"It's a goddamn mess, is what it is," I sigh.
"That's not an answer and you know it."
"Yeah. Yeah, I do."
"Well?" he demands. "And don't even try to keep me in the dark on this one. I'm not a little kid anymore, you know."
"I know you're not. I… Hold on a second. I need a drink."
I go to the bar cart and pour myself a splash of vodka.
Returning to the kitchen, I sink onto a bar stool across the counter from Carl and fix him with a serious look.
"Rowdy is my brother. Yours, too,technically. Well, half. We all have the same mom. The dad situation is a complete mystery, but it doesn't really change anything."
Carl's jaw is tight. Is that what I look like when I brood?
He looks like he's one sneeze away from shattering into a million little pieces, never to be reassembled.
Every muscle in his face and neck is standing at rigid attention.
"Him and I grew up together," I continue.
