, only stopping slightly to grab a sweater from his luggage. As he set foot into the kitchen, Bridgette was handing Sydney the spatula and after kissing Michael on the cheek, took a wicker basket with a cloth over it from the counter and walked out the door.
Vaughn sat down at the empty seat at the table and forked three pancakes from the stack onto his plate. He drizzled the syrup over the pancakes generously and placed a pat of butter on top, watching the butter melt in the heat of the pancakes and flow over the sides and onto the plate.
Sydney, observing him from the stove, smiled at his boyish eagerness for his mother's pancakes. Walking over, she placed a new stack of steaming pancakes on the empty plate, and returned to the stove again, scraping the last of the batter from the bowl.
After they all had finished eating, Sydney fended off Mark's eager fork and wrapped the last of the pancakes with foil for Bridgette before they got cold. Vaughn frowned. His mother had been gone for almost an hour and a half. Suddenly bolting up, Vaughn jogged to the front of the house and peeled back the curtain. True to her word, the car wasn't there.
Worry and panic encased Vaughn's mind. He knew that he would never be able to forgive himself if something had happened to her because she was trying to take care of the car for him and he had blithely agreed.
"She'll be back soon." A soft voice whispered from behind him.
He turned around to find Sydney with the same worried expression on her face, the guilt eating her up inside. They looked toward the dining room where Mark, Ana, and James were talking happily, well rested, and unaware of anything that had happened in the early hours of the morning.
Before Vaughn could answer her or Sydney offer another comment of reassurance, the back door swung open, and Bridgette walked in, her basket empty of its previous contents, but now filled to the brim with eggs.
Sydney and Vaughn looked at each other in relief and went to help Bridgette transfer the eggs from the basket into the refrigerator. Bridgette, walking over to the sink to wash the dirt from under fingernails, thanked Mark graciously for saving her some pancakes, while he hung his head guiltily and eyed the pancakes hungrily.
"What were you kids planning to do today?" Bridgette asked.
They all shrugged.
"What is there to do?" James asked, unable to think of any suggestions.
"Well...the fences and the shed need to be painted before winter and the rain comes. Sydney, you can help me with the cooking and Michael, I need you to do some lifting for me." Bridgette said, directing Mark, James, and Ana to the paint and the brushes.
Hours passed by and the sky was beginning to darken. Bridgette waved Mark, James, and Ana into the house hurriedly for dinner while Sydney and Vaughn set the table. The three trudged up the porch steps wearily.
"How was painting?" Sydney asked them.
"Ah...it was okay the first half mile or so..." Mark answered sarcastically.
"It's worse than training..." Ana groaned.
"Well...I wouldn't go that far." James answered.
Bridgette smiled at the lively chatter and served heaping portions onto their plates. It quieted down quickly as the smell of food reached their noses and the plate was set in front of them. The "painters" wolfed down their food and after a few minutes of conversation, excused themselves from the table, answering the call of sleep.
Vaughn, Sydney, and Bridgette were not even halfway through their plates and they sat silently, chewing, until Bridgette broke the silence.
"How is Lauren?" She asked her tone edgy.
"Fine." Vaughn answered, straying from the topic and the fact that Bridgette would never have any grandchildren.
"And the new house?"
"Good. You should come visit, Maman." Vaughn said.
"No...I couldn't leave here." Bridgette said.
"You really should come, Bridgette." Sydney added. "The neighborhood is amazing."
"You've been to Michael's house?" Bridgette asked, questioningly.
"No, no." Vaughn intercepted quickly. "Sydney and I are neighbors."
Bridgette looked at her son, surprised.
"What a coincidence..."
Sydney and Vaughn nodded in agreement and Bridgette looked at her son in a way that Sydney could not decipher. Feeling as if she was intruding, Sydney quickly finished off what was left on her plate.
"I'm going to head upstairs." Sydney announced. "Thank you for the dinner, Bridgette. Good-night."
"Good-night, Sydney." Bridgette said and when she heard the water running, she looked at her son again. "Is that her?"
Vaughn sighed, knowing what was on her mind. Nodding, he answered.
"That's her."
"Ms. Derevko's daughter?"
"Yes."
"Your colleague?"
"Yes."
"Your neighbor?"
"Yes."
