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From: "Jan V." <jan123@hotmail.com>
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Subject: {ASSM} RP: Sisters (ff, teen, inc) - Chapters 15 and 16 (and last!)
Date: Sun, 12 Nov 2000 00:10:08 -0500
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CHAPTER FIFTEEN:  OF THE MIGHTY AND THE WEAK

	Linda entered the imposing room with its paintings by old masters hanging 
on oak paneling, and its bookcases of old law books. Randolph West was 
writing, comparing files and documents, looking left and right and then 
right and left, a caricature of the man of success in his field. He looked 
up at Linda over the top of his glasses, and waved at her, "Come... come..." 
as if she were a dog or a little child.
	"Sit down," he said, with a commanding voice, still busy with his papers. A 
few minutes ticked away before he put the paperwork aside and called his 
secretary over the intercom. "Donna, would you bring Ms McDougall's file? 
Right away?"
	There was a quick answer and the file was on his desk in no time. The 
red-haired, fortyish secretary disappeared as fast as she dashed in. West 
let his slanting smile appear for a short moment, as if he was pleased by 
his eloquent display of power.
	"Now, then... Here we are... Linda... I'll be honest with you... and I hope 
you will be honest with me. I'll not call this an open-and-shut case but the 
prosecution had to indict you and your dad for the reasons we all know. I 
managed to reschedule the hearings... You will be first, and I expect a 
quick dismissal of the case against you... Everybody knows what the Woods 
are after... and they know what kind of man their son was... A quick 
dismissal of your case will help your dad enormously. Are you following me?"
	Linda was getting irritated with his patronizing tone of voice. Of course 
she was following him! With her grades she was sure she would enter Harvard 
or Yale or any Ivy League college... She was no dumb blonde. The hell with 
stereotypes!
	"Are you following me?" he repeated.
	"Yes," she said, controlling herself. No point in making an enemy.
	"All right... However, I have to ask you a few questions. I hate surprises 
in the middle of a hearing... where the judge will decide between a 
dismissal or a trial."
	He proceeded, asking her about personal information and other 
inconsequential questions about her family, friends, school, grades -- did 
she glimpse some surprise in his eyes? Then he went further, dealing with 
how Jeannie had been shot and how the redneck died. Linda noticed the 
slightly confusing questions and how he played her, trying to see if she 
contradicted herself... He eventually gave a satisfied grunt, consulting the 
documents in her file, pushing the glasses up his nose.
	"Now let's go back a little further," West suggested. "I talked to your dad 
about this... I've got the testimonies of your sisters... and yours... and 
frankly this is the weakest point of our defense... There are a lot of 
contradictions... Take your sister Zo , for instance... She stated you ran 
away because she hated school... Jeannie says it was because you said so... 
Nikki, because all of you couldn't stand your parents any longer... Your dad 
tried to explain all this to me but I am still not convinced."
	The crucial time had arrived, Linda thought. Dad and Linda and her sisters 
had prepared themselves for this... Dad had coached them well... Convincing 
West about the accuracy of their statements was the key to the hearings.
	"All that's true. Zo  wanted to leave the cheerleader squad and there are 
witnesses to that... All Zoe's and Jeannie's friends know how Zo  stormed 
out of cheerleading practice a couple of days before we ran away. You have 
dozens of witnesses right there... Mom and Dad got mad because of that... 
That's why Nikki says we couldn't stand our parents any more... I thought 
how unfairly Mom and Dad were handling it. If I see someone being treated 
unfairly, I can't just stand there and do nothing... I just can't."
	"I'm aware of that... I interviewed a few people who know you, friends and 
teachers... They think highly of you... So... Was that the reason why you 
run away?... Because Zo  hated school, your parents became unreasonably mad 
at you and you tried to defend your sisters... Is that it?"
	"Part of it, yes..."
	"Part of it? Is there something else?"
	"Yes."
	"Come on, let's hear it."
	Linda sighed and said, "Mom hit me and I hit her back... That's when I 
decided to run away."
	West removed his glasses, rubbed the bridge of his nose, his fingers 
reaching for the corner of his eyes. He stood still for a while in that 
position, as if he was measuring the consequences of Linda's last statement.
	"Hmm," he grumbled, his glasses back on his nose but sliding down. He went 
through his papers, read a couple of them, and then asked, "Hmm... Why did 
she hit you?"
	"She was complaining we never do what she says... And I told her it was 
because she didn't care about us... She never did... Then she hit me."
	"Hmm..." The lawyer reclined in his comfortable leather swivel chair, 
thinking, scratching his ear and the hair above it. "Hmm..."
	A few "hmms" later, he dismissed her. Dad was waiting in the lobby for his 
turn with Randolph T. West. Linda was supposed to wait for her father right 
there, on that huge leather couch, being ogled at by the secretaries and the 
lawyers and other clients of the firm.
	Linda had become a celebrity. She had been asked for talk shows and offered 
acting parts. Even Zo  and Jeannie hadn't escaped the media turmoil. A 
casting director called and asked whether the twins would consider showing 
up at a popular sitcom. Mom and Dad declined all offers, however. It was 
inappropriate. Fortunately the twins were sensible enough to see through it 
-- how casting directors and the TV and the media in general can manipulate 
and trick and deceive just to make a few extra bucks. If the twins were 
ugly, would anyone care about them? Maybe, but not for acting parts... To be 
pitied and held up to ridicule in a talk show then? Almost certainly.
	"Hi, there!" a male voice greeted. Linda looked up and saw an attractive 
young "suit", dimples in his cheeks, and a Tom Cruise-look-alike look. `Is 
this becoming the reality version of The Firm movie?' Linda asked herself. 
