He’s fucking with me, got to be. “And you believed her just from that?” I think I’m missing something here. Shouldn’t he be in my face asking me what the fuck I thought I was doing with his daughter? That’s the least of what I expected when I left to come here.
I’d been prepared for a fight, had all my arguments lined up, but he’d knocked the wind from my sails with his easy acquiescence.
“How well do you know the girl you’re about to marry?” I wasn’t sure how to answer that. He was giving me weird vibes with his reaction; that’s for sure. So I just shrugged my shoulders in answer.
“Let me tell you something about my kid. She doesn’t say anything she doesn’t mean, and she has the focus of a trained surgeon with a scalpel. Most people wouldn’t put much stock in something like that coming from one so young, but my wife and I learned from an early age never to underestimate anything that comes out of Jenny’s mouth.”
“I can’t explain it; to anyone outside of the family, it might seem odd. She’s not psychic, neither does she have any other abilities other than an overly intelligent mind, but she can somehow hone in on something and just know the outcome.”
“When you were gone, she never mentioned it or you again. I’d all but forgotten it to tell you the truth, but as soon as you came back, my wife started keeping tabs. She’s the one who reminded me of Jenny’s words back then. When I teasingly reminded my daughter about what she’d said ten years ago, the look she gave me was all the answer I needed.”
“I can see from the look on your face that you’re a little lost and confused, don’t be. The more you get to know Jenny, the more you’ll come to understand how to deal with someone like her. Have you ever heard of a one-track mind? The phrase was made for her. Still confused?”
“I’m not sure confused is the right word. I’m just trying to understand how you could believe the words of an eight-year-old. How you took for granted that what she said would come to pass.”
“That’s easy; the kid has never been wrong about shit in her life. And ask yourself this, where are you now? Yeah, I see that got your attention.”
“You ever seen one of those movies where parents add locks to the outside of their kid’s bedroom door so they can sleep at night? If Jenny had a sinister bone in her body, that’s what our lives would’ve been like. She was born with an intelligence that I still don’t understand; I think she gets if from my father. He’s a scientist, you know, does shit with the brain.”
Oh damn, not this shit again. From what I know, the man sitting across from me is a businessman, he doesn’t look like anybody’s idea of the scientific type. Then again, neither does his daughter. What the fuck did I get myself into?
“But Jenny, for all she spooks the hell out of me and most everyone she comes into contact with, doesn’t have a mean bone in her body. She’s sweet as can be, and wouldn’t hurt a fly unless provoked. My advice to you, never underestimate her and try hard never to tell her no. Because I can tell you now, if it’s something she really wants, she’ll find a way to get it.”
“So, you’re saying that you’re okay with this.”
“I’m saying that I don’t have a choice, and from the looks of it, neither do you. Good luck.” What the hell was that supposed to mean? And that smirk, like he knew something I didn’t.
His words reminded me of the way she was in the beginning when I first came back. That disinterested thing she used to do. All that time she knew, she had no doubt. Again I asked myself why I wasn’t as freaked out as I should be. To be honest, nothing he was saying should make sense, but it did.
“I appreciate you coming over, though; it shows that you’re a decent guy. And by the way, I know the real story about what went down with your wife, though my wife doesn’t. As intelligent as my daughter is, she’s still my little girl.”
Now, this was more like it. For a minute there, I felt like I was in the twilight zone. His shit sounded like more of Jenny’s science hoodoo talk, which I admit goes right over my damn head. “I say that to say, if you hurt her in any way, the consequences will be dire.”
“I won’t hurt her. I don’t understand her the way you do, yet. But I do treasure the fact that she’s been in love with me all her life. I don’t mind telling you it’s strange as fu…it’s strange. But then again, I’m sure you already know that.”