"Your true love?"
Vaughn's head jerked up and Bridgette looked intently at her son. He knew that she could read him well, but only she knew how well she could.
"Yes." He answered steadily.
Bridgette smiled, but her smiled disappeared quickly.
"Be careful, Michael. You are a married man. I will not have my son sink to that low of a level..." she warned.
"I know, Maman." Vaughn told her, dropping his fork onto the plate. "She is married too. And..."
"And..." Bridgette prompted.
"And I don't know if she still feels the same way."
Vaughn shifted uncomfortably in his seat. He was close with his mother, yes, but they had never had a discussion like this before. Bridgette nodded, knowing the complicated and delicate situation between Sydney and her son.
"You need sleep." She said, noting his slumped shoulders.
Vaughn nodded in agreement. Rinsing his plate quickly, he placed it in the dishwasher and gave his mom a quick kiss on her cheek.
"Good-night, Maman."
"Good night, Michael."
After sitting at the table for a couple of minutes, Bridgette got out of her chair and began transferring all the leftovers into Tupperware to store in the refrigerator. Humming and unable to keep from smiling, Bridgette thought of the prospect of having Sydney as a daughter in law, but quickly erased the thought from her mind, admonishing herself and remembering that she already had a daughter in law.
She had known about Sydney's connection with William's death for a long time, and she did have to admit that for a short period of time, she had felt incredible hate towards Sydney, seeing her as the offspring of an evil woman.
But over the course of time, her emotions didn't override her common sense anymore and she could see that Sydney was an innocent and beautiful girl who did not choose to be Irina Derevko's daughter.
In her heart, she felt that William and Irina's connection with each other, as bad as it was, was for a good reason. She smiled again, and picking up another wicker basket, she walked out towards the cool night air, closing the door gently behind her.
'William,' she thought, looking up towards the stars and the heavens 'help our son be happy.'
The sweet smell of homemade pancakes slowly made its way through all the rooms of the house. As the scent wafted into Vaughn's room, his stomach growled hungrily and he opened his eyes painfully, now aware of the strong rays that shone on the floor of his room.
He lifted himself into a sitting position and stared at the full sun. Smiling, he realized that he hadn't slept so long or so well in a long time. Feeling the comfortable sheets and looking around the room of his childhood, memories of the past flooded into his mind.
His stomach, growling once again, reminded of his constant hunger pains and he got out of bed to rush downstairs, only stopping slightly to grab a sweater from his luggage. As he set foot into the kitchen, Bridgette was handing Sydney the spatula and after kissing Michael on the cheek, took a wicker basket with a cloth over it from the counter and walked out the door.
Vaughn sat down at the empty seat at the table and forked three pancakes from the stack onto his plate. He drizzled the syrup over the pancakes generously and placed a pat of butter on top, watching the butter melt in the heat of the pancakes and flow over the sides and onto the plate.
Sydney, observing him from the stove, smiled at his boyish eagerness for his mother's pancakes. Walking over, she placed a new stack of steaming pancakes on the empty plate, and returned to the stove again, scraping the last of the batter from the bowl.
After they all had finished eating, Sydney fended off Mark's eager fork and wrapped the last of the pancakes with foil for Bridgette before they got cold. Vaughn frowned. His mother had been gone for almost an hour and a half. Suddenly bolting up, Vaughn jogged to the front of the house and peeled back the curtain. True to her word, the car wasn't there.
Worry and panic encased Vaughn's mind. He knew that he would never be able to forgive himself if something had happened to her because she was trying to take care of the car for him and he had blithely agreed.
"She'll be back soon." A soft voice whispered from behind him.
He turned around to find Sydney with the same worried expression on her face, the guilt eating her up inside. They looked toward the dining room where Mark, Ana, and James were talking happily, well rested, and unaware of anything that had happened in the early hours of the morning.
Before Vaughn could answer her or Sydney offer another comment of reassurance, the back door swung open, and Bridgette walked in, her basket empty of its previous contents, but now filled to the brim with eggs.
Sydney and Vaughn looked at each other in relief and went to help Bridgette transfer the eggs from the basket into the refrigerator. Bridgette, walking over to the sink to wash the dirt from under fingernails, thanked Mark graciously for saving her some pancakes, while he hung his head guiltily and eyed the pancakes hungrily.
