The Sirens Four

Chapter 4

Awkward tension filled the car with a certain uncomfortable silence with Sandra sitting in the backseat, while her Aunt Brit and Uncle Lee settled in the front on the drive to the Gregorys' dinner. Even dressed in their best church attire, nothing could cut the awkwardness of the atmosphere circulating inside the vehicle. Never had she felt Uncle Lee more enraged that he was at this moment.

Uncle Lee gripped the steering wheel hard attempting to form the correct words after receiving a call from Principal Meyer's office concerning his niece's altercation with another student. As usual, Aunt Brit took the initiative to clear the air.

"Okay this is ridiculous," Aunt Brit began. "I'm sure Sandra had a perfectly good reason for getting into a fight with this boy."

"I don't care if she had a motive to fight a million of her classmates!" Uncle Lee bellowed. "The fact is she was involved in a fight! She's just lucky that Principal Meyers just gave her a day of detention! Their zero- tolerance policy for fighting could have led to her suspension!"

"But Uncle Lee, you should have heard the things he said!" protested Sandra. "It was horrible!"

"Enough, Sandra!" he snapped. "I don't know what's gotten into you! You've always been a good kid, responsible, never getting into trouble. I never had to worry about you. Maybe you're going through some teen rebellion phase, I don't know. I just want it to end now! You know this dinner is important to me tonight and you picked a fine time to go through this stage in your life!"

"Lee, hon. Just hear her out." Aunt Brit suggested. "She's entitled to that."

"Britta, there is nothing to say," he explained. "The fact is she was in the wrong and she needs to learn from this. I'm sorry Sandra, but you're going to have to cancel your date this weekend. I don't think I'm ready to trust you after what happened today."

"What? No!"

"Lee! You're overreacting!" yelped Aunt Brit.

"No Britta, I'm not! I'm being a parent and she needs to learn that there are consequences to her actions!"

"You're right!" Sandra bawled. Tears began to flow as soon as the disappointment hit her. "I'm not capable of looking out or standing up for myself. Chip Laughlin was right! I'm just another stupid, chink loser who is stuck in this lame, hick town!"

The sound of screeching tires reverberated on the road, slammed hard by Uncle Lee's foot on the brake, as he pulled the car to the side of the road and shut off the engine.

"What did you say?" A sharp inflection of rage came from his voice. "Cassandra Shan, did you just make a racist comment particularly, with me and your Aunt Brit, in the car?"

"You heard me! I'm just repeating what that idiot, Chip Laughlin, said to me and it wasn't the first time! He's harassed me at work and started something with me today at school! I finally had it and fought back!"

"Sandra, why didn't you come to us sooner?" Aunt Brit asked, with sympathetic concern.

"It happened only one time during my lunch break at work," she told them wiping the tears from her eyes. "Chip and his friend were causing trouble at the park. I threatened to call security. Chip made some racial remarks before he hit me. Patrick happened to be there, jumped in, and defended me. A fight started and Chip and his friend got thrown out."

Sandra carefully retold the events leaving out the strange details of the Gregory sisters. Some things were better left unknown.

"Wait a second. This boy Chip hit you?" Uncle Lee turned his head. "Why didn't you tell us this?"