As they drove up to the house about twenty minutes later, it began to rain heavily.

"Do you have an umbrella?"

"No-" Erin shrugged, opening the door. "Its just water. I'll be back."

"Alright."

She entered through the front, soundlessly walking through the dark mansion- rain dripping from her hair. The violin should be in her room, so she went up the stairs and down the hall. It was dark on the second floor as well, which was enough to make Erin pause and look around, her body tensing and moving into a defensive posture. She felt the knife clipped to the inside of her pants, assuring herself. After a moment she eased slightly and skitted over to her door which was on the right side of the hall, not eager to be there longer than necessary. Normally she was at ease in darkness, but the darkness in this house left her feeling exposed rather than hidden.
She placed her hand on the knob when she heard something- like a lamp thudding on carpet- and soft cursing. Her body became rigid as wire.

The noise came from her father's room.

Erin felt as if she was floating out of her body. Her eyes were wide as saucers, her hand clenched onto the knob. Then she heard a cry- a young, female cry. Erin's mind came crashing back into her body and she crumpled to the floor. Because then she knew. How could she not?

She heard the muffled cry again and the images flooded her mind- Amelia, Amelia... Amelia's eyes so eager those many times she asked to sleep with Erin in her room- and she had said no, Amelia's arms wrapped around her so tight as she pleaded for Erin to come back to visit soon every single time she was home from school...and finally, her father's hands (twisting, twisting) in her own long, black hair when she was a child.

The cold door against her forehead and the sound of her rattling breath brought her out of her memories. Grasping the knob again, Erin pulled herself to her feet. The hallway went on for nine more feet before splitting into three directions; forward, right, left. Josiah's bedroom was down the left hallway. She pushed herself down into the left hallway, the double doors were closed. The temperature was markedly less, and Erin guessed that Josiah's balcony doors were open, inspite of the downpour.

She walked down the middle of the hall in slow-motion, afraid of the walls, her mind screaming to stop, she didnt want to see, she didnt want to seeshedidntwanttosee- her hands fell upon the handles and she pushed forward...

The doors flew open and cracked against the walls. There they were, upon the bed. Josiah had his trousers down and Amelia pinned down, naked, there was red on the sheets between her legs- this image filled Erin's eyes. Amelia gasped, however her eyes were much too flat.

It was like a switch flipped in Erin then. She sprinted and lunged at Josiah, who whipped his gaze upon her in time to catch her. But the force was enough to send them both to the floor.

"Get your hands off of me you damned girl!" Josiah strung off a litany of more graphic curses during the whole course of his struggle with Erin.

Erin didnt say a thing, but was entirely focused on disabling Josiah from moving anymore. She punched him in the face and received a knee in the gut, which gave Josiah enough leeway to shove her off and move towards the balcony- which was indeed wide open as Erin had assumed. Wasting no time Erin sprang from the ground while Josiah's back was still turned and threw her weight into a kick into the back of his knees. She stepped forward and put her hands on his shoulders to shove him forward and onto the floor. He landed on his hands and was going to spring up but Erin jumped onto his back so he smacked against the floor, with the wind knocked out of him. She grabbed his hands and pinned them on his back under her knee. Her knife was already out and she pressed it against his throat, her other hand holding his head up by his hair. He was laboring for breath.

Over on the bed Amelia remained much too still, eyes wide and set upon Erin.

"You..." Erin growled at her Father. "You... why didnt I ever get rid of you before?"

He tried to shift, but then she moved the knife and promptly smashed his face into the floor- she pulled his head up.

"This is your fault." Josiah said. "You couldve told about me, but you didnt."

Erin beat his head against the floor a few more times, with each contact he would grunt. She stood and pulled him up to his knees. When she did he sharply jerked out of her grasp, and stood. He shoved her to the ground, and stood over her. She kicked at him, but he caught her ankles and held her legs together with one arm, pulling her up so he could reach her pants buttons. Her shoulders and head were the only part of her still in contact with the floor.

"Looky here, maybe I'll finish where we left off. You can start being a woman today, ey? There's still a girl's body under those boy clothes, I bet. Why dont we find out?"

Erin let out a snarl and stabbed Josiah through the side of his left knee. He screamed, letting go of Erin who crumpled to the ground and rolled over and stood up. Josiah was kneeling on the ground, and Erin kicked him in the face. He lost balance and fell back on his butt. Erin looked down at him and huffed. She straightened her posture and grinned.

