The Einstein Equation

24 Wrichtishousis Tears

Purdue woke, in part reliving the agony of an operation. His throat felt like sandpaper and his head weighed a ton. From his curtains, a sliver of daylight filtered through and hit him between the eyes. Stumbling out of bed naked, he suddenly vaguely recalled a passionate night with Lilith Hurst, but he pushed it aside to concentrate on the wretched daylight he needed to rid his poor eyes of.

When he covered the light with the drapes, he turned to find the young beauty still asleep on the other side of his bed. No sooner had he seen her there, when Charles knocked softly. Purdue opened the door.

“Good afternoon, sir,” he said.

“Morning Charles,” Purdue snorted, holding his head. He felt a draft, and only then realized that he was starkers in front of the help. But it was too late to matter now, so he pretended that nothing was awkward between him and Charles. His butler, ever the professional, ignored the fact as well.

“May I have a word, sir?” Charles asked. “Of course, as soon as you are ready.”

Purdue nodded, but was surprised to see Lillian in the background, looking quite concerned as well. Quickly, Purdue’s hands shot to his crotch. Charles seemed to peer into the room at the sleeping Lilith and whispered to his master, “Sir, please do not let on to Miss Hurst that you and I have something to discuss.”

“Why? What is going on?” Purdue whispered. He could feel that something was amiss in his house this morning, and the mystery of it begged to be exposed.

“David,” a sensual groan came from the soft darkness of his bedroom. “Come back to bed.”

“Sir, I implore you,” Charles tried to reiterate quickly, but Purdue closed the door in his face. Glum and mildly angry, Charles stared at Lillian, who matched his emotion. She said nothing, but he knew that she felt exactly the same. Without a word, the butler and the housekeeper descended the stairs to the kitchen where they would discuss the next step in their employ under David Purdue.

Getting security involved was an obvious support for their claim, but until Purdue could unglue himself from the malicious seductress, they could not state their case. During the night, when the alarm went off, Charles was designated as the liaison for the household until Purdue was coherent again. The security company was just waiting for word from him, and they would call in to show Purdue the footage of the attempted sabotage. Whether it was just bad wiring was highly unlikely, considering Purdue’s rigid maintenance of his technology, and Charles intended to make that clear.

Upstairs, Purdue was having another roll in the hay with his new toy.

“Shall we sabotage that?” Lillian jested.

“I would love to, Lillian, but unfortunately I really like my job,” Charles sighed. “Can I make you a cup of tea?”

“That would be lovely, my dear,” she groaned, seating herself by the small modest kitchen table. “What are we going to do if he marries her?”

Charles almost dropped the porcelain cups at the thought. His lips quivered silently. Lillian had never seen him like that before. The epitome of composure and self-control was suddenly rendered anxious. Charles glared out the window, his eyes finding solace in the thick greenery of the grand gardens of Wrichtishousis.

“We cannot let that happen,” he replied sincerely.

“Maybe we should get Dr. Gould to come over and remind him what he is actually after,” Lillian suggested. “Besides, Nina will kick Lilith’s a…”

“Now, you wanted to see me?” Purdue’s words suddenly froze Lillian’s blood. She swung round to find her boss standing in the doorway. He looked like hell, but he was cogent.

“My God, sir,” she uttered, “can I get you some painkillers?”

“No,” he answered, “but I would very much appreciate a slice of dry toast and sweet black coffee. This is the worst hangover I have ever had.”

“You are not hungover, sir,” Charles said. “As far as I know the small amount of alcohol you consumed is not capable of rendering you unconscious in such a manner that you could not regain consciousness even during a midnight alarm raid.”

“Excuse me?” Purdue frowned at the butler.

“Where is she?” Charles asked plainly. His tone was stern, almost insubordinate, and that was a sure sign to Purdue that there was trouble.

“In the shower. Why?” Purdue replied. “I told her I am going to throw up in the lower toilet, because I felt nauseated.”

“Nice excuse, sir,” Lillian congratulated her boss while she got the toasted plugged in.

Purdue stared at her as if she was silly. “I did throw up because I do feel nauseated, Lily. What did you think? You thought I would lie to her just to entertain this conspiracy you all have against her?”

Charles snorted loudly at the shock of Purdue’s persistent oblivion. Lillian was just as upset about it, but she had to keep things relaxed before Purdue decided to dismiss his staff in a fit of distrust. “Of course not,” she told Purdue. “I was just jesting.”

“Don’t think that I do not follow what is going on in my own house,” Purdue warned. “You have all made it clear on several occasions that you disapprove of Lilith’s presence here, but you forget one thing. I am the master of this house and I know everything that happens between these walls.”

“Except when you are passed out from Rohypnol while your security detail and house staff have to contain the fire threat in your home,” Charles said. His utterance earned him a slap on the arm from Lillian, but it was too late. The floodgates of the loyal butler’s equanimity had been breached. Purdue’s face went ashen, even more than its already pasty complexion. “I apologize for being so forward, sir, but I will not stand idly by while some second-rate wench infiltrate my workplace and home to undermine the work of my employer.” Charles was as astonished by his outburst as the housekeeper and Purdue were. The butler looked at Lillian’s gaping expression and shrugged, “In for a penny, in for a pound, Lily.”

“I cannot,” she lamented. “I need this job.”

Purdue was so taken aback by Charles’ insults that he was quite literally speechless. The butler gave Purdue an indifferent look and added, “I regret to have to speak like this, sir, but I cannot allow that woman to endanger your life any further.”

Purdue stood up, feeling as if he walked into a sledgehammer, but he had something to say. “How dare you? You are in no position to make such accusations!” he thundered at the butler.

“He is only concerned for your wellbeing, sir,” Lillian tried, wringing her hands respectfully.

“Shut it, Lillian,” both men barked at her simultaneously, sending her into a crying frenzy. The sweet mannered housekeeper ran through the backdoor, not even bothering to complete her employer’s breakfast request.

“Look what you have caused, Charles,” Purdue sneered.

“It was not my doing, sir. The cause of all this discord is standing right behind you,” he told Purdue. Purdue looked behind him. Lilith stood there, looking like a puppy being kicked. Her subliminal manipulation of Purdue’s feelings knew no boundaries. She looked deeply hurt and terribly weak, shaking her head.

“I am so sorry, David. I tried to get them to like me, but it seems they just do not want to see you happy. I will be gone in thirty minutes. Just let me pack my things,” she said, turning to leave.

“Don’t you move, Lilith!” Purdue ordered. He looked at Charles, his blue eyes piercing the butler with disappointment and resentment. Charles had reached the end of his tether. “Her… or us… sir.”