Chapter Five-Catching Up

It was the next day and Mary was in absolute bliss. She was at her family's vacation home in East Hampton for Fourth of July weekend, ready to relax and enjoy the holiday. In order to make life easier, she decided to spend the night at her family's primary residence in Scarsdale, so she could leave at the same time as her parents and youngest sisters. Mary preferred using her own vehicle, since the only driving style she liked was her own, but Jasmine insisted she ride in the car with them, so she agreed. The rest of the guests arrived at different times, but everyone for sure would be there by early afternoon.

Stacee drove up to the house last night, wanting to get as far away from the city as possible so she could unwind. Stacee's parents, Samantha and George, as well as Beth's parents, William and Grace, drove in that evening as well. Terra and Beth rode together in Terra's car early that morning, as did Terra's parents Mark and Linda. Allyson and Brenden, her boyfriend of two years, were driving in sometime that morning. For now, Mary was enjoying some alone time, tucked away in her own special hiding place.

The Mayfield's vacation home was on a lake, so it was surrounded by wooded area, and there was a particular spot on the property that Mary loved. It was an elevated piece of land, surrounded by trees and boulders placed in various, convenient spots. A tree had fallen over many, many years ago, so the collapsed log added even more privacy. The ground beneath was smooth and sandy, so Mary would sit down with her back against one of the boulders, spending hours reading or writing in her journal. Others knew about this spot, but Mary was the only one who used it, since they knew how important it was to her to have her own sanctuary.

Mary was absorbed in a book, lost in her own little world when she thought she heard someone calling her name. She lifted her head and looked over the log, where she thought she heard the voice calling her. She smiled when she saw her sister Allyson, rowing a canoe on the lake. Allyson was Mary's twenty-two year old sister, the recent college grad and birthday girl. Mary and Allyson saw each other constantly, but it was still a treat whenever they saw each other.

Allyson was about 5'10 with straight, sandy blonde hair falling below her shoulders and medium, almond shaped blue eyes. Her skin was always sun kissed, due to her love of the outdoors, and her body was trim and athletic. She had a roman nose, full lips, and heart shaped face. She was a born athlete, loving all types of sports, especially golf, tennis, and anything water related. In fact, her golf prowess was such that it earned her a college scholarship.

Allyson graduated college two weeks prior from NYU with a BA in journalism. Given her gregarious nature and natural beauty, the camera loved her and she was a natural. She was currently working part-time jobs, trying to find the right fit and use of her talents. She also didn't want to take on anything to momentous since she was returning to college in the fall for her MA. She worked three days a week at a small news station, handling mostly the sports announcements, and evenings at a radio station.

"Mary, Mary, where are you?" she called, looking around. She was wearing a blue tank top, white sports, and sunglasses.

"I'm right here!" Mary called, setting her book on the ground so she could rise up on her knees and wave her arms, attracting her sister's attention.

She was wearing a pale yellow tank top and khaki shorts. Her hair was thrown into a ponytail and sunglasses were placed firmly on her face. She had worn burgundy knotted looped sandals on her walk, but they were laying next to her hobo bag. She stood up, wiped the sand off her bottom, and placed her book safely in her bag. She decided not to wear her shoes and placed them in the bag as well.

She walked to the trail that led towards the lake and began the short journey to the water's edge. By the time she arrived, Allyson was already waiting for her at the shore. Mary climbed into the canoe and set her bag down.

"Hey, sis, what time did you and B get here?" Mary asked.

"About half an hour ago," Allyson said, taking of sip from the massive water bottle she had with her. She handed another one to Mary, who also took a sip.

"How was traffic? We left early this morning so it wasn't too bad."

"Brenden and I did get stuck in a little bit of traffic, but it wasn't too bad. We got a later start today than we would have liked, but the delay wasn't as bad as I would have expected. I mean yeah, an added hour does suck, but it could have been worse."

"Why did you and Brenden get such a late start? Did you two, umm, lose track of time?" Mary asked with a naughty smile.

"No, so get your mind out of the gutter!" Allyson said with a laugh.

Mary smiled bashfully as Allyson explained. "After I got out of work last night, a bunch of us went to Logan's for a new drinks."

"You went to an establishment that wasn't Stacee's? Egads, what will our cousin think?" Mary asked with mock horror.

"What she doesn't know can't hurt me."

Both sisters laughed and Allyson took another drink of water. "So what's new with you, sis? How did it go with Jazz's field trip? Anything else exciting going on?"

"Umm, well...something interesting did happen actually."

Allyson raised her eyebrows and Mary told her about Stacee leaving Mike, their violtale confrontation, meeting Bobby, and the fieldtrip. Allyson remained silently, nodding her head as she drank more water.

"Damn girl, you *have* been busy. Do you think this is the last you'll hear from Mikey?"

"Not likely. The bastard is in war mode. He blames me for the demise of his marriage, so I'm sure there will be more friction between us."

"Are you sure the reason you two argue so much isn't because you secretly love him?"

"E...excuse me? Just what is it that you *have* in that bottle, missy? I assumed it was Evian, but now I'm convinved it's some sort of substance that eats away at the brains of otherwise intelligent women."

"Hey, I'm just saying opposites attractive and it's a well known fact that there is a fine love and hatred."

"Allyson, all I feel for Mike is hatred, repulsion, and a deep seeded regret I didn't push him off our roof when I had the chance."

"If all else fails, you could just call your new detective friend. I'm sorry Mary, I know you hate other people taking care of you, but you have to admit what he did was kinda sexy."

"He was just doing his job, Allie. He's a police officer so he feels honor bound to keep everyone safe, even if he is off the clock."

"There is doing your job, and then there's...look, I don't have a witty turn of phrase to describe what he did, but he wasn't obligated to walk you home, nor did you have to go with him. You could have waited until Stacee was finished for the evening. He walked you home because he *wanted* to and you agreed because you liked him wanting you."

"Allie cat, I think you need to stop reading those cheesy, five dollar romance novels you find on clearance racks. Officer Goren seems perfectly nice, but there were no sparks between us. He was just being polite and to be perfectly honest, I was feeling a little spooked that night. I've always been afraid of the dark and wandering the streets alone has never been a favorite pasttime, but Mike did freak me out a little bit. I know he's ever seriously injured me in the past, but that's only because he was still married to Stacee and wanted her money. Now that she's left him, it's a whole different story."

"For what it's worth, Mar, I don't think Mike would actually cause you serious harm. I think he's a lot of talk with not much to back it up. If he was a real man he wouldn't need to fight with you to feel better about himself. No offense Mary, I know you think you're some sort of kick ass ninja, but you're only a few inches north of wearing a green fuzzy outfit and making toys in Santa's workshop or dancing next to the yellow brick road holding a giant lollypop. You're itty bitty, so the fact that Mike gets such a rush from sparring with you shows just how pathetic he is."

"I'm not disputing the fact he is pathetic. I'm just saying things are different now so I have to be on guard."

Before Allyson could respond, they heard their father's loud, booming voice calling them inside for lunch. Without a word, both women grabbed their set of oares and rowed back to shore.