by Olivia Janae
Kate was learning a lesson she thought might be rather important one day. Flattery would get you everywhere with Jacqueline. The matriarch was standing in front of the crowd, beaming and giggling like a flattered schoolgirl.
“Well, if you insist,” she sighed and nodded to Leigh, who disappeared and then reappeared, rolling in the giant harp a few moments later.
“Subtle,” Charlie mumbled, her hand sarcastically breezing over the side of her jaw as she signed while she spoke.
Vivian snorted into her wineglass.
The business executives and board members rummaged around the room for seats, while Jacqueline smiled on expectantly, hands folded in front of her.
Vivian slyly tapped Kate’s arm. “This is the part where she thanks everyone for wanting to hear her play, as if it would never have occurred to her that she of all people could receive such a high honor.”
Jacqueline glanced sideways at the Sign Language and Vivian let her hands fall, looking blankly away and taking another sip from her glass.
“Thank you, everyone,” Jacqueline breathlessly said, “for joining me again this year. I hope you all ate your fill earlier. Dessert will be in another forty-five minutes, but for now the kind Carlyle Altman has asked if I will spare a moment of my time to share my heart with all of you.” She clutched her hands to her chest. “My harp.”
Vivian openly yawned. Jacqueline’s eyes tightened slightly around the edges in a way that made Kate glance at her girlfriend. If she didn’t know any better, she would say that Vivian was a little bit drunk. Had she seen Vivian notably drunk before?
“As always, I thank you for listening.” Jacqueline cut her words short in her annoyance, and instead of pushing forward, she slid behind the huge instrument and balanced it on her shoulder. She sent the group a large, if not sickly sweet, smile and began to play.
Kate’s eyes widened as the multi-tonal music began. She had seen harpists play before, it would have been impossible to miss it in her line of work, but being up-close like this, Kate felt her jaw drop. She had thought the cello took extreme dexterity, but that was nothing compared to this. One of Jaqueline’s hands moved in a constant rhythm, back and forth over one side of the strings, while the other languidly plucked, looking like a spider sprawled across its web. They twisted and contorted in ways Kate would have never thought possible, especially for a woman Jacqueline’s age, but she plinked out a song both light and breathtaking.
Kate thought back to all of the times that Jacqueline had given her some type of advice about playing a string instrument and decided that from now on, she would listen. She clearly knew what she was talking about. When Vivian had said that Jacqueline had sung with Lyric once, she had assumed that meant that Jacqueline was more of a singer than a harpist. This made her wonder what type of a singer she had been.
Max’s eyes were glued on the harp, watching like a cat watches a bird, his mouth slack and open. Kate wanted to chuckle, but she couldn’t be sure the same look wasn’t on her face, too.
The music seemed to go on far longer than the average living room piece, and the longer it went on the more agitated Vivian became. At first, she only sat looking bored, but then she began to sigh, shifting in her seat. Kate tried to take her hand, hoping it would offer some sort of comfort, but Vivian just smiled at her and politely pulled away.
Kate wasn’t offended exactly, but the rejection left the tiniest sting. What was happening in her girlfriend’s mind just then?
“What’s wrong?” she sloppily signed.
Vivian took a deep breath, tossing her short hair before she spoke. “The vanity of the Jacqueline Kensington Show has always been a specific dislike of mine,” she whispered back. “I apologize if I’m being rude. I will try to control myself better.”
Kate watched Vivian’s lips purse into a thin line and wondered what else she wasn’t saying. This wasn’t a new feeling. Though she had been told a few stories of what it was like to have Jaqueline as a mother, Kate always got the distinct impression that she didn’t fully understand.
Finally, with a few closing plucks, Jacqueline’s hands stilled, her face glowing as she fed off of the admiration of those around her. Kate sighed, clapping with everyone else. It wasn’t as though Vivian was wrong about her mother, that was the thing.
Charlie spat in Sign, her fingers flicking as though trying to get something vile from the tips.
“What?” Kate frowned, a little surprised. Charlie was in many ways a happy-go-lucky woman; what the hell about Jacqueline was it that brought this out in her?