Tom Cruise was cute, everybody knew that... and this guy was definitely 
cute.
	"Hi..."
	"I'm Andrew Thomas," he said, shaking her hand. "Just call me Andy... 
Everybody does... I work here... and... I was passing by... and... I was 
wondering if you wanted some coffee..."
	Linda smiled, stopping short of laughing. A pick-up line she knew too 
well... But he was cute... and she would rather be speaking to someone than 
sitting alone and feeling she was being ogled at by everybody who happened 
to be in the lobby or who was passing through.
	"I'd appreciate it," she said.
	Expeditiously he left and came with their cups of coffee and sat down next 
to her, initiating small talk. Linda learned he was an associate of the 
firm, dealing with boring stuff like accountancy and wills... Suddenly, he 
stopped and said, "May I say something?"
	"What?"
	"It may sound odd... or that I'm being too forward... but I think you're 
the most beautiful girl I've ever seen."
	Linda's eyes blinked, then laughed, "Yeah, right... I guess you say that to 
every girl you meet."
	"That's not true... Ask anyone in the firm... I'm a serious person..."
He got to his feet and raised his voice, asking Verna and Paula whether he 
was a serious person or not. The secretaries giggled. He was trying to 
impress her, to show her how well he could handle people, how popular he was 
in that firm. That same loud display of his popularity was not being 
appreciated by Linda, though. He could be cute... but his attitude stank.
	Dad came to her rescue. Andy Thomas sprang to his feet, shook Dad's hand 
and complimented him on having such a beautiful daughter. West glared at 
him. Andy Thomas swiftly retreated down the hall on the left, casting a last 
glance at Linda.
	Linda was relieved when Dad brought her downstairs to the parking lot. In 
the car, Dad said, "West was impressed with you... and most important, he 
believed you."
	"He did?"
	"Yes. Good job, Linda."
	Her first reaction was to thank him... But no, she owed him nothing.
	"We're going to win this case... You'll see."
	Linda didn't reply. Dad was cocksure about their chances... Another ace up 
his sleeve?
					* * *
	To Linda's surprise, things worked out as her father predicted. The cases 
against both of them were dropped. The Woods were bought off with a 
financial settlement. They grumbled and squirmed but in the end they took 
the deal -- on their lawyer's advice. The witnesses against Dad mysteriously 
changed their minds, saying there had simply been a misunderstanding. The 
Liberty county's assistant DA was reluctant to drop the case but her 
superiors ordered her to do just that. And that was the end of it -- The 
People vs. Fred McDougall case.
	Despite Fred McDougall having successfully gotten rid of his accusers, he 
didn't get his job back. His reputation was tainted and he was no longer CEO 
material, the Servenet directors explained. So he decided to move to the 
East Coast and start his own software company. They moved to Florida and 
bought a new house a few minutes' drive from the beach. They would start all 
over as a family.
	Little by little that dream seemed to be within reach. Mom and Dad tried to 
spend more time with them. Nikki mused, however, that their parents' newly 
found love for family life was sometimes a nuisance. Their freedom of 
movement was curtailed and their social life was scrutinized more closely. 
Luckily, Mom started working again, as Dad's secretary. That gave them many 
hours of precious freedom.
	One day after school Nikki hurriedly slipped on her bikini, and jeans and 
blouse. She and Linda were to meet at the beach. Linda had turned eighteen 
two weeks before and Nikki was seventeen now, and proud of it. She would 
soon be able to decide about her life -- her life with Linda... Today was the 
last day before Linda left for college. Now that all their boyfriends were 
out of the picture, Nikki was sure Linda would be her life companion -- for 
better or for worse, and to hell with what people might think.
	Nikki jumped on her mountain bike and accelerated down the hill that led to 
the beach. She wore shades, a sort of military cap and an unending smile. 
Her hair tied in a ponytail trailed freely behind her, blown by the breeze 
in her face that came inland off the ocean. She couldn't cycle fast enough, 
passing through red lights and taking short cuts down  stairs and across 
lawns. When Nikki arrived, Linda was already there, waiting for her at 
Ruby's, the beach's coolest hangout. Ruby's was a sort of caf  that catered 
to young people, mostly teenagers. Linda sat at a table, looking "cool" with 
her shades on and drinking her favorite -- freshly pressed orange juice. 
Nikki was jealous when she realized Linda wasn't alone. A guy sat at her 
table with a can of beer in his hand.
	"Hi, Linda," she greeted, dismounting from her bike. "Ready?"
	"Yup... Bye... Gotta go," said Linda, turning to the young man at her 
table.
	When they were out of earshot Nikki asked, "Who's that guy?"
	Linda smiled, chuckling. "Jealous?"
	"No... I just want to know who he is."
	Linda kept smiling, staring at her sister, who shied away from eye contact 
with her. "You want to know who he is...? And if I tell you I don't know 
him, would you believe me?"
	This time Nikki looked up, facing her sister. "Don't you know him?"
	"No, silly... He was just trying to hit on me... You should know better 
than that."
	"Really?"
	"You start sounding like Jeannie... Come on, let's go home."
	 Looking back, Linda saw that the guy had returned to his red MG sportscar. 
She noticed him staring, and the way he looked away when their eyes met.
	"Don't look now but the guy's gonna follow us," said Linda, getting on her 
mountain bike, pulling up her black shorts and checking how she looked in 
her sister's shades.
	She looked back once more and then, turning to her sister, said, "Let's 
go."
