Vignette 3: Mother's Day

Disclaimer: a thing we do to assure folks we're not trying to make money off of someone else's characters.
Rating: T
Summary: this is just a little entertainment for the elusive dragonmactir. A little plot-lite day at the station.

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"Wait, why did we get this case again?"

Carlton sighed. "Because we both landed the Mother's Day shift and we're being punished."

Juliet stared morosely through the glass into Interrogation A. "But they're …"

"Nuts? Or just siblings?"

"I don't get sisters. All I had were big brothers."

"And my sister was so much younger than me—and our household so screwed up—that I don't really get sisters either." He stood up straight, leafing through the casefile one more time. "Come on, O'Hara. We're tougher than they are."

She wasn't convinced.

He led the way, Juliet following reluctantly, and they settled into the chairs across from the two young women and their mother. There was a distinct chill between the sisters, both in their thirties, and the mother just looked weary.

"Let's start from the top," Carlton said. "Mrs. Sarkany, you and your daughters Mandy and—"

Juliet interrupted. "Sarkany is an interesting name."

"It's Hungarian," the tired woman said. "It means dragon."

"—and Mara," Carlton continued.

Mara was grumpy. "It's Hebrew. It means bitter."

He looked at Mandy expectantly. "Well?"

She shrugged. "It means my mom liked Barry Manilow."

Her mother nodded.

"All right. You three are the main players in an incident of disorderly conduct in a Starbucks this morning. According to witnesses—"

Mara interrupted. "You can't trust anything they say."

"—and video footage," he went on implacably, "you threw a 'Double-Smoked Bacon, Cheddar & Egg Sandwich' at your sister Mandy, who ducked, and so it hit your mother."

Mrs. Sarkany brushed at her sweater.

Mara sulked. "She started it."

"I did not," Mandy retorted. "You tried to steal my chocolate croissant while yelling about what you didn't get for Christmas in 1992, I told you to shut it, and you went nuts."

Mara shot her a look. "It was 1993, and I didn't go nuts. You deliberately twist everything I say. And it's not like Mom here was innocent."

Both women stared at her. "Excuse me?" Mrs. Sarkany demanded.

Mandy sighed.

"I believe I was nibbling on my toffeedoodle, trying to stay out of it. I believe the only thing I said to you was that you should keep your voice down."

"That's what you always say, Mom. We could be in the middle of a freakin' stadium during the half-time show and you'd tell me to keep my voice down."

"At any rate," Carlton interrupted. "Food was flung. For starters."

Juliet peered over his arm at the open casefile. "Oooh. Hostages."

"They weren't hostages! They're my children!"

"Where are the children?" Mrs. Sarkany asked, worried.

"It says here you held the boy up in front of you with one arm while you threw napkins and coffee cup lids at your sister." Juliet was really interested now. "And you sent the girl under the table to—does that say to bite Mandy's ankle?"

Mandy reached down to rub at her lower leg. "Glancing blow."

"The children are with Social Services," Carlton answered. "You'll get them back once we determine you're not a danger to them."

"I'm not a danger to anyone!"

Her mother said icily, "I have double-smoked bacon grease in my hair."

Mandy supplied, "The kids aren't really bad. They're just kids. When they're not around Mara they're okay."

"Not helping her case," Juliet pointed out.

"I don't have a case!" Mara smacked her hands on the table. "I'm just under a lot of stress and no one in this room understands that!"

"No, no one here understands stress." Carlton's tone was a deceptively calm drawl. He sat back in his chair. "So do we have the order of events right?"

"Is it always like this between you guys?" Juliet was studying each woman in turn.

Mandy and her mother looked at each other. "We get along okay."

"Oh really."

"No, I mean we get along okay. Mom and I do fine. A little crazy-making now and then but nothing unusual."

Mara was not liking this one bit. "So I'm the one who, what, ruins everything? This is so like you!"

Carlton tapped the folder to get their attention. "You three voluntarily went out together in public with the children?"

"Mother's Day outing," Mandy explained. "Didn't think the debacle of 2016 could hit twice."

"Like it's all about her," Mara muttered, eyeing the elder lady. "I'm the one with kids." Seeing their expressions, she amended, "Small ones. Hers are grown. Her work is done."

Her mother was unimpressed. "Do tell."

"Anyway, why are we here? Nothing happened."

Juliet pulled the casefile over to herself and opened it up. "Video footage shows you entered together, ordered your food and drinks, and sat down. There was what appears to be a heated conversation instigated by you, Mara—what was that about?"

Mara clammed up.

Mrs. Sarkany went back to removing bits of biscuit from her sweater.

Mandy rolled her eyes. "She was mad because Mom wouldn't loan her money for hair extensions."

"That is not what I wanted the money for!"

"And fake nails."

"Mandy, shut up!"

"And a tattoo to cover the one she got for her last husband."

Mara was instantly on her feet, enraged, and down again two seconds later when Juliet rounded the table and clamped a hand on her arm.

"You will. Remain. Seated." Her tone was effective, because Mara subsided.

Carlton gave her an approving glance, and Juliet couldn't help but smirk a little.

