Potential

bistander


Chapter 36

Pandora's Box




Who’s who, sucking Winnie the Pooh, Evan thought as he climbed the stairs. Had Deana and Rebecca masterminded the whole thing or did some of the who with papers have real instructions on them? They couldn't have known for sure who would take something off, and they hadn't been whispering, so didn't that mean they couldn't have decided on the fly? Not all of them, but maybe Gloria and Darlene were in on it, too? The whole thing could have been a set up to make him fuck Gloria? Or Darlene, Evan thought, but that didn’t make sense.

Evan closed the basement door and left Rebecca's party behind him, regardless of who didn’t believe that he had to pee. He had been horny while watching videos of Miss Style get sucked off by Sally, and his lust had grown exponentially during the game. Why wouldn’t it? Darlene had offered to fuck him while everyone watched, Jason had almost fucked Becky in front of them, and Gloria offered him her virginity, and he had been one thrust away from taking it. That’s why he went straight to Gloria's room for a pair of her panties. Blowing a load in her underwear was better than dragging Gloria upstairs with him.

It wasn’t that Evan didn't want to finish what Gloria had started downstairs, he did, but not in his present state of mind. Horny was one thing, but he would never subject his sister to angry primal lust. That kind of sex was reserved for a girl downstairs who would never let him fuck her, but that wasn’t why Evan was mad at Ann.

The pain on Deana's face when Ann used the word lesbo made Evan want to punch the prudish tumbler. That waned after Rebecca had put Ann in her place. That was until Ann showed her true colors.

A few minutes before Evan fled the basement, Ann got up with a fist full of shirttail, hiding her crotch. Dangling from the other hand was the underwear Evan presumed she wanted to put on. Ann glanced at him, blushed, and casually turned to go between the two couches. The shirt was pulled tight across Ann’s ass, showing how firm, and sexy it really was. She paused before going behind the high backed couch. He stared as her calves, thighs, and glutes flexed. There was a gap that couldn’t be closed at the tops of her legs. Evan gulped. A shockingly erotic pussy bulged like an upside-down heart. The girl had sat there all night, acting morally above them, yet her plump lips slid easily on the wetness of Ann’s secret desires. Was the tumbler advertising, strategically presenting that freakishly desirable pussy to him? Better yet, how could he get Ann far enough away so nobody would hear him fucking her?

It didn’t matter because Darlene hurried over. The profile view of her face showed the redhead’s jawbone clenching as she got close. Ann's expression went from curious concern to fear, followed by something else. Maybe she hadn’t been advertising for his benefit?

Darlene turned her back to Evan, but he could see Ann from the waist up. She was turned sideways to him. He stared, hoping to see something that would confirm what he imagined was happening. Darlene's head turned toward Ann, staring at the prudish homophobe. The tumbler’s mouth opened and closed several times, and her chest rose and fell with strained breaths. Evan was sure the fuckin’ redhead had a hand between Ann’s legs. He knew Darlene would molest the girl right there in front of them, but had Ann willingly submitted?

Either way, Evan had to get the hell out of there before he crammed his dick inside Ann’s fat pussy and hate fucked her. That wasn't the way he would treat Gloria, so her panties would have to do until they finally consummated their love. If that ever happened?

It would be immensely more satisfying with the panties Gloria had seductively removed, but his sister's aim hadn’t been good, and Evan didn’t dare try and retrieve them before claiming he had to pee.

In Gloria’s room, worn underwear was easy to find, and Evan considered doing the deed right there, but it was too risky. It was bad enough Deana, and maybe Candy, already knew about his addiction to his sisters’ panties. He couldn’t risk one of their friends catching him whacking off.

Evan stepped out of Gloria’s room and started toward the bathroom. Shit, what was that? He spun around toward Deana's room, hiding the underwear behind his back. Fuckin’ Becky stepped out of the shadows inside Deana’s doorway. “What are you doing?” she asked and herded him into the bathroom with short shuffle steps.

Not that it’s any of your business, but I have to pee,” he said.

Becky reached around, snatched the panties from Evan, and flipped on the light. “Bullshit.” The wanton expression and the devilish gleam in Becky’s eyes canceled out the too young look of her pigtails and old middle school uniform. “You wanted to fuck her so bad,” Becky said.

The words fuck her coming out of Becky’s mouth made Evan’s cock lurch. He squinted an eye, thinking, yeah, I wanted to fuck everyone in the room. “Who?”

Becky twirled the panties on her finger. “Should I have asked, who did you wanna fuck more?” Her tone was as lewd as what Becky did next. With the underwear pressed to her nose, she said, “Mm, Gloria's. I guess you wanted to fuck her more than Darlene. You should have. Everybody wanted it to happen. You must know how hot it is to watch someone do their own sister.”

It had been volcanic-eruption hot watching Jason plow Becky from behind that night after the races and almost doing her tonight. “Then you and Jason should have fucked,” Evan said.

Becky's grin was wicked. “We did. He put it in me right in front of everybody. If Rebecca's uptight friends weren't there, I would have gotten on my hands and knees and given ya’ll a show.”

