Rule 6 - Domino

The spraying of vomit caused mania. People were snapping their cameras and screaming. Uncle Carlos fled back to the house, and I was let free.

I felt careful hands on my shoulders and they led me up the drive.

"Let"s get you a shower," Mattias said, gagging at the smell. Once we were inside, he dropped my shoulders. "We"ll be down here, waiting."

I trudged upstairs, remembering the layout instantly. The Risky family estate was huge, and every bedroom had an attached bathroom. Going through the halls, I remembered it all so well and found my room just as I"d left it.

It was odd, stepping back in time. A housekeeper had kept up with the dusting, but it looked as if I was still living here as a twelve-year-old girl. I hated it with every fiber of my being. Closing my eyes, I went to my bathroom to get the vomit and feel of my uncle's hands off my body.

Lolita, the same housekeeper from when I lived here, came in with clothes from Marisol"s room, along with soap, shampoo, a razor, and deodorant. I thanked her and took my hot shower. I took my time, enjoying the luxury I hadn"t had in years. Most of the time, I bathed in the sinks of public bathrooms or outdoors, in bodies of water. The people I kept in my company didn"t care about how I smelled, or how long my leg hair was. However, I liked having smooth legs, underarms, and... other things. I liked feeling soft, smooth, and extra clean and while I was here, I might as well enjoy doing that. I took my time, shaving my overgrown hair and scrubbing my body. It felt fantastic.

Maybe returning home wasn"t all bad. I liked having regular access to a razor and soap. Stepping back into my room, I recalled every reason I"d left originally, and fled, hurrying downstairs, dressed in my sister"s clothes.

"Hey! I thought you"d drowned," Fabian teased as I walked into the living room. All three men were drinking various glasses of alcohol, even Mattias, who was the same age as me, nineteen. I avoided Uncle Carlos"s eyes.

"The shower was nice," I admitted.

"You smell so much better," Mattias agreed. They all nodded eagerly. These men, I swore, could not survive what I had these last seven years.

"Well, why don"t we call your sister now and see if Lolita has dinner done. I"m starving," Uncle Carlos said, smiling brightly. His voice grated against my skin, and I forced myself not to react outwardly.

We followed him out, and when we started to sit down at the dining room table, he insisted I sit next to him. I refused. His jaw tightened, and his eyes hardened, but he remained silent. I sat in the farthest chair from him.

We were joined a moment later by Monica, my stepmother. I"d all but forgotten about her. She walked to Uncle Carlos, who stood. They exchanged a kiss, and my stomach rolled again. They were together now? Mattias saw my reaction and snickered.

"They got married a year after Dad died."

I reached for my water, my hand shaking as I brought it to my lips. Uncle Carlos had moved in to help after Dad died, and he apparently decided never to leave.

With each second I stayed, the more I realized this was a bad idea. There was no way I could stay in this house. Especially if my two biggest tormentors were in a relationship.

My heart, just like the night I"d left, cried for my father.

"Welcome back," Monica said, her voice bitter. "I saw the dog. That can"t stay."

I closed my eyes as memories kept punching me over and over. There was no way I could stay here. Lolita came through with bowls of bread, and I was handed one and told to eat. I took a bite, but I had lost my appetite. Instead, I sipped on my water, trying to find a way out of this.

Do this for Johnny Blue.

The words ran through my head and I repeated them until I calmed down.

"That"s fine. I don"t want to stay." I shoved my chair back and stood. Just then, the doors to the dining room burst open and the one and only Marisol, my older sister by three months, stormed in and plopped down at the other end of the table.

"Well, well, well, congrats, Fab. You did it. How much does he get for finding her?" She leaned across the table, glaring at all of us. Marisol was the only one in my family with any significant changes to her appearance. She had dyed the front half of her hair orange, leaving the rest her natural black. Her lipstick matched her clothes, which were also black. Her makeup was thick and looked like she"d had a professional artist doing it. Everything about her screamed money, power, and privilege. "Is she wearing my clothes?"

