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Chapter Twenty Five

"Of course we're pressing charges. I'm sick just thinking about it. Thanks."

Dad hung up. I looked up from my cards. Jasper and I were playing Go Fish on my laptray. We were on our way back to Tampa.

"What's going on?" I asked.

"They tracked down the guy who leaked the tape," dad said.

"Who?" Jasper asked.

"Grandpa Mike did a little digging around. Do you remember that security incident in Philly?" dad asked me.

I shook my head. I was surprised when Jasper nodded.

"You were walking back to me and there was a guy that didn't let go of your hand," he said.

That I remembered. I didn't remember any discernible features, but the guy had been in his twenties.

"He was working in the hotel in the security office," dad said.

"He must have thought Christmas came early," Jasper said dryly. I gave him a look. He glanced back down at his cards.

"Got any threes?"

"So he put it online?"

Dad nodded. "Your grandpa always told me that there's always that 'six degrees of separation' rule. It all adds up."

I frowned and glanced at my cards. I handed Jasper a three.

I didn't know the guy's name, but he was just another creep I could add to my list. I pursed my lips.

If I didn't like guys so much, I would so be a lesbian. I understood the female mind way better than a males. I glanced over at Jasper. I didn't think a guy who lived in black would get so excited about a stupid game of Go Fish.

"Got any eights?" I asked.

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"Hold still," Peyton said.

"My foot's falling asleep," mom complained.

I glanced in the mirror and straightened my red wig. In the reflection, I could see Peyton painting a giant goldfish on mom's stomach. Mom was going as a black cat with a goldfish tummy. I thought it was a super cute idea. And luckily, Peyton had an artistic streak to make it happen. I looked at Pey's costume in appreciation. She was dressed like a lava lamp. Little helium balloons danced all around her. Her face was painted a metallic silver.

Pey had developed dad's immense obsession with Halloween. The crazier the costume, the better.

As for me, I loved being a girly girl. This year I was Ariel from The Little Mermaid. I was going to enjoy being a redhead for the evening.

Judging from the noise drifting up the stairs, tons of people had already arrived.

"All done," Pey announced. Mom looked at herself in the mirror and smiled.

"Thanks sweetheart. You two ready?"

Pey and I nodded. We walked down the stairs together. Dad was standing at the door singing the Freddy Krueger song. Again. He stopped and hugged a very blonde angel.

Kayleigh.

"Popeye and Olive Oil!" mom said.

Aunt LeighLeigh and Uncle Bri were standing just inside the doorway. Uncle Bri had on a sailor suit and huge fake muscles. Aunt LeighLeigh looked downright dowdy in a long black skirt, red top, and black wig.

"THAT'S ADORABLE!" Aunt LeighLeigh said. She pointed at mom's goldfish tummy. I saw Kay sneak away. I followed her.

"Kay!"

She turned. For a second she looked confused. Then she smiled.

"I've missed you!" I said. I hugged her tightly.

"You look cute!" Kay responded. I laughed.

"I figured I better go the tame route this year," I said.

"STOP!"

I looked down at Landon. His firefighter helmet was falling down low over his eyes.

"Who are you?" he asked me. I smiled.

"I'm your sister, silly."

He stomped his foot. "No. Who are you?"

I told him I was Ariel. That set off a chain reaction. He blurted out a comment about shells and boobs that made me blush.

And of course, Jasper picked that moment to join the group.

"She's the human Ariel, little dude," he said with a laugh.

Luckily, Brenna showed up and Landon got distracted. I smiled at Jasper. Of all days not to wear black, he had chosen today. He looked like Aladdin.

"You're the wrong princess," he explained. I laughed.

"Well that was--" I started to say, but I heard Kay gasp. I looked over at her. Noah was standing right behind her, his shaggy zombie head lowered to her ear. Kay turned and hugged him like she hadn't seen him for years.

I suddenly felt like I was intruding. I took a couple steps back.

"Were we interrupting something?" Jasper asked. I smiled.

"My brother and Kay are kinda...together," I said awkwardly.

"I kinda got that," Jasper said. He looked around.

"Who's taking your brother trick-or-treating?" he asked.

"Noah's too old to trick-or-treat," I said in confusion. Jasper laughed. He reached for my wig. He lifted it up and pulled out a long strand of blonde. I didn't understand why.

"I meant your little brother," he explained.

I flushed. Blonde moment. I got it now.

"Oh! Er--"

I glanced around. Uncle Bri and dad were on the couch. They both had a beer and looked like they were having a serious discussion. Mom was already sitting down. Aunt LeighLeigh was sitting right by her. Aunt Angel was talking with Uncle AJ and Molly. Shelby was talking to Noah and Kay.