Evan stared at Becky, wondering what had happened to her. One day she was Jason’s annoying little sister, the next, seductive temptress who was willing to put on an incestuous fuck show. He shook his head. “You’re bad, really bad.”

I am.” Becky faced the counter and looked back at him in the wall-length mirror. “You better spank me.” She pushed the white leggings down, bent over, and flipped up her skirt.

Evan looked back and forth from Becky’s eyes to her ass. She said, “You know Gloria got me off? Your little sister fingered me and made me cum while you watched us.”

He wanted to grab the pigtails poking from the sides of her head and ram his dick in her. Instead, a loud, crisp, cracking sound echoed off the tiles. Becky’s smug face grimaced, but she didn’t rescind the offer. “Ooh, that felt better than I expected. Keep going. I’m really, really bad.”

It was so much easier to spank Becky. The girl got under his skin and made Evan want to do things he wouldn’t normally do. Like, fuck his best friend’s sister, and do her behind the dirt pile, and with her bedroom door open. If anybody deserved to have her bottom beat, it was Becky. Evan turned sideways, leaned forward, and swung with an upward slice. Crack! Her tiny little cheek barely jiggled, but a red circle flared then faded before his eyes. Becky whimpered, and he hit the other cheek as hard and enjoyed the changing color schemes even more. The third slap landed lower, half on her thigh and half on the cheek. Becky pressed her forehead on the mirror. “Keep going, I'm so bad.”

Right, left, right, Evan alternated sides. The sounds his hand made mingled with Becky’s gasps, grunts, and moans. The crimson flesh encompassed most of Becky’s cheeks. His hand stung with a burning heat. Her eyes were hazy and rolling. He shoved his pants down and pressed the coolness of his groin against Becky’s red, hot skin.

Oh, my God.” Becky panted. “Uh, that, ah, that was intense. I came so hard.”

Evan smiled at Becky in the mirror, shaking his head. “You are a total freak, aren't you?”

You have no idea,” Becky said and brought a leg up on the counter. “Let’s fuck now.”

Evan was nestling the head of his dick into Becky's dripping pussy before she finished talking. He pushed, her eyes widened then slammed shut. One firm thrust and he was buried deep. “Ahh, I'm not going to last long,” Evan said. “Sorry.”

Good, I can't take much more, not now.”

As Evan slowly pulled out, Becky’s clinging flesh created a wonderful sucking sensation that drew his balls up. He paused, then gradually fed Becky’s demanding pussy everything he had to give. Her body squeezed and released in rhythmic waves that clawed at his insides. Becky said, “Wait,” and moved forward.

His cock popped free and bobbed between them. He grabbed her thigh and helped Becky so both knees were on the counter. Her skin squeaked as they slid apart, lowering her crotch to a more comfortable height. He swung his hips forward and drove straight in. Becky’s moan was loud enough for anybody upstairs to hear, but Evan kept driving his groin. Becky tried to brace herself, but her head still hit the mirror. Evan got lost in the pleasure of fucking Jason's sister until his balls snapped tight. “Don’t cum in me. Cum on my ass,” Becky said. “Squirt it all over my ass and pussy. I wanna have you on me when I go downstairs.”

Becky would have gotten splattered even if she hadn't wanted it because Evan had waited too long. His load was rushing to the tip as he yanked out. The first burst blasted her crotch, then he grabbed his dick and filled Becky’s ass crack and covered her pink cheeks. Cum ran down and dripped from her pussy lips. “Becky, I think you watch too much porn.”

Becky ignored him and said, “That was a lot. How many days you been holding it?”

Instead of telling Becky he had already gotten off twice that day, Evan asked, “Are you even from this planet?”

Probably not,” she said and tossed her leggings in the hamper. “Just in case.” Her grin made Evan want to spank her again. “I’ll go down first. Okay?”

Sure, but we should still keep this between us, right?”

It’ll be our secret,” she said, “but you need to come over and see me every once and awhile. We still gotta have a threesome.”

With who?”

Becky hunched her shoulders and cock her head to the side. “You’ll have to come and find out.” Her giggle reminded Evan how young she was.


Downstairs, Evan found the party breaking up. The three tumblers were leaving together because of something gymnastics related in the morning. He was happy to be rid of Ann. Becky had satisfied any of his immediate desires, but if Ann spent the night—Better not think about that, Evan decided. Deana gave him a curious glance, but he wasn’t sure if it had anything to do with him fucking Becky. He told Jason he was tired, encouraging his friend to go home. Jason agreed and seemed relieved to get his sister away from Deana and her friends. Becky wouldn’t care, but Evan thought Jason had enough sense not to let anyone know he was fucking his sister.

Becky said goodbye and shoved Evan’s hand under her skirt so he could feel the crusty residue. “Thanks for inviting me.”

Instead of telling Becky he hadn’t invited her, Evan followed her and Jason up the stairs. Halfway up, the little freak bent forward so he was sure to see her naked ass. There was a lot wrong with Jason’s sister, but it all made Evan like Becky more.


