Free The Severed Thread by Dione C. Suto Page B

calling.  Your mother would like you to come over to the house today.  She needs help making your brothers funeral arrangements.”  I noticed he made no mention of her emotional state, nor did he inquire about mine.  I imagined it did not even occur to him to care.
    I definitely needed to get over their house to help her.  I just wasn’t sure how to balance finding the missing Sapphire, and the domino effect Jason’s death was going to cause personally.  This mess with McCallister was seriously going to put a crimp in the time I had to devote to mourning and funerals.
    “I need to get over to the office this morning to make sure Jason’s work is being handled,” I replied.  “I can come over after lunch.”
    “Who are you going to ask to run the shipment tracking in his place?” he asked.  His concern for business matters over all things personal was a little shocking.  I, after all, had a secret reason for going into the office – Liam McCallister.  My father really didn’t.
    “I was thinking of pulling in Sal temporarily,” I told him, hoping that he had no objections.  I really did not have time to figure out something else on such short notice.  “He is not scheduled to ship out for a few weeks, and should be able to manage until we find a permanent replacement.” 
    Salvador Caramino, known as Sal to his friends, had been with Lassiter Shipping since before the Revelation.  In fact, he had been with the company longer than any other captain.  He was reliable, honest and human.  Sal was also more emotionally present as a father figure than my actual father.  I imagine he was rocked by Jason’s death.  Last year he had cut back from being a full time captain to being more of a substitute, which was working out great for us and him since it gave our other captains more flexibility if they needed some time off.  But with full retirement on the horizon, taking on more hours probably did not fit well into his plans.  I just hoped that he was up to helping fill the gap Jason left until everything settled down. 
    “Good,” he replied.  I could hear paperwork shuffling in the background.  The caller ID showed my parent’s home number so he must be in his office on the first floor.  “Just make sure you are at the house by one o’clock so you have time to discuss things with your mother before the funeral director arrives at one forty-five.” 
    “I’ll be there,” I replied, wondering what exactly he would be doing while my mother and I sorted out an appropriate goodbye for my brother.  I did not get a chance to voice my musing as the line went dead.  My father would definitely never be accused of being longwinded when it came to matters pertaining to his family and Lassiter Enterprise Holdings.  At home and in the office he was brief and concise to the extreme.   At political events and society functions he was charming, charismatic even.  Hell, even I almost liked him on those occasions even though it was disconcerting how he could turn it on and off like a spigot.
    I needed to get to the office as soon as possible but first I desperately needed some caffeine.  Tea was my caffeinated beverage of choice, so I went into the kitchen, filled the kettle with fresh cold water, and set it on the burner to heat while I took a quick shower.
    The hot water sluicing over my shoulders and down my back felt wonderful.  I would have stayed there all day if I could have, leaning against the shower wall as the heat permeated my sore muscles.  Achy and stiff from stress, I daydreamed about a long soak in a very hot tub.  Unfortunately there was no room in the schedule for that today. 
    By the time I got out of the shower and dried off, the kettle was whistling merrily.  I padded my towel clad self back into the kitchen.  Today I was going to need something strong so I doubled up on the tea leaves before plopping the mesh tea infuser into my cup - add a little sugar and a splash of milk