As we sat and ate, I, trying not to comment too much, on either the food or David's behavior, and Jennifer recounting the events of the day, the evening grew dark and blustery. The wind howled outside and the light flickered. Mackenzie started showing cracks in her well preserved exterior. I assumed it was her becoming more comfortable staying here, with us.
As I chewed a piece of rib-eye jerky, I mulled over the information I'd just received. Was it simply a differing matter of opinions? Or was Mackenzie a pathological liar? I didn't want to think the latter, and I wasn't about to go asking questions either.
"Can we?" Jennifer asked then, and I blinked, realizing I'd missed something.
"Oh, uh, what? What were we talking about?"
"Can we, you know...share a drink?"
"I guess," I said flatly. I wasn't much of a drinker, but I did keep a nice array of alcohol in the cupboard, for cooking and medicinal purposes. To my surprise, Mackenzie went straight to the cupboard, slid two bottles to the side, and pulled forth a few bottles of tequila, which I had never opened. They were dated before Jennifer was even born.
"This is the good stuff," Mackenzie said, not waiting for instruction, or permission. She grabbed the cap with her lower three fingers, something I found very peculiar, and opened the bottle easily. Another peculiarity. I didn't think it would come open that easily... I leaned forward, and saw there was a good inch or so missing out of the bottle. I sat back, observing.
Mackenzie went to another cupboard and grabbed three squat glasses out, and brought them to the table. She put them together in a tight line, poured tequila in each glass until there was half-an-inch without spilling a drop, and then she grabbed the cap and spun it back onto the bottle.
"To hell with David," Mackenzie announced, raising her glass.
I grabbed mine, intending to toast and clink the glasses together, but Mackenzie seemed much too eager to get the booze into her mouth, and threw back the contents, swallowing it in one gigantic gulp, and then she made all sorts of face and noises as it burned all the way down.
"To hell with him," Jennifer repeated the sentiment.
"Hold on-" I tried to warn Jennifer, but it was too late. She imitated Mackenzie and tossed the entire contents of her glass into her mouth and then swallowed.
"Oh fuck!" Jennifer groaned, and then she went sideways in her seat, gagging, holding her throat and her stomach and putting a hand to her forehead.
"Good shit, huh?" Mackenzie said approvingly.
"Why...why would anyone drink that!?" Jennifer gasped, and then waved at her mouth, trying to get rid of the fumes. She sat back up in her seat, looking at me for answers.
"One reason," Mackenzie said, grabbing the bottle and unscrewing the cap quickly. "To get fucked up." She poured herself another glass, and Jennifer too, and then looked to me. "Are you not drinking?" Mackenzie asked.
"I've got a drink," I said, putting the glass to my lips and taking a sip. The liquid was exactly as I remembered it, and tasted even worse. It was like rubbing alcohol mixed with another taste I could never relate to anything else, other than the worm at the bottom of the bottle.
"Are you a light-weight?" Mackenzie asked.
"No. I just don't like tequila that much," I said.
"Oh, what do you like?"
"Schnapps," I said. "I like peppermint schnapps."
"You have that," Mackenzie said, getting up and going to the cupboard. She found the bottle and brought it down, unscrewed the cap and took my glass out of my hands. She tossed back the contents of my drink, and then used the bottom of her shirt to wipe my glass out before pouring me a good half-an-inch of peppermint schnapps. "You want ice?"
"No," I said, taking the glass from Mackenzie as if she were a full fledged alcoholic.
"Alright...," Mackenzie said, turning a smile back towards Jennifer. "So what's next?"
I took a sip of my drink and sat back in the chair, listening to the wind howling outside. Oregon was always such a shit place in the winter. Not much to do other than "cold" activities, like sledding, ice skating, plowing, trudging through the forest looking for something to shoot.... What were we doing here? Really?
Jennifer picked her glass up, and then emptied the contents into her mouth, swallowing again. I could tell it burned just as much as the first time, but she was handling it a lot better. Mackenzie whooped, and then did the same, downing her third glass.
I took a decent sized gulp and let the cool fire run down my throat, numbing and freezing as it went.
"What does yours taste like?" Jennifer asked.
I slid the glass over to her, so she could try it. She picked it up, smelled it, smiled, and then emptied the entire glass into her mouth.
"Jesus Christ," I said as she swallowed and then gasped at the feeling of it racing down her neck. "You're supposed to sip it, not chug it!"
"You sip, we chug," Mackenzie said with a laugh, grabbing the tequila for the fourth time.
"I'm not sure you know how strong that stuff is," I said warningly.
"It's okay Papi," Mackenzie said with a sly smile on her face. "It's my last one. And then-"
The lights flickered again, and then went out.
"Shit," Jennifer said.
"It's alright. I'll grab the flashlight and-"
Something sharp flicked and a single flame burst into life, burning at the end of a bic lighter, held in Mackenzie's hand. "Hurry up. These get hot fast," she said.
I got up, went to the table by the front door and slid open the drawer, searching for the flashlight I kept there, in case of emergencies.
"You wanna see something cool?" Mackenzie asked Jennifer.
"Sure," She said.
A moment later, I heard a whoosh! And the room was illuminated in light for a split second. I spun around just as Mackenzie flicked the bic to life again.
"Don't ever do that! Never! You hear me?"
"Yeah, Jesus," Mackenzie said, as if I'd just done her wrong.
"You'll start the whole god damned house on fire, doing some stupid shit like that."
"I only used a little," Mackenzie said.
"A little, a lot, it doesn't matter. I saw a guy do that, and accidentally inhaled afterward, on, you know, reflex. Burned both his lungs, had to go to the hospital. Died a couple days later."
"Uh, maybe you shouldn't do that again," Jennifer said, and then she laughed.
"Yeah, maybe," I said, and then a moment later, I laughed as well.
"Come on! This is getting hot!" Mackenzie complained.
I yanked the entire drawer out, and then found the flashlight in the back, grabbed it, shook it, and slid the switch forward. We had light.
Mackenzie let go of the lighter and then blew into the top of it, over and over again, before setting it down on the table, upright. She grabbed her glass and poured another drink, screwed the cap on, and then downed it quickly. "Okay, now I'm done."
"You need another?" I asked, directing my question at Jennifer.
"Noooo," She said, shaking her head. "Nope. I think I'm done. My stomach feels weird."
"Yeah. It does that. If you're going to puke, head for the toilet. That goes for you too."
"I'm fine," Mackenzie said and then she pulled her chair over to Jennifer and whispered something into her ear.
"I'm going to go start the fireplace," I said, walking tot he front room and taking the flashlight with me. I silently thanked my pre-planning and making sure I had plenty of firewood in the house, prior to the cold setting in. I took a few logs and some tinder, set the fireplace up and lit it. Almost instantly, the fire roared to life, snapping and crackling, and I grabbed the giant spark grate and wrapped it around the front, just to make sure I wasn't going to catch the house on fire either.
As I walked back to the dining room, I saw the shadows of Mackenzie and Jennifer, silently locked in some sort of heated conversation. I refrained from shining the light in their eyes, walked around the table, sat down, and then put the flashlight in the middle of the table, pointing up. That's when I saw that neither Mackenzie or Jennifer were speaking. Their lips were pressed together, their mouths were moving, but they weren't speaking. Tongues were entwining, sliding against each other, probing the depths as they imitated actions taken above, and below, later.