The next morning, Evan stopped in front of the race shop. It was set back to the right of his Aunt and Uncle’s house. Aunt Julia seemed to hate the huge steel building but had allowed it because it kept Cindy around more. They used to work on the car in a rented garage near the race track. It was a shit stain compared to the new shop with its two roll-up doors, lift, pulley system for yanking engines, and the best of the best in tools. Evan knew his father must have contributed a lot toward it because Uncle JC was a mechanic, and Aunt Julia was a receptionist at a local doctor’s office. What he didn’t know was why his father’s company would invest so much money. Cindy was well known around the South-East, but she wasn’t a rising star in a NASCAR series or even ARCA, so how much advertising could his company get? Evan had added that question to a growing list of things he didn’t understand about his family. Now, he needed to start paying more attention and asking those questions.

The roll-ups were down, so Evan went around to the side door and peeked in the window. Cindy was inside, so he eased the door open, slipped in, and looked over the roof of the race car. His cousin was talking on the phone.

Cindy’s black concert T-shirt was too worn to know what band had been on tour. Her Braves ball cap wasn’t in much better shape, but the jean shorts, which made her dark legs seem endless, appeared to be new. The hems cut into her thighs too close to her crotch for working on cars. Cindy saw him, quickly ended the call, and turned to put the phone on the workbench. Evan smiled at the tail of hair that had been fed through the back of the cap. Deana did the same thing, except she had a Yankees cap. Their similarities astounded him. He shook himself and crossed the shop. “Morning.”

Hey, cuz,” Cindy said. “Any reason you're staring at me like that?”

Uh, I, um, no reason.” He gave her a quick hug.

How's Candy?” Cindy asked.

It was as if everybody except Gloria had abandoned Candy's mother persona, and lately, Cindy seemed more interested in his mother than racing. “She’s fine. Why do you ask?”

Any reason I shouldn’t?”

No, of course not,” Evan said. “Um, but it does seem like you have been talking more.”

Cindy squinted an eye and tipped her head. “Sure you’re not being paranoid because I told her about you racing . . . last time? You know I’m sorry about that, but I kinda had to.”

Yes, I know, and I understand, but it just seems you both ask about each other, and you talk on the phone more.”

Evan, you’re being paranoid,” Cindy said. “I promise, this time I’m not telling her anything. Now stop worrying.”

aCindy was probably right, Evan thought, but he didn't believe her. There wasn't any reason to minimize or lie, but if Cindy was lying, what did that mean? Evan's brain was spinning, but he let it drop, for now. “Okay, I will.”

What did you think of Sally?”

Evan swallowed hard. How does she know I met Sally, and what else does Cindy know? “How do you know Sally?”

Well, she is Candy’s sister, and Sally used to be my babysitter.”

Your babysitter? What else?” he asked. The question seemed to make Cindy uncomfortable. “I mean she's been gone, so?” He let the question hang in the air.

She got in touch with me a few years ago,” Cindy said. “She asked if I remembered her.”

Did you?”

Cindy laughed. “No, I was too young then, but I knew about her, so we talked every now and then. To keep up.”

Keep up with what, Evan wondered, but he reached his limit for making Cindy squirm. At least about Sally.

I gotta pee,” Cindy said.

Evan smiled, thinking, can I watch?

No you can't,” Cindy said.

If she knew him that well, what Evan planned to do next was very risky, but he had to know. Cindy left by the backdoor to go to the house. The time for shrugging things off is over, Evan thought. There were too many things he didn’t understand, and nothing felt right about Cindy knowing he met Sally. Did that justify a grievous violation of Cindy’s trust? If Sally told Cindy what happened at Style’s house, that was bad, but what Evan now suspected would be monumental, life-altering, and dangerous. He answered his question by grabbing Cindy’s phone and entering the passcode she had trusted him with. His heart raced as he touched his thumb to the call log. The call Cindy had just ended was with Candy. He swiped up and let the history scroll. Evan’s heart jerked in his chest.

The calls from and to Candy and Sally were too many to count. What the fuck? Evan rubbed his eyes and opened a text message from Candy. A swipe sent the long history sliding down. There were pictures attached. The blood left Evan’s head so quickly he had to lean against the workbench. He tapped to make an image full size. The speed of his heart tripled. A head of strawberry-blonde hair was framed by a pair of olive-toned thighs. Cindy had sent a picture of his mother eating her out. The message read, “Let’s do breakfast next time. My treat.”

Evan wanted to cry, scream, and maybe jerk off. They had been sexting for days, and he wanted to see every picture and read all the messages, but there wasn’t time, so Evan went to the most recent message. His mother was naked in her bathroom, fresh out of the shower, taking a selfie in the mirror. “I already miss you.”

Cindy’s reply, “Still in car. Could turn around?”

Would love another night with you, but it’s not safe. Evan will be back soon with Deana's friends. I’ll call later. Love you.”

