Degradation (26 page)

“It'll do for now,” she joked, gasping for air as well while she wiped at her mouth. He groaned and grabbed a handful of her hair.

“I can't wait to take you home and really treat you bad,” he grumbled, pulling her to her feet and leading her to the bed.

Me, neither.

Tatum woke up the next morning to Jameson chewing on her butt, literally. She laughed and slapped him away. He informed her that her father would be home in a couple hours, so she should probably get ready and brace herself. He offered for her to join him in the shower, but she knew that never led to getting ready, so she passed and sent him in on his own.

Grumbling, she pulled on her trademark socks, some booty shorts, and a long tank top before heading downstairs. Jameson had bought her an entire wardrobe for the weekend, all miss-priss clothing, but he had been thoughtful enough to include her usual sleep wear. It made her feel more comfortable, and she felt like she was more herself as she wandered in to the kitchen. Her mother was by a coffee pot, watching the coffee fill up.

“Good morning, honey,” her mother yawned. Tate managed a smile.

“Morning,” she replied, laying her top half across the counter and staring at the pot as well.

“I stopped and peeked in on you around five this morning, but you weren't in your room. Where were you?” her mom asked. Tate glanced at her. Was this for real?

“I was in Jameson's room,” she answered truthfully. Had the lady not heard anything?

“Oh my! I thought you were just friends!” Mother exclaimed. Tate stood up.

“
We are. We are very,
very
good friends,” she emphasized. Her mother worried her hands.

“
Do you think that's such a good idea, honey? I mean, what with Ellie and all, maybe it would be better to ..., you know,
not,
” her mother suggested.

Is she fucking kidding me?

“Mother. I don't give
two fucks
about Ellie, or how she feels,” Tate said in a hard voice. Her mother gasped.

“There is no need to talk like that! You should show some respect for your sister and her feelings!” she urged. Tate threw her head back and laughed.

“Is this a fucking joke? Why should I respect her? Or any of you? She hasn't spoken to me in seven years, she still treats me like the whore of Babylon, and her husband hit on me last night,
after
she complained about me ruining things between her and Jameson. Daddy doesn't even acknowledge my existence, and you only call me when you're drunk and feeling guilty,” she spat out.

Her mother stared at her for a second, eyes swimming with tears, and then she rushed out of the kitchen, letting out a sob. Ellie came in at the same time, jumping out of the way. She watched after her for a second and then turned her glare on Tate.

“See. You ruin everything. Your little show last night was
disgusting
. Something is wrong with you,” Ellie hissed. Tate smiled sweetly.

“That show was the best sex you'll never have, so you're welcome,” she replied, blowing a kiss at her sister. Ellie bristled up.

“I've had good sex. I slept with him first, you know,” she snapped. Tate laughed.

“Not the same thing at all, Ellie. And it's not a competition, who got him first, who got him last. I didn't want him then, and I don't have him now. You shouldn't even care about who he is, or isn't, fucking; you're married,” Tate pointed out.

“
But I should have been married to him!
” Ellie suddenly shrieked.

“What did you say?”

They both turned to see Robert standing in a separate entrance way. Ellie groaned.

“It was nothing, I didn't -,” she started.

“We need to talk,
now,
” he snapped before turning and walking out of the room. Ellie sighed and then glared at Tatum one last time.

“
See!? Everything. You ruin
everything
,” she repeated before hurrying after her husband.

Force myself on estranged family, Check. Jameson put sister in her place, Check. Have amazing loud sex that makes everyone uncomfortable, Check. Make mother cry, Check. Ruin a marriage, Check. Awesome family reunion!

Tate puttered around the kitchen, making herself a bowl of cereal and eating it. Then she filled two coffee mugs, knowing Jameson would want one once he was out of the bathroom. She carefully carried them up the stairs, listening for the sound of the shower. It had already been half an hour, but he was still in there. She shook her head. He preened more than a girl sometimes.

