“You’re not telling me everything.”
We’ve been sitting in the parking lot of the grocery store for some time, the car off and the convertible top down. It’s starting to get really hot in this two-seater. Lily said that her old Mazda Miata doesn’t have air, that it’s broken but she never bothered to get it fixed. She doesn’t seem fazed by the morning heat coming on like an electric blanket.
“I’ve told you enough.”
“Enough? Chris—what’s happening here? I want to know everything.”
In the half hour it took us to get out of Solitary and then find a spot to park and talk, I decided that I couldn’t tell her everything. Everybody who ends up knowing something leaves. Rachel and Poe, two prime examples.
For a while this summer, it was nice to have Lily be a part of another life and another world, one that didn’t involve darkness and evil and weird happenings. But now she’s right in the middle of it.
“Are those men bad?” she asks me.
“The one who attacked me was.”
“Why’d he attack you?”
“Because—because I threatened him once with a gun. Actually, I shot him.”
Lily can’t believe it. I nod.
“But why? And what were you doing with a gun?”
“It wasn’t mine. I was helping out a girl I knew.”
“Who?”
“You don’t know her,” I say, and leave it at that.
We continue to play the back-and-forth game.
“Chris—you need to tell me. Did you get shot?”
Of course I got shot, but how am I supposed to explain something I don’t understand?
“No.”
“Chris—”
“I think the whole thing was a warning.”
Lily shakes her head, her hair more curly since last night, her face pale because she’s wearing almost no makeup. “A warning for you to do what?”
“Stay out of people’s business. Which is what I’m going to do.”
“We need to get help.”
“No.” I find my hand grabbing her wrist.
She looks down at it, and I let her go.
“Lily—please. Don’t do anything. Don’t—not now at least.”
“Why?”
“Because—listen, they’re starting to tell me what’s going on. Why people are so interested in me around here.”
“And why is that?”
I shrug, wiping my damp forehead. My back is getting nice and wet. “I think—they say it’s because someone who founded the town of Solitary is a relative.”
“So?”
“Yeah, I know. I don’t know why that’s noteworthy.”
Of course, I’m not really being honest, because I have ideas. They don’t all make sense, but I’ve seen enough movies to know that being related to someone can be a big deal.
“Is there some evil cult thing going on in this town?”
“Yeah, something like that.”
“The pastor you mentioned—is he involved?”
I nod. “In some way.”
“This car isn’t bugged, you know.”
But I don’t know anything. Whether I can trust her completely, whether I can believe what Marsh and Staunch were saying, whether I am going to make it to my senior year of high school.
“Lily—I just want to get the school year over and then leave. That’s all.”
For a moment I see her staring at me. She looks so determined and fierce.
“Let’s leave. Right now. Right this very instant.”
I laugh. “Yeah, right.”
“I’m serious.”
“And go where?”
“I don’t know.”
“And do what?”
She shakes her head, but doesn’t reply.
“Lily—I—my mom is not doing so great.”
“Is she sick?”
“Yeah, I guess you could say that. I’m afraid—I’ve thought of it before. Of leaving. But I can’t leave her. And I know she won’t come with me.”
“Does she know about this?”
Oh yeah, sure, give her some more reason to drink.
“No.”
“Does anybody?”
“Everybody who does—the people I tell—all end up leaving.”
She moves in her seat so she’s facing me square on. Then she grabs both of my hands in hers. “I’m not going anywhere—you hear me? Nowhere.”
“They have a way of changing that.”
“They?” she shouts. “I want to know who they are!”
I nod.
“Chris—this is what you need to do. Find everything you can about these people—whoever they are and what exactly they want.”
“Why?”
“So they can be exposed.”
I think of all my attempts to do just that. Everywhere I tried to get help turned into a dead end.
I think of Sheriff Wells. A picture of someone weak, regardless of whose side he’s on.
“I’ve tried, Lily. Believe me. And I don’t want to risk anything else happening.”
“You’ll be fine,” Lily says.
“No—I’m talking about something happening to you.”
“I’m not afraid.”
“You haven’t been here long enough,” I say. “Give it time.”