Charlie answered fast, faster than she normally signed to her pupil, but Kate was able to pick up enough of the finger-spelled letters to understand. “Succubus.”
Everyone clapped politely, and Jacqueline stood, giving a small bow.
Vivian cleared her throat and gave Kate a significant look that had her heart immediately racing.
She glanced around, seeing that Jacqueline was indeed eyeing her.
She tried to calm her shaking hands, but she couldn’t, terrified that if she made a mistake now, she would ruin her chances for the Lyric audition before she even had the chance to take. That happened sometimes with invite-only auditions: someone decided you weren’t worthy and suddenly it was, ‘Oh, don’t bother coming, we are only holding the audition as a formality. We know who we want.’
“Now.” Jacqueline’s hands clasped under her chin. “Before we begin serving dessert, I was wondering if Katelyn,” she inclined her head, “the newest to our musical family, might be willing to join me.”
Kate’s heart hammered hard in her throat. It had not been a question. Jacqueline fully expected her to get up and play something, to fly by the seat of her pants.
“Of course,” Kate said stiffly because she couldn’t say anything else.
“Wonderful! Let’s take a small break and then when we return, we will hear something from our new star cellist.”
The phrase “star cellist” made Kate frown. She couldn’t help but notice Hilary’s face across the room. Her eyebrows were tight as she sullenly massaged her leg with her free hand.
Kate swore to herself.
Did Jacqueline know she was pitting them against one another?
Vivian rose, smoothing her clothing out with her lips still pursed. “Don’t be concerned. I know you will do wonderfully.”
Kate just gave a high, tittering laugh.
Vivian gave her an encouraging smile, and then she and Charlie went to the kitchen to pour themselves another drink since, whether at Jacqueline’s command or by coincidence, Leigh had stopped serving them.
“You’re a little green, dear.”
Kate flinched when Jacqueline appeared behind her. “What?” she squeaked.
Jaqueline’s eyes narrowed, not a woman to repeat herself. “I said, you’re looking a little green.”
Kate smiled stiffly, working to swallow back the nausea her nerves always produced.
She thanked all the powers-that-be when she saw the sheet music; it was something she had played before, though the music was not in the right key. She would have to change that as they played, and while that added some stress, it would not be too hard. Transposing was a common, though not favored, part of her career.
She pulled out her cello and did her best to avoid all of the eyes watching her curiously. Every guest had the same expectant look on his or her face, as though they were prepared to be wowed after the praise Kate had been given. It made Kate’s stomach lurch. What if she couldn’t? She was a good player, she knew that, but there were limits. She also knew without a doubt that she had no choice but to shine right now. Jacqueline had gotten her the spot in the upcoming Lyric audition, and she could take it away again. Covertly, Kate glanced at Hilary. There was also that. This situation wasn’t making her feel good at all.
Jacqueline literally owns my ass so hard right now, Kate thought. She didn’t like feeling like a marionette.
A few minutes later Jacqueline s
poke again, but Kate was having a hard time following. All she knew was that one moment Jacqueline was talking, saying something she thought was the apotheosis of wit, and the next she was behind her harp.
With a large, unified breath, they began to play.
Kate couldn’t remember the last time she had focused so hard, staring at the page so intensely that everything outside of it turned to a white fog. She felt her head move lightly, her bow balancing perfectly, and, though her breathing was slow and deep, her heart raced ahead of them at triple speed.
Her mind was a nonstop heckle machine, insisting that she had fumbled that note or botched that phrase, but when they finished, she looked up into Jacqueline’s face to find a prideful gleam.
Apparently, Kate had done very well.
She beamed, catching Vivian’s eye. Her girlfriend winked as she shook her hands in the air, the deaf culture’s rendition of applause.
Before she could take a deep breath, however, Jacqueline was nodding to her, a clear request for an encore and the process began all over again. She didn’t give herself time to think, if she did she would have been done for. She simply chose a piece that she knew from memory and began to play.
