Thoroughly Whipped

He turned his head and stared out at the tree line just beyond the bridge. “When she got sick, I thought, God wouldn’t be this cruel to take her from me and my boy.” King smiled. I think it was the first time it had ever appeared genuine. “She adored Harry. He could never do wrong in her eyes. That boy could have burned down the house, and she would have argued he was just trying to keep us warm.”

I found myself laughing, yet simultaneously felt my heart breaking. His smile slipped from his face. “I buried my head in the sand and refused to believe we were losing her. I…” His breathing stuttered. “I didn’t even call for Harry in the end. He missed telling his mum goodbye because I just couldn’t face reality.”

“He would forgive you for that, if he hasn’t already.”

“Yes. He told me that when I confessed it was my biggest regret.” King tapped his chest, over his heart. “When I came through the surgery.”

“It would have destroyed him if you’d died too,” I said and saw King’s eyes glisten.

“In that moment, as I was coming out of the surgery alive, Harry’s optimism reminded me of my wife, of the reason I fell so in love with her. It was the best trait of hers he could ever have inherited. Better than my dour nature.”

“Your wife was beautiful.”

“She was. But it was her spirit that hooked me in so deeply. Her rebellious nature. In a world full of black and white, she was a solitary streak of color.” I had to bite my lip to stop it from trembling. I’d never known King could speak so purely about someone he loved. But that was the point, of course. I didn’t really know him at all.

“I always thought of her as a walking watercolor painting, brightening the world wherever she went. When she died, all the color faded from the world. It faded from me too.”

“You lost the love of your life. It’s the worst thing a person can endure,” I said, believing every word.

“It is, but failing as a father is tied for that title.” I tensed and held my breath for what King would say next. He angled his body slightly my way and said, “I failed to be the father Harry needed when he was younger and until now. But I won’t do that again.”

My mind raced and my hands began to shake. “I almost died, and I will tell you that coming out of the other side makes you realize just how precious life is, and that it is to be lived.” King went quiet for a moment, contemplating. “And I haven’t done much living for too many years.” I looked at the flowers around us, the lavender scent from the field calming my nerves. “Harry doesn’t know it yet, but I’m retiring.”

“What?” I whispered, shocked.

“Harry is better in the business world now than I am. It has changed, is rolling with the times, and Harry is good at what he does. Excellent, in fact. It’s time he took the mantle.”

I tried to process that information. But more than that, I tried to understand what that promotion would mean for us. “It’s a lot to take that kind of responsibility on.” I nodded, somewhat numb and, if I was being honest, a little afraid. “He will need someone to support him. Someone to help him through rough waters.”

I sighed. Louisa. He was referring to Louisa.

“My son has chosen you, Faith.” I whipped my head to King, eyes wide and mouth parting, but no words would come. King chuckled. Actually friggin’ chuckled. “He spoke to me quite frankly when I came to after the surgery.” He shook his head in disbelief. “Never in my life have I seen my son so full of conviction as when he spoke of you. Of when he told me how disappointed he was in me for interfering and for not trusting him to know what is best for him. For his life. And more than that, his happiness.”

King took hold of a walking cane and moved to get up. “He has chosen you, Faith. And I won’t lose him. He’s all I have that’s good in the world, and I won’t lose him because I think I know what’s best.” I just stared at King. “I’m retiring from the business, maybe I should retire from trying to govern Harry’s life too. The world is evolving, tradition is dying, the old stuffy ways of society are gradually giving way to the new. It’s time for me to let go.” It was too much; this fluttering in my heart and warmth in my blood was all too much.

“But Faith, if you decide to be with my son, stay by his side. You have to know that there will be those in our circles who will talk. Who will ignore you because you are different. Who might offend you because you weren’t bred for the station you’ve been thrust into. Sometimes you will find yourself in a viper’s nest.”