Chapter 1: Venatio

Luke Sevenson looked around at the spacious great room, standing there with an empty glass, listening to the classical waltz blaring over the speakers mounted on the wall close to the twenty-foot-high ceiling in the brightly lit room. The stylish Victorian theme dominated the colors and furniture, with the end tables pushed against the walls, the couches and recliners gone for the evening, the Persian rug missing from its usual spot in the center, the hardwood floors freshly waxed to a high shine effectively turning the room into a dance hall for the night.

Ah well, these company dance-offs need a venue; why not the founding family members’ home? He thought sarcastically.

Their house wasn’t a mansion, but it wasn’t far from it, with seven bedrooms and his tower making eight. His tower was an old part of the house that had been restored; it had initially been one of those old libraries with the staircase curling around to the top, a full three stories high; luckily, when they had first moved here, he had convinced his parents to convert it into his bedroom, making it the most incredible bedroom ever for an eight-year-old boy at the time, later on, it had practically become an apartment for him, complete with his own bathroom and dining table.

As for the size of the house itself, from what his parents had told him when he asked once, they had both thought of having more kids, but then work had got in the way, and they had decided three was enough. Well, his Dad did; his mother had been more open to filling the house from the way he understood it.

At the bar he had helped his father drag into the room and set up in the corner was his cousin Marty. A pimply-faced 21-year-old university student with a shock of red hair and freckles, he was a dead ringer for Farkus from A Christmas Story, spiky hair included. The rest of the room was filled with family and his mothers and father’s co-workers, 90% of them over 40, the rest a little younger, not by much, though.

Setting his glass down at the bar and nodded as Marty held up the bottle as a question. “Yeah, I need another.” Rubbing the bridge of his nose at the ache behind his eyes from the bright light and grating music, the Brooks Brothers jacket his mother had practically forced him into was slightly too small and making him borderline miserable. However, he admitted grudgingly that it looked nice. Taking his glass back in hand and nodding in thanks to his cousin, who acknowledged him with a nod in return, he left his little roost in the corner to try to drift a little further away from the woofer above, walking over to one of the few chairs remaining in the room. He looked down into the glass and frowned a little; it was barely more than a sip, not even a proper finger, then sighed, knowing it had to be his mother’s influence after he had got home wasted the day prior.

Taking the backrest of the white rounded oak chair and slipping it back against the wall as he sat, watching the people move and flow to the music, dull colors moving past with the occasional flash of blue or red silk.

His mother being one of those, she loved the color light blue, something to do with her golden-blonde hair, which tonight she had up in a twisted bun that complimented her pretty face and mischievous blue eyes; her evening gown was an almost baby-blue in color, just a shade darker than, giving it a sleek look, almost tantalizing if one wasn’t related to her, his mother was still a gorgeous woman.

He had also seen his sisters all dolled up earlier; both had been dressed like their mother, no doubt the men getting hard-ons from all the eye candy.

He was leaning back against the wall and closing his eyes momentarily, taking another tiny sip of his bourbon, feeling the chair groan slightly under his 5’9”, 180 lb. frame. Luke wasn’t an athlete or any type of gym nut; he just preferred to have everything in order when it came to his body, so he went to the gym a few times a week; he wasn’t religious about it; he just did the minimum to keep himself reasonably fit and from packing on extra padding. As he sat there Luke let his mind drift and tried to relax and let some of the tension go from his body as the sweet bourbon took effect, a slight warm feeling, just barely noticeable, then he shrugged again, annoyed at the fucking shoulders of his jacket that were still a constant irritant. He sighed and tried to relax for a few minutes.

“Pssst! Jackass! Wake up!” Someone buzzed rudely in his ear, causing him to almost bolt upright, but he managed in the space between nanoseconds to avoid the embarrassment.

Opening his eyes and giving a Go Fuck yourself look to his cousin Dave who stood there leaning over, grinning evilly like some cartoon character about to drop something heavy on the hero. Looking him up and down for a moment, surprised the fool had shown, and of course, he was dressed for success in skin-tight black leather pants, a purple silk shirt straight out of some cheesy 70’s porno film, and zip-up black leather boots.

He was confident the sight of him no doubt had sent many a young woman screaming in terror with his oily hair, splotchy skin, lazy eye, and three front teeth missing; the rest yellowed from cigarettes, crack, and meth, and he had heard horse tranquilizers, in that order. Luke just shook his head at the grinning idiot, wondering if he wanted to lose a few more teeth and if he could get away with it. Knowing Eagle Eye Mom, he doubted it; she had been keeping her sight trained on him all night, maybe not staring directly at him, but the minute he stepped out in the hallway, he felt her gaze locking onto the back of his head, ready to open fire. He happened to notice her once again watching him, a slight frown marring her features this time, no doubt because of Dave’s dumbass spewing that Sarin-Gas breath of his in the room.

