The one where there's a hidden camera

Mark clicked his tongue for the seventh time that afternoon— a nervous habit of his— just as Malory rolled her eyes in boredom as another cop walked in their direction to probably ask more dumb questions about who might’ve broken into the bakery.

Chase, the blond dude that’s a regular costumer on the shop, approached Sarah with a gentle look, “— They will figure it out, Sarah. Don’t worry, sip on this and calm down a bit, okay?” he said, offering a cup of tea he had just prepared

The woman took the warm drink with shaking hands as another sob episode threatened to come by— Mark observed curiously.

Something just wasn’t sitting right about all of this, he thought, but kept quiet, observing the room filled with five police officers looking around the trashed place—tabbles and chairs pilled up in different corners and the little plants and pots that stayed on them all over the wooded floor.

“— We’ll use the information you gave us, Ms. Sarah.” One of the armed man said, while the others still looked around “— Is there, perhaps, another camera that wasn’t compromised in the area?”

Malory shared a knowing look with Mark, making the tips of his lips raise a little.

“— I think all of them were trashed in the break in,” Chase shared with a disappointed sigh, crossing his arms “— Isn’t there another way of figuring out, you know... without them?”

Mark stared at Chase down to the core. Something was off.

The cop explained that it might be more difficult without the help of vigilance footages, but they would still carry on with the investigation, although, it obviously would take longer without the images.

“— Actually...” Mark begun, stepping forward to be beside a red eyed Sarah “— I think there might be one we missed.”

Malory coffed loudly, as if she had choked on a big bug flying around randomly. Chase studied her carefully, and then proceeded to get back to the previous conversation.

“— Oh. Would you point it out, please?”

“— Yes. Follow me.”

Just as the officer and Mark left the room to reach the supposed forgotten surveillance camera in the bakery, Malory mumbled a fucking idiot under her breath, moving to stand outside the store.

Chase stared down at the woman; there was just something about Malory that never clicked with him. He didn’t like the way she treated her sister, being rude out of nowhere. Specially with someone as kind as Sarah, sweet and kind Sarah, who couldn’t hurt a small insect.

Then maybe—, maybe she took the secret ingredient so she could start a business of her own to surpass Sarah’s success!

Chase narrowed his stare at Malory’s back, his suspicions were high up on her. But such a betrayal with her own fresh blood? Her own sister?

Yes. He wouldn’t doubt it.

God, Chase can’t even begin to imagine how destroyed Sarah will be when she finds out. But she won’t be alone, because he will be there. He will always be there.

“— Thank you, Sir. We’ll be in touch.” The cop said goodbye, startling both of whom were the only left in the entrance.

Where is Sarah? She was just here a minute ago — Chase thought, frowning

“— So?” Malory asked, raising her eyebrows in expectations as Mark approached them by the door

“— So.” He simply said, making her scoff

“— So what?”

“— Does it matter?” he stated with a certain indifference to his tone that didn’t escape even Chase

“— Are you kidding me?!” Malory let out in indignation

Chase watched the interaction curiously. Curious enough to draw attention from Mark, that found him looking at them without a blink of disguise.

He narrowed his eyes, “— What? Lost something?”

Chade blinked unfazed, shaking his head and waking away from the couple to probably look for Sarah.

“— Why are you so mean to him?” Malory rolled her eyes, taking a cigarette out of the package “— He’s just a little puppy, leave him be.”

Mark let out a scoff, that brought back her attention “— Of course he is.”

“— What?” inquired Malory slowly, taking a puff out of the cancer stick

Mark shook his head, staring at the street ahead with a lingering look on his eyes, “— Doesn’t bother you a little bit that he’s always around, all the time?” he spare her a glance to see if the woman was following, she was “— Almost as if he is...” Mark paused, brushing off the thought and breathing out, turning to go back inside

“— What? What were you gonna say?” Malory threw the cigarette on the ground smashing it quickly before following him, slightly confused

“— I thought that camera wasn’t working?”

That was the first thing both of them heard once Sarah showed up again; freshen up and hair down, even her face was less swollen from the rounds of crying non stop.

“— Well—”

“— It always worked, we just didn’t tell you that.”

Mark gave Malory a incredulous look— same one he got from her when he mentioned the camera to the police officer.

Let’s say that payback is a little bitch, isn’t?

“— What do you mean you just didn’t tell me?” Sarah asked dumbly to her sister, crossing her arms “— I didn’t even remember it to mention to the police because i thought it didn’t ever functioned in the first place—” upon seeing that a scene was about to go down, Mark cleared his throat, interrupting Sarah

“— Sarah, look—”

“— I’m not talking to you.” She snapped, not even looking at him; and pointed a finger at her sister instead, “— The camera. Why didn’t you tell me about it?”

