"Baby I think it’s a little late to be…" Tina sighed again, glancing around, and turned back to Angelica. "Were you driving?"

"No."

"Angel, I need you to be honest with me."

"Mommy, I wasn’t driving! I swear I wasn’t driving." Angelica looked tearfully at her mother. "Terry said I was such a slow driver and that we wouldn’t make it back to school on time if I drove, so I agreed to let her drive, and we ran one red light, and…"

Tina pulled Angelica in a hug, as Angelica started crying. Oh this was going to be one heck of a character building experience.

"Excuse me, ma’am, are you Angelica’s mother?" One of two uniformed policemen asked, interrupting the display.

Tina turned, although Angelica did not budge from her hug. "Yes. May I help you?"

"I’m Officer Decland, and that’s Officer Sweeney." He introduced himself. "We need to talk to Miss Kennard-Porter for her statement."

"Oh. Accident. Right." Tina sighed. "Was there another car involved–?"

"No, ma’am, but they were going well past the speed limit, and…" He hesitated.

"Oh, say it." Angelica snapped at him, from her position still in Tina’s arms.

"Damage to private property." He finished.

Tina wondered if 30 was too early for Angelica to be released from her grounding. She turned to Angelica. "Please explain."

Angelica pouted, but knew it wasn’t going to work much. "We ran a red light, then this car came out of nowhere, so Terry swerved, and there was this cat, and…"

"A cat?" Tina couldn’t help but ask. All this because of a cat?

"It might have been a dog," Angelica admitted.

Tina placed her hand on her head, trying to alleviate the coming headache she was anticipating. "Angie."

"Mom I swear I’m not lying. And I’m not hallucinating." Angelica glared at the cops. "And I’m not on drugs."

"We just need to clarify that she wasn’t driving," Officer Decland told Tina.

"Oh, for crying…" Angelica pushed herself off her mother, and glared at the officers of the law. She showed them her right shoulder, which had a clear mark of the seatbelt. "See? Right shoulder. Passenger side. And ask paramedics, they were there. They got her from the driver’s seat. Which, in case you’re not from around here, is on the left side."

"Angie," Tina held her daughter back. Sometimes Angelica’s behavior made her wonder if Bette had somehow put her own DNA on the child. And, in moments like these, Tina wondered why they even bothered with having a second child. Katie was wonderful, and all, but two of this?

Angelica turned to Tina. "Can we go see Terry? Please?"

Tina glanced at the policemen. "Are we done here?"

"Yes," the two nodded quickly.

Clearly, the wrath of Bette Porter had been inherited by Angelica.

Tina noticed the nurse coming back, and she moved to meet her halfway, except her daughter’s hold kept her from moving. "Mommy."

Back to ‘Mommy’. Tina sighed, and pulled on Angelica, who for all intents and purposes was gaining on her in height and weight. Sometimes Angelica could be such a child. "Come on."

"MaBe’s going to disown me." Angelica declared.

"Nah," Tina shook her head, and holding Angelica close. "Kill you, maybe, but never disown you."

"You know, in some cultures it’s legal to massacre your parents." Angelica told her, resting her head on her mother’s shoulder.

"I’ll keep that in mind," Tina said, as they followed the nurse to Terry’s room.