by Elin Peer
My mom hesitated. “I can’t say for sure, but I think it’s connected to something Jonah told him.”
“Jonah?”
“Yes. Dad was so upset after you left. It was strange, because he kept repeating how he could easily win a fight against Jonah.”
“That’s odd. It’s not like Jonah was ever a threat.”
“I know. That’s what makes it so weird. Did Jonah talk to you about his conversation with Magni?”
“No, he just said that Dad threatened to punch him.”
“Hmm. I asked your dad, but the only answer I got was that he wouldn’t bother remembering anything that pompous ass had to say.”
“Jonah isn’t pompous. He’s the most grounded person I know.”
My mother’s voice turned soft. “I know that, dear, and the next time I see him, I’m giving Jonah the biggest hug because I don’t know what he told Magni, but by some miracle, it was the push he needed.”
“That’s good.”
“Yes. And you’ll be happy to know that the little ones are having a great time with Athena. It’s a good thing that she has the patience of a saint, because all those kids in her small house can’t be easy, and now that Finn is here, she’s on her own.”
“Do you want me to bring them home when I go back later this week?”
Laura hesitated. “I miss them, but as I said: it’s better if they stay a little longer. There’ve been a few… ehh… episodes.”
“What episodes?”
“I don’t want to worry you, dear, but let’s just say the list of men who want to challenge Khan for the role of leader is growing longer every day.”
“But he encouraged that himself. He said any man with the ambition to be the President of the Northlands should run for office.”
“Yes.” Laura sighed. “And so far, thousands have taken him up on it. Problem is that we have no tradition for this sort of thing and it’s not exactly running smoothly. Yesterday, one of the candidates got beaten badly by the supporters of another candidate.”
“Is he okay?”
“He’s in the hospital. Pearl feels awful since she’s the one who encouraged the election in the first place. She went to see him in the hospital this morning and brought a large box of beer and snacks.”
“Yes, that sounds like something Pearl would do.”
From outside the bedroom, I could hear agitated voices. “Mom, I have to go, but keep me posted with Dad, okay?”
“I will, and remember that we all love you.”
“I love you too.”
After ending the call, I walked in to the kitchen where Jonah, Emanuela, Cole, their mother Lilly, and other family members were having what looked to be an emotional family meeting.
“What’s going on?” I asked Hunter, who seemed to be on the outskirts of the family drama. He had his eyes on an interactive wall that was showing a News station but with the sound so low that I couldn’t hear what they were saying.
“Their sister just accused them of running a crime syndicate on every News channel there is.”
“Sister? What sister?”
“The troubled one.”
Widening my eyes, I silently asked Hunter to elaborate. He pulled me to the window, away from the family.
“When I first met Emanuela, she mentioned there was an estranged sister called Anne who was troubled. Emanuela sometimes points her out when she sees an ad she’s in.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Anne is a model and works for big fashion houses. Here, let me show you.” Hunter pulled up a number of pictures of a gorgeous woman with symmetrical features and hair down to the small of her back. She was smiling and grinning in all the pictures and it was hard to imagine her as anything but kind and warm.
“She’s troubled?”
“Yes, apparently, she had a falling out with the rest of the family about five years ago when she was in her late teens.” He nodded to the screen. “Now she’s getting back at them.”
“She’s my age?” I asked because her baby skin and freckles made her look no more than nineteen.
He nodded.
“What exactly did she say on the News?”
“She just told the world that Nostalgia Park is nothing but a false front to hide how her family is distributing illegal drugs and alcohol. There were images from the sex club and one of the fire fighters from last night explained how they had found beer brewing in the storage building. He basically confirmed that illegal activities have been going on, and now the reporters are speculating what it will mean for the Cervici family.”
I gaped, and the happiness I’d felt about my father’s upcoming operation was overshadowed by the frustration that permeated the kitchen.
“Why would she do that to her own family?”
Hunter shrugged. “Because she’s vindictive.”
“But she’s a Motlander. We are nice people.”
He gave me an are-you-serious glance. “People are people, Mila. Even Motlanders do absurd and nonsensical things. You Motlanders aren’t fucking perfect angels if that’s what you think.”
“I know that, but this makes no sense.”
“Of course it doesn’t. Her motive isn’t rational. It’s emotional. Cole told me that Anne was always dramatic.”
I leaned in to study the pictures of Anne up close. People called me pretty but next to this woman I was plain.
“She looks so nice.”
“Yeah, like an angel, but then Lucifer was an angel too once.”
“You think she’s evil?” I whispered the word since it was not a label I wanted to put on anyone.
“I never said that.”
“But you compared her to Lucifer, the devil. Isn’t he the very embodiment of evil?”
Hunter waved a hand through the air. “She’s disturbed and wants revenge, that’s all.”
Like a fish on land I opened and closed my mouth, unable to understand why anyone would hurt their own family like this. “Can’t we talk to her?”
Hunter moved his weight to his right foot. “You know what, that’s an excellent idea! I can’t do it myself, but I could teach you some nice tricks to make people regret their actions.”