His mother had a girlfriend. Was he heartbroken or overflowing with joy? Evan didn't know. Cindy was in love with his mother, and so was he. Candy hadn’t so much as hinted that they had a happy ever after in their future, and Evan never had a realistic expectation of that. Hadn’t he accepted that? Evan thought he had, until now. There must have been some subconscious hope because seeing the evidence of Candy and Cindy’s love hurt. And, it emphasized the fact that neither Deana nor Gloria would ever be sending him love letters or sexting with him.

The doorknob clicked. Evan snapped to attention, locked the phone, dropped it on the workbench, and scurried around behind the race car, out of view. He needed a minute to collect himself.

Deana had wanted to tell him who Candy was in love with, but she couldn’t come right out with it. Had Candy or Cindy asked her not to tell him? Evan could understand why his idol, Cindy, and his mother, wouldn’t want him to know, and Deana wouldn’t violate their trust. She expected him to figure it out, and the closest Evan had come to that was thinking Deana might have hooked up with Candy.

Evan stooped low and duck-walked around the back of the car as Cindy went around the front. What had Sally said by the pool, “Even if things don’t turn out the way you hoped?” Cindy had been talking to Sally, so did Sally know about him and Candy? Fuck this, Evan thought, I’m done being the only person not to know important shit. Between Aunt Sally, Ms. Style, the way things changed with Darlene, and now Candy and Cindy, he planned to pay attention, examine, and demand answers.

Cindy reached the workbench. Evan straightened and looked across the shop. She didn't touch it, but he thought Cindy was staring at her phone. Shit, he left the messaging app open. Now, Evan had to cover his tracks before pushing Cindy to admit she was Candy’s lover. He cleared his throat and started walking. Play it cool. “Hey, I was wondering . . . is there something you know that I might need to know?” Oh yeah, he thought, that sounded as cool as global warming.

Cindy shrugged. “I know lots of things that you don't know.” She backed up to the workbench. “Can you be more specific?”

Evan got closer. “Stuff with Aunt Sally and Candy? Do you know Sally’s friend, Ms. Style?”

Cindy jumped up and sat on the bench. Her dark, intense stare made Evan divert his eyes away from Cindy’s, but he didn’t back down. Cindy’s knees bumped into his stomach. Evan touched them and stepped in. A shiver caught him off guard as they parted. He watched his hands slide up the smooth, brown skin. His fingers bumped over the denim hems, followed the swells of ass cheeks pressing out from under Cindy’s butt, and stopped on the backs of her hips. He was afraid to look up, but he pushed on. “Do you?”

Cindy’s sneakers hit the concrete. The arches of her feet pressed against Evan’s legs. He lifted his chin. Deana had been the only person who could provoke such a powerful burst of emotions, until now. It was difficult to breathe. Cindy’s legs looped around Evan’s body. Her hands moved to his head; her fingers raked through his hair. She pressed Evan’s face into the crook of her neck. He could smell, feel, and taste Deana. His sister had also been the only person to see him act like a baby. He started crying. “What’s going on?”

Evan?” Cindy’s tone was pleading. He looked at her. “Do you love me the way you love Deana?”

Deana's name coming out of Cindy’s mouth shoved Evan’s brain into gear without using the clutch. Does Cindy know about me and Deana? Was his cousin asking him if he would make love to her? No, Evan told himself, Cindy couldn’t know about us. “Of course I love you, but—”

But nothing.” Cindy held his face between her hands. Their noses touched. He might as well have been staring into Deana's eyes. Their foreheads pressed together as if holding each other up. Cindy's breath moistened Evan’s lips. She rubbed his ears with her thumbs the way Deana did after he came. “Do you think I love you as much as Deana does?”

Evan didn’t have to think; he knew how much Cindy loved him. “Why? What’s happening?” He was shivering. “You didn’t answer my question. Tell me what’s going on? Things are going on, and I feel like I’m the only one who doesn’t know. Why am I being left out?” He sounded like a hysterical girl.

I do love you the way Deana does,” Cindy said. “Do you trust me?”

With my life.”

Good, that’s good.” Cindy pressed her lips to Evan’s. He closed his eyes and kissed his cousin the same way he would Deana. At that moment, Evan couldn’t distinguish one from the other, except he knew this was different.

Why did you do that?” Evan asked.

Because I like kissing you.”

Or because you know it’ll distract me?”

Honestly, I do like it,” Cindy said. “And it might distract you but it also gets you focused.”

Focused, Evan thought, yeah on one thing. Deana did the same thing to him when she wanted to hear what was going on in his head, but Cindy couldn’t do that. “Whatever.”

You mad about me and Candy?”

Shit, how does she do that? “Are you mad that I looked at your phone?” Cindy’s smile confirmed that she knew, and the comforting hug she gave him answered his question. “Cindy, I’m happy for you, but scared, too. If he ever—”

I know, we know,” Cindy said. “There isn’t anything to worry about, but you have to be careful, too. You know what I mean?”