“Oh, I thought I was going to throw up,” Kate groaned into Vivian’s neck, letting Charlie interpret for her as they hid in the kitchen a few minutes later. She hadn’t been able to get out of the salon fast enough. As soon as Jacqueline released her, she had run, following Vivian and Charlie into their hiding place far in the depths of the house, away from the eyes of the esteemed guests.
Max had stayed by Jacqueline’s side, far too interested in the harp lesson he was receiving to join them.
“Aw,” Vivian purred in her deep, rich voice, and tickled the back of Kate’s neck. “You did wonderfully. I could tell. One begins to gain a sense of these things, you know.”
Kate leaned back, trying hard not to make a face Max made when served Brussels spouts. “Oh yeah?”
“Yes,” Vivian grinned, leaning in and kissing her deeply.
Charlie groaned. “Room. Get one.”
“She was testing you,” Vivian continued with a playful scrunch of her nose. “And you rose to the occasion. She clearly loves you.”
“I don’t really get it, but she seems to. Is it a trap?”
“It very well might be,” Vivian laughed.
Kate shook her head. “I thought I was going to fall flat on my face. You know that Altman will be overseeing the Lyric auditions, right? I don’t know if I just made my chances better or worse.”
Vivian smiled devilishly. For a moment, Kate could see the rebellious teenager still locked somewhere within her. “I do know indeed.” She took a deep breath, clearly steeling herself before she asked. “Would you like to go somewhere and make out, Ms. Flynn?”
“Oh god,” Charlie cried, covering her ears, “you haven’t changed at all since high school!”
Kate took Vivian in her arms, nuzzling her neck. “I think you’re drunk, Ms. Kensington.”
Charlie cried, jumping in place. “This is when my job gets weird.”
Vivian ignored her friend’s skeezed-out signing. “Mm, I think I am, Ms. Flynn. That does not change the fact that I would like to see you in the downstairs bathroom, please.”
“Jesus! Nope. Nope. I’m officially off-duty. This is not about to become a weird threesome. Peace,” Charlie cried, starting toward the door.
“Did you see Hilary?” Kate asked, the thought occurring to her as she shared a devilish smile with her girlfriend.
Vivian’s face fell. “I did.”
“Viv?”
“Ladies and gentlemen, dessert is served,” Jacqueline called from the hallway. She waltzed instantly through the kitchen door. Kate jumped away from Vivian, but Jacqueline didn’t seem to notice, eyes darkly glued to her daughter. “How much wine have you had, dear?”
Vivian blinked a bit and looked to Charlie whose dramatic retreat had been cut off for the time being. She sighed as Charlie translated. “Don’t worry, Mother, I won’t embarrass you tonight. I promise that you are safe.”
Jacqueline floated in, stopping before her daughter. She reached forward and caressed her cheek, making Kate frown. For just a moment the touch looked genuine, soft and sweet, but then Jacqueline spoke. “You always were a petulant child, weren’t you, Vivi?” Before Vivian could respond, Jacqueline turned to Kate. “Katelyn, dear, would you follow me, please? I have something I would like to show you before dessert.”
Kate’s hand was still on Vivian’s back, so she felt it when, beside her, Vivian’s body went completely stiff. “Um.”
“Come along.” Jacqueline offered her elbow, and Kate took it, knowing she didn’t have a choice.
“Right. I’ll, err, be right back.”
Vivian gave a nod, and, as if to convince her that she did indeed need to hurry, she pulled her in for a mouthwatering kiss that made Kate’s head spin.
“Katelyn,” Jacqueline began as they ascended a grand staircase. “I was wondering if I could confer with you about a Christmas gift I have been considering for Vivian.”
“Oh?” She couldn’t help but notice that in person Jacqueline always called her ‘Vivi,’ which Vivian hated, but away from her, it was back to the acceptable Vivian.
“Yes, dear.” Jacqueline opened the door to a huge office and directed Kate to a seat in front of a giant cherry wood desk. “I assume that is something you will deem acceptable.”
“Uh, yeah.” Kate frowned, uncomfortable. “I’m not sure how much I can help you though.” That feeling of somehow being on the wrong side was overwhelming her again. “I’ve been kind of stuck on what to get her myself, so...” She let her words trail off, unsure what else to say.
