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wrenching. She was ashamed to set such an example for her younger brother and sister.
    Monica rolled her eyes as a plastic cup appeared out of nowhere, seemingly hurled at Sarah’s head. She was able to duck in time to avoid it, bu t wasted no time picking it up to throw back at Jack. “Would you two knock it off already? We can’t afford to buy new stuff, so let’s try to not break anything else, please?”
    Jack slumped back onto the couch . His hair, the same color as his twin’s, fell over his forehead into his eyes. He needed it cut, but he refused every time she suggested it. “She started it,” Jack shot back as he flipped through the channels on their tiny, thirteen-inch television. “Man, it’d be nice to get more than five channels on this piece of crap TV,” he complained, kicking his feet up on the coffee table.
    Raising two teenagers at her age should be illegal. She spent more time breaking up fights and stopping petty arguments than she did anything else. Moving to the kitchen, Monica sorted through the mail, a task that was never any fun. Bills, bills…more bills, and not near enough money to pay them. It was amazing how much it cost for a two bedroom apartment, and they weren’t in the best neighborhood either. Every night they went to bed to the sounds of police sirens and shouting. On a bad night, even the occasional gunshot would rouse them from their sleep. It was no place for children to be raised, but they had to live within their means, and that wasn’t much of anything. When she could get a better job, they were moving someplace better, maybe even out of state if she could swing it.
    “Dam mit, I swear I just paid the gas bill,” she groaned, tearing the small white envelope open. Well, she had paid some on the gas bill. They were still behind by a hundred and twenty dollars. In fact, they were behind on all of their bills, and August was fast approaching, which meant putting Sarah and Jack back in school. Registration would set them back a lot, but it was a necessary expense. The twins still needed to go to school, no matter how bad things got. Their education was first and foremost on the list of expenses that were vital. Looking for a new job was going to be her first priority come Monday morning, but for now…she had to make do.
    Sarah already had that look on her face when Monica reached for her black hoodie hanging near the door. “Look, Sarah, I have to go out. We have bills, and you have school coming up. I don’t have any other option.”
    “What if you get caught, Monica?” Sarah argued, crossing her arms over her chest. “What will we do then? Huh? We can’t come bail you out. Heck, we can’t even afford cab fare to the police station.”
    Monica smoothed her hair back into a tight ponytail before pulling a dark ball cap on, tugging it low over her eyes. “I wouldn’t expect you to. You two are old enough you’d be okay here by yourselves for a little while. Besides, I’m not going to get caught, so let’s just drop it.” Her confidence wasn’t as high tonight, though. After her run-in with mystery man the night before, she’d been rattled. She had been caught. She could have been turned in and arrested. Sarah and Jack could be sitting here alone right now, with no idea what to do next. The thought made her stomach turn.
    Sarah huffed, letting her arms fall to her sides. “But Monica…”
    “I don’t have any other choice right now, Sarah. What do you want me to do?” The words came out harsher than she had intended, and the hurt was visible in Sarah’s big blue eyes. Regret clawed at her brain. “Sarah, I didn’t mean—”
    It was already too late. She was gone in a swish of silky raven hair, with the bedroom door slamming shut behind her. Monica sighed and let her head fall back. She’d have to mend things later when she got home, but the sun was setting fast, and if she wanted to get her mission over with before two a.m., she needed to go