"Oh good. Now you cant run away."

His eyes were wide, so wide, and she would never forget the fear there.

"Oh my god- Erin!" Rajani cried from the doorway. "Amelia!" He ran to the bed, removing his coat and wrapping it around Erin's sister.

"Call 911." Erin's voice was throaty. "Tell them there's blood everywhere."

XXXXXX

Christine had received a phone call from a total stranger who identified himself as Rajani Kapur and that she would be picked up by the Lavey Family Chaffeur to bring her to Erin at once. He refused to explain what happened over the phone but said it was an emergency.

The long black lincoln pulled up and she let herself in, and found herself seated next to a handsome indian man who looked at her with a vaguely disappointed face.

"Christine Dane?"

"That's me- and youre Rajani?"

"Yes." He paused. "Erin was right, you are quite beautiful."

He said it with great melancholy, Christine attributed it to the emergency that occurred. With great tact he explained what had happened, leaving out just what had happened to Mr. Lavey. Christine was quite horrified by the end of it.

"Oh Erin!" Was all she could say, over and over.

Rajani stared gloomily out the window during the ride to the police station. He told Christine they had been there all night. They got out of the car and went inside and were led to the room where Erin was being kept. Once again money and the influence of the family name won out, even in the face of murder. It was in fact self-defense- even though the excessive brutality wouldve been rather suspect if committed by anyone else.

The female officer opened the door to a very plain, almost empty room- nothing but a desk with two chairs. The dark, lithe figure of Erin was seated upon one, and she slowly turned her head to the door.

Christine knew Erin was not the same, when their eyes met. It was her eyes, those golden eyes, there was something sickly about them. Erin stood in her slow graceful way, expression unchanging. Christine noticed her pants and shirt sleeves were caked with blood. Erin's eyes urged her forward. The Officer notified them that they would be free to leave any moment- and mid-sentence a man came up to her telling her that they were now free to go. Christine took Erin's hand and they were all guided back to the lobby. When they went outside they saw Amelia was standing there with Mrs. Lavey, who was in a blue pantsuit. They were both quite pale in the face. But for Sarah Lavey, she was pale with fury.

"You!" She shrieked at Erin, pointing her finger. "You!"

Erin drew herself up, standing an entire foot over her mother. Having to look up at such an angle seemed to anger her more. Words frothed from her;

"Oh- wipe that superior look off your face- are you proud now? This is all your fault, you smug piece of shit!" Erin looked down at her, face stern. Christine and Rajani stared in horror, too stunned to interrupt. Sarah continued, more incensed at Erin's lack of response. "Why didnt you say anything about what he had done to you? Maybe we wouldnt be here now if you hadnt been such a selfish little coward- think of your sister! You couldve spared her! They told me what you did to my husband-" She looked at Erin in her bloody clothes as if seeing a demon, "What are you? How could you-"

"SHUT UP!" Christine screamed.

"You stay out of this- who are you?" Sarah shrieked back.

"Im Erin's girlfriend- and how dare you speak to her that way!"

Sarah sneered, looking at Erin. "And youre a filthy queer on top of that? Im not surprised."

"What kind of mother are you? This is your perverted husband's fault, not hers! I cant believe this!" Christine shouted, looking at Erin for any sign of a reaction.

"Look-" Rajani put a hand on Christine and Erin and pulled, "Let's just get going."

Erin looked at him, and he let go at once.

"And where do you think youre going? Not to my house, I hope you know." Sarah jeered.

"My Father can arrange a hotel room for us, Erin." Rajani said.

Sarah had her hands on Amelia's shoulders. Erin was staring hard at Amelia, who was looking back at her with a helpless, pleading look.

The lady Officer stepped outside and shouted at them;

"Move along folks, if you make trouble, you'll have to spend the night again."

"Let's go Amelia." Sarah haughtily turned away and began dragging the girl with her. "You wont be seeing that abomination again."

Christine let out a small growl and pitched forward ready to grab Sarah by the hair- but found herself caught by Erin's arm. She paused, and looked up at her- and in spite of her anger, found that a shiver ran through her. Those eyes.

