“What do you think?” he asked from the tablet.
Harlan chuckled a moment.
‘OK, thank you, Jillian,” Harlan said, still amused by Meyerwitz.
“You couldn’t Zoom or Skype? Call me, maybe?” Harlan asked.
‘It’s important. I wanted to be here.”
“But, but it’s no different,” Harlan scoffed.
“Listen. Who’s the lawyer?
“You.”
“I prefer confidentiality in my work. You could totally record a Skype session. No one would know. I talk to you on my own unit, the content is mine,” the attorney explained.
“This quarantine has turned you into a looney toon.”
“Can we get down to business? Something has come up. I don’t like it. I don’t even think I like talking about it.”
“What?” Harlan asked, truly curious.
“The girl.”
“‘The girl?”
“There’s a guy,” Meyerwitz told him.
“I thought it’s about a girl?”
“A guy and your girl.”
“Ah, Ok, my girl. Who will be 23 in August. And what guy?” Harlan asked.
“Some kid from Wisconsin who joined an Incel Activist Group. He claims you’re to blame.”
“What?” Harlan yelped, In-cels? The involuntarily celibate?”
“Right. He says that you lured young women with a contest, that they are trapped with you while you take advantage of them sexually and make them work for free while your key staff quarantine with family.”
“What? No, none of that is accurate.”
“You’ve been seen with Ms. Stadler, Harlan.”
“Yes. About Victoria. I never really imagined anyone could just come in and take over a job. It was a convenient situation to get some fresh opinions. So I never made any provisions to pay anyone.”
“And how would you characterize your relationship with Victoria Stadler,” his lawyer asked, looking at him from the small flat screen.
“Characterize? What does that mean really?”
“The press is going to have a field day with this kid’s story. Is it possible, and excuse me for not being more delicate in the matter. Battery life. Would It be possible for you to just leave this one alone?”
“Handle it, Barry. Please.”
The Ducati’s engine flying through the Midtown Tunnel at 70mph orchestrated a somber snarling fugue of Doplering reverberations.
Helmet at his side, Harlan walked along the well manicured grounds of the mausoleum where his father had been interred more than a decade ago, resembling a pilot returning from an awful tour of duty. He walked along the rows of names and familiar epitaphs until resting before his father’s
“You’re really not missing much these days. A new virus is out here killing people. Country in quarantine. All manner of insanity rampant in these conditions,” he laughed. “Anyway, I’ve actually met someone in all this. Someone a little different. The kinda girl who understands Sunday Dinner, you know?”
I’ve been with a lot of women I wanted to be with, but I never felt like I needed to be with any of them. Is that it? Is that how it works? And Dad, she likes it. I found her in my Auditorium. Probably the last thing I designed that we were both proud of. I caught her taking pictures of our archway system, after everyone had left.”
“If you’re happy, I’m happy. Just be sure she’s worth risking everything for.”
“She is. I’m sure.”
***
The cool blue light the pool threw combined with the warm glow of dusk randomly cast violet shadows. Tory casually swam to the end of the pool and returned in a lazy backstroke of relaxation. With plans to join Harlan for dinner, she laps the pool once more before climbing out and toweling off. She brushed her wet hair smoothly away from her face and draped her shoulders with her towel before walking to the elevator.
Upstairs in his lounge, Harlen watched Tory approach on the security camera’s feed. “Music,” Harlan prompted, “Dies Irae by Wendy Carlos” as he dark synth track started to play the elevator door opened above the lounge and Tory stepped out and tossed off the towel and basked in the warm sunset’s final glow aas it burned hotly into the horizon.
Seeing Harlan already naked her lips parted and breathing shifted in anticipation of any number of firsts in her short sex life.
“C’mon,” Harlan prompted lightly, extending his arm to her. Tory descended and took his hand.
“Turn around,” he said and took both her slim arms in his hands behind her then pushed his erection up between her legs and pressed up against the young firmness of her body with primitive satisfaction.
With her arms held behind her then under his, he began fondling her breast and teasing her nipples with his fingertips. She could see Harlan swollen tip poking out between her thighs boasting his size.
Hands pressed between their bodies, she started to stroke at his scrotum with her fingertips while Harlan undid her bikini top. He took it and quickly bound Tory’s wrist behind her back with the stretchy spandex. Kissing her back he played more roughly with her huge breasts.
“On your knees,” Harlan demanded, pointing to the area near the sofa where he had laid out additional cushions.