Chapter 32: JANIE

I braced myself and waited for the volley of insults that always followed after the hellos were out of the way. I felt the energy coming off her, the smell of sulfur, and knew where she'd been.

This could get very ugly if I'm not careful. It had been some time since I'd had a meet with mom to have her cast, and with Ryder in the wind, most of her efforts had been on keeping him under some semblance of control even from a distance, although we had no idea if it was working or not.

"So, what are we going to do about this mess you've gotten us into?" How did I know she would blame me once again for her own screwups? It's not my fault that people were now ostracizing and canceling her family because of her actions and theirs. "Didn't you hear me? I asked you a question."

I wanted to yell back at her that it wasn't my fault she was known as the woman who pimped her daughters out for clout and wealth. Ever since that post was made, it's been open season on the whole Hudson clan, something I