Chance paused for a moment, mouth agape and brows furrowed, and Faith wondered if between her and Aaron, they had finally unintentionally broken him. Except...he had started to laugh, smacking the brick wall next to him as he did so. Chance glanced back at Aaron, who also laughed, but only for a brief moment.
"So am I just that much of a joke to you that we can't even have a grown-up conversation?" Faith asked Chance with an edge to her voice.
"Oh man..." Finally collecting himself, Chance cleared his throat and replied, "No, not at all. It's just the fact you had any interest in being Rowan's girlfriend to begin with is already beyond me, but I thought surely you would have caught on by now what a storyteller he is. I guess I really did overestimate your ability to eventually see through his lies."
"Okay, forget the company," Faith said, holding both her hands up in frustration. "What about Mariah? Is she really alive?"
"Oh, don't even get me started on Mariah--she's gotten just as manipulative as Rowan is, and only ever talks to me when she wants something." He paused in thought. "But then again, I might have finally gotten her to stop calling me, since I haven't heard from her in almost a year."
"Okay..." Faith nodded slowly. "Well, you have no idea what a relief it is to me that Mariah is okay and that Spencer didn't actually kill her. But I still fail to understand why you two left Rowan in that situation. Why didn't you take him with you, especially since he took the brunt of the abuse?" She couldn't think of any legitimate excuse he could possibly have, but she thought she would ask anyway, just in case his answer surprised her.
Some of the arrogance finally melted away from Chance's face, and he let out a sigh. "I know it sounds cruel, but...you really wouldn't understand. Rowan had problems from the start, and I tried to be a brother to him, but our grandfather wouldn't get him the medication he needed and Rowan just got worse over time with his delusions and manipulation tactics, and between him and Spencer, Mariah and I just--couldn't take it anymore. After that, we just went our separate ways with what we wanted to do with our freedom." As Faith was trying to process all of this, Chance glanced back at Aaron with a glare. "So yes, if I can help it, I'd rather not take the same direction as the majority of my biological family--or my former roommate."
"Oh come on Chance, don't lump me in there with them. You're breakin' my heart here," Aaron said, looking anything but heartbroken.
"Look, do you mind? I've given you my answer," Chance said impatiently.
"Alright, alright, would ya' at least let me finish this first? Then I'll leave and let you two finish your little blame game," Aaron retorted, holding up his cigarette before taking another puff on it.
"Blame game?" Chance turned to Faith once again. "What's he talking about, Faith?" He began slowly walking toward her again, causing her to back up. "You never answered me about where Rowan was. You said you had something to tell me about him..."
Faith took a deep breath. "Yeah, I do. You were right earlier, Chance. We were inseparable. But I guess that's not what Rowan wants anymore. And I get it--you have your own life and your own problems now, but I just thought I would tell you anyway, and hear you out on your side of the story."
However, Chance wasn't exactly having the nonchalant reaction that Faith had expected. Bringing his hand up to his head while pacing around, he mumbled, "I can't believe it... I can't believe you let this happen..."
"Look, I've made a missing report. The police said they would look for him--"
"But they won't, will they? They won't until it's too late. Do you know that at one point, I actually somewhat trusted you to keep him in check?"
"Look, I thought Spencer was going to kill me when he brought me in that house, and at the time Rowan made me believe he was the only one who could help me. You're saying it like I wanted Rowan and Spencer to ruin my life. I didn't."
"And you think I did?!" Chance's voice rose before once again lowering to a secretive yet furious whisper. "We had to be there for most of our lives, and you were there for only what, two or three days?! And now Rowan's gonna go and do something incredibly stupid, if he hasn't already, and my supervisors will find out that I'm related to another whacked-out criminal, and probably fire me."
"Well we don't judge ya' at Happy Scoops, regardless of your past. So if that does happen, that offer I made still stands," Aaron said as he finished his cigarette. "You and your sister would have to get along though, since she works there too now."
