Peeking Sibling Rivalry

"We don't have a test today, do we?"

"I don't think so." Megan answered.

Problem solved.

"But you never told me." Megan said in reference to their previous conversation. "Did you ever get a peek at him?"

"The tenant? No. I told you. He's not my type. I'm totally out of his league."

"Yeah, but he's a man."

"He won't be staying with us for much longer anyway. My daddy says he's going to kick him out."

"Why?"

"You know, just being a drain. Besides, I think I've moved on beyond all men."

"Like how?"

"Like ... have you ever been with a woman?"

"No. Have you?"

"Oh, yeah. And it's better than anything."

...

"Where can I park? Where can I park?" Karen was frantically going up and down the lanes in the parking garage. A space. Yes! She moved closer. A motorcycle was in the space. FUCK! Moving on. Up the ramp. Circle round.

What kind of asshole do you have to be to design a fucking place like this?

She finally found a spot by the edge of the wall. If there was suddenly an massive earthquake or a kaiju attack her car would be the first to fall out.

Stupid, Karen, she berated herself. Get your mind right, girl. She ran towards the elevator all the way on the other side of the floor and pushed the button about four hundred times before the doors opened and she got in.

"I'm here." she said to her mother on the phone. "Where do I have to go?"

Karen got out of the elevator and almost right away she bumped into her father who was still wearing a tie. She almost never saw him in one since it was the last thing he put on before leaving the house and the first thing he took off upon getting home. He didn't even go to church in one he hated the things so much. But in this moment, the thing that he'd more than once called his dog collar or the chain around his neck wasn't bothering him.

"How is he?" Karen asked.

"Your mother's talking to the doctors now."

"What happened?"

"Some gang thug hit him with a brick and then rolled over his head while stealing the car."

...

Right on time. Nothing out of the ordinary here. Ellen was very confident when she pulled up to the house.

She parked and got out of her car and then just stood there for a moment. Something looked different. She got it. No cars. She was the first one home.

Crap. That meant she had to back out and park on the street until everyone else got there. Where were they? Mom might be shopping. Oh, wait. Her prayer thing. There must be some gay marriage thing going on or something else like that. That would be the only reason to keep at it this long.

Karen wasn't home yet either. Just as well. This would give her time to think of how to let her sister know that she'd found someone else. Karen was nice and all but she just couldn't keep up with Ellen. Ellen needed someone with more energy. Someone who wanted to have sex more often than once a week. Someone who actually enjoyed having sex instead of begrudgingly letting Ellen go down on them and not giving anything back. Karen had pulled that way too many times.

Karen was starting to get boring anyway. It wasn't just the sex. She was starting to go too easy on the bugger and Ellen just couldn't sit back and let that happen. So fine. If Karen wouldn't help her, she'd just have to get back at Carl on her own. Several scenarios immediately came to mind. She could do one this very night.

Oh, she got a grand idea. She went to her laptop to start getting it set up. Ellen's little secret was that she had internet at the house while everyone else didn't. Their father had internet taken out the moment he realized it was super easy to look at porn with that. But so far, he hadn't realized that it was possible for a cell phone to pass its internet over to the computer. Ellen giggled. She had an entire fake account set up to look like her brother. His name and his picture were on the phone number and she could send herself all kinds of nasty things and make it look like they came from him. These SIP phone numbers were really handy that way.

She laughed at how wonderful it would be. And while it might not get him thrown out of the house tonight, it would get the ball rolling in that direction. And it didn't even need to be perfect. It just had to be good enough to convince Mom and Dad. Lucky for her Carl was still at work. There was no way he could claim he was praying with Mom this time.

...

Stephanie, Carl's father, and Karen were all holding hands while Vicky had both of hers on her son. They were each saying a prayer in turn for Carl as he laid unconscious in the hospital bed. After the first round of prayer, there was a moment of silence. Then they all prayed again save Vicky who was too emotional to get any words out.

Buzz, buzz.

Silence fell on the room.

Buzz, buzz.

Vicky regretfully detached her hand from her son and then reached into her bag.

Buzz, buzz. The phone was vibrating again before Vicky even had the chance to unlock it. She read the message.