	The sisters accelerated down the avenue that ran alongside the beach. As 
Linda predicted, the red MG promptly moved into the middle lane from its 
spot at the curb and rolled leisurely behind them. Suddenly Linda pointed to 
the left, warning Nikki she was going to turn into a side street. "Follow 
me," she said.
	Nikki nodded and cycled behind Big Sis, avoiding two honking cars. The 
drivers screamed obscenities, furious with the girls' sudden maneuver to the 
left. `We're cycling dangerously,' Nikki thought. It was the only way to 
shake off Linda's stalker, though. They looked back from time to time, 
making sure the red convertible was not behind them any more. Linda smiled 
at Nikki when the red MG was no more to be seen.
	They stopped by a cafe. The owner's family spoke a strange language -- 
Portuguese -- but they served a helluva good espresso. That's what they'd go 
for. As they sat down, the owner, Mr. Pontes, came over to their table. A 
chunky man with a mustache, he displayed his usual welcoming smile and 
carried a small notebook and a pen behind his right ear..
	Linda and Nikki liked the funny way Mr. Pontes spoke English, the way he 
talked about his country, the nostalgia he felt for the green hills around 
his home town. He had given them his mother's address when they showed an 
interest in visiting his country.
	 "She's very happy to invite you," he said.
	Linda and Nikki curbed their smiles but they loved him for his generosity 
and openness.
	After exchanging the usual greetings and compliments, Linda and Nikki 
ordered their espressos and two delicious Portuguese pastries called past is 
de nata. When he left with the order, Linda smiled at Nikki, lifting her 
shades up on her hair. Nikki smiled back at her. Linda wanted to reach out 
over the table for her sister's hand, to intertwine her fingers with 
Nikki's, to say how much she loved her. Instead, she laid her hand on the 
table, a couple of inches away from Nikki's, and whispered, "What would he 
say if now I held your hand and we kissed?"
	Nikki laughed, her quiet gaze turning into an intense, loving stare. "I 
don't know... But I'd love to..." Their eyes locked onto each other. It was 
impossible to break that spell. So much so that they didn't even notice how 
close her faces were.
	"You don't mean that," Linda said, exerting herself to articulate the words 
properly in spite of her heavy breathing.
	"Yes, I do. I don't give a damn about what people say. I'm beyond that 
now... I love you and I want everybody to know it."
	"We can't," Linda said, her face pulling away from her sister's. "Even if 
we could, that'd be extremely risky to me, you, Dad, Mom, the twins... They 
could re-open the case against me or even Dad."
	"I'm sorry," Nikki muttered, looking down. "I didn't think about that."
	"Don't be sad," Linda said, holding her sister's hand, forgetting her 
earlier qualms about  public displays of affection. "I just don't want you 
to get hurt..."
	Nikki shrugged, still sad. Linda was about to scold herself over her inane 
proposal when Mr. Pontes came back with their order. As always, he chatted 
with them for a while before he left. Nikki faked a smile, sliding her 
shades back on. Linda and Mr. Pontes did most of the talking while Nikki 
kept her head down. Linda heaved a sigh of relief when he left.
	"Nikki, look at me... Look at me... What happened?"
	Nikki shrugged again. "Nothing... I don't want to talk about it... here..."
	This time they downed their espressos and past is de nata with little 
enthusiasm. They soon left the caf , waving good-bye to Mr. Pontes and his 
wife, and hurried over to their bikes.
	"Let's go home," Linda said, unlocking her bike.
	"No, I don't want to. Let's go to the beach."
	"No, I think we're gonna fight... You're sad because I'm leaving, aren't 
you? We've been through this before... I've gotta go... This my future... 
our future."
	"I know, Linda... I know... but I can't help feeling sad. I can't."
	"You'll join me in no time. We'll be one year apart, Nikki... Surely you 
can survive without me that long."
	"My grades aren't as good as yours. Suppose I don't get the grant. Suppose 
I don't get in."
	"You WILL get in, Nikki. Think positive and work hard for it. It's the only 
way..."
	"But SUPPOSE I don't get in. Then what?"
	Linda stayed quiet for a moment. With a seemingly serious look, she said, 
"Then you'll get married to an old fat man and have lots of kids."
	"This's serious, dammit. Don't make jokes about it."
	"I'm sorry... I didn't want to hurt you. I just-" Linda interrupted 
herself, shaking her head. "Doesn't matter. Let's go or we'll have the whole 
street staring at us."
	Linda and Nikki cycled off together without speaking. The joy Nikki felt 
earlier  vanished into thin air. Nikki gazed at the people on the sidewalk, 
keeping her anger in check. She saw a couple and their children walking by, 
laughing. Two well-dressed women came out of a store, talking loudly and 
praising each other for their purchases. `People without a care in the 
world,' Nikki thought with bitterness.
	Suddenly someone called, "Nikki... What are you doing here?"
	Nikki stopped and looked back, recognizing Jeff Steinberg, a guy she'd met 
at school who had the hots for her. He was attractive but guys weren't her 
major priority at the moment. Jeff kept asking her out. He was persistent as 
hell... Under other circumstances, she would consider him as dating 
material... No, guys were out of the picture, she decided. She loved Linda. 
Her sister was all that mattered.
	Jeff introduced his two friends. Without paying much attention to their 
names, Nikki became aware of their style of clothing -- grunge all over. 
Grunge was dead, the media said... Not to these guys, Nikki thought, almost 
smiling in spite of herself. Nikki introduced Linda to them, observing the 
gaping expression of the redhead wearing a black Nike cap. His friends 
laughed and made fun of the way he stared at Linda. The redhead got mad but 
he bit his tongue, keeping his eyes away from Linda.