I jerked my head back. “I’m not going to beat her up.”
“Shame. I should have known you’d be too non-violent to do it, but we could ask Raven to come and have a talk with Miss Troubled Sister. I’ll bet Raven could make her take back her accusations in no time.”
“Geez, Hunter, I wasn’t talking about us torturing her. I just wanted to talk to her and understand why she’s doing this.”
“Who cares what’s wrong with her? We just need to fix the mess she made.”
“I care! This isn’t normal behavior and I want to know what happened to her to feel this angry.”
Hunter craned his head and looked out the window as a large yellow drone landed out front. “Alright, while you come up with a plan to talk to the crazy sister, I’m going to do my part.”
“What part?”
“I have an interview to give.”
While the family members were still debating back and forth, Hunter put on his jacket and boots.
“Where are you going, babe?” Emanuela leaned back to look at him.
“I’m taking the dogs out. Hopefully, one of them will take a piss on the journalist from Evening News and Goodies.”
“Loraine is here?” Emanuela’s outburst made the others turn to the window as well.
Cole sighed. “We knew it was just a matter of time before the press would show up here. Hunter, wait, I’ll go with you.”
“I’m coming too.” Emanuela, who had been sitting on a bar stool, jumped down, but Hunter held up an outstretched hand and spoke in a firm voice. “No. I’m taking the blame, and you’re staying here!”
At first, Emanuela looked like she was about to argue, but then her eyes softened and she walked over and kissed him. “You are amazing. I hope you know that.”
The
corners of his mouth curved and he kissed her back. “I’m happy you think so, but admitting that I like beer in front of the world isn’t that big a deal.”
We were quiet as Cole and Hunter went outside.
“I feel bad about letting them take the blame,” Jonah muttered with his head hanging over his cup of coffee.
“You know the press is going to want to talk to you and me.” Emanuela sat down on her chair again, her eyes on Jonah. They had the same bright amber eye color as their mother, who was sitting with her shoulders slumping forward and red-rimmed eyes.
I walked over to give Lilly a hug and as I held her in my arms, she cried into my hair. “I don’t understand why Anne would do this to us. She was always temperamental and dramatic, but this…”
I couldn’t offer her any explanation. All I could do was hug her again and whisper how sorry I was.
“We’ve worked so hard to make this place a success.” More tears formed in Lilly’s eyes. “Anne used to be part of that and when her mom left, we were all here for her.”
“So, you’re not her biological mom?”
“No, I had Cole, Emanuela, and Jonah. Anne’s mom was young and I think she joined our family unit for the thrill of the park. But even a theme park becomes work when you do it every day, and by the time Anne was seven, Nina’s sense of adventure made her pack up and leave.”
“Without Anne?”
Lilly nodded. “She said she would be back, but a year turned to ten and by the time Anne was seventeen the contact with Nina was down to a few calls a year.”
“Hunter said that Anne is my age.”
“She’ll be twenty-two soon, the youngest of our kids. I don’t understand why she would destroy something she knows brings great joy to people. What about all the children who come here each summer?”
Gunnar sat next to Lilly. Taking her hand, he nodded to the wall. “Can someone turn on the sound? I think they’re talking about us again.”
Two anchorwomen with serious expressions on their faces were discussing the allegations made by Anne. “It’s a lot to wrap your head around, and I have to say that after all we’ve heard this morning, a lot of things are beginning to make sense. Think about the perplexing behavior that we’ve seen from Emanuela over the years with her constant struggle to communicate in a proper manner. No doubt growing up in a crime syndicate will traumatize a person.”
“You’re right. This would explain her social problems with teammates in the past.”
“Yes, the poor woman has been carrying a heavy burden of fear on her shoulders. Thank Mother Nature that her brave sister Anne found the courage to come out and share what kind of oppressive family structure they’ve all lived under. The lies and the deceit. It’s unfathomable what Cole Cervici and others responsible have gotten away with for, apparently, years.”
The younger of the anchorwomen shook her head. “There are so many unanswered questions at the moment. And more accusations are coming in as we speak from viewers who are commenting on this story.”
The other woman, who was in her fifties, lowered her eyes and read from a screen in front of her, “One viewer wrote, one year we went to Nostalgia Park and I knew something wasn’t right the minute we got there. I have a sense for these things and it was clear that all the employees seemed afraid, like someone was forcing them to be there. I’ll bet they were all being threatened or something.”
“Oh, come on.” Jonah took a long, steadying breath. “Have people lost their minds?”
“Another viewer writes, I didn’t vote for Jonah Cervici and I warned my friends that he couldn’t be trusted, but they wouldn’t listen and look at us now: having a criminal on our council. It’s an outrage! We need to demand that he resigns immediately.”
It was like the air had been sucked out of the kitchen and no one said a word.
“We’re being told that Loraine with our eyes-on-the-ground team has been granted an interview with members of the Cervici family. Let’s hear what they have to say.”