Ellen - Mom! Would you please call Carl and tell him to stop sending me pictures of his private parts. I'm trying to do my school work.

Rage. Grief. Fury. Despair. Vicky cycled through those and many more emotions as she looked at those words.

Buzz, buzz.

Ellen - ARG! MOM! He just sent me another one. Please make him stop. It's so immoral.

Vicky put the phone away but didn't say anything. There was something in her throat and her outrage was too potent to be whispered. She looked at Karen and the wheels in her mind started turning. She had two foolish tramps for daughters. How had she been so blind to it?

Vicky's phone buzzed again but she didn't bother to look at it. She just set her phone to silent so it wouldn't even vibrate anymore.

Half an hour later the pastor arrived right about the time that Stephanie had to leave. The pastor said some words to encourage them all and then he prayed with them but that was the extent of his visit before he had to leave as well.

Another hour passed and then a doctor came to explain to them what he saw in the x-ray that had been taken earlier. They were getting ready to put Carl into another machine to scan his head in more detail so he'd have more to tell them after that.

It was after Carl was rolled out of the room that Karen actually noticed that Ellen wasn't there. She got her phone out to call but no sooner had she unlocked the thing than her mother snapped her fingers and then yanked her phone away from her.

"Kelly, go check on Ellen." Vicky said.

Her husband raised an eyebrow since it was unusual for his wife to call him by his first name. She usually referred to him as either 'husband' or 'Mr. Thatcher'. She only called him by his name in the privacy of their bedroom, and even then, usually only during sex.

"Before you tell her where her brother is, listen to what she has to say. Wait for her to finish and don't give anything away."

"What are you talking about?"

"Just, hear her out and see what she says."

"You think she was involved in this?"

"No. But just hear her out. Let her talk as much as she wants."

...

"I don't know." Megan said on the phone. "I sort of feel weird about it. "

Ellen was walking through the house while she was on the phone. "Well, maybe that means you're not really ready to get married after all."

"I mean, I just don't know."

"You're the one who approached him. It wasn't like he was climbing over fences to get to you."

"But ... what if now I don't want to ... What about Toby?"

"Just another man. Who cares? Oh, I have to call you back. Someone's finally come home. See you."

"Ha. Yeah. Talk to you later."

Ellen went to the window and it looked like her dad's car. That was great. For as tough as he tried to be, recently she had him wrapped around her little finger. She went to her room and started rubbing her eyes.

Kelly came into the house and called out Ellen's name. She stood by the door to her room with tears streaming down her face. She had a humble posture and when she saw her father open his arms she ran to him and threw herself into them.

Like Merissa Tomei in the film Oscar, she put on the water works for her father and held onto his neck as she just cried and cried.

"Sh." he said. "It'll be alright. You have to trust that God will take care of us."

"I just ... oh Daddy ... I just don't know how I can ever see him again."

"Tell me what happened."

She wiped her eyes but made sure to keep one arm firmly around her father as he leaned over to come face to face with her.

"He ... oh, I can't even say it. It's so horrible."

"Take your time, honey."

"He's been watching me. He's been taking pictures of me."

"Who has?"

"Carl. I didn't understand at first but today he started sending me these messages."

"Show me."

She got her phone out and showed him the chat history.

Carl - I'm on break now and I'm jerking off to you.

Ellen - Don't say such things. Gross.

Carl - (picture of a dick.)

Carl - Like it?

Ellen - No. I shouldn't be looking at such things. What would the pastor say?

Carl - (picture of Ellen nude as she's getting into the shower)

Ellen - How did you get that?

Carl - I have my ways. I really like your ass.

Ellen - Please delete it. You shouldn't have it.

Carl - Delete it! By Satan, NO. I'm keeping it forever and when I get home I think I'll just take some of the real thing.

Ellen - You don't know what you're saying. I'll pray for you.

Carl - Prayer is for suckers. God is a lie. When I get home I'm taking your ass whether you let me or not.

Ellen - No. You can't mean it. Who's making you do this? I can help you.

Carl - If you want to help, be naked when I come to your room tonight and keep your mouth shut.

Ellen - I'm not going to talk to you anymore if you're going to be like this.