“I told you I’d meet you outside, Dipshit.” Luke said as he stood, taking his arm and turning him to walk towards the hallway, setting his glass on the bar as he passed.

Dave shrugged and didn’t make a fuss, knowing it was all part of the show, the goodie-two-shoes Mommy’s Boy kicking out the druggie dead-beat of the family. Though Luke did have him by a few pounds and several inches in height, not that Dave would ever admit it.

They reached the hallway and walked on through, passing a couple of the caterers his father had hired and one cleaning lady until making their way to the kitchen and then out the back door.

Stepping out into the crisp cold night air onto the frozen deck, the slight breeze bringing a frosty touch on his exposed skin as they stood there momentarily, Luke looked at him expectantly.

“So, you got my weed or what?”

Dave rummaged around in his pocket, then yanked a baggie out and tossed it to him, a half-filled quart zip lock bag.

“The finest Irish Cream there is.” Dave grinned again with the checkered pattern of missing teeth.

Luke opened it, took a whiff, and nodded. Dave may be an idiot, a loser, a junkie, and an overall disaster for anyone’s insurance policy, but the grungy bastard knew where to get the best drugs. He took the little wad of cash he had brought with him out of his pocket and tossed it to him.

“Ok, thanks for the assist; I’ll see ya around the jungle, Dave.” As he turned, he walked back inside, leaving him standing there with shaking fingers, counting the bills in the freezing night.

Getting back into the heat felt good as he sighed, letting the warm air wash over him, causing the chill to fall away. The weather was saying heavy snow anytime now; he only hoped it wouldn’t come down too thick, he had a date tonight, and he damn sure didn’t want to miss it. He and his old girlfriend Cindy had reconnected after a fashion, just exchanging emails and calls the past few days, and he had told her he was coming back to town this weekend, and they had made a date for tonight.

That was one reason he had sprung for some good weed. He didn’t usually smoke it up, just on special occasions, and tonight was one of those, she had suggested it, even telling him Dave would be the best bet at getting the good stuff; he and Cindy had always had a good time and then wound the night down with a good blunt. He figured that dealing with Dave for one night was a fair exchange for some decent weed.

He strolled into the kitchen, the cool air having cleared his head. He was in no hurry to return to the dance floor and stare at the stiffs as they moved. Picking up a little cracker with some type of cheese, he nibbled, letting his mind drift a little.

He remembered the first of these he attended, back when he was 14, and the crowd was smaller, more like 50 people tops, but now, with the growth of his parent’s company, it was closer to 90. Luke loved his parents and didn’t begrudge them for their success; anyone who can start out selling junk in a garage and turn it into something that big must be respected. Of course, his mother was just as much responsible as his Dad for the success of the paper-products company. They both worked long hours with Luke and his two older sisters, Kim and Jane, staying with one of their aunts and the most annoying cousins on the planet, and one of those was Grungy Cousin Dave.

Popping some type of sausage sampler into his mouth and chewing, his thoughts wandered back to how his mother acted when he arrived. He had just got back home yesterday, tired, and overall feeling awful (The all-night drinking session in his dorm room didn’t help matters when he boarded the plane the next morning with a Court-Ordered Hangover from Hell just getting started up after only an hour of sleep) when she had took him aside after he walked in the door, apparently needing to talk privately.

But Luke only wanted to go to his room and drop dead in his Tower for a few hours, so he was barely listening to Jeannie, his most of the time wonderfully caring Mom, but this time she gave him a good rap on the face. Causing him to shake his head and stare at his pretty 39-year-old mother, the bright blue eyes staring up at him in annoyance. Her blonde hair was gathered in a ponytail in the back, her favorite Ozfest shirt completing the 80s look.

“Luke!” She just sighed and then said, “Go get some rest and sleep it off.” Shaking her head, she saw the zombified look of a half-dead student, knowing young people and doing stupid things was part of growing up, she sighed to herself again as she turned him around and gave him a spank, telling him no more booze.

Later that evening, when he had gotten up from his bed, still severely hung over and wondering if he was going to die, he stumbled downstairs; his mother had been passing by and, seeing him, had grabbed his arm, hauling him into the study as his Dad was in town buying a few things for the party tonight.

