Over in the gas station, Grace was slamming down the phone. Her face was flushed with anger. Pretty pink cheeks, Ryder thought. "Who was that?" he said.

"My mother. Only she's Not my mother."

Ryder was confused. Was this a stepmother then? He was a bit outside the Rawley grapevine, but he raked his memory for anything on the Banks family.

"We have some genes the same. That's it."

Oh. Standard mother/daughter strop. How like the homelife of our own dear Queen.

"You know, I wouldn't be able to pick her out of a police line-up? Bella tore up all the photos."

How typically high handed of Bella. "She left?" he asked. Stupid, stupid question. He kicked himself.

"I was still a baby." She wasn't really talking to him. He just happened to be in the room.

"When'd she get back in touch?" he asked, cautious.

"Couple of months ago. She sent presents. Like she can buy her way back into the family." Grace folded her arms tightly.

Ryder's mouth twisted. "Like my stepfather."

"You know how that is?" Grace said absently.

"Read the book, seen the movie, worn the bloody Tshirt." His stepfather paid the extortionate fees for this vile little school. Everyone said he should be grateful, but how can you be grateful for a life you didn't choose? Being a minor just meant being pushed around, and then being told you should like it. He looked at Grace, who was scowling at the phone. At least she still had her self respect. "You send the presents back, don't you." It wasn't a question.

"Well, yeah." Durr, said her tone.

"There's more." His voice was quiet. He couldn't work out what it was, but there was something else eating at her.

"I want to see her. Not presents, just, see her. Talk. I want to know what she's like."

Ryder sincerely doubted that a single meeting could be as soul baring as all that. "You don't know where she is."

"Yes I do."

Okay. The hell with it. "Go, then."

"But, the station-"

"I'll take care of the station." - It's a minimum wage job. How difficult can it be? -

Grace was not so sure at first. "But I promised Bella.. Oh, what the hell. She doesn't trust me anyway. She'll have a backup plan."

I'm a backup plan in myself, Ryder thought. Didn't Grace appreciate how he was staying here alone, exposed to Joe's finding him? Ah. Apparantly not. The alone thing was interesting too. The henchminions he'd scraped together at Rawley had melted away. He hadn't been so funny for the last few days, and the abrasions on his face only reminded them of the uncool victim thing.

Once Grace had gone, he surveyed his territory. In the glassed off shop area was a carton of Coke bottles, half of them stickered, a price gun lying on top. Ryder studied the invoice and shook his head over the mark up. He left the work severely alone, but he did find some chocolate bars he liked. Chewing thoughtfully, he retrieved the Mortdecai Trilogy from the forecourt and retired behind the cash register to put his feet up.

He was a bit narked when the doorbell interrupted him. Mortdecai had just been concussed and when he came to in a couple of paragraphs he was going to be highly sarcastic. The stranger Ryder was scowling at wasn't even a car driver. What was he doing in a petrol station? Did he want barbeque stuff? "What?"

The other man looked taken aback. "Uh, I wondered, uh, do you, uh-"

Spit it out, thought Ryder, and turned a page.

"-you know, those things."

Was he supposed to be a mind reader? "What things?"

"You put them in water and they swell up."

"Tampons?" Ryder hazarded a guess. When he was six he used to break into his big sister's supply. Of course, the Japanese paper flowers actually designed for finger bowls were prettier. Ah, childhood memories.

"No!" The other man blushed. "You know, you eat-"

"Pot noodle." Ryder's voice went up, incredulous. "In a petrol station? Are you mad-"

The man seized a packet from one of the shelves. Apparantly the Banks did sell bad food on the side.

Well, if this loser had the use of his eyes, why was he asking trick questions? Ryder folded his arms and heaved a big in and out sigh. Imagine eating that junk for Sunday lunch. Or ever. Ugh.

"How much?" Now the man was pissed off at him. -Yeah, like it's my decision the idiot's going to die of malnutrition.- Ryder thought indignantly.

"I can't see the price tag from here." Ryder snatched it, joking, "Mother always said I'd go blind."

"What?"

Ryder looked up innocently. "Reading in bed; that's two dollars fifty cents." He translated it silently into sterling. Twice, since he couldn't believe the math. He had time, the man was fumbling at himself. You'd think his fingers were made of bananas. "Stop fellating yourself an' get the money out."

A cool breeze tickled Ryder's face and alerted him that Bella was on the threshold. She was swelling with rage like some ancient goddess of Righteous Indignation. The part of Ryder's mind that got him into so much trouble tried to remember if the Greeks had a goddess for that. Sometimes it felt like he physically couldn't focus on the immediate problem. He caught Bella's eye, and for a moment everything was very very clear. His immediate problem was Bella. She swept in.

Outside, Sean, Jake and Hamilton hung back. When the scene gave no sign of ending soon, they seated themselves under the flagpole and drank in the show. The body language suggested Ryder was getting the worst of it.

"I wish I could lip read" Ham said yearningly.

"You could go in and join them" was Sean's suggestion.

"I don't Think so." Hamilton dropped an arm heavily on Jake's shoulder. She glanced sideways at the big hand hanging lax an inch in front of her collarbone. "Ham, you might just buy me a Tshirt inscribed Property of Hamilton Fleming."

"Hey." He was all struck with the idea. "You'd wear that?"

She jerked bolt upright. "It was a joke - Ham - oh god" as he started to laugh. "I really fell for that."

Scout's bike skidded to a halt behind them. "Hey. What's up?"

Not turning, Ham drawled "Your girlfriend is tearing Ryder limb from limb. Don't stop her."

Scout chuckled. "Wouldn't dream of it. Is Will back yet?"

"He's back now." Sean was looking past Scout.

"Hey." Scout turned. "How'd the family lunch go?"

"It was-" Ham stopped. He realised Scout meant Will's lunch.

"It was just glorious." To sound any more sarcastic, Will would've needed irony implants.

Jake nodded sympathetically.

Will threw himself heavily on the concrete ledge ringing the flag. "Dad said something you'd be interested in, Scout."

Scout was all astonishment.

"He's been drinking with Joe lately."

Everyone studiously failed to comment on Mr Krudsky's taste in drinking buddies - or on Joe's.

"-and Joe said-"

"Yeah?" Scout coaxed. "'Cause I can't stop myself thinking-"

Sean tilted his head back and smiled at the sky. He might have graciously smoothed Bella's move onward, but he hadn't raised his opinion of Scout any. Dumber than a silent movie.

"-thinking about how that worked out" Scout said, earnest.

"Dad said Joe has some kind of dirt on Ryder. He's got money out of him on the strength of it, and he expects more."

"What dirt?" -"wait, later." -"They're coming." - "Blackmail?" - all at once.

Bella and Ryder were coming out of the shop.

"I'll check on the computer for more about what you said" Jake said before they arrived.

Ryder was telling Bella "That's how I am, luv. You can't just pick and choose. I'm not a buffet table, I'm-"

"A school dinner?" Ham suggested sweetly.

Ryder shrugged. "It's your school."

Blaming Hamilton for the catering was so unfair. He hated bad food more than any of them.