“Grace?  Sit,” Emily said rather absently as Grace came in from school.  Much to Emily’s delight, the little bitch of an older daughter had been scarce the past few months.

 

“Mom? What’s going on?” Grace asked, taking a seat.

 

“How close are you and the Callahan boy?”

 

“Well…uhh…we’ve been seriously dating for six months.” Grace said carefully.  How was she supposed to tell her mother that her thirteen year old daughter was sleeping with her boyfriend?

“You have to stop seeing him,” Emily said simply.

 

“What?? Why??”

 

“Because…. you have to… it’s not going to work,” Emily replied.

 

“It’s been working pretty well so far.” Grace replied.

 

“See, Grace, your… father, wasn’t exactly your father.”

 

“What?”  Grace demanded.

 

“Aidan’s your half-brother.”

 

“No he’s not.”

 

“Yeah, I slept with his father and got you.”

 

“And you wait until now to tell me? What the hell were you thinking?” Her rage changed to disgust.  She’d slept with her brother…

 

“I was thinking you didn’t need to know.  But now you do.”

 

“Whatever, Mom.  Any other half siblings you want to tell me about before I go off and date another boy and he turns out to be my brother or something?”

 

“Don’t get smart,” Emily warned.  “He’s the only one.  You keep your comments to yourself, because he doesn’t know it yet.”

 

“Does his father…does *my* father even know?!?!?”

 

“Of course he *knows,*” Emily spat.

 

“He just doesn’t want me.” Grace replied.

 

“He’s too public, it’d reflect badly on the IMF.”

 

“Whatever, Mom.  What the hell am I supposed to tell him??”

 

“Find somebody new.”  Emily shrugged.

 

“Sorry mom but not everyone can be a whore like you.” Grace snapped.  “Even though it fits Cassidy fine.”

 

Emily’s eyes narrowed.  “Get your ass upstairs.”

 

Grace stomped up the stairs and slammed the bedroom door, making as much noise as possible on the way.

 

Emily simply lit a cigarette.

 

~*~*~*~

 

Cassidy laughed a bit.  “I don’t believe you, you’re lucky no one was home when we got here… just sitting in my driveway, with the top down mind you…”

 

Garrett shrugged and kissed her.  “What can I say? I’m a lucky guy.”

 

“Guess so.”  She flashed him a smile and curled up next to him.  The sun had just begun to rise, scattering light across the sky.

 

“You want me to walk you in?” Garrett asked.

 

“Mmm… nah.  Just in case Grace is around or something.  But I’ll see you in a couple hours anyway.”  She smiled and kissed him before dressing in a rush and heading past her mother’s empty parking space and into the house.

 

“Well, look who’s home.” Emily hissed as Cassidy walked by.

 

Cassidy glanced at her mother.  “Would you run along and play in traffic or something?”

 

“Well from the looks of it, you seemed to have fun in that boy’s car.  Next time you want to have sex in your mother’s driveway, a little tip of advice…put the top up.” Emily snarled.

 

“Well I’d bring him in the house but I don’t want you trying to steal him, you’d scare the shit out of him.”

 

“It’s not like you’d miss him.  You’d have another guy just waiting for you to spread your legs.”

 

“Have you been hanging around in men’s bathrooms again?  You shouldn’t believe everything you read.  Besides, from what *I* hear, they’re usually talking about YOU when they put our phone number on the wall.”

 

Emily slammed Cassidy’s head into the wall.  “Don’t believe everything you hear.”

 

“Unlike some others in this house, it’s the same guy every time.  And usually we’re both sober and everything.  He’s not much of a drinker.”

 

“Go to your room, before I lock you in the basement.”

 

“Go to Hell.”

 

“What do you think living with you has been?”

 

“You want me gone?  Kick me out.  Please.  Really, I wouldn’t mind.”

 

“Go to your room Cassidy Evangeline.”

 

“Go fuck off.”

 

Emily threw her hot coffee in Cassidy’s face.  “Fucking bitch.” She muttered.

 

Cassidy didn’t hesitate as she grabbed her mother’s breakfast plate and slammed it over her head.  The plate snapped into several pieces.

 

Emily whipped around.  “You little bitch.” She grabbed Cassidy by the neck and threw her into the sliding glass door, causing it to crack.

 

Cassidy decided she’d had enough of the alternate methods and simply punched her.  “Don’t touch me, ever, don’t come *near* me again!”

 

“I’m your mother.  You will listen to me, or I will kill you.  I killed your father, don’t think I’d hesitate to do the same to you if the opportunity arose.”

 

There was a moment’s pause.  “I’m not going to school today.”

 

“You sure as hell are.  You aren’t going to stay home.”

 

“Never said I was.  Make sure you don’t forget Grace, I won’t be there to save her ass because you’re a shitty mother.”

 

“Go get ready for school.” Emily told her daughter.

 

Cassidy merely flipped her off and headed back out the front door.

 

 ~*~*~*~

 

“Aidan, stop.  I need to talk to you.” Grace pushed the boy off her.

 

Aidan sighed.  “No you don’t.”

 

“I’m breaking up with you.  I can’t see you anymore.” She said, standing up.

 

His eyes narrowed.  “Excuse me?  Girls don’t just break up with me.”

 

“Well I just did.  Get over it.”

 

“You don’t want to break up with me, this is one of those twisted duty things girls have.  What’s your excuse?”

 

“I have another boyfriend.” Grace lied, “And the sight of you disgusts me.”

 

“Say it with your mouth all you want but that doesn’t mean the rest of you’s gonna listen.  Who’s this other asshole?”  He demanded.

 

Grace glared.  “Why should I tell you? You’re just gonna go find him and try and be all macho and he’s gonna kick the crap out of you.”

 

Aidan laughed at that.  “We’ll see.  What poor idiot’re you screwin’ around with now?”

 

“It’s none of your damned business.”

 

“Well I’m makin’ it my business.”

 

“Get over yourself.  We’re over.” Grace walked over to the door.  “Get out.”

 

“Not until you tell me his name.”

 

Grace panicked.  She looked around and noticed Garrett’s car parked across the street.  “Gavin Spencer.”

 

 

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