Ineffable by Sherrod Story Page B

clatter.
    “I hope we’re not boring you with all this legal talk, Margot,” said Aro later when the conversation shifted again to business, his black brows arching high to meet thick silver hair. “But perhaps you understand the nuances? You have had your share of legal situations.”
    “I certainly have,” she said easily, without a hint of upset at his father’s sotto voce rudeness. “But don’t worry about me. I am a small business owner after all, and even if I wasn’t, I find it remarkably easy to shut out anything I don’t find interesting.”
    Score one for my girl, Nori thought, shooting his father a smug, pick the bones out of that! grin.
    But old Aro was far from defeated. Without appearing to do so he managed to insult Margo repeatedly, no matter what the topic of conversation. Without ever raising his voice he suggested she was common, boring, ill-educated, and a mediocre talent. And then, for the piece de resistance, he brought up race.
    “I finally got around to seeing that movie 12 Years a Slave.”
    “I thought it was wonderful,” said Daphne.
    “I presume you have seen this film, Margot? I know you – artists – like to support one another.”
    “I wouldn’t see a movie about a slave if you paid me,” Margot said, calmly eating her shortcake.
    “No? I’d have thought you would want to sympathize with the injustice of it all,” Aro drawled.
    “That is enough!” Nori said, tossing his napkin onto the table.
    Margot was already on her feet.
    “I can sympathize all right. It’s wallowing I find hard to abide. And if you’ve seen one movie degrading black people, visiting sundry atrocities and indignities on black flesh, you’ve pretty much seen them all. I’m not a masochist. And that,” she said, tossing back the last of her wine. “Is why I’m going to say goodnight. It’s been a very – enlightening evening. Ladies, it was a pleasure. You have my number. Do call me when you’re ready to start your custom projects.”
    And she turned on her heel and was gone.
    “Margot! Margot,” Nori said, moving to follow. “Wait!”
    “Let her go,” said Aro, also on his feet.
    Nori stopped walking and swung around, a look so foul on his face, his father actually stepped back, shocked.
    “You’d better pray your ridiculous, juvenile attempts to make my friend feel inferior, uncomfortable and unwelcome have failed. Because if she doesn’t forgive me I will never darken this fucking door again. Do you understand me? You and this menagerie of old shitheads just fucked up. Huge,” Nori told his father in French, following Margot from the room without another word for anyone.
    He sprinted and found her just as she crossing the foyer to the front door. “Margot.”
    She kept walking.
    “Margot, please!” He spun her around and then almost fell over when she shoved him back with all her might.
    “Lemme ask you something, Nori. Do you think I put on my good clothes, let Tommy and Lani do all this shit to my face and my hair to go out in the street and let some motherfucker treat me bad?
    “What was it, my day to randomly take abuse, to be dropped unceremoniously into the middle of some bullshit ass family drama? Let me guess,” she said, voice soft but dripping with sarcasm and gasoline. “Your father’s a little possessive? He has definite ideas about what kind of woman his only son should be with? Well fuck him!” she screamed, hands waving in the air like a flag in high wind. “And fuck you too for sitting there and letting him talk to me like that.”
    “That’s not fair.”
    “Don’t be stupid,” she spat. “What the fuck do I care about fair? You betrayed me.”
    Nori was completely shocked. He’d never seen her like this. Tension radiated off her like heat. Her normal grace was gone, her limbs were stiff, her movements jerky. After that shove a minute ago, he suspected she wanted to hit him.
    “I didn’t have to leave my house for this. I could have stayed at