The Devil You Know: Chapter 38

Carly was at the hotel’s front desk when she looked up and sneered.  Approaching her was Todd Manning’s other ex-wife, Tea Delgado, holding a baby.  Also with her was a teenager Carly remembered to be Todd’s daughter, Daniella.  Putting on her best business-like face, Carly greeted them.  “Welcome to the Metrocourt, Ms. Delgado.  Do you have a reservation?”

Tea offered a smirk back.  “Yes, it’s under Lord.  We were supposed to be here in two days, but my husband has some business he needs to attend to before this ball.”

“The Nurses’ Ball?  You’ll be attending?” Carly asked.

“Yes, the family made a rather large donation and Viki wanted as many of us to attend as possible.  So, Victor and I brought our children as well,” Tea replied.

As if on cue, Victor Lord Junior reached the desk.  “Hello Carly.  You know if the jackass is in his office?”

Carly shook her head.  “I see you and your brother healed all those wounds.”  She then pointed in the direction of the Grand Ballroom.  “I think I saw him head in that direction.  He’s probably there, as I know Blair’s rehearsing her number.”

“Okay, Tea, get the kids settled.  Let me go talk to him, see what Jack and Viki were talking about,”  Victor said.

“Actually, I was going to go hang out with Jack and Molly,” Danie said.  “If it’s okay, I’ll see you later.”

“Fine,” Victor said as he headed off to the ballroom.  As he approached, he heard a piano playing but no singing.  He opened the door and saw Todd at the baby grand.  His twin was oblivious to him as he moved closer to the stage, astounded by the performance.  When Todd finished the piece, Victor actually applauded.  This caught Todd’s attention.

“What the hell are you doing here?” Todd asked rudely. 

Victor sighed and rolled his eyes.  “Well, I missed you, brother.  Haven‘t seen you in a while.” 

“Like I’d believe that,” Todd muttered.  He grabbed the cane and made his way off the stage.  “Really, what are you here for?”

“This ball thingy that you financed,” Victor explained.  When Todd gave him a look, he added, “Viki made me come, okay?”

His brother smirked at him.  “Yeah, that was what I figured.  Well, you’re a few days early, take a tour of the town.  There’s the Mafioso Museum, a place that serves good burgers and, if you believe Heather Webber, the best BLT’s,  and a haunted house out in the harbor.  So, go to those and stay out of my way.”

Todd walked past Victor and headed to the lobby.  He got annoyed when he saw his twin follow him, but tried his best to ignore him.  When he waited for the elevator, he noticed Victor was there with him.  “Are you following me?”

“Ah, yeah,” he replied.  “Well, you decided to annoy me at my office, now, I’m just returning the favor.”  When the doors opened, Victor stepped on and waited for Todd to do the same.  Todd looked skyward, exhaled deeply and stepped on as well.  When they got to the Manning Enterprises floor, both brothers stepped off at the same time. 

Maxie turned around and saw her boss coming in.  “Morning, Mr. Manning,” she said as he turned into his office.  When Victor did likewise, she stepped in the way.  “And you are?”

Victor halted abruptly and looked at her.  “I’m his twin.  Identical twin, really.”

Maxie looked back at her boss, who pointed and circled his finger around his ear.  Then she remembered.  “Oh, yes, Mr. Lord.  Hi, Maxie Jones!”  she said enthusiastically.  “So wonderful to meet you.”

“Ah, thanks,” he replied.

“Maxie, can you call housekeeping.  Tell them we have a pest that needs to be dealt with,” Todd ordered her. 

“And with that, I need to get a cup of coffee.  Mr. Lord, nice to meet you,” Maxie said as she left.

“You haven’t spent TIME WITH HIM!” Todd yelled to her as she walked away.  Todd sat down in his chair and stared at his brother.  “You gonna just stand there all day?  Or are you going to tell me the real reason you‘re here so early?”

“Real reason?  What, I can’t just spend time with you?  You know how Viki wants us to be close,” came Victor’s latest excuse.

“And when was the last time we actually did what Viki wanted?”

“We walked her down the aisle.”

Todd cocked his head.  “Yeah, there is that.”  Then he leveled a gaze at Victor.  “But you changed the subject.  What are you doing here?”

Before the question could be answered, Blair came in.  “Todd how did the--”  She stopped when she noticed Victor.  “What are you doing here so early?”

“That was just what I was asking him,” Todd informed her. 

Victor couldn’t help but smirk at the two.   Dealing with Todd was one thing, but adding Blair to the mix was another.  He decided to deflect and regroup.  “I just wanted to get into town, maybe go over thing here with you.  But now, I really don’t have the patience to deal with the two of you together, so, I’ll see you around.”  He walked out the door and then turned around and headed back in.  “But I get the feeling that once Viki hears I’m in town, there’ll be a family dinner.”  As if on cue, Todd’s phone rang.  “Have fun with that.”

As Victor was waiting for the elevator, he heard Todd’s voice say, “Fine sis, I’ll come, but I won’t be nice to that jackass or the ditz!”  He smiled and headed to his suite.  When he got in, Tea was feeding Leo.

“How’d things go with your brother?” she asked.

“About how you’d expect.”  He took his jacket off and sat next to her.  “I don’t know.  He seemed his normal self when I was talking to him--cocky, smarmy, a pain in the ass.  But--”

“ ‘But’ what?” Tea asked.

“He was playing a piece on the piano when I found him and I remembered him playing it years ago, with his mother.   He didn’t…miss a beat.  Every note was perfect,” Victor told her.  “He seems to have gotten those memories back.”

“What memories?” Tea was genuinely curious.  “Wait, Todd was playing piano?”  That was one image Tea could not picture.  She had never known him to be musically talented.

“Bitsy Manning was a pianist.  She taught lessons at her home when he was a kid.  And Todd was very talented.  But he stopped when he was seven.  Peter didn’t think it was manly enough,” her husband explained.  “And he probably forgot about it, especially after Peter beat the crap out of his wife.”

Tea picked up Leo and burped him, thinking about what her husband had just said.  She had thought, years ago, that Todd had psychological and emotional issues, but it was shown to be an act at the time.  Yet, looking at Victor now, she could tell he was thinking about the memories Todd must have.  “You remember his childhood, don’t you?”

Victor was staring straight ahead, lost in thought, before he answered, “Every moment.  Every angry word from Peter.  Every punch, slap…”  He let out a little chuckle.  “Feels like I’m a walking alter or something.  Like Jean or Bess.  One that remembers all and protects the host.”  Then he leaned in to her and gave her a kiss.  “That’s why Jack called me here early.  He wants to see if I remember something and he’s afraid of what will happen if he asks Todd about it.”

“What is it that Jack thinks will happen if he asks Todd about his childhood?” Tea asked even as she feared the answer.

Victor looked down for a minute, until his son grabbed his attention.  It was amazing how this little life had helped him for the past few months, moreso than Sam or Danie or Todd’s kids.  He vowed to protect him, so that he never had to face his father’s past like Jack was now.  Then he looked back at Tea.  She saw, she understood.  He didn’t need to say it, but he did.  “Jack thinks he’ll have a collapse.  Maybe as bad as Viki or Jess, maybe not.  And there was something about him today that tell me, he is right.” 


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