Twenty-Nine

Mason

Sheriff’s Office—The Interview Continues

Monday, April 2

11:52 a.m.

Kopitzke: What more can you tell me about Lauren and Kadence’s relationship?

I know what he’s getting at. Ever since I gave him my account of the fight between Kadence and Lauren, I wished I could take it back. Girls fought. My little sisters loved each other, but they could go at it like curly-horned mountain goats. Why should Kady and Lauren be any different?

Mason: Kadence and Lauren loved each other. That fight last week didn’t mean anything.

Besides, there wouldn’t even have been a fight if not for me. In fact, sometimes I wonder if I am to blame for all of their rocky patches.

The first time there was a little bit of trouble, maybe even the seeds of what finally blew up into this big recent fight, was sophomore year. Kadence and I had been dating for three months, and it had been seriously the best three months of my life. We were sitting on my back deck and eating the leftover chow mein I’d made the family for Friday dinner the night before. Kadence put her chopsticks in her mouth like walrus tusks. It was really cute, and she could laugh like nobody else. It was the kind of laugh that made you laugh too, even when you knew it wasn’t that funny.

Of all the time we spent together, I loved our weekend time the best. That’s when she was most herself. Easy. Casual. No makeup. I was kind of proud of the fact that I was the only one who saw her real face.

It was always a shock on Monday mornings when I’d see her again in full getup, because that girl loves her makeup. Or maybe she was just so insecure she needed to wear a mask around everyone else. No one else saw that. The insecurity. But she didn’t need the mask with me. I knew Kadence. I knew her better than anybody else knew her. Even better than Lauren.

Anyway, we were on my back deck waiting for Lauren to pick Kadence up. They had an appointment with a real recording studio to record their new song. They said they were making a “rough cut,” which I guess is like a demo or something. When Lauren finally texted that she’d “be there in five,” Kady jumped up and pulled a bag out of her backpack. She ran into the bathroom, saying she had to “fix her face.” I didn’t think anything needed fixing. To me she was perfect.

That’s what made me a total dick. Here I had this perfect girlfriend, and while she was in the bathroom I was out on the front step with her friend, checking her out. I didn’t mean to, I swear. It was just that sometimes you can’t help looking.

Lauren never wore anything too revealing, not like Kady. But I don’t know, that kind of modesty has its own, you know, appeal. And B.K. (Before Kadence), Lauren was the kind of girl who was really more my type. She was short but curvy. Tan and dark-haired. Smart too. Book smart, and there was nothing more intriguing than a girl with a book.

Hey, Mason, she said that afternoon.

Hey.

Kady’s here, right?

Yeah, she’ll be out in a second.

I forcibly averted my eyes from her chest. And that’s where my brilliant conversation skills came to an end because God knows how hard it is to talk to a girl when you’re wondering what her skin feels like.

See, this is what I mean when I say everything was my fault. I thought I appreciated Kadence, but it wasn’t until she was gone that I realized how good I had it. I never deserved her, but Kadence thought I did. That’s why I had no business thinking about Lauren. Ever.

“What’s going on out here?” Kadence asked, coming up behind me and stepping out of the house. Her eyes were outlined in thick black eyeliner, pulled into cat-eyes at the corners.

“Nothing,” Lauren said because of course to her, it was nothing. “You ready?”

“I was born ready,” Kadence said with a wink to me, then she took my face in her hands and kissed me in a way that was nearly indecent for public display. It did the trick though. Like a wet paper towel on a blackboard, Lauren was wiped clean away.

“I can’t wait to see you tomorrow,” she whispered in my ear. That’s how great Kadence was. She made me believe in the future, and I could stand as much confidence as I could get in that department.

Dad traveled a lot with his new job, and Mom worked all the time too. That left me in charge of my little sisters. Between them and hockey practice, it didn’t leave much time for anything else. It was tough sometimes.

Kopitzke: You think Kadence and Lauren are that close? That they love each other?

Mason: I didn’t mean it like that.

Kopitzke: No, I understand what you meant. What about next year, then? Are they planning to go to college together?

Mason: No. Kady isn’t going to school next year. She wanted to focus on her music. Wants. She wants to focus on her music.

Kopitzke: What about you? College next year?

I shrug. I’ve been accepted to State, but I don’t have much for college savings. I was counting on a hockey scholarship coming through for me, but it’s not looking good. Mom and Dad said we’d figure something out, but I don’t see how.

When I start to get down, I think about what Kady always says: Life is short, my darlings. Reach for the stars before they burn out! It’s a little cheesy—okay, maybe a lot cheesy—but when you’re with her, she makes you believe that nothing’s out of reach. The stars. A good life. A life with her. Because even without a hockey scholarship, I have Kadence.

Kopitzke: What about your family? Did they love Kadence like everyone else seems to?

Mason: My little sisters think she’s a princess or something because she’s so pretty and she sings to them. It’s like Snow White or something. Or Ariel. Man, Meredith’s crazy about Ariel, and Kadence could look just like her with her hair, plus Kadence knows how to play all the games they like.

Watching Kady play with my sisters always made me imagine what it might be like to be married. To be Mr. and Mrs. Sisken and have a family of our own. Kind of freaky to be in high school and thinking about things like that, but Kadence could make me think all kinds of crazy things—like maybe even running away with her to Mexico. We could run a seaside bar where she could sing every night, and I’d mix drinks and make all this fancy Mexican food. Not like, for real. Just one of those stupid fantasies. But I don’t know. A little house here in Pine Grove wouldn’t be too bad. Some day.

Mason: Can I go back to your first question?

Kopitzke: You can do anything you’d like, Mason.

Mason: You asked me what Kadence and Lauren were like together. It just came to me. The best way to describe them…Do you know what mole sauce is?

Kopitzke shakes his head.

Mason: We did a food unit in Spanish class. It’s this sauce made out of chili peppers and chocolate. That’s the way it was with Kadence and Lauren—two very good but very different things that are exceptional together.

Spicy and sweet, I think. Although sometimes I don’t know which girl is which. You take one look at Kady with all her beauty and style and think, spice. Yet for all of Lauren’s sweetness, that girl has a wicked side too.

I almost say something more, then think better of it and close my mouth. Lauren would never hurt Kady. Not for real. She loved her too much.

I close my eyes. The fluorescent lighting is starting to make them burn. I hear a soft shuffle of something sliding across the table, and when I open my eyes, there’s a clear plastic bag on the table. The bag is sealed with tape marked: evidence and do not break seal.

Kopitzke: Do you recognize what’s in this bag?

I don’t answer out loud, but I nod my head. It’s a uniform shirt from Cuppa Cuppa. There’s an obvious bloodstain in the center, just under the logo. I understand what the detective’s showing me, and I understand his unspoken questions. Do I want to rethink my answers? Is Lauren DeSanto really the girl I think she is?