"No. I'm through with this--with all of it! All in one weekend my former roommate starts trying to extort me, AND I find out my mentally ill brother is missing while even my sister apparently can't find a legal way to make a living! One thing's for sure though, Galanos--you don't intimidate me with this whole fake mob boss persona of yours. But I mean, if you really need a replacement that bad, hire her," Chance said, pointing at Faith. "She's an office-type person, and probably has some extra time on her hands now with Rowan gone."
"Hey, Chance...do you know what my favorite part about this whole thing is?" Faith asked before Aaron could respond, her voice beginning to quiver due to the anger she had been suppressing. "For a minute I thought maybe, just maybe, you somewhat cared about your brother and sister's wellbeing. But no, it's all about your reputation--to the extent you would try to throw me under the bus in order to save yourself. Even if you did once care for them, it's obvious you no longer do."
"Oh, can it already!" he now exclaimed, propping his arm up on the brick wall behind Faith so that they stood toe to toe. Meanwhile, Aaron had started walk away, but was continuing to glance back at the two of them.
Faith started to toy with the keychain she now held in both her hands as she glared back up at Chance. He tried to grab it, but Faith was quicker, shoving it into her purse and clutching it to her with both hands. She had heard about as much as she was willing to take, but at the same time, if she used that pepper spray on him, she would have to contact the police afterward, which she decided wouldn't be worth the trouble.
Once again lowering his voice to a whisper, Chance added, "Your family handed you everything in life, so of course you wouldn't know about the hard choices I had to make once I was on my own. Rowan might've finally gotten tired of you, but one thing that's for sure is that you two deserve each other."
That was enough for Faith. Stomping down on Chance's foot as hard as she could and elbowing him in the chest, she broke away and had to resist the urge to flat out run in the opposite direction she'd initially come. Instead, she cautiously backed away while keeping an eye on both Chance and Aaron. "This conversation is over," she hissed at Chance, returning the disgusted look he was giving her. "Rowan is your problem now--just as he always should've been!"
"Oh, it's far from over, Faith. You spent years trying to convince me that you could take care of him, only to lose him, just like that! You give me one good reason why I shouldn't sue you for negligence!" He then pointed in Aaron's direction and added, "And you for extortion!"
This made Aaron stop completely in his tracks.
"That's just ridiculous," Faith said with an eye roll, hoping none of the fear she was feeling was showing through. He wouldn't really try to take me to court...would he? Of course he wouldn't be likely to win a case like that against her, but still, having to go through a process like that was the last thing she needed.
"Ya' know Faith, I agree with that," Aaron said, walking over to Chance and placing a hand on his shoulder. "Listen, Faith here did nothing to your brother but give him sympathy he never deserved. And extortion? Aren't we bein' a little dramatic here?"
"Tell that to my lawyer," Chance shot back, though he was actually beginning to look nervous for a change. "Why would you even care about Faith, anyway--?"
In one swift motion, Aaron pinned Chance against the brick wall and whispered something inaudible in Chance's ear, causing any anger in Chance's facial expression to be replaced with utter fear as he glanced at Faith and then back at Aaron. "...So, I hope you make the right choice," Aaron finished in his regular voice, letting him go. "In the meantime, ya' might wanna go home and put some ice on that foot. Judging by the look on your face, I'd say she did a number there."
Chance's sudden change in expressions was so drastic that Faith almost--almost--felt some sympathy for him as he limped away from them without another word, back toward the same direction Faith had first come in.
"Wow. And people say I'M crazy," Aaron mumbled as they both walked away in the opposite direction.
Faith said nothing, only glaring straight ahead and hoping she didn't have an emotional episode in front of Aaron. He had already seen her weak side once. Maybe all of this really is my fault. If I wanted to be smart, I would've just never gotten involved and left that whole family alone. This 'hero' thing that Sherm still talks about is a complete joke--either that, or I'm just really terrible at it.
"Relax, sweetheart. He ain't gonna sue you. Not now," Aaron added quietly to her.
