Chapter 2
More than two hours had passed since he was released from the detox but his sister was nowhere to see. But it wasn't really a surprise. Brunhilde had always liked to anger him. When he wanted to call her, she finally came around the corner.
After his younger sister had silenced him during the drive, Thor more or less gave in to his thoughts. His entire life was put on hold, he had to pause his studies and his friends hadn't been able to visit him because Odin wanted to cover up this huge scandal as good as possible. After all, the reputation of the whole company was attached to it.
What the blond man was most afraid of was his father's wrath. He, too, rarely came to visit, staying away from his eldest son. But the disappointment was always written on his face. Only his mother hadn't given him up. May God protect Frigga and her goodness. How often was she at the clinic, walking with her boy in the park, holding him when Thor could no longer save himself from feeling guilty and crying himself to sleep. In all those awful hours, his mother had never left his side.
When Brunhilde and Thor arrived at their parents' house, the young woman got out first and went straight to the entrance. She paid no attention to her brother, no thought crossed her mind that he might need help with his luggage. Sighing Thor took his heavy suitcase and rolled it up the stairs. When he threw it angrily through the door with force, the sweat was already running from his forehead. You could tell he wasn't at his best.
Immediately after his interrogation, he had been wordlessly withdrawn from the room. Thor hadn't even been able to say goodbye to Fandral, much less ask what would happen to his best friend. His lawyers had literally pushed him into a car and had only given instructions that he should shut up. Every word, the police officers could use against him.
When he arrived at the clinic, doctors and caregivers had already come to meet him. His father had probably informed the staff about his arrival. First, he was taken to a sterile room where they had placed him on a hospital bed. An elderly pale man who had apparently never seen sunlight in his life came to him and bombarded him with questions.
How do you feel? Does it hurt somewhere? Are you dizzy? How much alcohol did you drink? Have you taken any other medications or narcotics?
But yes, Thor had been dizzy, too dizzy to answer correctly. He didn't know if he should have laughed or creid. One small mistake, one damned stop-sign had thrown his life off track. They had locked him away and had left him alone with his misery.
All he could remember was that a nurse had taken his blood for testing and had brought him into a small room. After that, he had slept for 48 hours, whether they had injected him with tranquilizer or not, he didn't remember.
Now he stood alone in the large entrance of the huge house, his suitcase carelessly thrown into the corner. What should he do now? Should he first go into his room or expose himself to the wrath of his father? The latter wasn't that tempting but Thor had to do it anyway.
That's why he crept quietly up the stairs to the second floor, where Odin's office was next to his parents' master bedroom. Had the way always been so long or did it feel like it because the young man felt like he was going to the slaughterhouse? Hopefully his mother was up there, the sensitive woman was arguably the only human being on this planet who could calm his father down. Without her, Thor probably had no chance for a just punishment or even the opportunity to speak.
When he arrived at the office door, Thor paused. He mentally prepared himself for the outburst of rage that would inevitably follow. Unfortunately, he couldn't rely on the help of his sister, since she showed him the cold shoulder since the detox. However, she hadn't told him why she was behaving like that. He probably had to ask her. A point on his list which he still had to work through. Other notes were that he had to visit Fandral and to contact his dean in the next few days.
He hesitantly opened the door and saw his father at his wooden desk. The sun was shining through the window which was beheind Odin. The bright light created a shadow that made him look even more threatening than usual. Thor swallowed. When the master of the house saw his son, his face was devoid of emotions. One would have thought that the maid had told him that his lawn grew unevenly. But inside of Odin, Thor knew, was rage and anger.
"Thor, my boy, you're home. Finally. Shouldn't you have arrived here a few hours ago?"
With his hand, the older one indicated that his son should sit down. But the blonde hesitated again. He would have liked to put himself in a corner next to the door to escape as quickly as possible in case of emergency. Unfortunately, he couldn't.
"Yes, you are right, father. But Brunhilde was too late. I do not know why."
Odin took a deep breath and put two newspapers on the table. Both showed articles about a serious car accident the night before Christmas Eve last year. At the second glance Thor recognized his red car, which had rammed the other car with full force. The driver's side of the dark green car was almost completely crushed, it looked as if it would embrace the hood of his Ferrari.
Thor felt sick at the sight. He, himself, could only vaguely remember the incident but these pictures looked like they had been made for a horror movie. Unfortunately, this was the bitter truth. He had caused this accident, he had driven drunk, he was the person who was to blame.
"Can you imagine how hard it was to keep your identity a secret. Thankfully, our lawyers arranged everything and could make a deal with the family of the injured party that they wouldn't demand a trial in court. Although we had to pay a lot of money, cover the costs of the stay at the hospital and put you into a six-month withdrawal, but the name Borson wasn't mention publicly."
The younger man didn't knwo what to say. His thoughts were like a roller coaster. He had never really been told what had happened to the driver of the other car. Had he been the only person? How bad had he been hurt? Thor had asked all these questions to his mother in the clinic over and over again and never received an honest answer. He shouldn't burden himself with it, his father would put everything back in order, he shouldn't worry too much and concentrate on more important things.
But what could be more important than processing this incident? In the clinic he had escaped the truth. The relaxed environment and the loving care of his mother had lead to a state of denial. Everything would be fine, right? Wrong! Now he was back home, facing the ruin of what had been his life.
"You don't say anything? To be honest, I did not expect much more. What had happened to my boy? You and your sister brought me so much joy and hope that my company would, once I'm retired, come into good hands. Everything what I have built up with your mother. And now? Brunhilde has to lead the company. A job she wasn't supposed to do, at least not without help. But I am old and tired."
Odin sighed heavily and leaned back. He pulled out another folder from under the desk and scooped it at Thor's feet.
"I've talked to your dean. He's willing to give you another chance if you explain the facts to him. Of course, you have to do it again. I mean the semester that you started last year before your withdrawal. Your timetable and the book list are in the folder. Until then, you can help your sister. So, she can finally continue her medical studies."
Thor was getting smaller in his chair. Slowly he also saw what he had done by his ill-considered actions. His sister and he should take over the company together. Therfore, Odin was so pleased that Brunhilde had wanted to become a doctor and that he had studied economics. They would have been the perfect team. Now the young woman had to deal with their father's business alone as Thor couldn't finish his studies as planned. And Odin wasn't a great help anymore because he was too old to keep the management running efficiently. It should have been his job.
Suddenly, Odin slammed his hand on the tabled and tore Thor out of his thoughts.
"Do you even listen to me? You have hardly spoken so far. Is this all just a joke to you? Are you aware that our company could have gone bankrupt, that we could have damaged our reputation because of your stupidity? That if your sister weren't so ambitious, we would be a ship without a captain, a kingdom without a king. We can thank god that we have come through this crisis. And you? You're sitting here as if that's none of your business."
The older man in the room grew louder and louder. He even got up.
"You are unworthy. Unworthy to have the name Borson. Your whole life, I've financed your little fun games, I have even gotten you a place at the best university in town and what for? That you and your little friends can celebrate wild parties? Never did you understand the seriousness of the situation. But that ends here. From tomorrow you will work for this company but not in the management. You'll be an intern who will help our nurses and drivers, who will learn what it means to work hard and take care of yourself. That's my final word."
Without objections, Thor rose slowly and left the rom. Odin's words had been tough but fair. He had never had to take responsibility for anything. Even now, half a year after the accident, he still wasn't fully aware of what he had actually done. But one thing was for certain, Thor had caused the damage and had to bring it back in order.