A petite woman wearing a yellow winter coat with a matching hat showed up and spoke directly into the camera. “I’m here in front of the entrance to Nostalgia Park, which has been voted the best theme park in the world three times since it opened almost ten years ago. With us are Hunter Hercules and Cole Cervici, who have agreed to respond to the allegation from Anne Cervici. Let’s begin with you, Cole. Many describe you as the head of the Cervici family since you’re the spokesperson for the park and all your other businesses. What was your reaction when you heard what your sister, Anne, had to say?”
Cole stood with his legs slightly spread and his right hand locked around his left wrist. “We are all overwhelmed with sadness to see a member of our family in such a state of confusion.”
“So, you claim it’s all made up?”
“Not all of it. The sex club is real but that’s a legitimate and legal part of our entertainment business. It’s also true that we did have a fire at our property last night.”
“And can you confirm that equipment to brew alcohol was found along with a laboratory to produce drugs?”
Cole frowned and shook his head. “There was never any laboratory on our property nor have we ever produced drugs.”
“Are you saying Anne made that up?”
“I’m afraid so.”
“But one of the firemen who helped extinguish the fire explained that they found evidence of beer brewing.”
Hunter raised his hand. “That’s my fault.”
Loraine changed her focus to him. “What do you mean by that? And before you answer, Hunter, let me just explain to our viewers that your role in the Cervici family is that you are married to Emanuela, whom you met when you first began playing soccer for the Dolphins.”
“That’s right.” Hunter stood confident, with a relaxed stance.
“And you were saying that the beer brewing is your fault.”
“One hundred percent! It’s no secret that we Nmen love to drink beer. It’s one of the reasons why we’re so big and strong compared to you Motlanders. As an athlete, I can’t afford to grow weak. That’s why I convinced Cole to let me brew beer in his storage room.”
“You convinced him to break the law?”
“Yes.” Hunter folded his arms and his expression was stern. “It wasn’t that hard when I told him I’d go back to the Northlands if I didn’t get some beer. Cole loves his sister very much and wasn’t interested in having Emanuela moving that far away.”
“Speaking of Emanuela, does she know about your addiction to beer?”
“I’m not addicted. I just love it and it’s healthy.”
“But hasn’t she tried to help you overcome this urge?”
“No. Why would she when she sees it’s my secret potion to being better and faster than her in soccer? Emanuela is too smart to try and change me. She respects that I come from a different culture and she’s not as judgmental as the rest of you.”
Loraine stiffened. “You’re calling us judgmental?”
“Uh-huh. You think that you’re better than us and you’re convinced that your way is the right way. None of you take into consideration that beer was a treasured part of human culture for thousands of years. The real tragedy here isn’t that I hid a small home brewery. The real tragedy is that it burned down and that the rest of you have no clue what you’re missing out on.”
“But alcohol has proven to be addictive.”
Hunter shrugged. “So has chocolate. It’s all a matter of moderation.”
The reporter frowned again and turned to Cole.
“What about your brother, Councilman Jonah, does he know about any of this?”
“Now he does.” Hunter’s tone was dry.
“I meant, did he know about it before Anne courageously spoke up?”
Cole answered, “Jonah is focused on his job in the Council. He’s not involved in running the family business.”
“But did he know about the beer?”
Cole looked
away. “Why would we tell him when he could get in trouble for knowing about it?” It was clear that Cole was trying to avoid giving an outright lie, but Hunter didn’t have those scruples and groaned out loud.
“No, Jonah didn’t know about it and he’s probably going to be very upset about it. Do you have any more questions?”
“Yes.” Loraine kept her focus on Cole. “Did you know that many are now threatening to boycott Nostalgia Park when it opens? How do you feel about that?”
Cole sighed. “I think it’s sad. One of the reasons I agreed to help Hunter brew beer was my fascination with everything historical. The reason our theme park is so brilliant is that we spend a lot of time researching to get it right. It has been proven that beer and alcohol were a common thing in the past, and my dream would be to make it possible for our visitors at Nostalgia Park to experience what it tastes and feels like to enjoy alcohol.”
“You want to get your guests drunk?” The reporter’s tone was incredulous.
“Maybe not drunk, but Nostalgia Park is the closest thing there is to time traveling, and we would love for our guests to have as authentic an experience as possible. Wouldn’t it be fun if you could have a drink like in the olden days and see what it tasted like?”
“What about your sister’s accusations that you’ve been the leader of a crime syndicate for years?”
Cole tucked his hands in his pockets and looked sad. “I’m not sure if this is Anne’s cry for our attention, but the fact is that we haven’t seen her for years. Her allegations are absurd.”
“So except for the beer brewing there haven’t been illegal activities after dark in the park like she claims?”
“Listen, I’m sure people are intelligent enough to question how I would have time to lead a large crime syndicate like that when I’m busy running an entertainment dynasty with not only Nostalgia Park but also the world’s largest physical wellness center. Trust me, our focus and concern always has been and always will be on what happens during opening hours. For instance, right now we’re busy making plans for this summer’s grand opening of the Nostalgia Express, a real train that will take visitors around the park in a luxurious dining experience.”
Loraine took the bait. Like a curious child, she straightened up and lifted her eyebrows. “A real train?”