Page 70 of Jackson
“Mmm, that may be the case, but there are other ways of dealing with that, you don’t need to rush to sell your apartment. Even if you did, that child won’t be entitled to the cash until he is of legal age. Is there a trust to be setup?”
“I don’t know, I was just going to sell it and then ask the solicitor to hand it over, Iguess.”
“You’ll do no such thing. I’ll deal with it,Summer.”
“The thing is, I don’t want to live here anymore, it feels tarnished,” Isaid.
She nodded and we paused our conversation while we both took sips from ourglasses.
“I don't know what to do, Perri. I love Jack, I want to be with him, but there are other things I can’t talk about right now. Dexter said to stay away for now. Jack is using the fact that he’s lost me as his goal to sort himself out. Maybe he thinks he can win me back when he’swell.”
“Dexter is the bar owner? And what other things,Summer?”
“Yes, the local fixer-upper as they call him. He was a therapist in Australia before he moved to the U.S. I don’t think what he does is legal but it seems to help. And…Jack has a need to dominate,to…”
“Sexually?”
“Yes, but not with me, with…others.” I was finding it hard to speak the words, to tell her what I’dseen.
“Okay, I can understand that and when you’re ready, tell me everything. I have to know it all; I can’t help if I don't. And as for Dexter, legal or illegal, if it helps then we need to supportthat.”
“What did your dad actually do?” I asked, not sure I really wanted toknow.
Perri sighed. “I don’t know all of it, he was a clever man, most of his torment was behind closed doors, and while I was out of the house. He would lock Jack in a cupboard, I know that much. He’d stand outside the door, sometimes inside, and just talk to him, scare the shit out of him. He’d tell him the monsters were coming. I heard him a couple of times but I was too young then to help. I know he told him he killed our mother, which simply isn’ttrue.”
“What happened toher?”
“She had pre-eclampsia, it’s quite common, but with her diabetes, she developed complications. It’s normal to have a C-section, and usually once the child is born, the mother recovers. My mother wanted a natural birth, my father begged her to terminate, which wasn’t an option, obviously, she was too far into her pregnancy. She was mortified that he’d want that; I don’t know this for fact, it’s just what I was told by my grandmother before she died. Anyway, Mum didn’t recover; she had a series of fits and died. It’s possible that Dad wanted her to abort because he didn’t want a son, an heir. Or he didn’t want to share Mum with any morechildren.”
“I’m so sorry,” Isaid.
Perri smiled at me, “It was all a long time ago. So what to do aboutJack?”
“I don’t know right now. There’s a lot I have to think about but I got a text, let me showyou.”
I reached for my phone and showed her the text message I’dreceived.
“Do you think I should fly out? Would that help?” Perriasked.
“I don’t know, I can ask. I want to push through the sale of this apartment and then, who knows? There’s a huge part of me that wants to return, Perri. I can’t switch off my feelings for him, despite what I know, what I’ve seen. I thought I might like to go back to university and Alfie, Dexter’s partner, said that UC has courses in psychotherapy. I’d like to explore that. I can go on a student visa, hesaid.”
“I have contacts still at my old uni, Summer, why don’t I see if I can find out. But are you sure? Your parents are still alive, how would they feel about you packing up andleaving?”
“I haven’t mentioned it to them, I imagine they will be thrilled for me to be honest. They’ve always encouraged me to do whatever I want. But there’s something else. Jack told me he killedDane.”
Perri leaned forwards and placed her empty wine glass on the coffee table. I watched as she took a deep breath. Her brow furrowed and she screwed her eyesshut.
“It was an accident, Perri. He didn’t kill my husband, he blames himself for his death though.” I then told her what Iknew.
“I don’t know what to say. I’m so sorry for you and I’m so sorry for my brother. His downward spiral has been since then, and now I knowwhy.”
“There isn’t anything to say. I’m angry, of course, and hurt that Jack kept that information from me. I’m confused. I should hate him, but I don’t. I should be disgusted with what he does, what I saw, but I’m not, and I don’t know how to deal with that. I saw yourbrother…”
“What did you see, Summer?” There was urgency to Perri’svoice.
“I saw him with another man. Dexter told me that he likes to do things but it isn’t sexual, there’s no feeling. It’s a way of stripping power, or something. He likened it to the fucking Romans,” I said. I started tolaugh.
“What’s funny?” Perriasked.