She was wearing her matching and form-fitting peach-colored dressing gown and calf-length silk house coat, with the cute cream-colored slippers he had given her on Mother’s Day. Her firm breasts stood out proud on her chest, braless and hinting at what lay beneath the thin silk. She had her still-shapely body sitting primly on the edge of the desk while Luke took the oiled leather seat in front of her in his university logo sweats. “So Luke, any plans this weekend?” Smiling as she saw his bloodshot eyes and hungover demeanor, amused at her boy’s suffering. No doubt she was probably thinking he had earned it and would think twice before doing the same thing again. But in his defense it was the first time he had really gotten drunk. He had sampled alcohol of course, but this was the first time he had gone overboard.

Holding his head with one hand and leaning to the side as he kept his eyes squinted and groaned, thinking if this was the price he had to pay for drinking so much, then he would seriously consider becoming a Mormon soon.

“Talk a little lower, please...” Sighing as he put his hand over his eyes for a moment, the pounding in his skull easing slightly once his eyes were covered. His short brown hair looked like he hadn’t combed through it in weeks, and his skin was slightly pale with a light sheen.

“Awww, I’m sorry baby...” She patted his shoulder as she bent down and yelled, “MOMMY NEEDS TO TALK TO YOU!”

Luke barreled out of the chair to the side, crawling on his hands and knees, groaning in pain, feeling like his head was splitting open, reaching the corner and curling up in it, knees to his chest, then hearing his mother giving an evil little giggle.

“Ahhhhhhhhh! Mom!” Holding his head in his hands and drawing out the word in a hoarse whisper, groaning.

She took pity on her son then and walked over and patted his shoulder. He flinched and braced for her to shout again. He waited and waited, then peeked, and she was gone. Letting out a sigh of relief as he slowly got to his feet.

Whatever it was, she didn’t speak anymore about it yesterday; he guessed it hadn’t been that important. After that, Jeannie and his father, Rob, had gone out to their usual Friday night dinner; a couple of hours later, Luke ordered some Crazy Ricin Chinese. Great food, but the business had the most stubborn owner on the planet. Luke told him, his parents told him, hell the whole damn town told him, there was even a channel six news segment about it, and no they don’t serve the incurable deadly poison in the fortune cookies or the wontons, apparently it’s supposed to sound like ‘Crazy Rice and Chinese’. They interviewed the guy in front of his business, and the reporter asked him why not just change the letters and add a word. He just shook his head firmly and said, “No!” Then he pointed to the big sign in his front window. “This look better!” Then he flipped off the cameraman and walked back inside, yelling at the kitchen staff.

Shaking his head at the memory, he tried one of the little melon balls and grabbed one of the beers in the crate under the table, his mind still on what his mother wanted. Earlier today, the sounds of women and girls had woken him; he had called it an early night the prior evening, so he was well rested and mostly back to normal by 6 am and hearing the commotion downstairs with his sisters’ voices muffled by the walls, it wasn’t that bad. He had thrown on some jeans, a shirt, and socks and ambled down the stairs to greet his sisters. When he got halfway, Kim noticed him and waved, “Hey, Bro!”

Suddenly, all three had stopped and turned. Jane had a smile and a wink for him; Luke just smiled in return as he made his way to them both, giving them a big hug and lifting both off their feet while his mother just stood to the side with a little grin.

“Welcome back to the Land of the Living.” Looking him up and down, finally seeing some color again in his cheeks when her eyes came to rest on his.

Letting his sisters down and shrugging to his mother, wearing a guilty grin, “I’m not a kid anymore, Mom; I’m allowed to have a little fun every now and then.”

Kim poked his chest. “Yeah, but getting on a plane while 17 and drunk is risky, Lucy!” Then giggled, seeing him give the typical eye-roll at that old stupid nickname.

“They do have vomit bags, ya know?” Smirking and looking down at his 4’9” older sister. Kim was the middle child at 22, and funnily enough, she looked almost identical to her mother except she didn’t have quite her height, just a few inches shorter and curvy and athletic rolled into one. And, of course, her hair was in its typical shoulder cut, framing her face and giving her that office chic look she so loved.

“Mhmm, they can catch, but the smell would not have made you any friends on that flight,” Jane said, giving him the wry look of logic. She, on the other hand, took more after their father in height and hair color, an impressive 5’8” (Dad being 5’11”), with long brownish hair in a neat ponytail, trailing all the way down to her lower back. She was the oldest at 23 and was more the willowy type; and had done a little modeling back in college but had given it up to focus more on her studies. She had a svelte look you see a lot of department store mannequins shaped as, tall and with just the right amount of curves in all the right places; she was a knock-out, no question.

To that, Luke had no answer and shrugged with a grin as he helped them with their three suitcases each, which he was convinced each piece of luggage weighed more than both his sisters combined. Naturally, he had to make three trips; his sisters and mother had started giggling when he became a load-beast, and they disappeared into another room, their laughter drifting through the hallways. He panted when he got the last one lugged upstairs and in front of their rooms, not bothering to put them inside; he had done the hard part; they could cross the finish line.

