He walked up to Trenton's door and rang a bell and, while waiting for an answer, went to retrieve his stun gun from underneath the tarpaulin. He walked back, and he heaved it inside his back pocket, the door opened and he turned and was illuminated in a shaft of warm light, which streamed from inside the compound.
"Morgan!"
"Hey." "Long time no see. What brings you here?"
"I have come to see Trenton. Is he in?"
"Yes, he's in. come along in." They both went inside, and the door shut, and there was a lot of room in the spacious hallway. Morgan followed him into a tiny, clustered, cozy parlor. Trenton was seated at a table.
"Well, well, what do we have here," he dismissed the guard.
"I've brought you a visitor. I said you were the best accommodator in this part of New York."
"Oh, my soul, I don't belong to take visitors at this time of the year."
"Let me get you a cup of tea first..."
"I don't really want tea," Morgan told Trenton.
"I just want to know if you can give my guest a bed- for a night or so."
Trenton stood up from the table, "Well I don't know..." He looked at Morgan doubtfully, and what with his appearance after a long time, he did not blame Trenton for being doubtful. Trenton started to open his mouth, but Morgan sailed in before he could say a word, "She's highly respectable and you'd give anything to have her. I'll vouch for her."
"Well..." Trenton smiled, "Why is that?"
"It's Jackson's daughter."
"Ok. The room is empty, so she may as well have it. But I can't give her supper tonight, not expecting anybody, I haven't anything in the house but a couple of strudels."
"That's alright," said Morgan, "I'll feed her."
Sophie sat by the window and stared outside. The dark glass streamed with rain. There was nothing to be seen, but she stayed there anyway, wondering what she was doing in his car, and trying to work out why Morgan's disappearance into Trenton's house had left her with an unexplained feeling of unease. As she sat glaring out the window, there came the sound of voices and footsteps down the uncarpeted staircase and across the street towards the car. Sophie heard a man's voice say, "In the car?"
"Yes," Morgan replied. Sophie muttered something that sounded unprintable and struggled with the lock. That was when she realized that Morgan had locked the car and left with the keys. "What the..." The next instant, Trenton appeared in the doorway, hesitated for a moment then came towards her, hands outstretched. She had expected someone elderly and formally attired, in keeping with the ambience of the household and its content, but this man's appearance rocked all her vague preconceived notions.
For he was young, tall and long-legged dressed in jeans faded to a soft blue and clinging to a second skin and a blue denim jacket, equally old and faded, with the sleeves turned back in a businesslike way to reveal the checked cuffs of the shirt he wore beneath it. A cotton handkerchief was knotted at his neck and on his feet he wore soft moccasins, much decorated and fringed. She worked it out that by now Trenton must be over fifty, but this was hard to believe. Morgan inserted the key into the lock and opened the door slowly. Two of the other four men grabbed Sophie from inside the car just as Trenton arrived. "Sophie. I didn't think you were coming tonight."
"Neither did I."
"You know Morgan, I believe."
"Yes, we've met." She hesitated, seeming to be making an effort to pull herself together. She turned her gaze upon Morgan, and it was impossible to guess whether this was the first time she had realized he was there, or whether she had seen him and simply decided to ignore him. Her eyes, on Morgan, were cold with antagonism.
"Come along in now, out of the room," Trenton said and led the way back into the mansion. As soon as Trenton turned, Morgan, with an expression both exasperated and loving on his face, bundled her coat into his arms, unbuttoned and removed his own jacket and laid it, with a certain grace, around her shoulders.
She protested, "Get your hands off me." Morgan pretended he had not heard her speak and they walked in silence to the house. Then Morgan shook himself slightly, brushed the rain from his hair, took the jacket off Sophie's shoulders and opened the door for her to go in ahead of them. It was warm inside and smelt the way all mansions have always smelt; of scented narcissus. Sophie and Trenton stood glaring at each other across the patterned carpet. Trenton marched over to the fireplace where he stood with his back to her, staring down at the flames.
