Jail's Bait: Time Served (Book 5)

The limousine pulled onto the final curve that led up to the gates of HT, which lay about half-way up the slopes of Mt. Rainier.  “Your famille lives in a very high altitude,” Jake remarked in approval as the sleek car maneuvered its way up the mountain.

“Yeah,” Marquis said then, pride of his home surfacing in spite of his sadness; “besides me, it’s only my cousins Malik and Lamar that live here, but it’s a great place.  There’s a lot of fresh air.”

Then the limousine made the last turn and pulled up to the large black gates of HT.  Marquis sighed, and a tension he had no idea was there suddenly lessened in his shoulders.  He was home.

Jake, however, gasped in surprise.  “Votre maison est impressionnante! Charmant! Déroutant!” he gushed.

Marquis smiled at Jake’s reaction.  The large black gates suddenly began to swing impressively open, and they began the long drive over to the main house.  The immense manor house everyone knick-named HT stood seven stories tall and was sprawled across approximately 50,000 square feet.  Marquis told Jake the story of how Malik had bought it when it was a ski resort and transformed it into the place they called home.  “…and he added on to the gym, and put in a disco with stripper poles in the basement,” Marquis was explaining.  Jake grinned at the thought.

The car pulled up to the main double doors of HT, and several maids and baggage handlers stood waiting.  Unlike Marquis, who was born poor yet was raised as a blueblood, Jake was born to money, so the trifles of being greeted and waited on by the staff of a manor house was ‘old hat’ to him.  Marquis was impressed with the casual yet direct commands he gave to the staff as he absently passed them by.

“While I am a guest here, you should use only ze 3000 thread-bare count sheets in my suite,” Jake was lightly commanding; “ze bedclothes should be changed and ze pillows fluffed each morning, and I prefer hiver blanc pillowcases; coffee, black with two sugars, should be on my bedstand at precisely 6:45 am, at which time my bath should be drawn, to precisely 76 dregrees, not one drip short.”  He paused.  “Is there a masseuse on staff...?” he enquired of someone Marquis had never seen before.

“We can send for one, sir,” the man replied with a stately bow.

“Fine,” replied Jake imperiously; “have him set up a session for myself and one for Mr. Hill here,” he added, indicating towards Marquis, “for tomorrow morning at 7.  He’ll do me from 7-7:30, Marquis from 7:30 to 8am.”

“Very good, sir,” the man bowed.

“Excuse me, but who are you,” Marquis asked in spite of himself.

“I am Charles Worthimer, young Master Hill,” the man declared then, bowing his head respectfully.  I am the new manservant here at HillTopp Manor.

“I'm Marquis, pleased to meet you, Mr. Worthimer,” he said, extending his arm- yet Jake slapped it back down.

“Sacré Bleu!!  You NEVER show equality of any staff to yourself...!  It makes others who serve you jealous and vengeful,” he said with a knowing look.

“He is correct, sir,” Worthimer agreed with Jake.  “You mustn’t give any special favors to me.”  Marquis started to stutter with confusion.

“Come on,” Jake whispered, grabbing Marquis and pulling him into the main foyer.  They stepped inside just in time to see Lamar and Malik coming down the main foyer steps, both dressed in casual linen white loungewear.

“Marquis,” Lamar said with a smile, “welcome home...!” and he hugged Marquis tightly.

Malik smiled at Jake, and then turned to Marquis.  “Welcome home, son,” he said, and the two embraced while Lamar smiled curiously at Jake.  “And you are…?”

Marquis pulled away from Malik.  “This is my friend from college, Jacques ReVanche.”

“Everyone calls me Jake,” he said then, extending his arm.  “C'est un honneur de vous rencontrer, monsieur.”

“Salutation; il doit bien vous accueillir aujourd'hui,” Malik replied in fluent French, much to Jake’s surprise and delight.

“Et je vous ajoute ma salutation aussi;” Lamar added, extending his arm also. “Soyez bienvenus à notre maison.”

“I told you they were the coolest in the world,” Marquis murmured to Jake.

“Well, le merci pour me donner l'accueil,” Jake replied with a smile.