Mark blinked surprised— She was angry. Mark had never seen Sarah angry in five years of knowing her.

Malory blinked slowly, staring her up and down. Her only reaction was a shrug. An unworried and simple shrug.

Mark saw a wave of something pass in front of him before he wrapped his arms around Sarah’s waist. Oh, no. He wasn’t just hugging her out of nowhere—as much as he liked to do it— he was holding her back from jumping on Malory’s neck, because that was what she was about to do.

“— Why didn’t you tell me about the fucking camera, Malory?! Why?”

As Mark recorded the reaction with horrified eyes, Malory suddenly started laughing, echoing through the whole surroundings.

“— Let’s say,” she covered her mouth when a giggle came out. She was giggling in front of her attempting-to-be-murderer sister “— Okay, hm, okay.” She said, resting against the wall with a smile lingering on her lips “— Let’s say the camera wasn’t needed any moment before today, so why should you know? We never really used it so there wasn’t any need to tell you, was it?”

Before Sarah could leap from Mark’s hold, Malory suddenly commented with fake innocent eyes “— Right, Mark?”

And that's, folks, that’s when all hell breaks loose.

Sarah wiggled out of Mark’s arms as he grimaced at her, “— You knew about this too?” she asked with a glimpse of disappointment on her voice “— Why the fuck didn’t you tell me about that camera?”

Mark ate flies trying to respond with something and nothing came out, only air; Sarah narrowed her eyes, turning to look at her sister that stood unbothered by the door.

She walked to Malory, heels cracking the floor as a weary expression took over Malory’s body.

“— If I find out,” Sarah paused, closing her eyes and inhaling to try and calm down “If I find out that you,” she pressed her finger against Malory’s ribcage as the other turned her eyes into slits in a challenging manner “— of all people had anything to do with this, you’ll be dealing with me. You understand?”

A tense silence installed on the bright and welcoming bakery, and the only vividly watcher of that event was getting antsy that another plotwist was about to come.

He didn’t know how right he was.

“— Do you, Malory?” as the woman breathed on her sister’s face, Malory touches both of Sarah’s arms to push her away slowly and gently

Mark widened his eyes, starting to walk towards them, until Malory spoke, “— I didn’t have anything to do with the break-in.” she crossed her arms and carried on “— Despise all of our... differences, I would never jeopardize your work,” Sarah studied Malory precisely, specially upon not hearing any hint of doubt or lies in her words. She believed her. “— I know you love this place more than ever, Sarah. I wouldn’t dream of messing that up for you.” Malory finished, turning back at her to she could open the transparent door “— The camera, whatsoever... Me and Mark had a little thing going on the storage and well,” Malory eyed Mark above her shoulder, a glimpse of venom in her pupils anyone a mile away could see “— It’s a work place, we couldn’t exactly let that get out, could we?” Then, she left.

Or so, she’d like to have done that.

At the moment Malory turned the door handle, it didn’t budge. It was locked.

“— You and Mark?” Sarah chocked out, frowning “— You and... her?” she spinned on her heels to look at him “— In here?! Inside the bakery? Where I cook?!”

“— Sarah...”

“— What is wrong with you!”

“— Why is this locked from the outside?” Malory asked to no one in particular, trying to make her run for her life but the door wouldn’t budge “— Who the hell locked this from the outside?!”

“— Sarah.”

Everyone stopped. Sarah looked back at whoever was calling her name.

“— Come with me.”

Mark scoffed, “— What the hell are you still doing here?”

“— Chase, I can’t right now—”

“— Come. With. Me. Sarah.” Chase said with finality, a warning look under his stare. Everyone stood quiet. His eyes softness at her, seeing her furrowed eyebrows, “— Come on, come.”

Offering his hand and a smile, Sarah stared.

Malory narrowed her eyes at the exchange. Now, she felt something was definitely off.

Mark decided to break the silence by stepping in front of Sarah “— She doesn’t have to do anything—”

Chase pushed him “— God, I am so incredibly done with you, man!”

Sarah and Malory flinched back at the male’s sudden reply.

“— Always staring at one sister in a minute and not even half later, messing with the other. Doesn’t it get tiring?” He mocked “— Just choose one. Better!” he raised a finger, a smile growing “— Just stay with that one — he pointed at Malory— and leave Sarah for me. Do we have an agreement, Mark? Do we?”