"What were you kids planning to do today?" Bridgette asked.
They all shrugged.
"What is there to do?" James asked, unable to think of any suggestions.
"Well...the fences and the shed need to be painted before winter and the rain comes. Sydney, you can help me with the cooking and Michael, I need you to do some lifting for me." Bridgette said, directing Mark, James, and Ana to the paint and the brushes.
Hours passed by and the sky was beginning to darken. Bridgette waved Mark, James, and Ana into the house hurriedly for dinner while Sydney and Vaughn set the table. The three trudged up the porch steps wearily.
"How was painting?" Sydney asked them.
"Ah...it was okay the first half mile or so..." Mark answered sarcastically.
"It's worse than training..." Ana groaned.
"Well...I wouldn't go that far." James answered.
Bridgette smiled at the lively chatter and served heaping portions onto their plates. It quieted down quickly as the smell of food reached their noses and the plate was set in front of them. The "painters" wolfed down their food and after a few minutes of conversation, excused themselves from the table, answering the call of sleep.
Vaughn, Sydney, and Bridgette were not even halfway through their plates and they sat silently, chewing, until Bridgette broke the silence.
"How is Lauren?" She asked her tone edgy.
"Fine." Vaughn answered, straying from the topic and the fact that Bridgette would never have any grandchildren.
"And the new house?"
"Good. You should come visit, Maman." Vaughn said.
"No...I couldn't leave here." Bridgette said.
"You really should come, Bridgette." Sydney added. "The neighborhood is amazing."
"You've been to Michael's house?" Bridgette asked, questioningly.
"No, no." Vaughn intercepted quickly. "Sydney and I are neighbors."
Bridgette looked at her son, surprised.
"What a coincidence..."
Sydney and Vaughn nodded in agreement and Bridgette looked at her son in a way that Sydney could not decipher. Feeling as if she was intruding, Sydney quickly finished off what was left on her plate.
"I'm going to head upstairs." Sydney announced. "Thank you for the dinner, Bridgette. Good-night."
"Good-night, Sydney." Bridgette said and when she heard the water running, she looked at her son again. "Is that her?"
Vaughn sighed, knowing what was on her mind. Nodding, he answered.
"That's her."
"Ms. Derevko's daughter?"
"Yes."
"Your colleague?"
"Yes."
"Your neighbor?"
"Yes."
"Your true love?"
Vaughn's head jerked up and Bridgette looked intently at her son. He knew that she could read him well, but only she knew how well she could.
"Yes." He answered steadily.
Bridgette smiled, but her smiled disappeared quickly.
"Be careful, Michael. You are a married man. I will not have my son sink to that low of a level..." she warned.
"I know, Maman." Vaughn told her, dropping his fork onto the plate. "She is married too. And..."
"And..." Bridgette prompted.
"And I don't know if she still feels the same way."
Vaughn shifted uncomfortably in his seat. He was close with his mother, yes, but they had never had a discussion like this before. Bridgette nodded, knowing the complicated and delicate situation between Sydney and her son.
"You need sleep." She said, noting his slumped shoulders.
Vaughn nodded in agreement. Rinsing his plate quickly, he placed it in the dishwasher and gave his mom a quick kiss on her cheek.
"Good-night, Maman."
"Good night, Michael."
After sitting at the table for a couple of minutes, Bridgette got out of her chair and began transferring all the leftovers into Tupperware to store in the refrigerator. Humming and unable to keep from smiling, Bridgette thought of the prospect of having Sydney as a daughter in law, but quickly erased the thought from her mind, admonishing herself and remembering that she already had a daughter in law.
She had known about Sydney's connection with William's death for a long time, and she did have to admit that for a short period of time, she had felt incredible hate towards Sydney, seeing her as the offspring of an evil woman.
But over the course of time, her emotions didn't override her common sense anymore and she could see that Sydney was an innocent and beautiful girl who did not choose to be Irina Derevko's daughter.
In her heart, she felt that William and Irina's connection with each other, as bad as it was, was for a good reason. She smiled again, and picking up another wicker basket, she walked out towards the cool night air, closing the door gently behind her.
'William,' she thought, looking up towards the stars and the heavens 'help our son be happy.'