Tolerable Cruelty - Chapter 23 (Patreon)

Chapter 23

“Wooooooo!” Piper hollered as she rode a huge wave farther out from shore than she ever had before.

She’d packed her wetsuit, but she quickly realized that she probably didn’t have to protect her fair skin from the harsh sunlight, and she definitely didn’t need the warmth. A little concerned that the joy of her old pastime would be lost, she’d half flown, half swam far from shore to ride some waves. It had been way too long since she’d done it.

Luckily, Piper found that her fears were unfounded. She stood up, tall, proud, and beautiful on her surfboard, and let the bright sun beat down on her as the chill winds tried to bite at her flawless skin. The regular up and down, side to side swaying motion of the ocean lapping at her board was a lullaby to her ears. Far away from the sound of keyboards clacking and other suburban ambiance, Piper closed her eyes and reveled in the sound of gulls squawking and surf crashing.

It didn’t take long for a few waves to come rolling over. Piper lay flat on her surfboard—well, as flat as her unforgiving chest would allow her, and propelled herself through the water powerfully with her arms. Her fluid strokes carved through water as easily as air.

Catching the growing barrel of a wave, Piper deftly climbed to her feet and carved through the surface of the tube. Things flipped in and out of slow motion for her as she double and triple checked that she wasn’t flying; just gliding gracefully and beautifully over the waves. She exited the tube perfectly as the wave broke, placing pressure on her back foot and steering with her front. She laughed as she controlled her board more precisely than a speedboat, but just as fast!

An hour more, a few more waves, and a few more tricks left Piper satisfied. Too bad she couldn’t show off her new prowess to anyone, except, well, Peter. She sighed wistfully.

Maybe one more trick.

Piper blew powerfully at the water beneath her as the next large wave approached, magnifying its crest. Her eyes grew wide as she turned her head side to side, effortlessly creating something she imagined would be a natural disaster. It had to be heavier than any wave any other surfer had ever ridden.

She stopped blowing as the shadow of the behemoth enveloped her. With one powerful push of her left leg, Piper aimed the tip of her surfboard at a forward angle and made her way into the beast. She screamed in delight as she went nearly perpendicular to the earth before climbing all the way to the top lip of the wave, diving into and out of the tube at will.

Finally, the wave crashed down as Piper let the momentum carry her over the ocean’s surface. Flipping her board into her hands with a flick of her toes, she giggled as she walked over the water, scanning the shore for any observers. No, it was far too early, even for the dawn patrol. A few minutes, and she’d covered the miles back to shore. A rapid shake, and her perfect hair and glamorous upper body were already dry.

She took her time on the sandy stroll, waiting long enough until she knew her father would be awake. Then she took off and flew to the front door of his weathered beach house and knocked.

“I’m coming, I’m coming,” she heard his voice approaching.

The door clicked open.

“Piper? That you!?”

“Hi Dad!” she greeted, throwing her surfboard to a side and wrapping her arms around him in a powerful bear hug.

“Oof! Hey darlin’, I didn’t know you were coming! Easy, easy! Did I shrink a few more inches while you were gone?”

“Oops, sorry Dad!”

She placed the wispy-haired old man back on his feet, and they both entered his modest shack on the shore.

“So what are you doing here? Did you see Mom yet?” he asked as he poured a cup of coffee. “Want some? Cream no sugar. I remember.”

“Sure Dad! No, I haven’t seen Mom yet. How is she?”

“As okay as she can be. Some days she remembers me. Those are the good days. Otherwise, I just sit with her. Yesterday was a good day.”

“Good, good. I’ll make sure to visit her.”

“Where’s Peter?”

“He’s… at work,” Piper answered hesitantly.

“Oh now pumpkin… what’s wrong?”

“Nothing! Peter’s fine. He’s working at a big project.”

Daniel brought Piper her coffee and sat down with a groan, his old bones creaking.

“You’re such a bad liar, pumpkin. Now I know why you’re here. You two had a spat? And for you to have flown in just to see me… It must be bad if you’re here by yourself.”

Piper declined to mention just how un-inconvenient it was for her to do these things now.

“Yeah, we had a fight,” she sighed. “A big one. I… did something bad. I guess. I did it for him, and he yelled at me!” She clenched her fists. “Even now I’m not sure how to feel. Dad! Are you listening?!”

He was looking off into the distance. His ears and the tufts of hair surrounding them twitched as she reprimanded him.

“Oh sorry pumpkin. Hey, you remember that day when you and Peter came to me and your mother’s wedding renewal vows? And you wanted to waltz and poor old Peter was terrified?”

Piper laughed. “Yeah, he always had two left feet.”

“And he swept you off your feet! Your big lumbering football player, all muscle, taking you along the dance floor in a basic three step.”

“I only stepped on him four or five times,” Piper contributed to the memory.

“What a miracle that was, huh?”

“He told me later he’d been taking dance lessons in secret. He was learning from videos online after hours during work, and he’d gone to a dance instructor once or twice. He was so nervous, hahaha! He’d come home from work super sweet, always tired. It made me worried for a little while, but… he was great.”

“Yes, he is.” Daniel got up and stumbled his way toward the fridge.

Piper sniffled and wiped a tear from her eye as her father did his customary make-his-point-sink-in. She swore she could see his stupid shit-eating grin from the back of his bald, bumpy head.

