59. Dinner with the family

Proserpina

Dinner that evening was a strange affair.

For one thing, Schwartz had left without a word of goodbye. Normally he would wander into the kitchen and spend some time teasing Beatrice although she pretended to get annoyed; he would then fool around with the kids, wink and joke with the maids and Sita. Ignoring him for the major part, Sita would look at him stonily but it was obvious where her heart was. This was a routine we had every alternate day of the week and I knew that the twins looked forward to it. As for me, I enjoyed the light-hearted banter of this handsome man who was a dear friend. But only that.

That evening, the twins looked around for him before settling down meekly as Lucien sat, glowering at them like an angel of darkness from the head of the table, his large thick arms bunched under the jacket he still wore.. The tumbler of whiskey, positioned effectively at his elbow, gleamed rosily in the light of the chandeliers. One of his men, Ted Brister, was doubling