Erin let go of Christine, and then walked up behind Sarah and Amelia. From where Rajani and Christine were, they saw that Erin grabbed Sarah, and that oddly she didnt wrest herself away. What they couldnt see was that Erin grabbed her by the neck and pressed her against Erin so that by leaning back oh so slightly Erin actually had lifted Sarah an inch off the ground without all the weight pulling down on her neck. Sarah could scarcely gasp in her shock, let alone protest or move away. Amelia noticed this but was too afraid to do a thing. It occurred to Erin in that second that Amelia had watched her murder their father. Brutally. Slowly. As he begged... blood lust temporarily overcame her, and for a whole moment she merely held Mrs. Lavey against her and off the ground, in silence. Sarah began to squirm, which brought Erin back. She lowered her back to the ground but didnt let her go.

"Stop." Erin said. Sarah was still. "You... should die."

This was said very matter-of-fact. She released Sarah, who turned and looked at her in a very queer, vague way. Looking at one another, it seemed the truth spilt out. Sarah had known. She ignored what was happening, glad she was no longer bothered by her husband's interest. They both knew this. Somehow, without speaking, this was all made clear between them- and most of all, to Sarah, who till then had hidden her own selfishness from herself. Sarah then walked off to her car without Amelia, and got in. She drove off.

Amelia was white with terror by now, and ran toward Rajani, who took her into his arms and cooed at her. He motioned for Christine to fetch Erin.

They were driven to the Lavey Estate, at Erin's insistence, by the family chauffeur. Sarah's car wasnt there, but it was still crawling with detectives. They would have to stay in the guest house until the detectives had recorded the crime scene to their satisfaction, although, it seemed a moot point, as Erin would not be held accountable under the circumstances.

xxxxxxxx

Rajani was making tea, he leaned against the counter to face the girls while he waited for the water to boil. Christine and Erin were slumped at the table. Amelia was cleaning up in one of the washrooms. Christine was on the phone with their school, who had been notified by the police of the basics of what was going on. They had called the house line to speak to Erin's parents. So much for that.

"They're more than happy to reschedule the concert, Erin..." She said feebly.

Erin glared at her.

"Absolutely not. We will not put everyone else out."

Christine told the school they needn't do that.

"They say that they think under the circumstances that you would be more than excused if you...ah, felt you needed time to yourself...and didnt participate- if you felt you needed it." Christine said all this reluctantly, rather knowing the violent response this would cause. Her discomfort was so great that she didnt wait for Erin to react, but said to the phone; "She insists on going on. I think she needs something else to focus on- so please dont try to talk her out of it!" Christine sighed. "Thanks... I'll be with her, if you could tell my teachers as well, if that's okay? Thanks. Thanks...bye."

She put the phone down on the table, and stared into her lap. She felt a hand on her face and looked up to see Erin lean forward and give her a kiss. Erin drew back and sat in her seat, golden eyes looking at Christine. They still looked sickly and cold, even looking at her. How different from the bright, sunny warmth she was used to! Or even the dark, rage-filled amber she feared... Christine was altogether too nervous to smile or react, and she saw Erin turn more gloomy and look away because of this. The guilt was instant, and yet she found herself unable to speak.

"What tea would you like?" Rajani said. He had his back to them, pulling silvery cannisters out of the cupboard. "There's quite a selection. Not as vast as mine though." He smiled at Erin, hoping she caught his snooty tone.

Christine looked confused. She didnt know there was more than one kind of tea, the kind that came in a mug, hot, with a limp black tea bag in it. She didnt care for it.

Erin stood, and went over to Rajani.

"You must understand, although it is no excuse, that this is only the guest house. I assure you that in the main home our selection surpasses yours in spades." Erin said, in a deadpan manner. Rajani made his own demeanor equally deadpan. The comedic tension was such that Rajani wasnt sure if he was going to laugh, or if Erin was being serious. He chuckled when Erin's eyes narrowed and a small smirk pulled at her mouth. Erin looked over at Christine who was now lingering by them, looking at the tea.

"Its loose leaf." Erin said mildly. "I'd like the white tea myself. You shouldnt let the water boil, itll be too hot for it." Erin looked at the time on the stove. "It should be about the right temperature by now."

"I know how to make tea, Im not a barbarian."

Christine watched Rajani scoop dry, curled pale leaves into a sort of sock sitting in the mouth of a ceramic pot, and then pour the steamy water into it over the leaves. He set the time on the stove for seven minutes. He smiled at her.

They noticed then that Erin had walked out of the room.