Well, she could mean don’t get caught if I’m fucking Candy, or don’t do it with Deana anymore after their father got home. Evan nodded. They all had to be careful from now on. Nothing was as it had been before their father went to China, and it was dangerous. Dangerous, Evan thought, that is an ominous word. How had his father gone from being hard on him and sometimes a pain in the ass, to a threat?

Evan looped Cindy’s hair behind her ear, kissed her neck, and said, “You gotta trust me, too.”

Cindy stiffened, pushed back, and grabbed Evan’s shoulders. “I do . . . with my life.”

So?” Evan shrugged. “What else? Do you know something about Sally and Candy, or Ms. Style and Darlene?” What was it Evan thought he might want to hear Cindy say? Not, Style has a dick and she sucked you off, but anything else that might help him understand everything he hadn’t considered until now. Why had Sally suddenly shown up? More importantly, how did everybody end up at Ms. Style’s house? Was Miss Tonya in on it? She had been the one who got him the job.

Evan, what’s important right now is that when he gets home things are going to be tense for a while. Candy will need you. Be there for her. Okay?”

Be there for her? If Cindy knew about Candy and him, that could mean Cindy wanted him to keep fucking Candy. No, Evan told himself, that doesn't make sense. Although, neither did fucking Rebecca in front of Deana.

Do you understand?” Cindy asked.

Of course not, Evan thought while nodding. Cindy read his expression and said, “Stay close to her. Candy will feel alone, lonely, be there, close, and take care of her. Let her use your phone, but be careful.”

It sounded like a covert operation and a love triangle romance plot, and potentially a murder mystery movie. Evan might have fully grasped that if half his brain wasn't busy imagining the erotic sexting pictures that might end up on his phone, and the possibility of being with Candy again. Maybe there would even be a threesome or foursome down the road?



Two hours after Deana started looking at the pictures, they were strategically ordered to maximize their impact. Any shots of Candy or Sally that Deana deemed provocative, had been moved to the bottom of the pile. Considering it would be Evan looking at Candy and Sally, most of them were down there. Lots of the pictures of Sandra were with them. Deana didn't need Evan getting upset right away. He wouldn't be able to think if he had a boner or was crying. She needed him to see it without her coaching. If he did, she'd see it on his face and feel her brother making the connections. Then, she could ask questions and get Evan to say it. If he thought the same things, Deana still wouldn't tell him everything, but she would show Evan one newspaper article, and let him draw his own conclusions. Then, they could be enraged and terrified, together.



There hadn't actually been any work to do on Cindy's car. That should have been obvious to Evan when he saw the too-short, short-shorts Cindy was wearing. Her plan had been to get Evan there so she could tell him about Candy, and that she knew he had been with his mother. Surprisingly, that hadn’t bothered Cindy. She understood Candy better than him, even though his mother had warned him. Candy said she was more like him than an adult, but Evan couldn’t see past the years of having to listen to Candy as his mother. Cindy explained in a manner that made Evan proud of his cousin. Psychology would suit her well.

Cindy hadn’t said she knew Evan and Deana were lovers, but he thought his cousin knew. When pressed about the connection between Sally and Ms. Style, Cindy was vague, so Evan kept Sally’s confidence, assuming his aunt didn’t want him talking about the wonderful career in porn that he had explored until his dick was sore. Though, more research was definitely required.

His cousin claimed ignorance about Darlene and said she only knew Miss Tonya casually through Candy from the ballpark. Evan had only let his perverted mind imagine Candy, Miss Tonya, and Cindy together for a second. After that, Cindy clammed up and told Evan to go home. Supposedly she needed extra time to get in the zone for that night’s race. Evan had teased Cindy about blowing the race the night Candy came to the track, but he totally got it. If he had been Candy’s lover and was separated from her for a long time, Evan didn’t think he would have been able to find the race track, let alone drive.

Once Evan was in his car, ready to drive home, Cindy leaned in and spoke with her lips touching his ear, “We fucked in the bathroom before the race that night.” He wanted to stay and hear a detailed account, but Cindy waved and walked away.


Evan reached his house without remembering the trip. The car door closed with a thud, and he headed straight to Deana's room, opened her door without knocking, and asked, “Why didn't you tell me?” Deana's knowing expression made him ask, “Did Cindy call and warn you that I was coming?”

No.” Deana got off the bed. “I did tell you, but you didn't hear me.”

Sorry, I can't read your mind as well as you read mine. You should have made sure I knew. Then I wouldn't have—”

Evan, you still would have fucked Candy that night, but that's okay. It's what Mom needed. I understand that now.”

Evan was angry, relieved, confused and suddenly breathing hard. Deana took a cautious step forward. He stared at her. She was wearing a t-shirt, pajama shorts, and no makeup. Her hair was pulled back in a loose ponytail. He blew out a deflating breath. “You’re beautiful, really beautiful.”

Evan stumbled into Deana's arms. She kissed his neck. He closed his eyes, then they were kissing. It was as if all the love and desire he felt while with Cindy had been multiplied by what he always felt for Deana.