Carl - Fine by me. But get ready to be raped tonight.

Kelly looked over the stream of texts back and forth and noticed the times. "This was today?"

"Yes. I can't take it. You have to make him go away. I can't wait. I can't have him in the house. I'm scared of him Daddy. You have to protect me from him."

"Calm down. How do you know it was really him?"

"I talked to him Daddy. Look. He called me like twenty times. Each time he was saying all this lewd stuff like he wanted my body and he was going to take more pictures. And look, here. He tried to get me in a video chat. He wanted me to take off my clothes. He threatened to hurt me if I didn't show him my chest without my shirt on."

"Ok. Give me your phone."

She handed it to him.

"And, just to be safe, give me your computer."

"My computer?"

"Bring it here. I need to keep it for just now."

She was a bit confused but she went and got her laptop and brought it to him.

"Thank you. Now, wait in your room. I need to make a phone call."

"Thank you Daddy."

He didn't reply except to nod before going to the task which he did not cherish doing.

...

Karen was standing in front of the vending machine and wondering which of these snacks had the least amount of sugar. Then she overheard her mother on the phone.

"If she said that, call the police."

Karen froze. Police again? Why? Did they find the guy? The car?

"No. You know she's lying. You know what she's doing. She's probably been doing it for years."

Karen cleared her throat and decided that she'd rather buy something to drink. She moved to the other machine to her left, which just happened to be slightly closer to the wall where her mother was standing.

"Then she'll just go around you next time. You have to call the police tonight. Right now."

Karen tried to look over at her mother without turning her head but her mother noticed and then started to walk away.

Karen felt something in the air. Something was wrong. That dvd went through her mind. If anyone saw that, it would be very big trouble. Karen had researched what might happen if the police ever got their hands on that. Karen, as the older one, would be the one they'd prosecute. The last five cases of incest that had been prosecuted in this state ended with people all getting a minimum of eight years in prison, and three of them had gotten significantly more than that.

Karen was starting to get scared. She leaned over from the vending machine to look around the corner and down the hall. Her mother was trying to get a policeman's attention. In. Out. The air was moving past her lips faster now. In. Out. The already bright lights of the hospital were starting to get so bright that you could call some areas white out. Ba Boom. Ba Boom. Ba Boom. Her heart said run.

Karen looked around the waiting area and found the exit. She was mapping it out in her head. Take the stairs. Get to the elevator. Get to her car. Get out of town. She started to get in motion when her name was called out.

"Karen!"

She stopped mid step and a chill went down her back.

"Get over here, girl." her mother said.

The policeman had changed from his relaxed stance to his official superhero pose with his legs shoulder with apart and his hands on his hips.

"Ma'am, hold up." the police man said and then he spoke into his radio. "She's here."

"Am I being arrested?" Karen asked.

"No, but I need to ask you a few questions."

"Ok" she said slowly.

Karen's mother and the policeman both narrowed their eyes at her as if they were evaluating her body posture.

"Ma'am, do you know your brother Carl to ever use a second cell phone?"

Karen let the question register mentally but her body was already shaking its head. "No."

"Has he ever used a second cell phone number when contacting you?"

"No. What's going on?"

"Has he ever physically hurt you?"

"What?" She shook her head. Her memory provided her with the times that they'd tussled together but surely that didn't count. And she certainly wasn't going to inform them of that ... other time. "Ahem. No."

"Has he ever threatened you physically?"

"No."

"Has he ever made any sexual advances towards you?"

"What's going on?"

"Ma'am, please answer the question."

She was trying her best to hide her inner shame. "No."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, I'm sure. What kind of brother makes sexual advances towards their sister? We're a Christian family."

'Ma'am, I just need you to answer the question."

"No. Nothing like that. I mean, there were a few embarrassing moments maybe but nothing like what you're talking about."

"Embarrassing how?"

"You know. Um. I'd go to talk to him in his room but he'd be in the middle of dressing so I'd have to go back outside for a second. Why? What's going on?"

"And nothing ever happened when you'd go in his room like that. He never threatened you."

"No. Never." Secretly she actually sort of wished something would happen so she could finally put to rest this ache she had.