“Vander, show our young friend to the guest suite on the second floor; the one overlooking the waterfall,” Malik declared to a nearby young man dressed in servant’s attire.

“Right this way, sir,” Vander the servant replied, his head inclining to the vast stairwell.  Jake hesitated, turning back to Marquis.

“Go on,” Malik said encouragingly to Jake.  “I’d like to speak with Marquis for a brief moment.  Again, make yourself at home.”

“As you wish,” Jake smiled again, turning and heading up the stairs.

“So, where are Kap and the girls,” Lamar asked mildly as they watched Jake disappear after the servant.

“Well, I …kind of made the decision to come back to HT at the last minute,” Marquis said haltingly.  “They don’t know I’m here.”

“Wait a minute,” Malik replied then with an arch look.  “You didn’t tell your girlfriend OR your lover that you left both the campus AND the state, but you somehow brought home another man...?

“Stay out of it, Malik,” Lamar replied then, laying a cautionary hand on his lover’s shoulder.

“It’s okay,” Marquis said then, waving Lamar down.  “I acted like a jerk.  Kap doesn’t even know about Smithers… we sort of had a fight.”

“Over the young ‘monsieur’ upstairs...?” Malik asked knowningly.

“It’s not LIKE that,” Marquis responded.  “Jake and I are friends- JUST friends.  Kap just doesn’t like him for some or whatever reason; like there’s some written law that I can’t have other friends in my life but him.”

“Your lover wouldn’t fight you over ‘just a friend’,” Malik countered.

“We can both attest to that, Marquis,” Lamar added with a pensive sigh.  “Trust us- you may not see something that he can see, you being on the inside of the situation.”

“Look- Kap and I are not you and Malik, Lamar,” Marquis fired back; “and Jake isn’t my dad...!”

Silence engulfed them as the shock of his own words set into Marquis while Lamar and Malik stared at him, an unreadable look mirrored on both their faces.

Before anyone could say anything else, a loud squeal echoed across the lobby, and Jamara rushed into view, followed by a slightly weary Sophie.

“Key!  Key!!”  Jamara cried happily, her arms lifting up as Marquis bent down and scooped up the little girl in his arms, swinging her around, both laughing happily.  Malik and Lamar smiled as Jamara grabbed Marquis about the neck and buried her laughing face in his shoulder as Sophie rushed forward.

“Dreadfully sorry, sirs,” she cried, her partial British accent strong whenever she was unsettled.  

“I was pulling her sheets down for her afternoon nap, and I heard a crash.  Well...!  In the nursery parlor, her jewelry box lies on the floor, pearls scattered hither-and-yon, and before I could ask if she’d did it, the lil’ missus had done a bunk.”  She attempted to smooth out her hair underneath the kerchief she wore.

Jamara peeked from underneath Marquis's arms at her nanny, giggled, and hid her head again.

“Of course she did it,” Malik smiled.  “But she’s being too cute right now to Marquis to chastise her about keeping her things neat.”

“Yes, Sophie, we do spoil her,” Lamar added as Marquis began to tickle the child until she roared with laughter.  “I’ll put her down for her nap and give her a quick talking to as well.”

Sophie nodded.  “Yessirs,” she added; “I’ll just be tending to the mess in the nursery.”  And with that she turned and walked up the stairs.

“Isn’t the nursery like 5 flights up from here?” Marquis asked, holding the child close, inhaling her baby-lotion scent. “She walks all the way up all the time?”

“My guess is that she wants to maintain her tip-top shape to keep up after ‘speed demon’ here,” Malik replied, reaching out to pat Jamara on the head.

“And how’s Leo...?” Marquis asked, staring longingly towards the far-off doors which led to the back gardens and the trail which curved towards the cave where he knew his pet lion slept while he was at school.

“I don’t know,” Malik replied then with a nervous look behind him; “he’s not what you would call… all that sociable, nowadays.”

“Yes, Marquis,” Lamar agreed, “I think the lack of human companionship is making Leo turn a bit…wild.”

“I don’t believe it,” Marquis said then confidently.  “You guys have to spend some time with him then, if he’s forgetting how to be comfortable around humans.