	Once again Jeff tried to win Nikki over. He was a smooth talker. He knew 
the rights words to say. But no, this is not what she wanted... Nikki wanted 
to leave but she didn't know how. She looked at Linda but her sister ignored 
them, leaning on the handlebars of her bicycle, watching the traffic.
	"OK. If you say no, I'll ask your sister then."
	"Be my guest," Nikki replied.
	Jeff stepped off the sidewalk and went over to Linda. Nikki watched them 
talk. She didn't pay attention to the words, only to the small nervous 
twitches on Jeff's face and Linda's smile, the smile of an All-American girl 
who knows exactly what she wants. All Nikki could see was how Linda shook 
her head. She was saying no, obviously. Knowing Jeff, though, his acceptance 
of the no could take hours.
	Nikki had a slight start when she heard Linda say, "Nikki, let's go."
	Nikki followed Linda, ignoring Jeff's promise he would call. The girls were 
on their way again, leaving the guys behind. They sure would talk about 
them, Nikki realized -- how good Linda looked... what a babe she was... Nikki 
breathed out deeply... She was going to lose Linda... She knew that. They 
couldn't even hold hands in public... Her sister wouldn't allow it. How 
could she compete with a guy? Or even another girl? Surely Linda would allow 
them to hold hands and kiss her in front of her friends...
	Nikki swallowed... There was no hope for them... Who were they trying to 
fool? With this cruel question rumbling in her head, Nikki realized they had 
cycled to the beach, and not home. She saw Linda get off her bike and lock 
it. Without a word or a lookback, Linda strolled onto the beach, her head 
down, brushing her hair back over her right ear. Nikki followed behind. 
Linda chose a spot on the warm, inviting sand and let herself flop down. 
Nikki slumped down next to Linda, gazing at the beachgoers enjoying the late 
afternoon sunshine. After the longest time Nikki said, "Linda?"
	Linda's eyes faced Nikki. "Yes?"
	"I've been thinking... about us..."
	"Yes?" Linda asked, showing her impatience.
	"It's no use going on."
	"What do you mean?"
	Nikki shook her head, looking at the waterline. "I mean, we should stop 
everything between us. It's no use... We're just fooling ourselves with 
something that can't be."
	"What do you mean?"
	"I'm gonna lose you sooner or later... It's better now than later."
	"Why?"
	"Because it'll hurt less..."
	"But why do you think you're going to lose me?"
	Nikki stared at Linda. There was a strange glitter in those green eyes. Was 
it despair or the pain of being dumped?
	"We can't kiss... We can't do anything... We can't even hold hands... 
What's the use of that? I want everybody to know that I love you, that we 
belong to each other but we can't, you say..."
	"Oh come on, Nikki... Don't you blackmail me."
	"I'm not blackmailing you. I'm just telling you how I feel."
	"Yes, but you're trying to make me feel guilty. You know I am thinking 
about our future... The world's cruel, Nikki. "They" maim and kill people 
for less... Look at the gay bashing and the racism..." Linda  paused, 
sighing, staring at the breakers, facing the breeze. After a short moment of 
silence, Linda turned her face to Nikki. "People are killed for being 
different, Nikki... and that happens every day."
	"One more reason for us to break up."
	"Is that what you really want?"
	Nikki swallowed, feeling a knot in her throat. Her heart said no but head 
said yes. She nodded.
	"OK," Linda said, getting up and looking away, "I understand. We're 
through."
	Nikki watched Linda ambling away. Big Sis didn't look back. Linda kept 
staring down at the sand as she shuffled off. Nikki saw her sister walking 
out of her life -- literally.
	Nikki stood up and returned to her bike. It surprised her that neither of 
them cried, as they both knew sooner or later they both would. `Whatever,' 
she thought, trying to shrug off the breakup. `We're getting older... Crying 
is for babies...' She mounted her bike, glancing at the sunset and deciding 
against wearing her shades. She cycled home furiously, strongly exerting 
herself, sweat streaming under her arms. She went in through the back door, 
going around Zo . Her sister was in the way, babbling with someone over the 
kitchen phone. Nikki raced up to her room. She locked the door and threw 
herself down on her bed, her back to Linda's. `Wrong move,' she thought. 
`This place stinks of Linda...' She was mad... mad at herself and at the 
world which didn't let them be. It hurt inside... It HURT... Nikki closed 
her eyes, sitting up on the bed, embracing her drawn up legs... Tears flowed 
in spite of herself. Crying is for babies, she recalled... And "Baby" was 
what Linda called her... Her baby... No... Nikki shook her head... Not any 
more... and not ever...

                                 * * *

	Jeannie glanced at the kitchen clock. Mom and Dad were due back any minute 
now. It was 8 PM, almost dinnertime and Linda hadn't yet come back. Jeannie 
learned from Zo  that Nikki was locked up in her room and refusing to talk 
to anyone. It was obvious her older sisters had quarreled.
	Zo  watched Jeannie pacing the kitchen. Her twin fretted about where Big 
Sis's was and the reason for the spat.
	"Jeannie, stop pacing like that... It's getting on my nerves."
	Jeannie opened her mouth to utter an angry reply when she heard Dad parking 
his Buick in the driveway. Jeannie ran out of the back door to meet them. 
"Mom," she screamed. "Mom..."
	"What, Jeannie?" her mother said, getting out of the car and looking with 
concern at her youngest daughter. "What happened?"
	"I don't know," Jeannie breathed out, stopping in front of her mother, "but 
Nikki and Linda had a fight and Linda hasn't come back home... I-"
	"Wait," Mom interrupted her. "Not so fast. Tell me what happened, slowly." 
