For the Love of the Law

Chapter Thirty Eight | Absolutely Fucking Bonkers Crazy

If I was watching this scene unfold as an innocent bystander, I may have laughed.

I mean, it was kind of funny in a sadistic sort of way. 

My mother, screaming at dad about why she'd read in the paper why Marley had drugs at school, Flynn staring at her like she was an alien, Marley appearing at the foot of the stairs while dad rushed out into the lounge, his eyes wide and angry and trained straight on the woman currently intruding. 

All we needed was Samson, and then this little shindig would be raging.

"Excuse me, but why are you here again?" Dad asked, as blunt and wonderful as ever.

Mother didn't even stumble. "Because of what I just read about in the paper! How could you not tell me? It was such a shock to find out in the press-"

"Oh, so you think I'm in the wrong here?" Dad said, his eyebrows raised as he leaned against the stairs banister, watching mum flounder around a little for a response. She had been on such a role before he had cut her off. Pity. 

"Yes, you're in the wrong!" Her voice was shrill, half panicky, half confused. 

"I think that's you, actually." Dad continued over top of her again, completely in lawyer mode. "Because, you see, you're tresspassing. Entering ones house without their permission and then verbally harrassing them is not something the police department here take lightly. Right, Flynn?" 

All eyes turned to the very confused, very sexy, Flynn, who was standing to my right. "It is something we take seriously, yes."

"You're a cop?" My mothers eyes widened, staring at Flynn in a new light. "What the hell are you doing here?"

"I date your daughter." He deadpanned. "Nice to meet you."

"Harlow?" Mum asked, spinning to look at me. "He's your boyfriend?" 

I hesitated, and Flynn filled in the gap. "You got something against police officers, ma'am?"

"Well, no I-" Mum paused, her eyes back on me as she did a sweep of my body, those orbs taking in whatever they saw and responding. "You're not exactly the sort of boy I saw her with. What happened to Mason, honey?"

Was it too early to snap at her? Like, she'd been in the house literally three minutes, and already I was about to lose it at her. Maybe I was starting to PMS. I hadn't gotten my period this month yet-

"Don't ever call me honey." I said, cutting off both her ranting and my thought process. "And don't ever judge Flynn, or me, again."

"Harlow Micheals, I don't know where this attitude came from but-"

"Mum," Marley's voice resonated through the room, and we all went silent. She turned to him, a smile gracing her face at his choice of word because lord knows I wasn't using it much these days.

"Yes, sweetie?" She asked, her voice sugar coated and full of fake energy.

"Fuck off."

I swear, I couldn't have even cut through the shock in the room, because it was just too strong. Dad's jaw had come unhinged, his eyes staring at Marley, while mum looked exactly the same. Flynn, oh Flynn, he still looked like he was piecing together the pieces of this little family reunion, but wasn't doing very well. 

"What, did you just say to me?" She asked, her voice low and even. That was a sign that she was about to lose it big time, and I could just see dad gearing up for the aftermath. 

"You heard me." Marley didn't move, but his fists were clenched like he was trying to stop himself from shaking. "First, you disappear without a goodbye, steal dads money, and we don't hear from you in three years. Then suddenly, you turn back up here expecting things to fall back into place, but that is never happening. You left us, and you came back remarried and hoping we'd all just be one big happy family again because you're fucking happy now. So fuck. Off."