INIQUITOUS

CHAPTER XVIII

Warning: Sexual assault mention.

Eton's bony shoulders were narrow under an oversized denim jacket. His hair stuck up, stiff with gel. He wore black sunglasses inside and wore ripped blue jeans and a plain white t-shirt. He was casually sprawled upside down on an armchair, occasionally kicking his leg in the air. In his hands was a tablet and he was watching a YouTube video. "Hey sis," he greeted nonchalantly, "mom had an overdose in the bathroom. She's dead."

"What?" I was in the midst of pulling my sweatshirt off over my head, having just gotten home from school. My mind was conflicted: Halloween was this Sunday. I don't know if I was going to take up Frank on his offer. Something about it unsettled me. I just couldn't put my finger on what it was. With Eton's statement, Frank flew out of my head and Mom replaced him.

"I'm kidding. Don't have a heart attack, I won't call an ambulance if you do. I accidentally on purpose stabbed her fifty-two times in her chest. She's bleeding out in the kitchen. You should go say goodbye." His sunglasses slid over the slope of his forehead and he caught them before they fell out of his hair. "That was another joke. Mom's asleep upstairs like always. Depression sucks, huh?"

I couldn't trust him. I checked the empty kitchen and then hurried upstairs to ease the uneasiness in my chest. Mom was snorting softly under white quilts, her raven-black hair was draped over her pillows in tangled knots and soft curls. I returned downstairs and pulled off a heavy boot and threw it at him. It hit him on the head. "I hate you, Eton."

Angry grey eyes snapped over to me, thick black brows yanked down, he rubbed his sore spot. "Bitch. I should beat you with a metal pipe until your skull caves in and you're a bloody mush on the ground." He made a noise of irritation. "I'm sorry. That was extreme. I shouldn't call you a bitch. It's rude of me. Will you accept my apology?"

"What's that on your wrist?"

"It's an Earth bracelet." He waved his hand in the air daintily, the blue wraparound synthetic cord had similar beads and charms to mine. "Winnie gave it to me."

I took his hand, examining it carefully and frowning deeply. "It's the same as mine, look. Here's the house charm meaning family and love. The friendship charm. The sun meaning life and the two hand charms with the open and closed eyes meaning good and bad aura. When did she give you this?"

"She felt bad that no-one had brought me anything for my birthday and she came over this morning. It was supposed to be for her but she passed it on to me. Can we swap? I like red better."

"No," I dropped his arm, irked. "Didn't Mom give you anything?"

"She wrote me a check for a thousand bucks. It doesn't count. Parents are supposed to give you something. Winnie also gave me something else, too." He straightened up, sitting the right way around. The corners of his mouth quirked up slightly, delighted with himself and his secret. "But I can't tell you. You'd get mad."

"Tell me."

"Oh, alright!" he acted as if I'd been harassing him for hours, throwing his hands up in the air, gunmetal gaze gleaming, and then his face cracked into the smile of the devil. "She got down on her knees, I fisted her hair in my hand, the other on the back of her head and she took me in the back of her throat. She can work wonders with her tongue. She cupped my balls and squeezed them and she swallowed like a champ. I'm in love with her, Calla."

"You're a pig. I told you to keep away from her." I kicked his shin angrily, expression twisted, hateful gaze narrowed into slits. "Why are you like this?"

"Hey, stop. You're so violent. There's no need to be upset. We can share her."

"She's not a toy. We're not kids anymore, we don't need to share everything. Make your own friends. You're only doing this because she's my friend otherwise you wouldn't even bother. If you hurt her, I'll tear off your goddamn head."