"What does the current tattoo say?" he asked.

Mandy seemingly couldn't help but smirk a little too. "Loveybuns."

"I will kill you later," Mara warned her.

"Yeah, yeah, cash me ousside."

Carlton snapped, "No one is killing anyone or making any more threats, is that clear? You are potentially under arrest, depending upon whether Starbucks decides to press charges for the disruption and the damage to the tables, napkin dispenser, banana nut loaf and magazine rack."

"You damaged a banana nut loaf?" Juliet went back to the file to catch up. "Wow. Busy morning, ladies."

"Let's get back to the timeline, shall we?" Carlton gestured to Juliet to continue.

"Yes, where were we… oh. Heated conversation, attempted croissant snatch, more heated conversation, Mara gets up, throws biscuit, Mandy ducks, Mom gets hit. Mom's on her feet, Mara grabs her son, guerilla warfare breaks out. Hmmm. Generally speaking, though, it appears that you, Mara, did most of the yelling and throwing."

"She started it!" Mara yelled. "I told you before! Mandy always gets this stuff started and I have to pick up the pieces!"

Mandy rolled her eyes again. So did Mrs. Sarkany.

Carlton cleared his throat. "We are not your counselors. We are not interested in your bizarre family histrionics. We are police officers. We are trying to establish your roles in what happened, and whether there are extenuating circumstances which led to you flinging objects at your family members in Starbucks this morning."

"I didn't fling—"

"And again I say to you, video footage."

Juliet eyed Mandy. "What didn't she get in 1993 for Christmas?"

"Mandy." Mara's voice was brimming with hostility.

"Shut it," Carlton said. "My partner asked her a question. She will answer it."

Mandy was at least clever enough to keep all inflection from her answer. "Earring Magic Ken."

Juliet bit back a laugh, Carlton frowned, and Mara hit the table again with one fist. "This!" she shouted. "This is what I have to put up with!"

"What are you talking about?"

"I never asked for anything special! That year, all I wanted was that damned Ken doll. But no! No! The one thing I asked for, and I got a big fat no!"

Mrs. Sarkany retorted, "Every year your Christmas list filled a notebook. And that year, that 'damned Ken doll' was sold out in two minutes because gay men everywhere went berserk hunting it down."

"Her first husband turned out to be gay," Mandy whispered to Juliet.

"Not Loveybuns?" Juliet whispered back.

"Stop it! Stop it all of you!" Mara was on her feet again, and before anyone could get to her, she had picked up the metal chair and was brandishing it pretty effectively.

Carlton's turn for an eyeroll. He and Juliet drew their weapons while Mandy and her mom rapidly took cover behind them. "Drop the chair, Bitter."

She roared instead, and threw it.

It didn't go far; barely made it to the table. But there was an impressive clatter, and while Carlton was shouting at her, uniformed officers entered the room and got her cuffed.

"Well," he said with satisfaction, re-holstering his gun, "now it doesn't matter whether or not Starbucks presses charges for that damaged banana nut loaf. Now you're under arrest for pissing me off."

Juliet nudged him. "But more officially, for throwing a chair. You know. Attempted assault. Sounds more official-like."

He grinned. "Yes, O'Hara. Yes it does." He helped Mrs. Sarkany and Mandy up while shrieking Mara was hauled off to Booking. "Ladies. Everyone okay?"

"Yes, thanks." Mrs. Sarkany seemed shaken, but Mandy was apparently taking it in stride.

"You, um, have a little biscuit on your sleeve." Juliet brushed it off for her.

"What'll happen to her? I wish I could tell you she's not always like this. I wish I could tell you she's a good girl. A mom should be able to say that, right?"

"It's not a Hallmark card world," Carlton said matter-of-factly. "Sometimes kids—even adult kids—kinda suck."

Mandy nodded, perhaps with a bit too much enthusiasm.

Her mother repeated, "So what happens now?"

"Paperwork, preliminary, etc. You'll probably be able to post bail later."

"If you want," Juliet said with meaning.

The ensuing pause was very very pregnant.

"Hell to pay if we don't," Mandy said morosely.

"But you know," Carlton mused. "It's Mother's Day. Court will be slow, understaffed… things could take awhile and it would be completely beyond your control. Might even be Monday before she gets out, no matter what you do or don't do. Hell, maybe Tuesday."

The women looked at each other.

"Hell to pay either way," Mrs. Sarkany suggested.

"And we do have the kids to think of."

"Yes. Yes we do. They've been through so much."

"That's right, Mom. They really have."

"I think we should put their interests first, don't you?"

"Absolutely, Mom."

There may have been a tiny little gleam in their eyes. Tiny.

Carlton ushered them out, but Juliet tugged on his arm to hold him back. "Aren't you supposed to be going to your mom's later?"

He smirked. "Not a chance, O'Hara. I am way the hell too busy today. This crime wave is kicking my ass."

"That's what I thought, partner."

"After we do the paperwork, want to run by Starbucks for lunch and try that banana nut loaf?"

"Okay, but not the damaged loaf. Even if it is marked down."

He was a little disappointed.

But he had a good Mother's Day anyway.

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