| |
One week later
––––––––
Since the day I’d fought for my life, and later rescued, Sophia hadn’t shown herself in ethereal form again. Wherever she was, I hoped she had moved on to the afterlife. The girl deserved some rest beyond what had happened to her here.
In deep thought, I stared out over the lake, the sunset casting oranges, purples, and blues in its reflection. The beauty of the water didn’t ease my sadness for my friends, for Kate, and for the loss of a girl I’d never known, but had appeared to me looking for help. Nor would it ease the fact that I’d taken a life.
I’d begin therapy soon for my remorse of killing Grayson’s father, although Grayson didn’t seem to hold it over me. In fact, even though I knew his mother and he mourned Edward’s death in their own ways, he never blamed me. Actually, Grayson volunteered to go to counseling with me, because he wanted to be some sort of an anchor to help me heal. In addition, his mother called a few times to check on me.
They had recovered Sophia’s body from the lake two days before Derek’s trial, and had an autopsy performed. The poor girl had been stabbed in the stomach twice, and then while she was half-alive and her legs tied to a cinderblock, they had tossed her in the lake to drown. I wished I hadn’t known the facts of how she had died, but they had scrutinized every detail during the trial against Derek.
I stayed out of town since her funeral had been today. I didn’t have enough courage to attend, so instead, I watched the sun slowly sink below the horizon and hoped Sophia knew Derek would pay for taking her life. Still, the sunset wouldn’t bring her back. Derek’s guilty charge wouldn’t either. She was gone; all at the hands of a person I thought had been my friend. Ultimately, Derek had never been my friend, and I had only been a possession to him. I realize that now more than ever.
With a heavy exhale, I leaned against a tree and wrapped my arms around my waist in an attempt to warm my skin against the cooling air.
Leaves crunching on the ground caught my attention, and I spun in surprise. Walking down the path to the lake, I saw the man I remembered from my internet research and who had been in the courtroom. Sophia’s father, Joel. Once he reached me, he stood beside me in silence, and we both watched the calm, beautiful water.
When the sun finally began to disappear behind the trees, he said, “Thank you. Thank you from me and thank you for Sophia.”
I looked up at him and whispered, “I’m sorry you had to bury her today.”
Turning to look at me, he shook his head as he gave a sad smile. “At least I got to say goodbye and found a little bit of closure for my daughter. It won’t be easy, as she was my baby girl, but she’s at peace now. I know it with all my heart.”
I nodded, and looked back over the water where she had lost her life. This town had so many secrets, so many people involved in the murder of an innocent girl. The man beside me may have closure, but it would never be enough. He’d feel the loss just as strong as the day she disappeared. He would never walk his daughter down the aisle, never meet his grandkids. Never get to kiss her goodnight or feel her arms around him in a hug. Tears filled my eyes at the thought of my father never kissing my hair, as he loved to do.
Then, as if she sensed my thoughts on her, Sophia emanated next to her father. I started, but I watched her curiously because I’d thought she’d moved on. Please don’t let my fight be in vain, I thought. Sophia looked at me and then up at her father. A smile blossomed on her face as she placed a ghostly hand in his. A tear spilled down my cheek and I wiped it away with the palm of my hand. With one last look in my direction, she mouthed “thank you.” Then she evaporated, leaving Joel and me alone in the woods again. I felt her leave, in both spirit and mind, even though I didn’t understand how I knew she was truly gone.
The ring on my finger almost forgotten, I twitched when it went cold. I glanced down at it, my other hand spinning it around my pinky in thought. Then I did something I had wanted to do since I found it in my locker. I slipped it off and held it in my fingers.
With tears still staining my lashes, I looked up at Joel. “I didn’t personally know Sophia when she was alive, but I know she’s looking down on both of us and smiling. And she’d want you to have this,” I said, and then placed the ring in his palm and wrapped his fingers over it.
Then I walked away, letting Sophia’s father have the ring that linked us all together. The one link I had left of the ghost who had saved me from a watery grave, as weird as it sounds. I knew without a doubt that she’d rescued me from drowning.