Staring off into space momentarily, he shook himself and took the last swallow of his beer. The bourbon and beer gave him a tiny buzz now, not nearly what he wanted, but he knew he couldn’t get too buzzed; he still had to drive. Tossing the bottle in the trash, he debated a moment about going back and watching the Pod People’s Waltz but instead decided to have a little taste of the bud he had gotten from Dave. After checking his phone and seeing it was only 6:35 PM, he had time to kill since he was going to meet Cindy at 10 PM. He cleaned off the few little crumbs on the kitchen island and looked around, ensuring he didn’t leave any mess for someone else to clean up. He was a lot of things, but he wasn’t inconsiderate.

Walking through the kitchen door, he ran right into her, almost knocking over Eagle Eye Mom...

She stepped back after running into her baby boy. Standing close, the top of her head came up past his nose, which she had almost cracked as they collided. Taking a breath and looking up at him with the signature Mom smile, “Well, I was just coming to find you. I’ve been trying to find a moment to speak with you all day, Luke.”

Luke blinked and nodded, thinking back to his earlier musing on her behavior and wanting to discuss things. “Sure, Mom, what’s up?” Raising his brows slightly in an interested expression.

Jennie looked down a moment as she held one arm, her index finger tapping her elbow like she always did. Which immediately put Luke on guard, his mother only did that one pose when she was one of two things, either thinking about how best to arrange her words or supremely pissed about something. Either of those can be less than appealing and through the years, there hadn’t been many times they had been good.

They stood there a moment before she finally spoke.

“Why have you been avoiding me Young Man?” She looked up as she said that, one eyebrow raised and Luke could swear she was looking at him with a somewhat ... hurt expression.

Luke blinked again. “What? What do you mean Mom? I haven’t been avoiding you; I was just hungover, that’s all” Cocking his head to the side, looking at her curiously.

She sighed. “I’m not talking about yesterday, Baby; I’m talking about the last few years. You used to be my best little buddy, but then you hit puberty and you just started drifting away... ‘ Her eyes definitely had that sad cast to them as she looked back at him.

Luke shrugged, slightly uncomfortable now, but also his heart going out to her a little. “I’m just growing up, Mom, becoming a Man, I guess. Sure, I’m stumbling a bit, but I’m getting there; you know I still love you.” Smiling at her as he finished and gathered her up in his arms, pulling her to him in a firm hug. He felt her arms curl around his back, pulling him tight against her, he couldn’t help but feel her warm body pressing into his, and he could swear he felt her nipples turn as hard as little diamonds poking into his chest.

His mother really defied age and all the stereotypes. She had flawless skin, no noticeable wrinkles, full D-size breasts sitting on her chest with no sag, and virtually no extra padding most 30-something mothers have at that age. She only looked older when you looked in her eyes, THEN you could see the Mom in her, otherwise she looked like a hot young lady.

She leaned her head on his chest, breathing lightly. “Your Mommy still needs her baby’s cuddles, you know.” Snuggling her face to his chest softly.

Luke got a little embarrassed then as he loosened his arms about to pull away. Suddenly feeling his mother’s hands drift lower and firmly squeeze his butt in her hands. His eyes widened, then he looked down, seeing her grinning up at him.

“Mom! What are you ... I mean?!” Luke stood there in shock as she squeezed his firm cheeks in her hands. The sudden attention to the area he hadn’t expected to be groped had a very immediate effect on his body; he was rising to the occasion, even if it was his own mother.

He took her arms and very firmly pulled himself back before she noticed his sudden predicament, being pretty sure it was just her pulling a light-hearted prank on him and he definitely didn’t want her to suddenly feel something trying to poke a hole in her stomach. He started backward as she grabbed his arm once more. Her grip was quite solid for a woman.

“Luke, you’ve been running from me for the past couple of years now; you have to stop running, baby...” She was still smiling and giving him a frank and somewhat appraising look.

Slowly twisting his wrist, staring at her, with more than a little bit of confusion. He was not sure just what in the hell she was talking about, and grabbing his ass?! She didn’t look or act drunk, but surely, she had to be!

“What do you ... mean Mom?”

“I’ve been trying to tell you since your 15^th birthday baby. All the boys in the family go through this, it’s perfectly normal ... for us. But now, well, it’s a little too late to give you any details so ... You’ll get a surprise later.” She smiled as she got close to him once again, her hand never losing its iron grip on his wrist as she brought one hand up to his neck and then stretched on her toes, kissing him softly on the lips.