Piper fidgeted on the old raggedy sofa.

“Eggs?” He broke the silence after he’d made sure his point had stuck.

“Oh, yeah. Can you scramble me as many as you have?”

“As many as I… you’re kidding right?”

“Nope! I’ll go buy you groceries later. I just had a nice surf.”

“So early! You’re like a new woman, Piper pumpkin.”

He pulled the carton of eggs out of the fridge and began cracking them into a bowl, squinting through his blurry vision at his beautiful daughter sitting on the couch.

“You went for a surf? You’re going to cramp up sitting like that!”

“Oh!” Piper gasped, forgetting her training. Being full of energy and power had made her forgetful about certain things. She uncrossed her long legs from beneath her and stretched them out across the floor.

“You’re really gonna feel it later. You always do, you know. Those muscles have a way of reminding you that they haven’t been used in too long. I hope you didn’t overdo it.”

“Don’t worry, Dad. I’ll be fine. Do you need any repairs done around the house? Floor’s getting pretty sandy, and looks like the exterior could use some cleaning…”

“Oh that, don’t worry about that honey. My guy hasn’t been available lately. Peter, I’d make him pressure wash the house. But you don’t fret your pretty little head about it.”

Piper smirked. “Well, I’ll do some cleaning while you take your afternoon nap, okay?”

“If’n you want. Can’t stop ya. You were always so hard-headed about some things.”

The pan sizzled as he poured the whipped eggs into it. Spatula in one hand, handle in the other, he jiggled both hands, breaking the solidifying egg curds into smaller chunks. Tossing some salt and pepper onto it, he heaped it onto a plate and delivered it to his daughter.

“Thanks Dad.”

She wolfed down all eight eggs worth of scramble.

“Sheesh Piper. I’d tell you to watch what you eat, but clearly you’re doing just fine.”

“Been working out. Peter’s been helping me,” she explained.

“No doubt. I’m going to take a nap now. Go see your mother. And you might want to check my storage closet. There’s definitely something in there that could use your touch. Clean out some sand and whatnot.”

“Okay Dad. Thanks. Here, let me help you.”

Piper bolted over and placed her father’s arm over her shoulder to help him make his way up the stairs.

“Sheesh honey. Peter’s been working you out pretty well, huh?”

“Yeah, guess so Dad. Or maybe you should eat more too.”

“Hah! Maybe.”

“Sleep well Dad.”

“Stay as long as you like, honey. But not too long. Lovebirds shouldn’t stay apart long, you hear?”

“Okay Dad.”

Piper floated downstairs after she closed the bedroom door. She floated downstairs, past the pictures of her mother and father back when they were still young. Marriage ceremony, family portrait of when she was just a five year old child… Peter and her had been excited to have one of those portraits of their own to hang up.

When she heard her father’s soft snoring from above, Piper went to work. Dishes cleaned in a blur, front door open, and a targeted, high pressure puff of her breath cleared out the cozy house in just under a minute. Some passersby on the beach were subject to a powerful gust. They would have seen Piper at the doorway, lips pursed, had it not been for the extreme force she’d generated. They shielded themselves from the spray of grainy sand in their direction. By the time they had recovered, the front door was closed again, and the source of the little windstorm was a total mystery.

“Oh,” Piper exclaimed softly as her eyes turned to the storage closet. Casting her glowing gaze on it, her heart pounded as she wondered just exactly what lesson her father had left for her in there.

She turned the handle gently and pried the door open. The weather rusted hinge and the warped wood tried to resist her pull, but it was no match for Piper’s easy pull. The door screeched open, releasing a thick film of sand and dust as the door scraped open.

Piper instantly floated back, letting the filth settle. Poor Dad. She should visit more often.

Peering inside, Piper could see two identical sculptures of the doves that she and Peter owned. Beautiful and transparent, Piper stared at them, completely mesmerized by their beauty as she’d been when both family’s parents had gifted them a sculpture as a gesture of their complete union. Her dad must have inherited the sculpture from Peter’s family after their murder.

Piper’s perfect vision was growing blurry. She wiped a tear from her eye before pulling a crystal sculpture out of the storage closet and cleaning it with another little puff of her breath.

She sat down on that familiar sofa and placed the doves on the coffee table. Dad was right, of course. She had to talk to Peter. There was no way she would let Bledsoe cause a tragedy in their family twice.

Besides, she could always make Peter be okay with it under threat of violence.

Piper smirked at her husband’s little fantasy before dismissing it. What a tricky, winding path it was to navigate!

Still, she was ready. She pulled out her phone. No calls from Peter.

No, she wouldn’t get discouraged. But as she navigated to her contacts menu, her phone buzzed. Her heart pounded as she anticipated seeing Peter’s face pop up on screen.

It was… Grant!? She answered.

“Piper! Piper, sorry to call you on your day off!” her boss’s gruff voice barked from her handheld.

“It’s okay, Grant. What’s wrong? You need me to come into work?”

“Fuck no! I wouldn’t bother you about something stupid like that! Some federal goombas barged into my office demanding to know where you were! I told them to show me a warrant, and when they couldn’t, I politely told them to go fuck themselves in the ass. Are you okay? What’s going on?”