Jeannie breathed in and out once. She slowed down and started again, telling 
her parents all she knew and how worried she was.
	"Probably she's at a friend's," Dad suggested.
	"No, she isn't, Dad... I don't think Linda would go to see a friend if 
she's upset."
	"Maybe I should go and talk to Nikki," Mom said thoughtfully, walking in 
the back door. "Maybe she can tell us where Linda is."
* * *
	Nikki heard a knock on the door. `It must be Mom... or Dad,' she thought. 
She'd heard their car pull up in the driveway and Jeannie's short confab 
with the folks in the back yard.
	"Nikki, it's me..." Mom's muffled voice called out from the hall. "Let me 
in."
	Reluctantly Nikki jumped out of her bed and unlocked the door. Before her 
mother had time to come in, Nikki jumped back onto her bed, lying on her 
stomach, her hands making an attempt to fluff up the pillow.
	"Nikki, are you all right?"
	Nikki shrugged, her eyes shut and her face turned away from her mother's 
stare.
	"D'you know where Linda is?" Nikki heard. Her mother drew closer and sat on 
the edge of her bed. When Mom touched her, Nikki moved away, removing her 
mother's hand from her hair. "Nikki, look at me... I'm talking to you."
	"What?" Nikki said, rolling over and facing her mother for the first time.
	"I want to know where your sister is. It's 8 PM and your sister isn't home. 
You know very well your sister never comes home this late without calling 
in... I know you two went cycling together... So please tell me where she 
is."
	Nikki shrugged again, looking away. She made an all-out effort not to cry 
but she was unable to stop the tears. Mom hugged her, hushing her. Mom's hug 
lasted longer than Nikki would have cared for in other circumstances. The 
unbearable pain she felt inside was still very much alive. She needed that 
closeness.
	"Nikki... Tell me what happened. Did you two fight?"
	Nikki nodded, removing herself from her mother's embrace, wiping the tears 
away from her eyes and cheeks.
	"Why?"
	"You wouldn't understand," Nikki answered with a troubled voice.
	"Why not?"
	"Because."
	"Nikki, your sister's out there and it's dark. Maybe she's in trouble and 
you're not helping..."
	"You wouldn't understand... And besides I don't know where she is. All I 
know is that we cycled to the beach, we argued, and I came back home."
	"Alone?"
	"Yes..."
	"Why? What were you fighting about?"
	"Please, don't ask..." Nikki pleaded, sniffing and averting her mother's 
eyes.
	"Because Linda's leaving?"
	Nikki looked at her mother, surprised by her insight. "How did you know?" 
Her mother shut her eyes, becoming sad. Seeing her mother's reaction, Nikki 
added, "I warned you... You wouldn't understand..."
	"No, you wrong, Nikki," Marge replied, looking into her daughter's eyes 
which grew noticeably wider. "I do understand... That's the problem."
	"What do you mean?"
	"You have to promise me you won't tell anybody about this... I will never 
forgive you if you do. Not even to your sisters, and certainly not to your 
dad..."
	"Not even to Linda?"
	"No one," her mother said severely. Mom paused for a moment. Then she 
added, "Maybe to Linda... one day... but to no one else, d'you understand?" 
Nikki nodded, feeling a chill racing up her spine. This secrecy and Mom's 
seriousness was giving her the jitters. "Promise me," her mother demanded.
	"I promise... Cross my heart and hope to die."
	"All right then," Marge said, exhaling deeply, as if she was about to get 
rid of a burden she'd carried all her life.
	Nikki braced herself for Mom's "darkest secret". What she heard horrified 
her. Mom was an incest survivor. Mom told how her father had abused her 
since her seventh birthday. Mom had tried to protect her sister Joan, but 
her father had no mercy.
	"Aunt Joan too?" Nikki asked, almost breathless.
	"Yes... He was a drunk... I hated him as much as a little child can hate 
someone... My mother, your grandma, died when I was four and Aunt Joan two. 
We had only each other and..."
	"And...?" Nikki asked, swallowing without noticing her heavy breathing. She 
looked into her mother's eyes, taking in their immense sadness. Mom had blue 
eyes... They had all inherited Mom's eyes, their sadness and utter 
melancholy about life... Now she understood.
	"Because of the dirty things he taught us," her mother continued. "I don't 
know why we did that... but I guess we wanted some loving... We had only 
each other..."
	"You mean, you and Aunt Joan..."
	"Yes," her mother confirmed, brushing her face with her hands, as if to 
chase away that nightmare. Minutes elapsed before she could look at her 
daughter again, her eyes slightly bloodshot.
	"Do you still-"
	"No, honey," her mother denied categorically. "We felt dirty... We stopped 
when I turned fourteen and I met my first boyfriend... There was too much 
pain involved... There was a time Aunt Joan and I weren't on speaking 
terms... But that's past now."
	"And Grandpa?"
	"He died a horrible death... He died of cancer. Please, don't ask me 
anything about him... I just want to forget it. Just forget it, honey. I 
don't want you to have nightmares. All I want to say is that I understand 
more than you think. It's just knowing that my daughters- All of that opened 
old wounds, Nikki. You don't know how hard it's been for me all these 
years..."
	"Oh Mom, I'm sorry..." Nikki hugged her mother and for the first time she 
felt a real connection with that grownup woman she called Mom. "I didn't 
know."
	Mother and daughter went down to the living room and, to their surprise, 
they found that Linda had returned home. Linda leant on the refrigerator, 
drinking a glass of milk and watching the 9 o'clock news on the kitchen 
portable TV.
	"Linda, you're back," her mother exclaimed, rushing into the kitchen.
