Payne & Joie

Chapter 5

I don't feel comfortable here among the high pillared houses and trimmed trees. It feels like a far away dream that could have been. I wonder if in another lifetime what I could have been. If my Dad hadn't left and his company didn't go under. But instead I wait at the door of this stately home with two girls behind me, keeping just enough distance away from me.

    It had been tough to convince Mina to come with us. I had told her Payne's plan with great reluctance, about how we wanted Mina to know of the potential cure and see if she had the ability to help us. Madeline had agreed to help convince her to come, once again turning on that charming smile and melodic voice.

    It is hypnotic watching her work her magic... but I still didn't trust her. How did she know me and Payne were together? What could possibly be so wrong with her that she wants so badly for a cure? I don't dare ask her any of these questions though, lest I meet her icy stare. Instead I stare at the heavy brass knocker and try to ignore the two pairs of eyes that drill into my back.

    One, two, three, four, five, six begonia flowers  along the front.

    My hands itch. I wish I had something to draw with.

    The door swings open so quickly I gasp. I am once again looking at Payne's familiar face. A face which droops when he sees Madeline.

    "And why is she here?" he says. He tries to keep his smile photogenic but it fails as I can still hear the venom in his voice.

   
    "She, um, is one of us. She's one of the twenty-seven people. You probably already saw in the files..." I say.

    "Yes..." he murmurs.

    They stare in deadlock there, green eyes to golden eyes. Mina pretends to search through her papers and I fascinate myself with my shoelaces. Payne eventually lets us in with a grand flourish, leaving me to wonder if he was the one to win the staring contest.

    The grandness of the hall wasn't what surprised me but rather the emptiness of the space. Why all the space if you weren't going to fill it? But it was oddly comforting. Not much to count or see. Not much to worry about. I gradually relax the death grip on my backpack.

    Payne leads us to a sparkling white living room, the scent of the most recent lunch still hanging in the air and an unusual amount of family photos on the mantle. I recognize the little boy from the picture Payne showed me, only older now.

Everything is hard to take in, my neck straining to look at the art placed high on the wall. Mina takes my lead and looks in awe as well. Madeline pays no heed and plops her soiled rain boots on the pristine couch.

    "So, Payne, are you still taking lessons from Mommy?" She teases.

    While Payne's smile is strained, he addresses Madeline cordially.

    "Yes, Maddie, I'm still homeschooled."

    "Don't call me that."

    "What, Maddie?" Payne says, feigning offense. He looms over her. "Didn't I used to call you that?"

    "Yeah, before you took my cat!" Madeline says as she stands up in a huff, leaving an ugly mud streak on the couch.

    "I didn't take your cat," Payne sighs out the way you would with a child who doesn't know any better.
Madeline takes another step forward, her eyes alight. Payne simply stands there with his arms crossed, reminding me of yesterday when he stared into the barrel of my gun. I wish I had it now so that its cool metal can soothe my trembling hands.

    My soft words cut sharp through the atmosphere, "Why don't we go over the files? You said in your text that you had gotten them all scanned, right?"