Feel Me

Chapter Seventeen

"I wonder why you chose to shame yourself like that in public. At a conference party. What do you think that tells of you? Of your family?" Sai Sagar muttered angrily.

Martin glanced at his father with dead eyes and said nothing. He really wasn't in the mood.

"Grazie per I'aiuto, sei un angelo." His mother said to Savitri when she passed the jar of blueberry syrup to her.

Savitri smiled sweetly, the smile of an angel.

Martin wanted to strangle her. Everything that happened was all her fault and here she was acting normal. Their parents till this very moment didn't know what had caused the chilly iciness between them...well the iciness from his part. Neither did Rahvel. He didn't press charges against Lydia as he said due to the fact that he had been the one to provoke such violent response from her, so he was partially at fault. He remembered the words he told her and the insults she hauled at him, and his heart broke again with anger and hurt.

A leg nudged his from under the table drawing his attention to Rahvel swollen, ripe and ready to pop the little one any moment. Their mother had insisted on this family breakfast in an attempt to heal and clear the obvious tension and rancor between Martin and Savitri. "Is something wrong?" she asked with concern, her dark eyes watching his face. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah." He replied with a voice husky from disuse.

"I'm sure he's fine. It's just some sibling squabble. They'll get over whatever is it causing the issue." Sai replied flippantly.

Martin dragged cold eyes to his father and gave a bitter chuckle at his ludicrous statement. There are things that can't be easily forgiven. Watching his father as he ate, Martin wanted to shove the fork down his father's throat and watch him choke on his own blood. Yes, his mood was that foul. His mother's concerned voice caused him to flinch from his dark thoughts, his death grip on his fork and knife lessened at her words.

"Are you alright, Gian?" she asked in Italian, "You're gripping the cutlery too hard like you want to stab something."

A humorless smile teased his lips and he completely let go of the cutlery, dropping them over his plate piled high with waffles, sliced blueberries and caramelized strawberries, and smiled at his mother. "Si. I'm just not hungry." He pushed his chair back ignoring their collective startled gazes and leaned to kiss his mother on her cheek. "Could you wrap this up, mama? I'll eat it later." He asked pushing his chair back in place, ignoring Rahvel's concerned eyes and Savitri's mask of regret and dismay. She didn't feel such things, he knew that.

"Why?" Victtoria asked.

"I'm late for work." He replied flatly.

"Will you come here for dinner?" her mother asked a little too hopeful, watching his fast-receding figure.

"No. I'll eat out." He replied ending the conversation with an abrupt close of the front door.
"How rude." Sai grumbled.

"What did you do?" Rahvel asked, turning to her younger sister with a dark scowl. Her brother behaved this way and it was Savitri's fault. What exactly was the problem? Savitri hadn't spoken a word since breakfast began. She was too docile - an unusual trait.

Savitri poked her food mindlessly, her eyes distant. "Nothing."

†

Lydia dropped the book she was reading at the sound of knocking from the front door and frowned. It was evening and Susannah was still in the shower. Might be Carolan. She thought moving to the door.