	"Yes, I'm back," said Linda, straightening herself up and catching a 
glimpse of Nikki, who apparently didn't dare step into the kitchen. "But not 
for long."
	Nikki could hear and see Linda's anger. Linda's green eyes told her 
everything she needed to know about her sister's state of mind. Linda banged 
everything she touched -- the refrigerator's door, the chairs against the 
table and then the back door, as she stomped out of the kitchen. Mom went 
after Linda, her shadow disappearing in the half light in the back yard. 
Nikki made a half-turn into the living room. Dad and the twins looked at 
her. Dad asked Nikki how she felt, but a strange resentment raged within 
her. She wondered what she would have done if Dad had "touched" her the way 
Grandpa had with Mom. It wasn't fair, that association, because Dad had 
never done anything improper. But still, she couldn't help feeling some 
revulsion... Reluctantly, hopefully, she sat beside Zo  as if the twins 
could somehow protect her.
	They watched TV in the living room, maintaining heavy silence among them. 
Eventually Dad left the living room, puffing at his pipe, reading a file he 
had brought home. As soon as they heard him shut the door of the den, the 
twins grilled her with questions. Nikki refused to answer at first, but the 
twins wouldn't take no for an answer. She told them everything in the end, 
only omitting Mom's "dark secret".
	She would keep her promise...



CHAPTER SIXTEEN:  PROMISES, PROMISES...

	A week dragged by -- seven days without Linda. For Nikki it was hell. It was 
like the most dreadful torture anyone could inflict on one's worst enemy. 
All her family were deeply worried about her -- Nikki knew that -- but their 
love and concern weren't enough to make the pain go away. Nikki thought she 
would go crazy. She couldn't sleep, she couldn't eat... She just wanted to 
die... She wanted to be left alone in her room where she could cry freely 
and think about Linda and why the world was so cruel. She skipped school 
because she didn't trust herself. Her self-control hit an all-time low. She 
would probably burst into tears in front of her friends for no apparent 
reason. She trembled every time she thought of the humiliating scene of 
their final quarrel. Just thinking about it made it more real, as if their 
final separation had actually happened.
	To make matters worse, her parents' despair was obvious -- they even 
considered calling Emma Mansfield and having the shrink fly from California 
to Florida. At the end of the week her parents decided enough was enough. 
They were going to call Linda and ask their eldest daughter to bring her 
younger sister back to her senses. As soon as this threat was spoken, Nikki 
cringed. She finally realized that her tantrums wouldn't bring her sister 
back. `And why am I crying?' she reasoned angrily with herself. `I broke up 
with her. Stop being a baby and go on with your life!' The following Monday 
she was back in school, exerting herself to pay attention to her teachers 
and friends. Still, everybody noticed how quiet she had become.
	After school, Nikki moved out on the grass and away from her fellow 
students, to wait for Zo  and Jeannie. She sighed. She missed Lana... With 
the move to Florida, she lost a very good friend. Lana wasn't much of a 
writer and the distance between them deprived Nikki of the only person she 
would confide in other than Linda and the twins. Lana and Nikki would 
exchange phone calls now and then but their folks were already complaining 
about those "unnecessary" long-distance calls.
	Nikki sighed again. The painful image of her sister leaving home hit her 
again. They hadn't spoken during breakfast on Linda's last morning. Linda 
wouldn't look at her, keeping her eyes down. She talked to Jeannie and Zo , 
to everybody except her, Nikki, "the love of her life" or so had Linda 
called her... `Promises, Promises...' it rang in her mind. Linda had never 
promised her anything but still those words, that song kept hounding her. 
Linda had walked out of the front door without a kiss or even a hug... She 
just left, without looking back. It seemed as though Big Sis was happy to 
leave her behind. At last Linda was free, free from her smothering love.
	Someone tapped on her shoulder. Nikki turned around expecting to see Jeff 
Steinberg or another awful bore like Mrs Brown, the math teacher. Nikki 
smiled. It was Cindy Lopez with her hunk of a boyfriend, Chad something... 
She didn't recall his last name. Cindy had tried several times to become 
friends with her. Nikki didn't understand Cindy's insistence. Why didn't she 
leave her alone? Why did she keep cropping up with Chad by her side? These 
two gave her the creeps as though their open smiles hid a "darker" intent. 
She wondered if they wanted a threesome, but somehow that idea was 
ridiculous. This time it was an invitation to a birthday party, Chad's, 
Cindy explained. Nikki hated to say no just for the hell of it. `I'd better 
find a good excuse,' she thought, but before she could give an answer she 
saw Zo  and Jeannie coming her way.
	"Hi, Nikki," Jeannie greeted. "Ready to go home?"
	"Sure," Nikki said, happy for this distraction. "I'm sorry," she added, 
facing Cindy and Chad, "but I've gotta go."
	"OK, Nikki," Cindy said, throwing her curly black hair away from her 
attractive face. "You don't have to give me an answer right now. Just think 
about it. Promise me?"
	"OK... Bye."
	Nikki and her sisters strode away, heading for the parking lot. Nikki 
braced herself for a cross-examination. The twins didn't say a word, though. 
They walked silently to Linda's Jeep, which was Nikki's now. Before the 
breakup Linda promised her the Jeep when she went away. After the breakup 
Nikki refused to take the keys. In spite of that, Linda left them on the 
vanity, along with a short and laconic note: "Here are the keys."