She was about to push her way in to his room, when a noise caught her attention. Arguing. The door to Ellie's room hadn't been fully closed, and the sounds of a fight were reaching in to the hallway. Giving an evil little chuckle, Tate tip toed closer, listening to what was being said.

“
You stupid fucking bitch!
”

Tate was surprised. Robert hadn't seemed like the kind of guy to talk to his wife that way.

“I'm sorry, I'm sorry,” Ellie was saying over and over again. Tate frowned. Ellie didn't sound upset. She sounded ...,
scared
.

“
Fucking embarrass me!? In front of that
whore
sister!?” Robert was really yelling now. Tate touched a finger to the doorknob, just barely pressed against it enough to push the door open a smidge. She had a tiny view in to the room. She could see Robert standing, his hands in his hair. Ellie was sitting on the edge of the bed, wringing her hands.

“No! I didn't mean to! I was ..., upset! I'm sorry!”

“You know his New York offices have a contract with my firm! If she bitches to him about her
cunt sister
, I could lose everything!”

“
Cunt
” was a special kind of word to Tate. It was the dirtiest of all words, very taboo. Probably got her the most excited. But on the flip side, it was taboo for a reason. It was
very
bad; an angry, evil word. In her experience, people who used it comfortably in anger were not very nice people. For most people, it took a lot to whip out the C-word in a fight, and Robert had just dropped it like he was saying “
good morning
” or something.

“I'll talk to her, I promise. I'll make her promise not to tell him,” Ellie assured him.

“Why would she listen to you!? You're the goddamn devil, as far she is concerned,” Robert replied.

“I'll make her, I promise -,”

His hand crashed across Ellie's face, and Tate gasped, dropping the coffee cups. Her sister was not her friend. If anything, Ellie was an enemy. But she was also a woman. And she was pregnant. And her husband had just backhanded her. He grabbed Ellie's arm and lifted her off the bed, lifting his hand to hit her again.

“
HEY!
” Tate shouted, bursting through the door. They both turned and stared at her.

“Tatum!” Robert called out jovially, letting go of Ellie. “How was the coffee? Did you -,”

“Get the fuck away from my sister, you piece of shit!” Tate shouted, marching to stand at the foot of the bed.

“Tate, just go away, you don't under-,” Ellie started, holding up a hand.

“
Shut up,
” Tate and Robert both snapped in unison.

“You are not really a part of this family. Please leave,” Robert asked in a frosty voice. Tate crossed her arms.

“
You
leave. I'm not going anywhere,” she informed him.

“I am not going to ask you again.”

“You've never hit someone who hits back, have you?”

“Don't push me.”

“Please!” Ellie interrupted, surging to her feet. “Please, just stop! Leave her alone!”

“Excuse me!?” Robert looked shocked, staring down at his wife. Tate was shocked, too.

“Leave her alone! Get out, let me talk to my sister!” Ellie demanded.

He slapped her again, and Tate was on him in a second, no hesitation. He tried to grab her, and she shrieked, throwing a punch. She was pretty sure it landed near his ear. She wasn't exactly a street brawler. He turned away and she climbed onto his back, pulling at his hair and hitting him on the top of the head. Ellie started screaming. Robert spun in a circle, yelling at Tate to get off of him. When it was obvious that she had no intention of doing that, he rammed them back up against the wall. Pain shimmied down Tate's spine and she let him go, falling to her feet. He spun around and slapped her so hard, she was knocked to the ground. She scrambled to get away, backing in to a corner.

He hadn't made it two steps towards her when Jameson was on him, pinning him to the wall. Tate hadn't even noticed Jameson entering the room. He was by far the bigger man, with a much stronger physique – Robert couldn't move. Tate leapt to her feet, breathing hard, a hand pressed to her cheek. Jameson glanced at her.

“Are you okay?” he asked. She nodded.

“I'm fine. He hit her.
Hard,
” she replied, gesturing to Ellie, who had her face in her hands again.