“I will not bring Jamara around that beast,” Lamar said then; “if only Leo hadn’t attacked my mother; you see, now he’s had a taste of human flesh.  Had he stayed on the non-human diet, maybe I wouldn’t be so worried whether he might see my daughter as a mid-afternoon treat.”

“Hey, that’s not fair to say-” Marquis began.

“Marquis, he’s getting through 70-80 pounds of raw meat a week now,” Malik replied then.  “He wants flesh, and he’s also growing up without you.  I don’t think we should keep him anymore… maybe take him to Africa or somewhere where he can get to know his kin, find a mate…”

“I thought he was sort of dating the wild albino baboon,” Marquis frowned then, watching Lamar and Malik exchange a glance.  “What is it...?”

Malik sighed.  “A few weeks ago, the baboon was found with his body ripped open fromnose to tail… and his guts were mysteriously… gone.”

“What do you mean, GONE...?” Marquis replied in shock.

“We mean, something ATE him from the inside out,” Lamar replied.  “We tried to get a good look at Leo, see if there was blood on his mane or something- but he was in the pool that empties into the waterfall, splashing his happy ass off.  If there was blood, he made sure he cleaned himself properly- as cats do.”

“Im going to see him,” Marquis said then with resolve; “I’m not afraid. Even if he might have… hurt the baboon, he won’t hurt me.  We miss each other.”

“Seeing you just might be the thing that calms Leo down and return him to his old ways,” Malik said then, bending over to tug playfully at Jamara’s shoe.  “Why ‘allo, li’l gel, are ya me Eliyzah Jayne,” he said in a horrible mock Cockney imitation Jamara put her hands to her ears.

“Baby,” Lamar said then, giving a look that suggested he thought Malik’s brain had left the building, “please don’t EVER do that again...!”

They all laughed, and then grew silent, watching Jamara playfully tug on Marquis's right ear.  He shook his head regretfully then.  “I’m so sorry about before,” he replied then, his eyes downcast.  “I didn’t mean to bring all that stuff up.”

“No, its fine,” Lamar hesitantly smiled at Marquis after a moment; “but you just re-affirmed my point.  Just do us a favor and re-examine your friend upstairs… if Kap is reacting to him on such a strong level, maybe there’s something to it.”  He yawned then.  “I’ll put Jamara down for her afternoon nap, and I think I need to go take a nap too, before dinner; again, welcome home, Marquis.”  He held out his arms for Marquis to place the little girl into, gave the young man a smile, kissed Malik on the cheek, and hesitantly walked over to the elevator at the far end of the lobby.

“How’s he doing,” Marquis asked Malik as they watched Lamar and Jamara head for the elevator bank.

“Each day it’s a little more of a struggle,” Malik replied in a low murmur.  “He keeps saying he’s ‘fine’, but we both know that his protesting is becoming more of an outright lie than just a simple deflection.”

“I’m sorry again,” Marquis told Malik.  “I know he doesn’t really need me and my youthful rebellious bullshit right about now.

“No, he doesn’t,” Malik replied candidly, watching his lover and daughter get onto the elevator and the doors close shut behind them.  “But,” he added with a sigh, “Mar loves you like a son.  And he was totally in the same situation you’re in right now.”

“Because… because of my dad,” Marquis said then.  Everyone in the family knew that one time when they were still kids, Rah-Rah slipped Lamar a roofie… and then raped him.

Malik sighed.  “Yes, Lamar was blind to how Rah-Rah really felt about him, so he let his guard down for someone he thought of as a friend… and I was getting some really strong vibes on the subject at the time,” he added with a clap on Marquis’s shoulder.  “So don’t dismiss Kap’s point of view, nor Lamar’s.  My dude knows firsthand what happens when you trust the wrong person.”

Marquis looked at Malik then, and reached out to hug him.  Malik obliged, and then Marquis strode towards the staircase.  “I’ll go check on our guest,” he called out, reaching the steps and taking them two at a time.

Malik watched his young cousin dash up the stairs.  Lamar will never be able to dash up the stairs like that again, he thought to himself, his eyes filling with sudden tears.  Blinking them back, he crossed the lobby to the area that used to be the front desk when the place was a ski lodge.  Going behind the counter, he reached for the house phone and placed a call.

