"Richard? Son are you distracted? Did something occur at school, perhaps the football team?"
My thoughts on Amy vanished, her sweet scent and my worry for her innocent soul I kept hidden.
"No dad, on the contrary. I made it and might just beat my cousin for team captain."
He place his fork and knife on his half eaten dinner giving me his full attention as he normaly did when it came to my dream of football. "Well Mark hasn't been one for strong leadership."
Both me and my brother scofted at my fathers words although he didn't mean them to be a joke, "ahem." He cleared his throat staring at Louis to clam his soft laughter, "if you do indeed become captain remember to not cause troubles."
"Yes dad, afterall he's family."
Louis chimmed in, "Oi dad, wheres our other beloved cousin. A week has gone by and I haven't heard his boisterous voice around school. He has reputation to up hold-"
"Enough Louis, we get the point." Father sighed, accustomed to the fragile relation between Louis and our older cousin. "My father, your grandfather. Has admitted him to a private school for his intellect."
Louis let out a puff of air entertained by the notion of our cousin being classified as above average.
Father gave him a death stare for him to quiet down, "Good, now tell me how school has gone so far..."
We finished dinner with father's questions being mostly directed at me and thankfully Louis was preoccupied eating carefully as to not choke on his food for Amy's name to be mentioned. After washing the dishes while Louis prepared his harness for his usual cardio on the treadmill I began my training regimen with an hour long run. Leaving the house there really is only one direction to run at, that being the only road to town. A straight foward run, that or risk running into an animal in the near by greenery. I place my headphones around my ears and begin playing whatever music Louis recorded on to my walkman as I run my first five minutes.
Now that I think about it, the chances of meeting an animal on the road is rather high as the lack of neighboors invites a wide varity of rodents to lure around the house. Hmm what would be the chances of meeting a deer or worse a skunk on the trial? After running for ten minutes without seeing so much as a squirrel I put my mind at ease.
Getting into a trance of running and having the trees zooming by, my thoughts race to Amy. I swear if I could just get my hands on Mark, even if he's an airhead Mark should have know better. His brother took his girlfriend and now he makes Amy suffer the same torture making her watch as he takes two strangers to some club his family owns. Pathetic excuse of a man, in that regard even Louis fares better.
Heck, even that fragile weak excuse of a man, Harry has bigger balls then Mark I reckon. Honestly though it's the one point I've agreed on with my cousin, Harry should have been born as a girl. Can't believe I lost a game in gym to Mark thanks to that freak. However it's one of the few people Louis has managed to talk too. I'll let him have a friend even if it's Harry, Louis, my brother I mean seems to have less time everytime I see him lately. A shame really, I bet he would of made the team if he could walk straight.
Me and father have spoken in private about his health. We decided to keep it secret that the fungus or disease affecting him had been adapting quicker each year to the serums father made. Father told me that Louis is due to show severe symptoms this year from the hypothesis he made seeing Louis gene structure. He told me accepting grandfather's resources was for one last attempt at curing Louis but I believe its to provide him with as much comfort possible before passing.
Well there would be no other reason for him to tell me I would be the heir to his money other than my own benefit.
A blur of white passed my eyesight in the corner of my view. I stopped running and turned to see if it was a deer. I watched the woods for movement.
Squinting my eyes I saw in the far distance just barely the horns of deer. Strangely enough it was on the ground perhaps lying down. But I could see movement, there was something white eating its insides. I thought it might be a white wolf of some kind when it stood up, on its hind legs.
I ran from the sight back home not looking back. Something deep inside me, a natural human fear told me to get the fuck out of there. When I reached our mansion, there was the same car from the European who greeted us upon our arrival leavingour driveway. As far as I could remember, not once did a car pass me on my run.
When it came up to me it rolled down its windshield, "greetings, what a fine afternoon it is to let loose. Wouldn't you agree?"
I looked at him trying to work my mind for a conclusion on how he got there. He grinned seeing me catch my breath, "you are indeed a fine specimen that your parent picked to be their heir."
"How did you know that."
He breathed in the air, as if he were smelling the scents in the breeze. "Ahhhh it indeed is a glorious afternoon to walk around the wilderness." He stared at me but not at me as a person is what it felt like. His eyes were seeing something I didn't, "your parents and I have a long history, mutual trust is just the surface level of our. Hmm I suppose partnership could be the correct term from your view. Do take care of your health young one."
He rolled up his windshield and drove off. I watched him go off into the distance when I felt someone behind me. "Dad?"
"Ha, you only have one. It seems he thought highly of you, seeing him stop to talk. I'm grateful you gained his approval."
"Dad, who is that man?"
For some reason he thought carefully on how to answer, "think of him as an investor in your future. If it really concerns you just chalk him up to someone high in the hierarchy of matters concerning the world, a family connection if you will. Now go check on Louis, ask him how his legs are faring if you would." He winked passing it off as a matter of importance but leaving out something.
"I think I saw something in the woods, an animal of some kind."
"What did you expect, we live in the mountains son." He chuckled, "carry a gun if your afraid of being hunted. Just know it must off been a fox-"
"A fox killing a deer!?"
"Nature is far more darker than what you see on TV son. Remember humans are far more scary, just look at what we're made to get to the top of the food chain, a fox eating a deer is very much in the realm of possibilities. Now go on I have matters pending."