Worship And Other Love Rituals

Chapter 31

My mother always said you can't choose your destiny, but you can choose to leave the room when people start dragging you down. As I sat watching the disaster unfolding before me, I was seriously considering making a run for it.

"McKenna," Maya said, her voice gaining strength, "she's... she's not entirely stable. She's been known to make up stories, to seek attention in... unhealthy ways."

Drew's face turned an alarming shade of purple. "What are you talking about?" he spluttered. "Are you calling my daughter a liar?"

"You know," she began, twirling a strand of hair around her finger in that nervous habit of hers, "I hate to say this, but... I'm not sure I believe Drew either."

"What?" Drew spluttered, his face turning again a shade of red. "Maya, how could you say that? After everything I have given you-?"

Maya sighed, looking more tired than I'd ever seen her. "Drew, honey...let's be real here. Your track record with the truth is about as solid as a chocolate teapot. Remember the 'work emergency' that turned out to be a three-day bender in Vegas?"

Drew had the decency to look sheepish, though the effect was somewhat ruined by the way he was still hovering menacingly over Ethan. "That was different," he mumbled, sounding about as convincing as a politician promising to lower taxes.

"Was it?" Maya pressed, gaining steam. "Or what about the time you swore you were at a... late-night business meeting but came home reeking of cheap floral perfume?"

Drew couldn't believe it. "Seriously, how could you forget what you did with Ethan behind my back? And then you have the nerve to blame me, you sneaky little-" He paused, cutting himself off before things got too heated.

With a heavy sigh, the Maya responded, "Oh, Drew... You handed me that shit and I simply returned the favor. Let's not forget that you're not exactly a saint yourself, you cun-"

Just then, as if the universe decided we needed another plot twist, our dear captain Mark bursted into the room. He looked about two seconds away from having a full-blown panic attack.

"Guys," he panted, bent over with his hands on his knees, "we've got a problem. A big one. Chase's friends knew ...that...Mckenna and Chase were fucking...probably that boy showed them their private snaps."

We all turned to stare at him, a collective "Huh?" hanging in the air like very bad smell.

Mark straightened up, his face a mask of barely contained panic. He was still beet red, though whether from rage or high blood pressure was anyone's guess. "The police team," he hissed, as if saying the word too loudly might summon them on the spot. "They're on their way. I tried to delay them, but as a captain, there's only so much I can do without raising suspicion."

Well, wasn't this just the cherry on top of our dysfunction sundae? I half expected a plague of locusts to descend next, because why not add a biblical touch to this circus?

"What do you mean, the police are coming?" Drew demanded, his voice rising to a pitch that probably had dogs in the next county perking up their ears. "Mark, you said you had this under control!"

Mark threw his hands up in exasperation. "I said I'd try to delay them, not perform a miracle! What did you expect me to do, set up a roadblock?"

If there was a God, I was pretty sure He was up there laughing His divine ass off at our expense.

"Oh god," Maya whimpered, her eyes wide with panic. "What are we going to do?"

An awkward silence descended until McKenna spoke up in a small voice. "Dad...is it true what Maya said earlier? You started it first? You said it was because of Maya-", she stopped.