“You get the fuck out. Now. You were already—” She doesn’t get the words out before I swing my fist and punch her in the jaw. She stumbles back, and I’m pulled between Marcus and Bellamy.
“What the fuck is happening right now?!” I say loudly. “What the fuck is wrong with this goddamn town?”
“The town?” The bartender yells. “You stole from your momma, nearly got her fired. You stole from me, and now you want to play the victim?”
“I don’t even know you fucking people!” I scream at her, but she laughs. Before I can lunge, Marcus grabs me.
“Stop. Stop it. Relax, Kendra,” he says gently.
“Kendra? Is that what she told you her name was?!” the woman laughs dryly.
“Wait,” I say, looking at Marcus and Bellamy. “The woman at the motel called me Tina, then asked if I knew who Tina Waddell is.”
“You are Tina Waddell, you dumb bitch,” the bartender yells at me.
“My name is Kendra Lennon, you ignorant cunt. I don’t fucking live here. I live in Huston. I’m only here to find some stupid fuck who tried to kill me. What the fuck is in the goddamn water here? It’s a damn good thing I didn’t fucking grow up here. Jesus. Foster care was a goddamn blessing.” I am so angry that I’m shaking, but now the woman is looking at me with wide eyes. “What the fuck is wrong with your face? You had so much to fucking say before.”
“Call Hannah and Tim,” the woman says to the male server. She looks back at me, and it’s like she is looking at a ghost. “Come sit.”
“No!” I snap.
“Kendra Lennon was my niece who died at five months old. Please sit,” she says again.
“Oh damn,” Bellamy says. “You’re Suzette’s sister?”
“I am. My name is Cynthia,” she says. I let them walk me over to a table where we all sit down. The woman rubs her hands down her face. “Susie overdosed, and a baby was with her. I refused to take custody because she couldn’t have kids. I figured she stole the baby. She hadn't been herself since Kendra died.”
“Well, I’m not Tina,” I say. “Who the fuck is that?”
“Tina Waddell is a sticky-fingered bitch who steals from everyone. You look… Jesus Christ… you can’t be…”
“What?” I ask.
“Hannah and Tim are walking over from the clinic,” the man says, glaring at me.
“I’m going to go pee before whoever that is gets here,” I say blankly. Usually I wouldn’t be so crass, but I don’t give a fuck. I walk to the bathroom and take my time. When I walk out, I am no more than three steps out when a woman appears and smacks me across the face.
“Hannah!” Cynthia yells, throwing herself out of the chair, but Marcus and Bellamy are already to me. “It’s not Tina! Stop!”
Marcus grabs me and pulls me away from a now very confused Hannah. A man, Tim I assume, looks like he wants to hit me too, but a glare from Bellamy and Marcus keeps them where they stand.
“Upstairs. All of you,” Cynthia demands.
“But she…” Tim starts to say.
“Now!” Cynthia growls.
“I’m so confused,” I admit as we all follow Cynthia down a hallway and up a flight of stairs.
“You have some fucking nerve coming back here,” Hannah growls at me.
“Bitch, I don’t even know who the fuck you are,” I snap.
“Christ, Hannah. She isn’t Tina. Look at her,” Cynthia says. “Look at her. Both of you. Her name is Kendra Lennon.”
“Oh… oh my God!” Hannah yells, backing up from me as she starts crying. “No. She’s dead. They said she was dead. Cynthia… no.”
“Will someone tell me what the fuck is happening?!” I yell, making everyone look at me.