	Nikki and the twins rode back home, no one breaking the silence. With Linda 
gone, Nikki reckoned that even her parents looked sadder. Linda was the 
sunshine of the house, the bumper that absorbed the unavoidable shocks 
between the conflicting personalities in the family. The twins had each 
other, however, and sometimes their high spirits hurt Nikki inside. She was 
happy for them, though. At least they were having fun... Nikki sighed, 
stopping the Jeep in the driveway. Nikki and the twins wandered into the 
house through the front door. The back door was locked and bolted from the 
inside, a safety measure against burglars.
	"Nikki?" said Jeannie, breaking the silence at last, stopping at the foot 
of the stairs and turning toward her older sister. "We're going to freshen 
up before we go to the beach. There's a beach party this afternoon. Wanna 
come?"
	"Beach party?" Nikki frowned.
	"It's nothing big... Just a bunch of guys... and girls we know... Come on, 
it's gonna be fun."
	"No, I am not in the mood."
	"Oh come on, Nikki... Staying here on your own isn't going to help. Trust 
me."
	"How do you know? You have Zo  right next to you."
	"But we all lost Linda too. You're not the only one feeling sad. Come on, 
come with us. Don't be such a pain in the neck."
	`Pain in the neck?' Nikki thought. No one ever called her a pain in the 
neck. That epithet made her think about how much she had changed since Linda 
left for college. She was not the smiling happy-go-lucky girl everyone used 
to know. She had become a pain in the neck... That realization made her say, 
"All right... I'll come with you. You're right. No use staying here and 
feeling sorry for myself."

                                 * * *

	Nikki looked at the blue sky, feeling the sea breeze caressing her face and 
hair. With a quick motion of her head, she threw her hair back and over her 
naked shoulders. It was 4 PM and the sun was still high enough to embrace 
her with warmth, driving away the sorrow. She looked at the twins, and 
smiled to herself. The twins were popular with the guys. It seemed the guys 
had their own "ideas" about them, particularly when Zo  and Jeannie held 
hands. Little did they know that those "ideas" were being "realized" every 
night in the twins' room. If they did know, how would they react? Would they 
whistle approval? Would they boo? `Who cares?' Nikki thought. They were 
having fun and hurting no one.
	Most of the girls in the group were quite standoffish, Nikki concluded, 
watching a bevy of them sitting close together in their stylish bikinis and 
swimsuits. They were quite attractive but they didn't join in the action. 
That is, the tickling brawl that had developed between the twins and two of 
the guys, Brian and Johnny. Brenda and Marie were the exceptions, grabbing 
the guys and helping the twins. In no time that part of the beach became a 
battlefield of laughter, tickling and shrieks of delight and protest. 
Against Nikki's will, a third guy started to tickle her... Joining the fun 
personally was not in her plans. He started it, though, and now she wanted 
to help the twins -- no matter what.  Soon enough all the participants in the 
brawl fell on the sand in laughter. The bevy of prissy beauties that had run 
away to avoid the brawl stepped cautiously back, as if they were afraid of 
being dragged without warning into another tickling fight.
	Nikki laughed, feeling the sand in the most intimate parts of her body. She 
wanted to swim in the sea and to wash away the sand. A guy had felt her 
breast during the brawl, or so it had seemed. She was about to look for the 
culprit when she heard someone from afar yell  "Hi there!"
	"Linda!" the twins and Nikki shouted with utter surprise.
	"Yes, it's me," said Linda, smiling, wearing a tight swimsuit that enhanced 
all the curves of her body. She had her hand on her left hip and the other 
was holding her huge jute bag. "I see I'm missing the fun."
	"What're you doing here?" asked the astonished Jeannie, rushing over to Big 
Sis.
	"Hi, Jeannie," said Linda, still smiling and gazing at the rest of the 
party. Guys and girls alike stared at her, probably wondering what the hell 
was happening and who she was. "I am back. I quit college."
	"Why?" asked Jeannie, who was having great difficulty in believing that the 
beautiful blonde in front of her was really her sister, her Big Sis.
	"It's a long story... But first things first... I want to talk to that 
young lady over there."
	All eyes turned toward Nikki. Linda put down her bag on the sand and 
motioned Nikki to follow her. The teenagers, including the twins, saw Linda 
and Nikki moving away, heading toward the waterline.
	"Wow," Johnny howled out. "What a knock-out... What a babe... Who's she?"
	Jeannie chortled with pride and said, "Our sister Linda... The best sister 
you could possibly have."
	"You bet," Johnny answered, taking off his baseball cap and scratching the 
unruly hair on top of his head. His eyes kept following Linda and Nikki as 
they walked across the sand to the waterline.

                                   * * *

	"But why, Linda?" Nikki asked, stopping and facing her sister, her right 
leg playing with the wet sand. "Why? I don't need your charity..."
	"I'm not doing it for you. I am doing it for me. I am being selfish but I 
don't care." When Nikki looked at her questioningly, she added, "I realized 
if I lost you, there wouldn't be a future for me, at least not a future I'd 
care much for. I realized that all I want is you. Sounds naive, doesn't it? 
But I don't care... I really don't. It feels good. You make me feel happy 
and no one has given me so much as you have. No one makes me feel the way I 
do when you hug me and kiss me and make love to me. I don't care if we're 
sisters... I don't care if we're both girls... I love you... and that's all 
that matters."
	"Talk is easy... Prove it."
	"How?" Linda said, knitting her brows and pulling a stray blond tress away 
from her face.
	"Kiss me," Nikki replied, swallowing.
	"Here?"
	"Yes... You said you didn't care if we're sisters... if we're both girls. 
Prove it!"