“Well.” Jacqueline sat, ramrod straight, her hands laced together on the desk. “All the better then.” The Kensington matriarch turned and rifled through her desk drawers before handing Kate a pamphlet covered in colorful pictures of ear canals and brainwaves. “This is what I was thinking.”
Kate studied the papers, not sure what she was reading. “A cochlear implant?”
“Yes, dear.”
“I’m sorry.” She shook her head a little. “There’s a lot of doctor speak on this page. What is this supposed to be exactly?”
Jacqueline’s lips pursed, and she took a moment, as though she needed to process after Kate’s obvious stupidity. “It allows the deaf to hear, Kate.”
2
“I don’t… I don’t understand,” Kate stammered. Though the pamphlet’s pastel images were labeled with things like “sound processor,” “hearing nerve,” and “internal implant,” she wasn’t sure exactly what they meant. What exactly did “allow the deaf to hear” mean?
“Of course.” Jaqueline nodded with a slightly exasperated eye roll. “A local otolaryngologist has become a good friend of mine, and he assures me it’s just a little surgery to help our… shall we say, situation?”
“Situation?”
“That’s what I said, Katelyn, don’t play daft.”
“So, wait.” She knew that she was wearing on Jacqueline’s patience, but she just couldn’t wrap her head around this idea. “This little thing here, this internal implant would make her hear?”
“Yes.”
“How?”
Jacqueline tsked. “The pamphlet explains. Really, Katelyn.”
“Sorry,” she mumbled and read through the pamphlet again, growing more concerned as she did. “It goes inside of her body?”
“That is why they call it internal, Katelyn.”
Kate scowled, put-off. “Isn’t that kind of invasive?”
“I think you are missing the point. Vivian will be a normal person when this is done.”
“She is normal.”
“And yet…”
Kate opened her mouth, not sure at all what she was going to say, her mind still a swirl of thoughts. “I just—”
A knock at the door silenced her before she could begin.
Leigh’s head popped through the gap, a detached smile on her face. “Ms. Kensington, Mr. Keen is looking to speak to you.”
If Jacqueline responded, then Kate didn’t catch it, too busy staring at the pamphlet. Her mind felt crowded, like too many questions were trying to shove their way out at once. A roadblock had formed between her brain and her mouth.
“So,” Jacqueline stood, “I would like you to think about this. Think of how it could change Vivian’s life.”
Mouth still open, Kate looked up at Jacqueline and realized that she was standing over her, a hand out to lead her back downstairs.
“Err, right.” She pushed to her feet.
“Hide that for now, please. It would be a terrible gift if Vivian already knew about it.”
“Don’t you think—”
But Jacqueline’s hand sliced the air, her look sharp enough to cut glass. “Not a word.”
The surge of questions doubled, and Kate grimaced, realizing a sharp headache was forming behind her left eye. She watched as Jacqueline took the pamphlet, folded it, and pushed it into Kate’s back pocket
“I assume you’ve heard of the audition in Louisville?”
“Uh.” Kate cleared her throat. Though the change in subject was abrupt, this topic was easier to digest. It didn’t short-circuit her brain. “Yeah. Yeah, I have.”
“Have you received your audition time yet?” she asked as she led Kate down the long flight of stairs.
“What? Oh, no. I’m not taking it.”
Jacqueline gave a laugh, one that would have sounded rich and warm had Kate not known better. “Don’t be obtuse! Of course you will take it. I fully expect you to take it, Katelyn.”
Kate’s feet stopped of their own accord on the bottom step, her mouth pulled down into a deep frown.
A moment of annoyance passed over Jacqueline’s face, the same look her daughter often wore when speaking to members of the board. “It should help you get into better shape for the Lyric audition.”
The way Kate’s brain was processing three times slower than normal was beginning to make her feel stupid. She wasn’t sure if she had ever been told she had to take an audition before. She wasn’t sure how to take the command. She looked into Jacqueline’s politely vague face and understood the implication, understood what she was really saying. Take the audition, or else your other audition is in jeopardy.