White Space Season 2

her own world, oblivious to Cassidy.

    **

    As they sat at the dining room table, Vivian nibbled her grilled cheese, slurped her soup, and went on about her day, covering several inane topics. Cassidy feigned just enough interest to keep her mother from getting offended.
    As Cassidy drifted through her thoughts, wondering how Jon was handling dinner at his father’s, and whether he had yet spoken to Blake, Vivian rambled, until suddenly — out of the blue — she said something to snap Cassidy to attention.
    “You know, that boy will never love you, Sarah.”
    “Who won’t love me?” she said, not bothering to correct her on her name.
    “Jonny. He’s like his daddy, all charm and good looks, but underneath it all, a snake. They’re all snakes, believe it,” Vivian said, filling her empty glass with more wine.
    Cassidy couldn’t let it go. “Why is it you hate the Conways so much, Mom? What in the hell did they ever do to you?”
    “Not what they did to me ,” Vivian said. “What Blake did to your daddy.”
    “What do you mean what they did to Daddy? He skipped out when we were born, what does Blake Conway have to do with that?”
    “Your father used to work with Blake. Well, before … ” Vivian trailed off, first into mumbles, then into silence.
    “What, Mom?”
    “Huh?” Vivian said as if snapped back from a catnap.
    “You were saying Dad worked with Blake Conway before … before what?”
    “Why don’t you ask your boyfriend?”
    Cassidy hated how Vivian kept calling Jon her boyfriend . “This is the first time I’m hearing that my father, a man I never knew, worked with Blake Conway. I’m pretty sure Jon would know nothing about it.”
    “Then ask his daddy. He’ll know. Though I doubt he’ll tell you,” Vivian cackled before falling into a long fit of coughing. When she stopped, Cassidy was annoyed, at Vivian for her pettiness, and herself for not having gone to dinner with Jon and Emma.
    “Just tell me, Mom.”
    “I don’t want to talk about it anymore.”
    “Then why the hell did you bring it up?” Cassidy asked, her voice rising to a whine. If Vivian was baiting her, Cassidy had been hooked into a fight.
    “I’m sorry. And don’t yell at me,” Vivian said, launching into crocodile tears.
    Great, more drama!
    “Come on, Mom, I wasn’t yelling at you. I’m just frustrated. Why can’t you tell me something that happened more than 30 years ago?”
    Vivian’s tears were gone. Sudden anger burned in her eyes. “Just fucking ask him if you wanna know!”
    Cassidy stared at her mom, and her mom’s shaking hands. She snarled at Cassidy as she reached for her wine, then downed it to empty, stood, snarled again, went into the living room, sank into her recliner, cranked the volume, and stared at her monitor as it lit back with color.
    Cassidy sat at the kitchen table, stunned, mouth agape.
    Vivian then shouted over the blaring TV, “That means goodnight, in case you can’t take a hint!”
    Cassidy fumed. She wanted to march into the living room and yell at her mom for being such a fucking bitch, and for ruining her night, thank you very much, but she wasn’t about to fall further into her mom’s trap. She wasn’t going to give Vivian any more of what she craved.
    Cassidy stood from the table, not bothering to put her bowl or plate in the sink, walked out the front door, and slammed it shut. She was about to stomp off, but at the last moment Cass turned back, locked the door, then left.

    **

    She drove back to Jon’s house, pissed, confused, and wondering what Blake Conway had to do with her dad leaving them. If Vivian was telling the truth, and Cassidy had no reason to suspect she wasn’t — her mom might be angry, drunk, and confused, but she never knowingly lied to Cassidy, so far as she knew — then Blake had done something to chase her father off forever. But what? And why? Did Blake Conway have some fetish with chasing dads from the Hughes family?
    She pulled into Jon’s garage wishing he was back from Blake’s. But the garage was empty, which meant the house was empty, too. Just her and her pills.
    Cassidy went in through the kitchen, passed the bar, and plopped on the couch, surfing channels, searching for something, anything to distract her. But The Addict was back, whispering sweet nothings in her ear like a lover.
    Come on, relax, Cassidy. You deserve it after dealing with that crazy bitch mom!
    “No! Leave me alone.”
    Don’t be mad. I’m only