"Have you ever known him to threaten your sister Ellen?"

"No."

"Never even one time?"

"No."

"Has your sister Ellen ever been known to lie about your brother?"

Karen was completely wrapped up in what she was staying that she just went with the momentum of it. "Yes. All the time."

"When?" Vicky asked.

"Ma'am, please." said the policeman to Karen's mother. "Let me handle it." Then he turned his attention back to Karen. "Give me an example."

"Ellen and I got a girl to give Carl a drink at a party and then get a picture of him with it to make it look like he was drinking."

"So you falsified evidence against him."

"I guess. I ... I don't want to go to jail. I ..."

The policeman put his hand up. "Thank you for your cooperation."

"I'm not in trouble?"

"Not with me."

Karen turned from the policeman to her mother. Yeah, she was in trouble. Cringe.

...

Oh, this was going to be glorious. She hadn't thought to take it this far but now that the police were here she was just getting giddy at all the possibilities. Maybe she could get a restraining order against Carl. That would mean he'd be forced to move out no matter what her father decided. Ellen waited in the house as her father was outside speaking with one of the officers from the two squad cars that had pulled up. Ellen felt a thrill of excitement when two of the officers came with her father back to the house.

"Here she is." her father said.

"Ellen?" the officer asked.

"Yes, sir." she said.

"Ok. Well, I have to tell you both that this is kind of a gray area. See, even with the phone and the computer, I actually can't do anything about these kinds of domestic quarrels. Besides, Mr. Thatcher, coming from you, this is all hearsay. I can't take anyone into custody based off hearsay."

"I understand, officer." Ellen's father said. "Maybe it's best if I handle this just within the family. I'm sorry to waste your time."

"Well, there's nothing wrong with asking questions and getting a clarification. Of course, if your daughter wanted to make the complaint than we might be able to do something but as it is now, I just don't think the prosecutor would have much to work with."

Prosecutor. That word meant Carl would be in court. That meant jail. "I'll do it." she said.

"Are you sure, honey?" her father asked. "You don't have to if you don't want to."

"Yes. I'll do it. Daddy, we have to submit to lawful authority. Officer, what do I have to do?"

Her father hung his head but she didn't pay any mind to him. The officer gave her a notepad and a pen. "Write down everything that happened and sign it."

She took the items and tried to keep her smile from cracking her face in half. This was supposed to be a serious moment after all. Her hand zipped across the page as she detailed all the horrible things that her brother had done to her. She could just imagine him in jail. So wonderful. And he'd have to sit and rot in there since she fully planned to convince her parents not to go bail him out. Then it would be on his permanent record and he might even have to register as a sex offender. Then he would permanently be put in his place away from normal, decent folks.

He wouldn't even be able to get an apartment. She was so happy as she imagined him in the ghetto. Then he'd be gone forever. She almost didn't dare to even hope but perhaps that would mean that she and Karen could finally be together the way they were meant to be together.

...

Vicky reached for Carl's hand when he was rolled back into his room. Unlike a lot of the other rooms where patients had to share, only Carl was in this room and the orderlies instructed them to keep the lights off unless Carl started responding.

Karen went to her brother's other side and with no chair there to sit in, she stood. There was silence and Karen's mind started to wonder. Sure, they were in a hospital and Carl was laying there in that bed but he couldn't really be hurt. Not really. Not seriously hurt. It couldn't be. He was going to wake up any second now and then he'd be fine. Maybe at the most he'd have to spend a few days home from school but otherwise, he'd be fine. Had to be.

"I can't decide to interrogate you or have your tongue cut out." Vicky said. Karen snapped back to reality and looked over at her mother.

"Mom, that was all ..."

"You're a lying whore. You and your sister. And now look what the two of you have done."

"I had nothing to do with this. I admit I lied about Carl a bunch of times but, Mom, you have to believe me. I absolutely had nothing to do with this."

"You always hated him."

"No, mom. That's not ..."

"I heard you. I heard you say that. The yelling and the slamming doors. Did you think I was deaf?"

"I don't hate him. I love Carl. I respect Carl."

"More lies."

"I swear."

"You swear too much. I'm starting to think that you don't even know what those words mean."