Remember Me.....

And the award goes to...

"Steven?"

The figure at the bar wheeled round, a fixed smile plastered on his face.  For a second, he seemed like he was checking who was watching before he said, rather too loudly, "DARLING! OH, DARLING EVE!" He enveloped her in a hug of aftershave and arrogance.

He released her and held her at arm's length. "You look so pale, so worn. You should have come home much sooner, my dear.  We missed you." He smiled for the audience. "Come on, the gang's all here."

"Well, I might have, if I'd remembered!" She countered, not entirely without malice. "Are... Graeme and... and.." she made a show of not remembering.  Steven jumped in.

" Claire"

"Yes, that's it. Claire. Sorry. It all gets a bit much. There's still so much missing.  It's just as well I have you to look after me." She simpered. "I know that no matter what, you'll look after me. See that I'm not taken advantage of."  her words, carefully chosen, setting him up.

"We only want what's best, little sister." Steven smiled graciously and indicated she should come through to the back 'snug' bar.  No, no, that won't do, she thought quickly. Too private. No chance to publicly humiliate them.

"Can - can we stay here... please?" She begged in a tiny voice, grabbing his hand. She knew people were watching this touching reunion.  No matter how much he hated her, he could never been seen publicly as the big bad brother. The one making the poor, sick little sister cry.  She forced the crocodile tears into her eyes. "I get so claustrophobic these days."  A poor excuse but all she could think of on the hop.

Steven hesitated, just for a second.  Could he let Bruce and him humiliate her in public? She was his sister... oh wait, no! She WASN'T his sister. That was the whole bloody point.

She was the bastard child of a degenerate uncle and deserved nothing. Since his loving but foolish parents, had decided to give her a share of HIS fortune, he'd make it his life's work to get every penny back.

"Of course. You sit down, and I'll be back in a moment." He patted her hand and disappeared into the back room.

Two minutes later, the others trooped out.  To her relief, Bruce was with them. " There's my girl!" He said loudly and stalked over to grab her and kiss her possessively.  She managed not to gag long enough to let the others become impatient. 

"Put her down Bruce. You can shag her later man!"

"Graeme! Enough, for God's sake stop being so crude. " The woman she knew now was Claire, called out to him from her seat.  There was a scraping of chairs on floors.

"Oh Fuck off Claire, she's a grown-up isn't she?  I can speak to her however I damned well please!"

"Please, everyone, please let's calm down." Steven interrupted.  Graeme and Claire made faces at each other and it struck Eve, not for the first time that money didn't buy class.

Steven made a great show of calling over to Davy for champagne to celebrate.  He stood and popped the cork loudly, to the cheers of the bar.  No-one except Eve and them knew there was a secret agenda - even they didn't know they weren't the same!

"To our little wanderer, home again at last." he raised a glass and the others did too.  

"Our little wanderer."  they sipped the champagne.  It tasted like vinegar to her.  Bitter with the taste of their hatred.  She decided not to play around.

"To Anna and George, without whom we wouldn't all be together." she countered and there was a stony silence.  "What?  What did I say?" she asked, putting on an air of innocence.  She knew EXACTLY what she'd said.  And why.