Calista

Chapter 17

The next morning, Calista sat next to Pop Pop in the main living area while he showed her pictures of Calista Dover and Sebastian as children. It was nice to feel like she was really his grandchild.

"He was always fighting with you," Pop Pop said. "Here's a picture of you two after he put gum in your hair."

Calista laughed when she saw the photograph of two kids giving one another a dirty look before turning the page of the photo album. Staring back at her was a picture of Sebastian with a giant black eye.

"What happened to him?" she couldn't help but ask.

Pop Pop cackled. "Duckie, it's a shame you don't remember. Now this was a great day. Your brother thought he was tough stuff when he was younger. There was a boy in your class that was always giving you a hard time because he found out you were adopted. He'd pull your hair, steal your crayons, and he even stole your lunch one."

"It sounds like he was a menace."

"He was," Pop Pop agreed. "Your parents thought he just had a crush on you but Sebastian didn't care. Your brother took it upon himself to teach him a lesson. How dare he mess with a Dover!"

Calista covered her mouth to stop herself from giggling. "So he and this kid fought?"

"Of course not!" Pop Pop looked taken aback.

"Then what happened?"

"To be exact, your brother threw the first punch which didn't land its target."

Calista groaned. "Oh no! How horrible."

"It was. Fighting would mean two people hitting one another. Your brother managed to get pummeled that day." Pop Pop grinned, his white dentures glistening.

"Poor Sebastian."

"Don't feel sorry for your brother, my little Duckie," Pop Pop chastised. "He was doing what he thought was right. Getting hurt didn't matter to him. He just wanted that bully to leave his little sister alone."

"So then what happened?" Calista wondered aloud.

"Since he couldn't use his fists and win, your brother decided to use his brains."

"What?"

"He decided to hire that kid as your bodyguard."

Calista frowned. "My bodyguard? He trusted him to do that?"

Pop Pop nodded, a sly smile on his face. "I taught him well."

"I don't understand," Calista said.

"There are several ways you can control someone," Pop Pop explained. "Listen carefully because you may need to use this one day. If you want to have complete power over someone there are only a few ways to do it."

He cleared his throat and held a finger up. "One, you physically beat them into submission."

"That wouldn't have worked for Sebastian since he was the one that was beaten."

"Exactly." Pop Pop held up a second finger, "Two, you can make a person fall deeply and utterly in love with you. Infatuation is a weakness. Never fall so deeply in love with another person to the extent that he's able to manipulate you. I speak from experience here. Love is dangerous."

Calista thought of her husband, Adam. She had trusted him blindly and now she thought he was a possible murderer. Pop Pop was right. Love was dangerous.

"The third way...and this is the easiest...for us, anyway," he said holding another finger up. "The third way is to hire someone. Make them work for you. Love, money, and power are the three ways you can completely rule someone. Without them, you're the one being ruled."