Whoa, not now, please.” Deana pulled back.

Why not? You said the same thing last night, and—”

And you fucked Becky,” Deana said. “Geez, seriously, Jason's sister while he was here?”

How do you know what I did or didn't do with Becky?”

The girl came downstairs walking funny from this,” Deana grabbed Evan's crotch, “with a fucked silly expression on her face.”

Evan nodded, thinking about the load of cum he'd splattered on Becky. A smirk slipped across his face. “She jumped me in the bathroom, and you set me up. How many of those pieces of paper had nonsense written on them?”

Deana grinned. “Most, but that's no excuse for doing Becky. You've been telling Gloria she's too young.” Deana raised her brows.

Becky's older.”

Deana tisked. “Only a year.”

But Becky isn't my sister.”

Neither is Gloria.” Deana huffed. “Never mind. Let's go up to your room.”

Finally,” Evan said.

Not for that,” Deana said.

But I need you.”

Me too,” Deana said, “but this is more important, for now.”

Evan’s hopes soared. In his mind, somehow, making love to Deana was going to be like doing it with his cousin and his sister. “What’s so important? Are you going to explain how Gloria and Darlene got so—Whatever they are? Or, how Mom and Cindy could be lovers?” There were a few other things that Evan needed to know, but he didn't bother mentioning them.

That is a possibility,” Deana said. “Go, I'll be there in a second.”


Upstairs, Evan considered all the emotions he had experienced in Deana's room. One second he had been mad and sad, then he felt broken, ready to crumble in Deana's arms. A kiss later, Evan had to have Deana. Then he felt heartbroken as if his lover were dumping him. As he walked out of Deana's room, he sensed his sister’s anxiety and was filled with a cautious curiosity. What could be more important than sex or talking about their mother and cousin being lovers?

Deana entered with a box. She motioned at the bed and said, “Spread the blanket. Make it neat, flat.”

Evan pointed. “What is in there?”

Relax, it's nothing to be afraid of.”

He said, “I’m not scared,” but he sensed there was something bad in that tattered old shoebox. “Just curious.”

Get on the bed,” Deana said.

I don’t think I could ever get tired of hearing you say that.”

Deana slapped his shoulder. “I told you, not now. This is serious, and it’s a good thing.”

Evan believed it was serious, and he knew his sister was lying about it being a good thing. Deana was terrified of something in that box. He yanked the bedspread tight, sat and stood a pillow up behind his back. Deana went around to the other side and sat, facing him with the box on her folded legs. “What do you think it is?” Deana asked.

I . . . ah, I don’t—Can’t imagine.”

Well, it’s not a shoebox bomb, I promise, so relax.”

I can’t help it,” he said. “You’re making it all spooky, mystery kinda shit.”

Deana grasped the edges on the lid and wiggled it off. He felt the atmosphere change as if his sister had released all the evil in Pandora’s box. Deana tilted it toward Evan. “It’s the pictures, Evan. Candy got us the pictures. Sally had them.”

The quiver in Deana's voice confirmed what Evan sensed, but why should they be afraid of their past? “Give me, let me see them,” Evan said. His heart was racing.

Deana didn’t hand them over; she offered him one picture. It trembled in her hand. “Look at us. We’re adorable.”

Evan stared at Deana in a white dress, tied tight around her waist with a bow in front. She was holding his hand. He was also dressed for church in blue pants, a matching jacket, and white shirt without a tie. “Wow, a dress. You’re gonna be a beautiful bride.”

With rosy cheeks, Deana leaned in and said, “Sometimes I went to church without underwear under those dresses.”

Jeez, and you call me a pervert.” Evan’s face warmed. “Why?”

I think I hated having to wear a dress or having to go . . . maybe both, but that was my way of saying, fuck you.”

Evan should have been concerned with the anger in Deana's eyes, but he said, “Please tell me you’ll do the same thing when you get married.”

Mm, only if you promise to sneak under and—”

Never mind,” Evan said, “I can’t hear about that now. Let me see more.”

The next one was similar, except behind them there was a girl. She had her hand on Evan’s shoulder. “God, look at Candy. She’s cute, pretty, and kinda sexy even though she’s too young to be.”

Like Gloria,” Deana said and handed him another picture. “Looks like you were already in love with her.”

Deana probably meant Candy, but considering the picture, she could have been talking about Gloria. Candy was sitting on a couch. Her hair was longer, and more blonde than he remembered it being. He was next to her with his ear pressed to her swollen belly. She was grinning at him with her fingers intertwined in his hair. Evan tried to remember something from before Gloria, but he was three, and all the memories were things he had been told rather than actual memories. Although, nobody had said anything about Candy being the prettiest pregnant woman—No, the prettiest pregnant girl he had ever seen. For a few seconds Evan let his mind play tricks with the image. It was Gloria sitting there with a giant stomach and huge, swollen tits resting heavy on it. Mm, she wouldn’t be wearing a bra either, just like her mother.

Look at this one.” Deana’s words made Evan mentally kick himself in the head.