"I would hope not," Faith said, still disgusted by Chance's continued treatment of her, and of his own siblings for that matter. She knew she was supposed to be just as disgusted by Aaron's behavior as she was by Chance's, but in this case, she really couldn't help but be impressed by the way he had put Chance in his place. "Seriously...how did you live with him?" she found herself asking out loud, mostly just trying to talk over Chance's words that continued to swirl around inside her mind.
"He wasn't always like that," Aaron shrugged. "But I've seen it too many times--people can turn on ya' in an instant. You of all people should know that by now. But hey, maybe I was...sort of wrong about you being delicate. Sheena would've just burst into tears if it was her in your place," he said, shaking his head.
"Rowan would've done the same thing," Faith empathized. "And he definitely couldn't have scared Chance off like you did." Wait, what's the matter with you? This criminal is not your friend, nor is his deceiving Sheena any better than the way Rowan deceived you. And who knows what Aaron actually told him to make him look so scared?
Aaron must have begun thinking some similar cautionary thoughts to himself about her, as they both looked away from one another and cleared their throats in awkward unison. While it might have been satisfying seeing Chance actually lose an argument, Faith knew the only reason Aaron took her side was to make sure she didn't set foot near a courthouse, let alone potentially have to fork over money that could otherwise be his.
As they came around the corner and were once again in front of the row of shops and cafes that Dale's Bookstore was a part of, Faith suddenly remembered she still had to give him that sticker back, and hope he would actually take it. All she really wanted was to get back to her parents' house and not talk to anyone for most of her week off. At least now, maybe she wouldn't have to drive to Happy Scoops anymore...
"Look, there's something I need to give you and then I'll need to get going," Faith now said tersely, glancing between Aaron and the parking lot that was a block away.
Aaron raised his eyebrows. "Oh, something to give me?" Lowering his voice, he questioned warily, "What is this, Faith? Today ain't Friday."
"Just the sticker," Faith quickly reassured him, also lowering her voice and making sure there was no one immediately nearby. "Thanks for...letting me try it out, but I don't think I need it anymore. You can just send someone like Levi or Tracy by my house, since you said earlier that was an option."
"I see..."
"And I'll actually answer the door," Faith added sheepishly. She did not like how quiet Aaron was being.
"Well about that...there's someone at Happy Scoops who really wants to meet you," he now said thoughtfully. "So ya' might wanna hold on to it."
"Um, who?" Faith backed away slightly, unsure of where this was going.
"Mariah," he said simply, and as he'd probably known it would, that was enough to stop Faith in her tracks. "Remember when I mentioned that to Chance? Anyway, I thought it might do you two some good, given the entire Rowan situation. Heck, you two might even become friends."
Faith nodded slowly, highly doubting she would ever befriend anyone with the last name 'Frost' ever again. At any rate, it was obvious he had some ulterior motive in mind. "Okay...now tell me the real reason you want me to meet her--or rather, why she wants to meet me. You told me not to involve myself any further with Rowan any more than I had to, and now all of a sudden you want me to befriend his sister?"
"You really are impossible," he mumbled. "Alright, so I've got Mariah--or Melanie as she insists on being called--working the counter with Levi at Happy Scoops, and she's pretty much the opposite of Chance. The girl's almost always smiling and loves to keep busy, except she blames herself for Rowan's craziness, especially after Keith told her he went missing from your place. If anybody can convince her to move on and that Rowan deserves whatever consequences come his way, it'd be his former girlfriend and caretaker who saw his true colors firsthand that night."
So basically, my breakup with Rowan is the talk of Happy Scoops and you want me to recount my entire experience with him to her in detail. Wonderful. "I don't know about this, Aaron..." she ventured. "I'm glad she's okay, but I really don't think I would be much help to her. I can barely take care of myself right now, as you know, so if anything I think I would just make things worse for her."
Aaron shook his head dismissively. "Faith, Faith...you're too hard on yourself. Don't worry--she doesn't blame ya' for what happened. Not like Chance does. If anything, she said she wanted to thank you for trying to help the guy. So how about it? I really ain't asking for much here."