"How was the park today, Marisol?" Uncle Carlos asked, ignoring her questions.

"Same as every opening day. Lots of idiots to train how to do basic shit. Was your hair always that color? I can't remember." She grabbed a roll and pointed to me.

I reached for a bleached strand. Some of the red from the rest of my head mixed with it. Of course, this wasn't my natural color.

"No," I said. "My friend, Fox, did it. They are going to school and wanted to try out the colors."

"Well, Fox made you look like a cherry skunk." She laughed. "Red and blonde? With your complexion and eye color?"

I looked down, ashamed. The fact that I was lighter complexioned than all my siblings had always been a point of contention in the Risky house. It was further proof that I was a bastard child and not their full sibling. Despite what Dad tried to say when he was alive, I was no blessing.

"What?" She grabbed the beer bottle right out of Lolita"s hand the moment she brought it out. "Sisters rag on each other. Can"t I do that?"

"She just returned to us, not tonight. Besides, I think the colors compliment your skin well. You are very pretty, Domino," Uncle Carlos complimented.

Dinner was served. Steak, potatoes, and asparagus. I tried to eat modestly, as I could feel all eyes on me, with each thinking something different. Concern, amusement, curiosity, disgust.

"Mattias is our crisis manager. He makes sure the staff is trained with how to respond to accidents and deals with anything legal," Marisol said.

Mattias rolled his eyes. "I just call the lawyer when someone threatens to sue."

"Yes, and that. That"s a big thing!" Uncle Carlos laughed. "And Fabian, you were just promoted to ah, what"s it called?"

Fabian took a drink of his beer and then used air quotes. "Guest experience manager. I manage the restaurants, gift shops, and the amphitheater stuff. Anything that isn"t a ride is my jurisdiction."

"And everything that is a ride is mine," Marisol boasted. "I"m the operations manager. I"m the boss of everyone. Which brings us to the elephant in the room." Everyone looked around the table, no one appeared to know what she was talking about, so she continued. "Everything is taken. We didn"t need you to come back. There"s no place for you. I don"t care what Dad wanted. He was wrong, you aren"t a blessing."

I flinched at the hurtful way she threw the nickname Dad had for me back in my face. While I did agree with her, I didn't like it.

Low mutters of disagreement came from across me, my brothers shaking their heads. While they"d never been loving, they weren"t cruel like my sister was.

"The Risky blood runs just as much in Domino as it does in us," Fabian chimed in. Out of the three of them, he was the only one who was nice to me. "As the oldest child, I think I should step in and help make some decisions. I"ve already spoken to Uncle Carlos and we both think?—"

"I have decided to make your sister Risky Rush"s new Park Ambassador," Uncle Carlos boomed, raising his hands with a large smile on his face.

Marisol sprung up and whipped her beer at his head. He dodged it and the glass hit the wall behind him, shattering into a million pieces. The two of them began a shouting match from either end of the table. I couldn"t do anything but watch. I was too overwhelmed. I"d never wanted this life.

Do it for Johnny Blue.

"I don"t understand why this is so bad. What"s a park ambassador?" I shouted across the table. My brothers shared a look, and then Mattias cupped his hands around his mouth to shout back.

"Park Ambassador is the face of the park. Commercials, flyers, all of that. She"s mad because that used to be her job."

"You"d think she"d be happy to have less on her plate!" Fabian snickered.

"She"s mad because you"re prettier than her, and that"s why he chose you to do the job." Mattias laughed, and Marisol launched herself across the table at him.

Everyone was screaming and trying to talk over each other while pulling Marisol off our brother. Finally, after she was shoved back and had stopped yelling, Fabian cleared his throat and looked at me.

"So, what do you say, can you stay and do this with us? Help us run the park?"

I gulped.

For Johnny Blue.

I lifted a finger. "Under one condition."