	"OK, I am gonna prove it." Linda drew closer and took hold of Nikki's 
burning cheeks, tilting her sister's head up for the kiss to follow. Linda 
kissed Nikki while Nikki pulled her sister near, holding her tight, their 
bodies touching each other. Linda and Nikki ignored an elderly couple 
standing a few feet away, and their obvious shock. Nikki grew weak, breaking 
the kiss. She was out of breath.
	"You ought to be ashamed of yourselves," they heard a woman's voice 
exclaim. Linda and Nikki turned to see the woman scowling at them. "Such a 
shame. You're two pretty girls. You should have no trouble finding a 
handsome young man."
	"Who says that I want a handsome young man, lady?" Linda retorted, keeping 
her calm, and clasping Nikki's hand. "The love of my life is right here next 
to me. And I love her as much you love your husband, or perhaps even more. 
And I'll never leave her. Never."
	"Promises, promises..." the old man said, laughing with a raucous voice and 
smiling at them, his cigar briefly removed from his fat lips. His smile 
disappeared immediately as the old woman glared back at him.
	"Let's go, Dan," the woman said, pulling at the old man's arm, urging him 
to come with her, and sending a last angry look at Linda and Nikki.
	Linda smiled at Nikki as the old couple trudged away.
	"Satisfied?" Linda asked.
	"Yes... But what about college? You're throwing away your future."
	"I can enroll next year - together with you. I talked to Mom about it over 
the phone."
	"Mom knows you're here?"
	"Oh yes, she knows. She called me yesterday and we had the longest talk... 
She told me about... Grandpa. It made me sad... But strangely enough, that 
did the trick. That's when I made the decision to quit and come back... to 
you. For the first time in my life I saw clearly what really matters to me 
and what doesn't."
	"And Dad?"
	"Oh Dad..." Linda shrugged, looking past her sisters' shoulder, scanning 
the beach and avoiding the staring of a few beachgoers. "Dad didn't like it 
at all, but I am eighteen now and he can't tell me what to do."
	"And what are you going to do in the meantime?"
	"With you beside me I don't think I'll ever get bored..."
	Nikki chuckled and smiled, her heart pounding, almost not believing this 
could be happening. Her sister was back after leaving everything, 
EVERYTHING, for her... And Linda had screamed out her love for all of the 
world to hear.
	They started back toward the twins and the rest of the crowd. Nikki felt a 
sudden warmth in her cheeks. `Me and my big mouth,' she thought. It was 
confrontation time. Everything was happening the way she had wanted, the 
kiss and the fact that Linda held her hand still... She couldn't complain if 
things didn't turn out the way she had dreamt about.
	Jeannie ran to meet them half the way back to the party. "Are you out of 
your minds?" Jeannie said, making them stop. "I've just told them you were 
my sisters. They really started looking funny at me... I had to make up that 
Nikki was not our real sister but she was adopted. Dammit, can't you control 
your urges?"
	"I am sorry," Linda said. "We don't want to embarrass you in front of your 
friends... But this was something I had to do, we had to do. Anyway we're 
leaving."
	"Where to?"
	"Don't care..." said Linda, glancing at Nikki. "Any place where we can be 
alone and make out. We've got a lot of catching up to do, don't we, 
darling?"
	"Cut it out," Nikki said, grinning and holding Linda's hand tighter. 
"That's so corny."
	"Corny but nice... Right, baby?" Linda looked at Jeannie and asked, "Wanna 
come with us?"
	"Nah... You two want to be alone... I understand."
	"I mean, you and Zo ... There are four seats in the Jeep. Come on."
	Jeannie examined Nikki's face for signs. Nikki smiled and said, "Come on, 
what are you waiting for? You heard Linda. Go and fetch Zo  and get the rest 
of our stuff. To be honest, I don't feel like facing your friends right 
now." Looking at Linda she asked, "You don't mind, do you?"
	"About you chickening out?"
	Nikki hit lightly on Linda's shoulder, in response to her sister's banter 
and her wide scoffing grin. Linda only smiled while her youngest sister ran 
to fetch Zo . Within minutes the twins joined them, bringing Nikki's clothes 
and Linda's bag. Nikki and Linda slipped on their shorts and T-shirts, 
giggling. They walked to the parking lot and before Nikki could unlock the 
driver's door, Linda made her stop.
	"Let Zo  drive," she said. "I want you in the back seat with me."
	"Yes," Nikki whispered, recognizing that crazy lust in her sister's green 
eyes which made her instantaneously wet.
	Zo  smiled, with pride in her face grabbing the keys and unlocking the 
doors. She hadn't much driving experience but was happy with the opportunity 
to show off her skills. She let her horny, happy sisters slide into the 
back... Just as well. She would have Jeannie right next to her. They would 
soon be in a place where they could all make out...
	In the back, Nikki was being kissed by Linda, hands exchanging caresses on 
breasts, tummies, legs, thighs, necks... Wet trails down cheeks and necks... 
Moans... Whispers... Loving embraces... And more moans... and then 
pleasure...
	Nikki nestled herself against Linda and said, "I want to ask you 
something... I'll go crazy if I don't ask."
	"Shoot," said Linda, her hand between Nikki thighs, touching her sister's 
mound, reveling in her sister's wetness and warmth...
	"This song doesn't get out of mind... Promises, promises... And that's 
exactly what that man said... Promises, promises... You promised you'd never 
leave me... But... I wonder..."
	"Baby," said Linda, whispering into Nikki's ear. "There's another song that 
goes like Let's live for today... and another that goes like Don't worry, be 
happy... Let's be happy and forget all the rest..."

	Nikki nodded and hugged her sister, sighing. She felt exhausted and the 
rocking motion of the car speeding down the highway lulled her to sleep. 
While sleeping, she had a smile in her face...

                               THE  END

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