Faith remembered back to when he threatened to raise her interest, and figured he could always use that again if he didn't like her answer. She had a bad feeling about this entire thing, but her remaining three weeks as a name in Aaron's book would likely go by a lot faster if she went along, at least this one time. She could easily think of worse things he could ask her to do than have an honest (if not uncomfortable) conversation with her ex's sister, so she supposed that maybe she should count herself lucky in that regard.
"I--" At that moment, her phone had begun to ring, and of course at a moment like this it had to be Sherm, of all people. Faith thought about not answering at all at first, but Sherm would probably just call back and Aaron would be suspicious, so she would just have to take it.
"Hello?" she greeted her friend reluctantly.
"Hey Faith...how're you doing?" Sherm's voice was thick with sympathy, which Faith disliked greatly. They hadn't gotten a chance to talk with one another outside of texting ever since Rowan left.
"About as well as you think," Faith sighed. "Look, was there a specific reason you called me? I'm a little busy here."
"Well...I was just wondering if you wanted to hang out with me and Violet today. Maybe look at some art, get some food, and I also thought we could do some more investigating into the S.A.S.--"
"I'll think about it," Faith quickly cut him off. "But I've been a little busy doing some errands around town. I'll text you, okay?"
"Oh...okay. Only if you want to, though. I guess I'll talk to you later, then." Sherm was clearly taken aback by Faith's abrupt tone, but she would just have to explain herself somehow at a different time.
"Yeah. Later." Having kept Aaron within the corner of her eye throughout Sherm's phone call, he fortunately didn't seem to have heard Sherm mention the vigilante group that Aaron's sister was very possibly a part of. "Sorry about that."
Getting straight back to the point, Aaron pressed, "So you'll talk to her?"
"Yeah...I'll do it. I guess it would be nice, actually getting to see her alive and well after being lied to about her for so long."
"Great," he beamed. Mr. Nice Guy was back. "This whole thing was really Melanie's idea, but I thought it'd help her stop beating herself up about Rowan, in case anything happens."
Faith wasn't going to ask what he might actually mean by that, but it did bring her back to another thought she had been having. "Okay, but about what Chance said earlier--he was just trying to mess with the both of us when he suggested you...hire me. I'd really be a horrible accountant," she said uneasily.
"Heh, why would I get an editor to do an accountant's job? Ya' shouldn't act so nervous all the time, Faith. You'll get lines on your forehead. Now go on, hang out with your friends," he said, making a shooing motion with his hand. "It's gotta be better than going back to your parents' house and feelin' sorry for yourself, right?"
"Maybe," Faith shrugged, relieved that he hadn't given Chance's cruel suggestion much thought, but then stopped short. "Wait--I never told you about that." She gave him one of her warning looks.
"Hey, I'm sure they're nice people. It's nothing personal or anything," Aaron said, holding his hands up innocently in his typical fashion.
"Well, I hope you enjoy the rest of your day off," Faith remarked, emphasizing the words 'day off'. He wasn't wearing his suit today at least, instead sporting a white t-shirt and jeans. She wondered if at least some of the time he had an actual hobby or two, like those of a normal person.
After I'm done dealing with him, I'm taking that decal and all of Rowan's paintings and setting them on fire, she thought as she made her way toward her car, resolving to finally get the courage up to ask her parents about borrowing a handgun from her dad's collection (which was practically a small arsenal) until she could somehow get another one of her own. Either way, at the rate things were happening, she knew she couldn't stay over at her parents' for much longer, as nice as this period of reconciliation had been.
However, the more she thought about it, the more she realized she really wasn't ready to head back to her parents' house just yet. Not after everything that had happened today. For all she knew Aaron could be planning something sinister for Rowan, or for her for that matter, but with a bit of strategizing, maybe it still wasn't too late...
After sitting alone in her uncranked car and staring straight ahead at nothing in particular for a couple of minutes, she finally picked up her phone to text Sherm back: "Hi Sherm. Sorry about the wait. It turns out I might know another member of the S.A.S. and I'd like to know more about them myself, but if we're going to be talking in public, we'll have to come up with code names for Cobalt and the S.A.S. before we meet."
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