"Feel at home," he said without turning and Sophie pulled a chair tucked in at the dining table and sat herself down. Quietly, she inspected the room and the house in general. Grey stone smothered in creeper, grey slate roof, a semi-circular stone porch, inside a glimpse of red tiles, a clutter of flowerpots, the pinks and scarlets of geranium and fuchsia. A curtain fluttered at an open kitchen window and a row of small windows jutted out from the roof. She saw a glass- doored cabinet filled with oriental treasures, including some small pieces of jade, and... she was interrupted by the slam of a door.
A hearty male voice called, "Dad?" and Trenton said, "Excuse me a moment," and went out to the bottom of the staircase.
"Yes Evans."
"Is he there?"
"Who?"
"Morgan."
"Yes, he's right here, in the living room... I was just going to get him a cup of coffee."
"Make it two would you, there's a good dad. And black and strong for me."
Evans footsteps came down the staircase, and the next moment he was there, black-haired, and it was obvious- happy. "Hey bro. Hey guys."
They nodded in unison. "And who's the pretty lady?"
"That's our guest for tonight," Morgan answered.
"Oh, that's good." Evans pulled a chair next to Sophie, "You know, I didn't catch your name."
"I didn't throw it," she shot back at him.
"Playing hard to get, aren't you?"
"The first time I saw you, you looked like a respectable, young gentleman... you looked real. And somehow it annoys me that you aren't." Evans smiled, moving closer, "And you know what you looked like?" Sophie cooled off, "No."
"The head girl of a badly run orphanage. And that annoyed me." A small clash of swords and they were now on opposite sides of the fence. She eyed him with dislike as he cheerfully sipped his coffee.
"That's enough," Trenton said addressing Evans. Evans stood up from his chair, took his cup of coffee and walked up the stairs back to his room. Morgan could feel his hackles rising and was glad Evans left before he smashed his face. Jealousy nagged at him but there was nothing he could do at this point. Trenton began to fry bacon. He flipped the bacon on to a warm plate and set it in front of her, "There now, eat that up before it gets cold." Sophie pushed the bowl away and leaned her elbows on the table. Morgan walked in silence as he drank his coffee. "I don't want your food."
"What do you want?"
"Answers. I want answers. Why are you doing this?" Sophie asked amidst painful sobs. The dazzling smile and the bright dark eyes were still the same, so was the dark hair that spread like a stain. Otherwise his appearance was horrifying. He occupied the seat his son, Evans, had evacuated.
"Morgan, come here," Trenton said. Morgan came forward, stooped with the weight of guilt to where Trenton was seated and stood next to him. "You've made me proud. You brought her to me without a drop of sweat. I knew you'd never disappoint me. And the best bit is that she never tried to turn you into someone else; she just accepted you, with your wicked ways and lurid past. I really am proud to call you my son."
"I...," Trenton was cut short by the slap Sophie launched on his face. He felt his hackles rising, and it was obvious- he was angry. That was when Sophie realized her mistake. He responded by giving her his own reverberating taste of the medicine that sent her sprawling to the floor. She gathered herself and leaned against the wall. Trenton subsided once more into his chair. Morgan felt the dry tear streaks slowly rolling down his cheeks but his hands were tied at this juncture. Any step he took now would determine the success or failure of his plan.
He tried to quell the avalanche that had been let loose in him. Trenton lit another Gauloise from the stub of the first and grinned without rancor, "You know, Sophie, your intentions were splendid but your methods of carrying them out, not so successful. I tried to make allowances for your father. He was a genius, and I knew his reputation and was prepare to ignore his investigations concerning the company. But in the end, as so often happens in such situations, he was defeated by the small things; by the fact that he preferred to stay at home without security.
I found him at last, taking Morgan with me, and almost, just almost, wiped him from the face of this earth. I thought that the attempt on his life would help him open his eyes and keep him off my track but I see he passed it on to you. I did everything I could to sustain my empire for my family to have a bright future and waited for him to hand in his resignation letter. I would have been delighted to let him have it. He would be delighted too, to see the back of me. We have never gotten on well.
I was jealous of his male priority; I liked to be the only man of importance in that company, and he, even just as a mere staff member, was an individual who refused to be ignored. "Sophie's head came up, her eyes a sudden furious blaze of blue. She was, in that instant, her father at his most unscrupulous, when there was no retort too cruel or too cutting to be made. But her anger provoked no reaction, and after a cold pause, she looked down again. The small tension was broken by the sudden entrance of Sophie's parents.