Chapter 1

She wasn’t going to cry; at sixteen, Enid had endured enough of her sister’s hot and cold streaks to take them in stride. Well, at least to not cry.

She flopped on her bed, next to where her Halloween costume was laid out. Eloise had helped her put it together - told her where to buy the pieces. She had said it would be fun for them to wear the same costume. But that was a week ago.

Enid pulled out her phone and sent a text to her friend Conner.

They had finished dinner and the girls’ mom had disappeared out back, taking some sort of emergency phone call from work. Each girl had gone to her room to change for the evening. Now, Enid waited. Her mom’s boyfriend, Mick, knew that he was supposed to drive her to Conner’s house, but for some reason, he was just sitting on the living room couch screwing around on his phone.

Eloise descended the staircase, her costume identical to Enid’s. She was a cowgirl bandit: she had a red flannel shirt tied in a knot above her belly button, a suede fringe tiered miniskirt, cowboy boots, a cowboy hat, and a red bandana covering her face. Her buttery blonde hair fell down from behind her hat in pigtails.

Mick took a long look at her and sighed. “Seriously, El? Go put on a fucking bra.” Mick had been living with them for a year, so in theory, he had a measure of parental authority. But that was always tenuous where Eloise was concerned, and he never pushed it.

She shrugged apologetically. “No can do, Dad,” she said sweetly, “I’ve got to stay in character. All of my research indicates that Old West Slutty Outlaws never wore bras.” She pivoted just enough to make her skirt rustle. “Or panties.” She winked at him, stuffed her phone in her purse, and went out the front door. He sighed again.

Enid thought about her sister’s behavior. Of course, Enid could never ... But, what if she did? It was Halloween, after all. It’s not like anyone would notice: a bunch of seven-year-olds begging for candy wouldn’t care, and Conner clearly thought nothing of the lesser sister’s body. It would be a private sexy secret.

“I’ll be right back,” she told Mick and dashed upstairs to her bedroom. She reemerged a moment later looking the same but feeling empowered. The bra and panties she had been wearing were sitting on the floor next to her bed. For good measure, she had done her hair in pigtails too, although whether out of tribute or defiance she couldn’t say. OMG, this skirt is short! She thought to herself.

Mick didn’t bother to look up from his phone. “So what’s the deal with this guy you’re meeting up with?” He asked. “Is he your boyfriend?”

“No,” she said, rolling her eyes dismissively. “We’re just friends. He’s dressing up like a bandit too - we’re going to pretend to rob the kids who come to the door before giving them candy.”

Enid waited. “So, um, whenever you’re ready.”

Mick grunted an acknowledgment, still messing with his phone.

Enid shifted from foot to foot impatiently. “I’ll just be waiting outside,” she said finally and headed out the door.

Enid walked up beside Eloise who was waiting on the sidewalk.

“So what’s Kyle’s costume?” She asked. Eloise ignored her.

“What are you guys going to do tonight?” She tried again.

Eloise turned, looking first annoyed and then spiteful. “I don’t know - what do you think we should do?” She obviously didn’t want an answer. “Should I fuck him? Should I ride his cock until I come? Should I slobber on it to get it good and wet and then let him do me in the ass, pounding me mercilessly until he finishes? Is that what you would do with my boyfriend?”

Enid was speechless. Of course, Eloise had always known about her crush on Kyle. That went back to way before they started dating: to a handful of times when he had babysat her years ago. But Eloise had never said anything about it. She’d never been mean about it before.

Eloise wasn’t finished. “You’re so pathetic!” She looked Enid over, and then took hold of one of her pigtails, examining it briefly before letting it fall. “You’re not me! You’re not even a shadow of me!”

Just then a black cat darted out from behind a bush for reasons that only a cat could fathom. It scampered in front of Eloise, startling her, and then behind Enid, brushing both girls’ legs as it passed.

The buckle on one end of Eloise’s purse gave out; the purse fell to the ground. “Fuck,” the elder sister said, picking up the zippered bag. She groaned and walked briskly back into the house.

Enid was kneeling on the sidewalk trying to coax the cat back from behind a tree when a black Tesla snuck up on her. “Looking good, cowgirl! Hop in!” Came Kyle’s voice.

She stood up and faced the car. She could barely see his face through the open passenger window. She looked around for her sister, but she was alone.

“Me?” She asked, puzzled, pointing to herself.

He chuckled. “Yes, you! Come on! It promises to be a night full of surprises!”

She chewed on her words before spitting them out. “You know who I am, right?”

Kyle got out of the car and walked around to her side. He was dressed like an 18th-century nobleman, with a white powdered wig, a ridiculously frilly white shirt, and strangely-buttoned red pants tucked into riding boots. In a competent English accent, he said, “Sink me, of course I know who you are!” He looked into her eyes and touched her face. Two of his fingers moved across the bandana hiding her mouth, but two of them touched her cheek, making her heart skip a beat.