This time, Candy seemed to be a child. She was standing next to a bed. The girl laying there was breastfeeding a baby. There was an older teenage boy with red hair on the other side of the bed. “Who is that?”

Here, this might help,” Deana said.

Evan saw Candy, again, standing beside a very pregnant girl and the same boy. “Jeez, that’s Sally. She’s huge, ready to pop. I didn’t know she had kids. Is that her boyfriend, the father, next to her?”

Why do you think he’s the father?”

Evan shrugged. “They’re holding hands.”

Deana pointed at a picture of her and Evan. “So are we.” She raised her brows.

What’s that supposed to mean?”

Nothing. Here, look.”

His sister flipped the picture up like a flash card in front of Evan's face. There Candy was, looking like Gloria two years ago. Evan realized his eyes had found Candy, first, again. Then they were jumping back and forth from Deana to the photograph. He couldn't reconcile what he saw with what he thought he knew. Long, silky-black hair looped behind her ear, but it couldn't be Deana or Cindy holding the redheaded baby. It was obvious who it had to be, but Evan’s mind insisted on flashing through millions of stored pictures of Deana and Cindy at different ages while trying to make sense of the baby. “She’s . . . ah, who’s that with—” The hair, dark olive skin, and eyes so black, yet bright with expression, were the unmistakable characteristics of Deana and Cindy, and now their mother. How had Candy described Sandra, the most beautiful, caring person she had ever known? Evan had never imagined their mother was so young. “God, Mom is, ah, wow, she’s beautiful.” Don’t lose it, Evan told himself, not in front of Deana. “Whose baby is that?”

Deana said, “Dah,” and held two pictures side by side. One had the excessively pregnant Sally standing next to their mother, and the next was their mother holding the baby without Sally.

Okay, so it’s Sally’s baby.” Evan couldn’t tell Deana about Sally’s past. Was it possible to raise a kid while doing porn? He doubted it, but what did he really know about Sally? “You think that guy is the father?”

I think so, but—” Deana stopped and stared into the box like it was a Magic 8 ball. “I don’t know, it could be, but after those pictures there aren’t any other baby pictures. Maybe she gave her up for adoption? We might know her.”

Evan wanted to see the pictures more than he wanted to talk about Sally’s baby. “Hand them over.” He reached out.

Deana twisted and held the box out of reach. “Not so fast.”

Who died and left you in charge of them?”

Who did Mom give them to?”

The snarky rise of his sister’s brows would have irked Evan if not for the hair looped behind Deana's ear and the word mom coming from her mouth. He glanced back at a picture of the woman Deana had been cloned from, standing next to the cute girl they had been forced to call Mommy. Once he had fucked Candy that word had been harder to say, but now after seeing Sandra, their mother, it would be worse. Had it ever felt natural?

Deana pressed on, feeding pictures and commentary to Evan. They were mostly of him and her at various ages. Normal growing up stuff like playing at the park, first days of school, them at the circus, and even in the tub, but always together. “Do you remember how old we were when we got our own rooms and stopped doing that?” Evan turned the picture toward Deana.

Hmm.” Deana flashed mischievous eyes at the ceiling as she rubbed her chin. “I seem to remember sharing a shower the other day, and didn’t I spend the night in your room recently?”

Evan grinned and grabbed a picture out of the box. Deana snatched it away and hid it behind her back. “Not yet.”

What are you keeping from me?”

Nothing.”

Then why don’t you want me to see that picture?” Evan asked. “And why are you guarding that box like the Holy Grail?”

Deana let out a sigh. “Okay, you got me, I didn’t want you to overload on Candy and Sally, or get too upset the way I did when I plunged into it.”

I’m a big boy, Dee, I think I can handle it.” That was a lie, but Evan planned on playing it cool until he was alone. Deana needed him to be strong for her, even though she would never admit it.

I’ll leave them with you after. Just play along for now, then you can stare at Candy and Sally when they were young and even sexier.”

Evan imagined Candy and Sally as teenagers, living under the same roof like him and Deana and Gloria. “They have a brother, Bobby. Candy talks about him. Where is he?”

Deana smirked. “Here.”

The degree of faded and worn decreased as Evan’s understanding grew with each photograph Deana handed him. She told him who was who, even though a lot of it was obvious, like where Candy and Sally got their tits. Deana filled him in on what Sally said, and added comments that Evan knew were designed to steer his thinking. The day before, when Evan hadn’t decided to examine everything, Deana's superior perception would have been needed, but not today. He was tuned into his sister’s thoughts and emotions. They were drawing the same conclusions. What Evan couldn’t figure out was why Deana didn't want him to see that one picture? He held that bit of information at the center of his thought process.

Evan held two pictures by the corners and waved them. “So, you think Bobby is this baby’s father, right?”

It makes sense,” Deana said. “Him and Sally have the same hair.”

Why didn’t you ask Sally?” Deana’s expression was the, are you stupid look Evan least liked. “Okay, I guess I wouldn’t have asked either. You think that’s why Candy never told Gloria she has a cousin?”