The line connected after the second ring.  “Who is this,” Rah-Rah’s voice growled.

“It‘s Malik,” he answered, trying like hell to keep the disgust from his tone.  “I just wanted you to know that your son just flew in from school; he decided to come home for the funeral early.”

“I’ll be over there tomorrow,” Rah-Rah replied then, hanging up the phone with a loud click.

Malik simply stared at the receiver in his hand, simply taken aback at the abrupt end of the call.  Dat nigga hung up on me, the part of him that held his inner thug, Joop, echoed angrily in his mind.  Now see dat- had I NOT called the mafucka, bitch-ass woulda been all up in my face fa not lettin him know nuthin bout his fukkin kid.  Dats what I get for givin a shyt…

“Oh, shut UP, Joop,” Malik said aloud, putting the receiver back on the hook.

***************************************************************

Jake stood at the balcony doors of his suite, which overlooked the rushing waterfall that dropped into the gorge hundreds of feet below, which ultimately emptied into the far-off Carthage Bluffs, all surrounded by the distant yet majestic Rockies Mountains.  The view was spectacular, yet Jake only had eyes for the sparkling ruby center of the Hill family crest… how the light from the afternoon sky caught inside the eye of the ruby, turning the ruby’s carved letter H into a glamour of red fire…

There came a knock from behind him.  Jake, startled out of his reverie, placed the jewel back in his pocket.  “Come in,” he said, turning to the suite doors.

The doors opened up and Marquis entered the room.  “All settled in?” he asked.

“I’m impressed,” Jake smiled back.  “How long are we going to be here?”

“Until my great-uncle’s funeral,” Marquis replied with a sigh.  “I should get the jet back down to LA; I’m going to call Carmen, Angelina and Kap to fly back, so they’ll be here first thing tomorrow.”

“You’ll be waiting a long time…” Jake said without thinking.

“What do you mean,” Marquis said then, flopping down on one of the couches near the bed.  “You think that Kap might not come because of that fight we had...?”

Jake turned away from Marquis so that he couldn’t see the sudden anxiety on Jake’s face from making such a stupid slip of the tongue.  “Oui, that’s what I meant,” he agreed, hoping inwardly that the drug he put into the pilot’s drinks did what it was supposed to do…

“No, monsieur, you don’t know my best friend,” Marquis said with complete faith.  “Once he hears what’s happened, he’ll get right on the jet and be here, right by my side.”  And with that he placed a call on his cellphone, as Jake waited silently for the news.  “Hey, it’s Marquis, I need you guys to go back and get my friends from Berkeley… what do you mean, you can’t make it...?”  Marquis's face had turned incredulous.  “BOTH of you...? HOW?”

Jake turned away to stare out the window, hoping that Marquis couldn’t spot the look of triumph on his face. Behind him he heard Marquis murmur a few minutes longer, then give a great sigh.  “Well, I’ll see if I can find my friends seats on the next airline flight up then,” Marquis replied dejectedly; “feel better… both of you.”  And with that the call was ended.

Jake made sure his face was impassive as he turned back to Marquis.  “What has happened,” he asked, his French accent strong with concern.

“The pilots,” Marquis began in a stunned tone.  “Both of them came down with some sort of food poisoning… they’ve been vomiting non-stop for the past half-hour.”

“C'est impossible!!!  But we just saw zem,” Jake said with mock surprise.  “We just left ze jet not even an hour ago…”

“I know, that’s what makes this so peculiar,” Marquis replied in consternation then, getting up to pace the room.  “Minutes after we left the airport they both got violently sick.  It’s going to be harder than I thought, getting the girls and Kap up here to HT…” he sighed again then.  “What’s certain is that with flights being booked up solid most of the time, they may not be here first thing in the morning.  Perhaps they can get here by day after tomorrow… I’ll go give them a call, and I should check up on Leo; excuse me,” Marquis said then, distracted as he left the room, closing the suite doors behind him.

“Day after tomorrow, eh…?” Jake said to himself.  Then a Cheshire-cat type of evil grin slid across his face.  “Just enough time to figure out a plan…”