A soft sob sounded behind me, and then he called out my name. I turned one last time to look at Sophia’s father.
“Where did you find this?” he asked, his eyes glossy from tears.
I smiled a little. “Let’s just say she led me to it.”
*****
Two weeks later.
“Mom, stop babying me!” I cried, smacking her hand away.
“It’s your first official date,” she argued. “I’m not going to let my daughter look like she just rolled out of bed.”
Mom lifted the eyeliner once again, bringing it closer to my face.
I placed my hand on hers to stop her. “It’s just a date, Mom. Not my wedding.”
Tears bloomed along her bottom lashes, and she wiped them away. “Jaz, I know. I just haven’t been there for so long, and I almost lost you recently. Now that we’ve made amends, I can’t help it. Grayson will be here any minute, so you had better get dressed. And let me finish this eyeliner so you don’t look lopsided when he gets here.”
“Fine,” I grunted, closing my eyes so she could complete her masterpiece.
Although Grayson and I had spent a lot of time together, we’d never officially had a date, well, because Derek had ruined that at first. Technically, this was the first time we’d be going out on the town. Okay, we were headed to the local diner and to the movies, but I wasn’t going to be picky.
The doorbell rang, and my mom gasped. “Oh, no. He’s here.” She finished whatever torture she was doing to my eyes, and then patted my arm. “Get dressed. I’ll stall him.”
I chuckled as she nervously rubbed her hands on her jeans and left the room in a rush. I think Mom was more nervous than I was.
Picking up the gorgeous purple maxi dress she’d bought me, I removed it from the hanger and slipped the cool fabric over my head. Walking over to the mirror, I inspected Mom’s handiwork. I had to admit, she did a fabulous job. I looked stunning, even though I would’ve felt better in jeans and a T-shirt. Dresses were so not my thing.
Wiping my hands over the dress to smooth it out, I smiled. Sure, my mother and I had our differences, but we’d improved, for the most part. I hadn’t fully forgiven her, but I was getting there. Our family was repairing itself, mending the broken pieces as each day passed.
Grayson’s voice echoed from the living room, and my mother and father spoke to him about curfews and the rules of dating their daughter. I rolled my eyes, and then with a gasp, I realized I had better save him before they started talking about safe sex.
When I walked into the room, Grayson turned and beamed at me. God, he was so gorgeous. And he was mine. I made my way over to him and he kissed me on the cheek. He murmured, “You look beautiful.”
I opened my mouth to respond, but a bright light blinded me.
“You two look so cute together!” a soft feminine voice said.
Once I blinked away the flash, I stared in shock as Grayson’s mother lifted up her camera and took yet another picture.
“Mom, you’re embarrassing us,” Grayson groaned, rolling his eyes.
“Let’s get out of here before they start showing baby pictures,” I whispered. “Or talking about condoms.”
He chuckled and snatched my hand. We made it out to his BMW, but not without my parents and his mother taking more pictures as they called out for us to be careful.
Once on the road, Grayson smirked. “Well, as you can see, my mother is okay with us together now.”
I took his hand in mine and thanked my lucky stars that he’d never given up on me. When all else failed, and obstacles were thrown in our way, he stayed strong when I needed it the most. He stood by my side and never let go. Grayson was my savior, in both the life-saving way and in my love life. Nevertheless, I discovered I had to save myself before I let him have my heart. Now that he had it, I doubt he’d ever let go.
I brought the back of his hand to my mouth and kissed it before I said, “Grayson, I don’t care if your mother or my parents approved of us or not. From the day you caught my eye in your bedroom window, you had my attention and kept it. We may not be from the same crowd, or popularity status, but that doesn’t matter. What matters now is how I feel about you, and nobody can take that away from me. I love you, Grayson.”
Grayson chuckled, most likely remembering similar words he had spoken to me. “I told you we were meant to be together. If only you hadn’t been too stubborn to listen,” he said, and squeezed my hand. He glanced at me with a heartbreaking smile. “I love you, too, New Girl.”
––––––––
THE END