XXXX

Erin found Amelia sitting on a bed in one of the upstairs bedrooms, staring into space. She was wearing jeans and a tshirt, white, and her long brown hair was partially dry and neatly combed back. Erin shut the door behind her but stayed standing there. Amelia looked at her, and they said nothing for a few moments. The balcony doors were open, and a breeze would occasionally disturb the draperies, and their hair.

"They're making tea downstairs." Erin said, dully. "White."

"I wouldve liked a chai." Amelia said.

Erin looked down, inwardly chastising herself for this. More silence. Erin was holding her hands behind her back, but began gripping her wrists as if to hold herself together.

"Are you upset by what I did?" Erin said. At last.

Rajani had been too busy talking to the operator that even trying to pull Amelia out of the room was too much for him- let alone trying to stop Erin in the heat of bloodlust. Rajani was hysterical, he didnt even have enough presence of mind to give the estate address- luckily, due to the prominence of the family- the name was enough. Also, it seemed the FBI had been monitoring both Mr and Mrs Lavey for some time for different suspected activities... but the point being, that there was nothing to stop Amelia from seeing what became of her father, and she herself didnt have the strength to run from the room, or to even plead for Erin to stop. The police discovered the presence of a low dose of a sedative drug in her system which would account for this.

"I dont know." Amelia said. "I dont feel anything-" She looked suddenly quite disturbed. "Is that normal?"

"I dont feel anything either." Erin said, after a pause.

They heard the timer downstairs go off. Erin approached Amelia, both of them fearful of the other. She kneeled at her sister's feet.

"Look at you, with your big eyes!" Erin said. Amelia's eyes were glossy.

"Can we go down to tea?" Amelia said, drawing her legs up onto the bed, away from Erin.

"Of course..." Erin stood and stepped back from the girl, gesturing with a sweep of her arm for Amelia to go first. The girl scurried on out and down the stairs. Erin sullenly followed.

XXXXXXX

The police knocked on the door of the guesthouse. Erin herself answered, expecting them to say they were finished for the day and just checking in before going.

"We have been informed that your mother, Sarah Lavey, has been found in her car which crashed into a cluster of trees. We regret to inform you she is deceased."

Erin looked very grim.

"An accident?"

The Officer, another woman, said gently;

"It seems the car was crashed on purpose by the driver. But we can put down that it was an accident, if it would be considered an embarrassment..."

The power of money, Erin thought.

"That wont be necessary." Erin said. "She should be embarrassed."

The Officer didnt react to this.

"Would you like us to speak to your sister?"

Erin frankly did not want to face Amelia herself with this, and it seemed her sister wouldnt receive the news well from her. She reluctantly invited the officer in and led her to Amelia, who was sitting at the table with Rajani and Christine. The both of them clung to the girl as the news was given, not knowing how else to offer support. All three of them were openly horrified. But only Amelia was staring at Erin, mouth hanging open, eyes wide. She had heard what Erin said to Sarah. The condemnation was searing, and Erin trembled under it.

The Officer said something about appointing a state therapist for them both, at which Erin said they could more than afford their own- but wouldnt mind a recommendation. She showed the Officer out. Once inside again, Erin promptly went upstairs and hid in the master suite.

She entered the bathroom and stared hard at herself. Her ink-black hair hadnt been cut for sometime and it hung all in her face in dark curls. Two yellow eyes looked at her, and she felt a chill go through her. How different she looked!

She lowered her head onto the counter and buried it in her arms.

Erin Lavey, the new Master of Lavey Estates, inheritor of endless wealth. And a murderer. She really didnt know what was going on. Her mother had killed herself, was it really because Erin had said what she did? No one has that kind of power. It was probably the guilt. But Erin had felt her own absolute sincerity when she had spoken in Sarah's ear. And Amelia's damning eyes appeared in her mind. It was madness to think she had really caused a damn thing. But then Erin stood again and looked up, and saw a radiant, blonde haired man with icy blue eyes in the mirror where she should have been- who flickered away as soon as she saw it... Erin was too afraid to consider just what this might say about her sanity. And there was no time to think on it, for she had a sudden urge to go up to the roof of the house. Quickly.

She rushed out of the room and went up the stairs to the rooftop deck. Amelia was already there, standing near the ledge, looking at the sun set.

And somehow, once more, it was pouring rain.