The only one on little kid patrol was Mason. He scooped up Brenna and covered her little white pancake face in kisses. Landon hovered uncertaintly nearby.

"I think I'll take him this year," I said. Jasper looked like he was going to slide his hands in his pockets...but he didn't have pockets.

"Want company?"

"I'd love some."

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Now that most of us kids were too old to trick-or-treat, we only had a small group ready to load up on candy. Mason took Brenna. I took Landon.

Brayden and Tristan McLean insisted on taking themselves. I was reminded of how their older brother Jonah was when he was ten. It was scary.

"I'm keeping an eye on you," I said. They snickered. Jasper gave them the death stare.

"Snicker again and see what happens," Jasper said. Brayden and Tristan looked at each other and then at me.

"Sorry," Tristan mumbled.

"I like M&M's!" Landon announced as we left the house. I had a feeling dad and Uncle Bri were well on their way to being snockered. Dad had just smiled and waved when I told him I would take Landon trick-or-treating.

"Such a good girl," he told Uncle Bri with the shake of his head.

"Do you think they have dogbones for you Brenners?" Mason asked. Brenna looked up at him.

"I WANT CANDY!" she shouted.

"Dogs can't have candy," Mason replied with a smile. She looked horrified.

"BUT I'M A GIRL!"

Mason winked at me. "How's it going Brooke?"

I wondered if he knew about the tape. That was going to plague my thoughts for a long time.

"Okay. How about you? How's things with the wedding?"

His eyes sparkled in the moonlight. "It's going to be a perfect Christmas wedding," he said.

"I'M GONNA BE A BEAR!" Landon announced. I looked down at him.

"What?"

"BEANER'S GONNA BE A FLOWER AND I'M GONNA BE A BEAR!"

I had been on the road awhile, but I didn't think I was that out of the loop. Mason just looked amused.

"Brenna's going to be the flower girl. We asked Landon if he wanted to be our ring bearer."

"You trust him with your wedding rings?" I asked increduously. Mason leaned over and lowered his voice.

"He's just going to carry plastic rings," he explained. I must have looked relieved. Jasper laughed.

In the course of our conversation, Brenna and Landon had hit about six houses. I realized at our seventh stop that we had lost track of Brayden and Tristan.

"Where's the goons?" I asked. I ducked under a low hanging branch of a tree.

"BOO!"

My scream could have shattered windows. I spun around and hit a wall. At least I thought it was a wall. Unfortunately, it was Jasper. We both crashed to the ground.

"Don't worry! I'm a firefighter!" Landon squealed.

Jasper spit out a combination of my blonde hair and my red wig.

"You okay?" he said.

"Yeah. Are you?"

"I will be once you get up."

I didn't realize until I stood up that I had totally knee'd him in the crotch. He rolled over on all fours and spat on the ground.

While all this was taking place, Mason had tracked down the culprits for the scare. It was no big surprise to see Brayden and Tristan scrambling down from the tree.

"I'm taking you two back," Mason said. That statement was met with rapid complaints. Mason seemed to ignore it all. It seemed like the older he got, the more he was turning into Uncle Kev. He grabbed both of them by the neck.

"MARCH."

Brayden and Tristan reluctantly moved in the direction of my house. Jasper staggered to his feet. Landon had his fake hose pointed at the tree.

"Can you take Bren maybe one more block?" Mason asked.

"No problem," I said. I glanced at Jasper. He nodded.

"I'm good now."

I took Brenna's hand; Jasper took Landon's. We did another couple blocks before both kids began to whine. Jasper and I had to carry them the last half a block back to my house.

What we saw when we got back was cringe-inducing. Of course, I heard it before I even saw it.

Dad and Uncle Bri were sitting in the grass in the middle of the graveyard. Dad's Kruger claws were drapped over Uncle Bri's fake bicep. They were swaying together singing a combination of the Popeye song and the Freddy Kruger taunt.

"Just ignore them!" mom called out as I hesitated on the sidewalk. "They're staying outside the rest of the night!"

"This guy. This guy right here," dad said. His metal scissors clanked together. "I knew we'd be related one day."

Uncle Bri took a big sip out of a wine glass. He leaned towards dad to say something, but his hand slipped in the grass and he fell into one of the gravestones. Dad snorted.

Jasper chuckled. "I fuckin' love your dad," he said.

"I FUCKIN' LOVE HIM TOO!" Landon said happily. He hugged Jasper's neck tighter. Mom looked like she was going to say something, but she just sighed.

"Come on in," she said. The party was still well underway behind her.

I hitched Brenna up a little more, ignored the smacking of her candy bag against my hip, and walked inside.

This was the type of drama I was used to.

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