I stand up and start to head to the bar. The one at the corner of his study. There’s nothing new about this room. It’s as if it’s stuck in a time warp. The same antique chairs in the corner, the same mahogany desk that should have been replaced a long time ago and the photo of him and grandma on top of his desk.
“Do you want one?” I say as I lift up a tumbler and realize that something has changed. This bar used to be stocked with different types of whiskeys, brandies and all kinds of liquor. Now, there’s just one bottle of bourbon.
He shakes his head, “No.”
I shrug and take off my tie and jacket which feel as if they’re ropes hanging around my neck and suffocating me.
Then as I pour a bourbon he sighs, “I didn’t want to do this. I can’t have you running the company down to the ground like your dad did.”
I knock back the bourbon and as it burns my throat and I think twice about pouring another one, but he’s still going on about what’s on his mind.
“I need you to stop ruining not only your life but mine too. It’s my fault.”
I turn to face him; he has his hands on his desk. He’s rubbing it as if he’s reliving a memory. One that I told him to lock away and turn away the key.
“Your dad was a good man. Don’t get me wrong; I loved Ben just like I love you. I pushed him when his mother told me that he’s not a ruthless business man. I pushed him over the edge.”
I agree, “You fucking did that alright.”
He ignores me as he says, “I saw that you had the steam, the one that was ready to run the company. You took after me in many ways.”
I choke, “Going to the office with you was the most excitement that I’d had as a kid. All I used to dream about was being you. Making people run around and jump to my command. You had that way about you that everyone did that as soon as you walked in the door.”
“Yes, but it consumed me. So much so that I pushed your dad and looked what happened to him.”
I sigh as I decide that there’s no point topping up the glass. I’ll just drink straight from the bottle, and then I sit down and face him as he revised the painful memory of dad when he was the CEO for two years.
“I didn’t want to take your dad out of his position, but I had no choice…”
“Blah, blah, blah…it doesn’t matter. As I said, I need money. Fast. Let’s not pussyfoot around and talk about the past. Because if I don’t have the financial injection soon, then Winters Industry will be closed and not passed to another generation. Not that there is any generation to pass it to,” I laugh as I start to sip from the bottle. I’m starting to feel disorientated as the bourbon’s not offering com
fort but if anything it’s starting to give me a headache.
“Son, you’ve been like this ever since Dede died and I-“
“Don’t you fucking bring her name into this!”
I’m trying to stand up, but then I flop back into the chair. I drank too much, and the worst part is I can’t remember the last time that I ate. This is turning into a fucking disaster.
“Isaac you leave me no choice!”
I’ve never seen the old man raise his voice. Not true, I’ve seen him but as he turns a deeper shade of red and then heads closer towards me. He takes the bottle of my hand and rants on, “Your drinking’s out of control. You took out a loan to invest in a company that’s not even related to our industry. You took out a loan against your apartment and even your flipping house.”
“Damn! Someone’s been busy.”
He shakes his head, “Not busy enough because I’ve tried. I call, I come to visit, and you go out of your way to avoid me. I was shocked that you said you would come here today, but then when I learned about the state of affairs, I knew that it was only for one reason. Money. Listen carefully, because I won’t be repeating myself. You see that beautiful woman that you saw when you came here.”
I nod my head because one minute he’s talking about money and the next he’s talking about women.
“Seriously, I don’t need to know about your love life. What you do with your life is your business. I just came here for the money.”
“Three months Isaac. You move here. Live here. I help you with your drinking and if at the end of that you marry Olivia. Everything becomes yours.”
He’s got to be fucking kidding me!
“I’m not going to be blackmailed into marriage. Let alone living in the one place, I can’t stand to visit. What makes you think that everything will happen in three months time?”
He sighs, “That’s how long the doctors have given me to live. I want it all to go to you, but things need to change.”