Adam was sitting opposite him, tapping furiously at the screen.
‘No, Dad, we need to talk to you.’
Seth’s face appeared now.
‘If it’s about Christa, I can’t get her back here. She isn’t returning my calls or my texts, so you will have to deal with shepherd’s pie until I get a new chef.’
‘Dad, it’s not about Christa,’ said Ethan.
‘Well, it’s kind of about her but it’s also about the douche,’ Seth added.
Marc didn’t bother to correct them because Simon was a douche and had been so unbearable since he won the soufflé competition the day before that Marc and Adam and Paul and the twins went out for a very sombre dinner at the local pub.
Marc sighed. ‘I know he’s annoying but he will be gone after Christmas.’
The twins were in his study now and they closed the door behind them.
‘Dad, I need to show you something,’ said Ethan, his face troubled.
Marc closed his laptop and pulled the child to him. He had been distracted and he had been rude. He would have been furious with the boys if they had ignored him like he had ignored them. They deserved better than that dismissive side of him.
‘Okay, buddy, what is it? I’m sorry I tried to brush whatever it is away. Tell me, what’s up?’
Seth put the video camera onto the desk.
‘Dad, you need to watch this.’ Seth looked at Adam. ‘Can you plug this into the monitor?’
Adam took the cable from the camera and did as Seth instructed and then Ethan pressed some buttons and the Pudding Hall kitchen came into the view and there was Christa.
‘When was this?’ he asked, his heart aching to see her again.
‘It’s the soufflé competition,’ said Seth as Ethan fast-forwarded through the footage, giving Marc a view of what had been happening when Marc was in the dining room waiting to judge the final dishes.
He watched Christa and Simon cook. He noticed her concentration and precision even on fast forward. She barely looked up while Simon seemed to be performing as though he was on camera.
‘Did they know you were filming this?’ asked Marc, still watching.
‘No,’ Ethan answered. ‘I set up on the mantelpiece so I could edit it later. I wanted it to be natural, so I didn’t tell them.’
Marc nodded as they kept watching. He didn’t know what was coming but he was pretty sure it wasn’t good for someone who was cooking.
Ethan stopped fast-forwarding and Marc saw them put the soufflés in the oven and then Christa’s knees buckled. She spoke and then rushed outside and Adam and Paul and the boys followed her.
‘What happened? Why didn’t you tell me she was upset?’ He turned to Adam, furious.
‘She said she needed air. We offered her water but she said she was just nervous.’
The camera was still filming Avian and Simon who didn’t seem bothered by Christa’s near collapse and instead he could see them talking by the bench. Avian was gesturing wildly and Simon was shrugging and throwing his hands up at her.
And then it happened.
Simon went to the oven while Avian watched the door and he swapped the soufflés.
‘You slimy mother fu—’ Marc started to say.
‘We can sue him. We can sue him for fraud, for misleading you, and anything else I can think of,’ said Adam his face bright red.
Marc turned to the boys. ‘Thank you for showing me this,’ he said and he hugged both of them.