Deana shrugged. “Will we tell anybody?”

I never said I would do that.”

You will, but that’ll be different. It’ll be Rebecca, but what if I got preg—”

Shut up!” The pictures made it all too real for Evan. Now, it would be impossible to make love to Deana without thinking about that redheaded baby. “What do you think happened to her?”

Remember the day we talked in the car about if we had been separated at birth? We might know each other and not realize we’re related.”

Evan nodded slowly, reading Deana's face while his brain sifted her words through billions of stored visual images. The thought came with a flash of heat that made his eyes sting. The dots all connected, it made sense, but it was so absurd that Evan was afraid to say the name aloud. Did Darlene know? That might explain why she wouldn’t let him fuck her. “Does she know Sally is her mother?”

Oh, my God, did you really put it all together?”

How long were you going to wait to tell me? What if I had, we had—”

Seriously, Evan, you’re worried about sleeping with a sort of cousin by marriage? Come on.”

Hey, I should get to decide if I want to do incest or not.”

Jeez.” Deana shook her head, blowing out through flapping lips. “Don’t say anything . . . not to anyone. Darlene may not know.”

She knows,” Evan said. “I feel like she knows.”

Big brother, I’m impressed.”

What can I say, your perceptive powers are rubbing off on me.”

Finally,” Deana said. “So what did you think about these?” She ran a finger across a line of pictures.

The obvious part, nobody told us that there was a whole lot more going on than Sally and Candy being our babysitters. Mom—Sandra—That’s weird, now. Weirder, really. She was close friends with Candy’s family. Sally and her seemed very close. Dad is never in the pictures, but I think he probably took some of them. They must have all been friends, hanging out, barbecues, and stuff.”

Deana stopped nodding and asked, “What about the not obvious? You see anything in these?” She fanned out four pictures in front of Evan.

Mmhmm, but things aren’t always as they seem. Maybe they were just really, really good friends? Did Sally say anything about it?” No kid wants to think their mother had an affair, but the expression Sandra had whenever she was together with Candy’s father, mirrored Deana’s I’m in love face.

She said Mom was very special to her father,” Deana said. “I got the feeling Sally meant he didn’t like Mom, Sandra, Mom, being with Dad.”

After getting punched out and seeing Candy pinned to the wall by her throat, Deana's words made Evan nauseous, but his sister didn’t need to know about that. “Well, look at her, she’s gorgeous . . . always smiling at him, he probably wanted her, but he was friends with Dad. Probably nothing happened. Hey, it’s kinda creepy in a way that you look so much like Mom.”

Creepy,” Deana said. “Why because it makes you think about having sex with Mom?”

Maybe.”

You think Dad might have found out Mom was?” Deana raised her brows.

What makes you think that?” His tone was too sharp, but before Evan could stop himself he asked, “Does she have a black eye in that picture you won’t show me?”

No.” Her expression barely changed, but Evan felt the deep current of emotions that swept through Deana. “Why did you ask that?”

Uh, it’s nothing. It just popped out because you're still hiding it from me.”

I’m not hiding it. Here,” Deana said. “I forgot about it.”

Evan adjusted the distance until the picture was too close, then pushed back. It confused his senses the way Cindy and Deana's likeness sometimes did if he hadn’t seen Cindy for a while. The other pictures of Sandra had done that, at first. This time, the bewildered state set in like a thick fog. Evan’s chest tightened. The girl who couldn’t be Deana at fifteen was holding a baby. “Dee, if this is Mom, the baby can’t be you or me, right? Is it Cindy?”

Uh.” Deana's face paled. “Who?”

Duh. The baby in her arms. She has black hair.” Evan realized he didn’t know how old their mother had been when they were born or when she died. Their father hadn’t just kept the pictures from them, and stolen their memories, he was keeping secrets. What kind of man wouldn’t want his kids to know everything there was to know about their mother?

Let me see.” When Deana took the picture, her hand was trembling more than before. “Yeah, Cindy, it must be her as a baby,” Deana said. “Mom is too young.”

Evan repeated Deana's words, “Too young,” and tried to read between the lines. His sister was angry. “She looks younger than you are now . . . about fifteen, I guess. Where is Aunt Julia?”

Not there,” Deana said. “I didn’t see her in any of the pictures.”

That’s weird. Are there more of Mom like this, when she’s so young?”

Deana shook her head. “That’s the only one like that. That’s strange, too. I wonder who took the picture and why it ended up in Sally and Candy’s box of pictures?”

That was a very good question. More importantly, where were all the pictures of their mother when she was pregnant? Evan looked at Deana. She was staring at her legs. “You alright?”

Yeah, it’s hard, hard to understand, and Mom’s not here to explain who’s who and how old we were, or what we were doing or anything about anything.”

Evan moved all the pictures aside and pulled Deana close. She threw her arms around him and buried her face in his neck. He still couldn’t let himself lose it. It was Deana’s turn to do that. He held her tight, rubbed her back, and only got her hair a little wet with his tears.