“
What kind of piece of shit hits a woman? A
pregnant
woman?” Jameson asked in a soft voice, his eyes very cold. He had his forearm pressed against Robert's windpipe and the smaller man squirmed around.

“It's none of your business, she's my wife,” he choked out.

“And Tatum is
my
business,” Jameson growled, nodding his head at Tate.

“Please, we heard the way you talked to her last night – the slut probably probably liked getting slapped.”

There was no hesitation; Jameson's fist instantly slammed across Robert's jaw, and Robert slumped to the ground. Tate hurried forward, staring down at the unconscious man. She winced; his jaw was probably broken. She finally glanced up at Jameson. He was breathing hard, his hands balled in to fists, and he was staring down at Robert with wild eyes. Tate stepped up close to him and pressed a hand to his chest, sliding it back and forth. The same move she used to calm Ang down. Jameson's eyes moved to hers. Stared at her.

This is not a game anymore.

Jameson left to go find Sanders, who was staying in a guest house. Tatum walked a practically sobbing Ellie back to her own room. They sat on the bed and she rubbed her sister's back, waited for her to calm down.

“How long has it been like this?” Tate whispered.

“Forever. Since we got married. During the honeymoon, he got mad at me, hit me. He had never done that before,” Ellie sniffled.

Six years. Ellie had taken the abuse for six years. For the last six years, Tate had been begging men to push her around and call her dirty names. But never like that, not against her will. She sighed and wrapped her arms around her sister's shoulders – something she never thought she'd do.

“Leave him,” she breathed. Ellie shook her head.

“I can't. I'm pregnant.”

“There are lots of single moms out there.”

“Daddy would be so angry. He picked him out for me.”

“Fuck what Daddy says. Does he know he hits you?”

Silence.

Tate couldn't fucking believe it. Of course.
Of course
her father knew. Robert was a good old boy, from a good old family, so however he treated women was okay. While her father had never hit her mother, Tate had never seen him treat her with any kind of respect, either. Mrs. O'Shea was better seen, not heard. Its own kind of abuse. She handled it by popping pills and getting drunk. Ellie had married an abusive husband. Tate was fucking a sociopath.

We are all so fucked up.

“I can't leave him, Tatum,” Ellie repeated, pulling away.

“Why? Why can't you?” Tate demanded.

“You don't know anything about us, about me. I have responsibilities. Where would I go, anyway?” she demanded. Her armor was suiting back up. Pretty soon, Tate would be shut out.

“Anywhere. Come with us, you can stay with me,” Tate urged her. Ellie laughed.

“Thanks, but no thanks. I'm scarred for life by the things I heard last night from you two. I couldn't handle being in the same house while you pour hot candle wax on each other, or whatever,” she joked. Tate almost laughed – it did sound like them.

“Please, Ellie,” Tate whispered. There were footsteps up the stairs, two people going past the door.

“No. It'll be fine. He'll see the baby, and it'll be fine,” Ellie said quickly and leapt to her feet, running for the door. Tate followed her out in to the hall, just in time to see Sanders and Jameson carrying Robert's moaning body down the hall.

“Where are you taking him?” Tate asked.

“The hospital. After they help him regain consciousness, I'm going kill him,” Jameson said matter-o-factly. Ellie started crying again.

“I'm coming with you,” Tate said before dashing in to her room and pulling on a pair of pants. They were suit pants, and looked at odds with her tank top, but she didn't care. She bustled Ellie out to her car and then drove them to the hospital, following Sanders the whole way.

Robert's jaw was, in fact, broken. Jameson didn't pull his punches, apparently. Ellie said he fell down the stairs. The hospital staff looked very unbelieving, probably due to the fact that Jameson stood behind everyone, staring everything down like a demon. He didn't even talk, had just dumped Robert in a wheel chair and then walked away. Sanders took care of everything, hustled off with Ellie and the nurses, leaving Tate alone with Satan.