Transformation: Day 19

Word Count: 114,009

Summary of Events:

Ian talked with his grandfather about what he should do, and was advised to be more confrontational with Ms. Carlyle, to tell her forcefully that what she was doing was bad for her children. Elianne opened her presents and was moved to tears when the shirt she received looked almost identical to one of the shirts her mom had always worn. Taylor was training with his horse when he saw his grandparents drive up; they were intercepted by Whitney before they could reach him and Whitney took them to his office, where Taylor went to look for them once he'd finished his training for the day . . .

Excerpt of the Day:

The aesthetic of the office area was rather austere and professional; the doors were wooden with brass plates and windows of textured glass that blurred the view inside.

Whitney’s office was at the centre, and read Whitney Myers, manager & champion on its brass plate.

Through the window Taylor could see blurred shapes, illuminated via the outside window, but he couldn’t hear what they were saying inside, their voices were muffled, and try though he might he couldn’t make out a single word.

The best he could tell was that there was no anger, no aggravation. They were calm, there was no arguing. Taylor felt a cold fear that Grandmother and Grandfather had convinced Whitney that his place was at the bank and not riding a horse across the outback in a long and dirty challenge to reach the end the fastest.

After a long time — during which Taylor paced and feared he might wear the carpet down — Taylor heard sounds of furniture within and stopped pacing a ways from the door, watching for them to emerge.

Finally the door opened and Whitney, Grandmother, and Grandfather emerged from the office, with Whitney and Grandfather looking quite satisfied, while Grandmother looked like she was merely tolerating something.

They spotted him right away and Grandfather walked up to him calmly.

He proffered his hand. “Merry Christmas Taylor.”

Taylor looked between Grandfather’s face and his hand for a moment, then decided to put his own hand into Grandfather’s grasp, which was firm, but lasted only for a brief, solid shake, then Grandfather released Taylor’s hand and drew out his wallet.

In shocked silence Taylor watched as Grandfather counted out ten green bills, placing them into Taylor’s hand.

Without a word he turned and walked away. Taylor stared after them, watching as they disappeared after Whitney. He counted the bills again. One thousand dollars. Why?

He walked into Whitney’s office — as the door was still open — and looked out at the courtyard and much of the rest of the eastern reaches of the property.

After a few moments he saw Grandmother and Grandfather cross the courtyard and disappear out of sight for only a few moments before their Aston Martin crawled off down the driveway.

What had Whitney said that had gotten them to leave without even bringing up his returning to Sydney with them and taking work in the bank? How had Whitney been able to win the argument?