CHAPTER II – Vincent

As Vincent slammed the office’s door behind him, the entire building seemed to shake in fear of his anger.

“Why?” He demanded to know in a deep thundering voice, while menacingly advancing towards the service manager.

“New management orders.” The man replied as firmly as he possibly could while carefully moving away him.

Vincent had an impressive figure whenever he got angry, which wasn’t all that often. Tall, slenderly built he wasn’t the kind to be easily upset, and he had always shown to be quite tolerant to other people’s remarks, never really caring for what they said about him.

Truth be said, no one really believed he could get that type of work done. In the beginning, the other fishermen viewed him as just another pretty boy on a tantrum fit and who was simply not cut out for that job. For a long time, he was forced to endure their disdainful comments. Sometimes about his fragile looks, sometimes about his pretty face, or sometimes about the lack of facial hair. However, that never bothered Vincent. He did his job, the best he could and he was happy with it. Eventually the other fishermen came to respect him for all his efforts and dedication to his work. Or at least that was what Vincent hoped and wanted to believe, even though the first signs of respect were shown just after an incident occurred with a couple of his fellow workers.

“For two years I’ve worked my ass off for this company! I helped and did everything I was asked to without complaining, and this is how you people repay me?” Vincent asked angrily.

“I am truly sorry Vincent.” The service manager replied understanding the young man’s grievance, but the decision had been taken and it was something beyond his reach. “There was nothing I could have done.” The man begun to explain, “The choice was either letting you go or close down the company.” He said.

That was definitely a very clear message addressed to him. Vincent took a long deep breath and shook his head. He should have known. These instructions could only have come from one person. One person firmly determined to show him how useless he was without the support of his kin, without the support of his family.

“Yeah…” Vincent concluded disappointed, crushing the termination of employment letter and throwing it into the bin. “I guess they got to you too Michael.

“Listen Vincent… this is hard for me too.” Michael replied seeing the disappointment in the light almond shaped eyes of his friend. “If they closed down this company, these men would have nothing to live on. “ He paused running his fingers through his hair. There was no easy way to put it. “They have families to support Vincent… You, at least, have an option… and they would have had none.”

“An option? ” Vincent hissed at the unfair remark. “You, above all others, know that isn’t true!” he accused him.

“For Gods sake man, just look around you for once!” Michael replied trying to reason with him. “You have no need, whatsoever, to be living like this! Stop acting like a spoiled brat, you’re a grown man! Go back to your family. Apologize to them and get it over with. You cannot fight them”.

Listening to those words coming from his friend’s lips was like having sharp daggers buried deep in his heart. It hurt. Vincent looked shocked. He had never expected such from a man he dared to call a friend.

“Good luck Michael, you’ll need it.” It was all Vincent was able say before darting out of the office.

He left the premises silently, without addressing a word to anyone. No matter how hard he fought, his family would always end up gaining the upper hand at some point. Vincent sat in his old pickup truck, his arms resting over the wheel. He closed his eyes and stood there for a while.

Alice warned him about the difficult times ahead. The thought of her made him smile.

He had always found great support in her strength and even in her wisdom. She knew him for whom he was, she knew all of his secrets, and yet she helped him to adjust to his new way of life when he and his family moved to Emerald bay. If it hadn’t been for Alice, he would have lost himself, just like his mother.

After his mother’s death, his father threw him out of the house. It was like he could not bear the sight of his own son, like he wished he had faded away along with his mother. Initially Vincent blamed it on the grief for his wife’s passing. But as the years went by, he came to realize his father’s hatred towards him was growing more passionate. With it, grew in Vincent the feeling his father wanted him dead.

It was Alice who stood between Vincent’s pain for losing his mother, and his father's deep unexplained hate for his existence. It was Alice who helped and sheltered him when he had nowhere to go. Whenever she saw him lost in a heartbreaking melancholy, she smiled and used to tell him how he had this enchanting sparkle in his eyes that could light up even the darkest night. That alone, was enough to make all go well. He missed her already.

Her sudden death came as a shock to him. He had dropped by her house the night before she passed away and she looked fine. They drank tea, talked about their usual subjects and when he left there was no indication of such tragedy would occur. That particular night they had talked about beliefs. He told her about his, she told him about hers and that pretty much summed it up. There had been nothing out of the ordinary.

Alice died that night during her sleep.

Soon after the funeral, it came to his knowledge Alice had left everything she owned to her niece, Kristie. Vincent remembered the little girl, in a ponytail, from a summer she had spent in Emerald bay; she had been probably around ten years old when he saw her for the first, and for the last, time. That memory was twenty years old, and the funny thing about it was that back then he noticed there was something different about Alice’s niece. He just couldn’t quite figure what it was. Curiously he had never shared that with Alice. It seemed unimportant at the time; perhaps he wrongly considered that Alice would have all the time in the world. Now, the simple thought of her made him feel uncomfortable, like there were butterflies flying around in his stomach.

Vincent turned the key in the ignition, and the sound of the engine starting brought his mind back to reality. With or without butterflies, he needed to find a new job or he would be unable to pay his bills. Bearing that in mind, he drove away. 

Chapter III