That Blue Gibson: Another Round

fifteen

There was some frantic shuffling by Travis and Calliope's bodyguards and Liz half expected to be pulled back, but instead they formed a wall of broad shoulders and expensive suits to block the scene from the rest of the kitchen and the prying eyes of the people within. Dave remained half in the elevator and half in the kitchen, his arm blocking the door from closing while keeping his distance, something Liz told herself to profusely thank him for later.

"What exactly is your fucking problem?" she snarled in Calliope's face.

It took her a moment to regain her composure, but it was clear she was still afraid of Liz's sudden and drastic change in mood. "You," she said reluctantly, then seemed to gain some confidence at the sound of her own voice. "You are my problem!"

"You don't even know me," Liz spit back.

"I know more than you think. For example, I know you abandoned the father of your children when he needed you the most!"

"That's none of your business. You don't know even a fraction of my life with Kyle."

"Oh no? He told me everything. He told me you and Johnny were hooking up every chance you got, leaving him and your kids to fend for themselves back home which was why he started using in the first place.

"You're a big girl now, Jamie," Liz scoffed. "You should know better than to believe an addict's sob story."

"Fuck you," she yelped, "You have no idea what he went through!"

Liz took the half a step forward so her chest was almost touching Calliope's, glaring down her nose at her and speaking with a deathly quiet tone, "He was an addict when I met him, princess. He used at our wedding, he used when I was pregnant, he used the day I delivered our first child. He used constantly and I spent the majority of my time in a panic wondering if today was going to be the day I had to identify him down at the fucking morgue. I spent almost twenty years trying to keep him healthy and now that's he's finally gotten there on his own, I'll be damed if I let anyone take it away from him."

"He was better as an addict," Calliope retorted. "He loved me."

Liz laughed incredulously and stepped back enough to breathe normally. "So you're just a shitty person then? That's all this is?"

"Maybe. I also know that your new man is too rash to listen to reason which is why you're too scared to show him the photos."

"You know fuck all about Dave."

Her smug grin made Liz reconsider dragging her by her hair into the elevator, but it was only when she tilted her head and called out to Dave that she really had to talk herself out of it. "Oh Davey, you didn't tell her? After all we shared?"

Red tinged the edges of Liz's vision and the primal, protective part of her brain kicked in before the rest could figure out what was going on. Her palm landed flat on Calliope's shoulder, propelling her backward into the wall behind her, followed closely by Liz's warning.

"Stay away," she growled, "Stay away from my children, stay away from my husband. Stay away from my family, my friends and stay the fuck away from me. In all the time you've spent trying to drag me down, you've failed to grasp that I have the ability to make you disappear without getting my hands dirty. You have no idea what I'm capable of and I promise you that no one but the people collecting a paycheck off of you will miss you."

Rendering Calliope silent, Liz whipped around and stalked towards the elevator where Dave and now Travis were waiting. The second she cleared the doors they began to close, eliminating any possible rebuttal or final word from the shocked pink haired girl still flattened against the wall.