Malory gasped at the insinuation while Sarah gasped at the knife she saw under Chase’s shirt when he moved abruptly against Mark again.

“— Are you insane?” Mark inquired, pushing him back each time more strong “— I always knew something wasn’t right about you and I guess I am right.”

Then, Chase broke his nose in a swift punch.

“— The hell!” Sarah shrieked, “— Chase, Chase!” calling his attention, desperately trying to get him off of Mark, she succeed “— Chase.” repeated Sarah, more calmly, now approaching him as if dealing with a wild animal ready to attack. “— You don’t have to do this. Let’s talk.”

He eyed her, a creepy grin immediately forming as she offered her hand to him, in which he took without thinking twice; Mark long forgotten.

“— Hey, I knew you’d come.”

“— Of course.”

“— You know, I never thought lemon and cinnamon would be your secret recipe for everything, you know? But I guess that’s the beauty, you were always unpredictable to me.” He whispered the last part as if it was a secret he would not reveal to the most confidential sources. Sarah froze.

Chase glued their foreheads, closing his eyes in a daze. Sarah felt her left hand starts to shake but held back, deciding to stay still. “— Do you think I’m unpredictable?”

Chase cracked a smile, opening his eyes and staring at her lips with no shame “— Mhmm.”

Sarah smiled back, forced, caressing his cheek, before quietly passing a remain of a table’s feet to Mark, that was gesticulating for it, with her right shoe. “— Well, for the record, I think your are too.” The woman replied, making sure his attention were still on her as Mark got up to stand behind Chase with the broken wood “— Because I never you’ve imagine that a regular costumer that became such a good friend...” Sarah bit her lip, getting closer “— would pull a stunt like that with me.”

In a minute, she pulled away and Mark succeed in knocking down the maniac, that fell to the ground in a thud, out like a light.

“— What the fuck just happened?” Malory spoke, not having moved an inch from the position she was before. “— Oh my god?”

“— Come on, let’s get out of here.” Mark implied, holding his extremely sore nose. He had gotten beaten up by blond dude, “— And call the cops.”

Malory walked past Chase’s body, leaving the bakery through the back entrance that he hadn’t locked up.

“— Sarah.”

Mark called her, concerned. “— Come on.”

Sarah bit the inside of her cheek until it drew blood. She was sad, disappointed, but more than all, angry. Sarah was livid. She just found out someone she trusted with her life trashed the place she work at, besides stealing her secret ingredient. Disgust took over her face as she look down at the passed out man.

“— Sa—” Mark clamped his mouth shut

Sarah had kicked Chase there. Right there. Not once but twice. And the only thing he did was to squirm

“— Let’s go.” She ordered, not even sparing him a glance as she walked out the door.

Mark did just as ordered, a proud grin on his lips.

When the police came back to the scene, they arrested Chase as the prime suspect of the bakery break-in,—which was obvious, given all that occurred— but the surveillance camera was still being checked. A few days later, the bakery had finally started on a renovation; Chase was officially accused of breaking and entering, and also stalking. Pictures of Sarah were scattered through the walls of his apartment, along with five pots of cinnamon and lemon, which made her wonder what could he possibly want with her secret ingredients so bad.

“— He didn’t care about cinnamon and lemon, he wanted everything about you.” Mark rolled his eyes, opening the door for Sarah and following after her

“— I lost twenty lemons because of that creepy asshole. Does he think they are cheep? He can’t just steal my lemons!” Sarah exclaimed, throwing the grocery bags on the couch to get a glass of water in the kitchen “— Hope he rots in jail.”

Mark sighed, leaning on the barstool, “— Because of the lemons?”

“— And for stalking.”

“— Good.”

Sarah bit her lip, studying the transparent cup on her hand “— I guess you were right, after all. He did turned out to be creepy.”

“— I know.” Mark smirked, receiving a nasty look “— but! what matters is that you’re okay and everything turned out alright. I still wish a could break his face apart for saying those things.”

“— You gotta promise something, Mark. It’s extremely serious,” Sarah said sternly, ignoring his last comment

“— Important.”

Mark frowned concerned, “— What is it?”

“— Promise you won’t ever ever say something about cinnamon and lemon for someone else. This is extremely important.”

Mark blinked at Sarah’s raised pinky.

He wasn’t supposed to... intertwine it, was he?

Sarah teetered her hand in front of him, and Mark quickly blinked his cringe moment away upon seeing her determined face “— Okay, I promise. I won’t say anything, Sarah.” he smiled fondly as she kissed both their intertwined pinky’s

“— Good, because you know, if we ever fight someday, I’ll win.”

“— Shut up, my nose was broken.”