| |
Emma
Emma watched Jason DeGrave drive away and then wondered what to do next. She looked longingly at Mrs. Patterson’s house and saw a curtain fall shut. She could simply go back there. She turned and looked at her own front door. Or she could go make sure her parents were okay.
Did she even care about that, though? Her mother would probably be okay, and her father had deserved what he’d gotten.
Oh no! The police! She had to stop him from having Jason arrested. She ran inside, but he was already on his phone. He stood leaning on the piano with his cell pressed to his ear.
“Who’s he calling?” she asked her mother, even though she knew the answer.
“The police.”
“Dad, stop!”
He ignored her.
She went closer to him. “Dad, please, can we just talk about this first?”
He gave her a patronizing look. “There’s nothing to talk about.” Apparently, he was taken off hold because he spoke rapidly into the phone.
She reached for it, desperate to stop him. “Dad!”
He pushed her away, and her mother grabbed her from behind. “Emma! Stop! What are you thinking?”
She whirled on her mother. “What am I thinking? What are you thinking? Why are you still standing in this house?”
Her face fell. “Honey, it’s complicated.” She reached out to gently swipe Emma’s hair off her face, but Emma shrank away from her touch.
“Don’t touch me.” The look on her mother’s face brought instant guilt to Emma’s heart. She tried to ignore it. Glaring at her father, she said, “Mom, please. Let’s go. I know Mrs. Patterson will let you stay there until we figure out a plan.”
Her mother took a deep breath. “The elders called. They’re not firing your fath—”
“The elders?” Emma screeched. “You think I care about the elders? That’s the last thing I’m worried about!”
“I know, but listen. Think of the church. Your father is still the pastor.”
Emma put her hands on her hips and tried to calm down. She wanted to figure out what was happening, and she couldn’t do that if she was hysterical.
Her mother mistook this forced calm for interest in her father’s pastoral career. “They’ve asked him to take two months of leave. We can still live here. We will still go to church. But he will take the time to seek God.”
Emma rolled her eyes. “Mom, I don’t want to live here.” She held her hands out to her sides and looked around. “This whole house is a sham. Our life is a sham.” She leveled a gaze. “Our family is a sham. Your marriage is a sham.”
The words didn’t create quite the slap Emma had anticipated.
Her father hung up the phone. “We need to talk, Emma.”
She looked at him. Part of her wanted to run away. Part of her was curious about what nonsense he was about to spew.
“Please, have a seat.”
“No thank you.” Part of her wanted him to throw her onto the couch again. Then maybe she’d be the one calling the cops.
He took a long breath. He looked irritated that he had to be dealing with her. Hadn’t he loved her when she was little? Was she misremembering that?
“Your father is human, Emma, and I made a mistake. But we need to work together to get through this. We can’t have you hiding out at the neighbor’s house.”
For a few seconds, she had no words. Then, “I’m not hiding out.”
“Whatever you’re doing, you need to be here with us.”
“You just called the cops on a kid. A kid whose life you just ruined.”
“Oh, please. I didn’t ruin anything.”
“Are you kidding me? He’s like a local celebrity, and now you’ve made his mother out to be a whore!”
“I didn’t make his mother do anything.”
Her mother flinched. “Could we please not talk about Mrs. DeGrave?”
Emma narrowed her eyes. She was angry that her father wasn’t in more pain. Why wasn’t he in more pain? Why was everyone else suffering because of what he’d done, but he’d gotten off with only a black eye and a bloody lip? Practically scot-free. “Are you going to keep seeing her?”
“What? Of course not.”
Emma sneaked a glance at her mother. She didn’t look convinced.
“Was she the only one?”
He hesitated. “Of course.”
“Why would we believe you?”
“Because I’m telling the truth.”
Emma laughed coldly. “Sure you are.” She felt so powerless. She didn’t know if he was lying. She didn’t know anything. “If you’re going to press charges on Jason, then I’m moving in with Mrs. Patterson.”
“You can’t move in with anyone. You’re a kid.”
“Then I’ll get emaciated.”
Her father barked out a laugh. “You mean emancipated?”
Her cheeks grew hot, and she fought back tears.
“Because emaciated means you’re starving. But you’re not that far off, because you will starve if we don’t feed you. And don’t tell me that Mrs. Patterson will feed you. She can barely take care of herself and she’ll grow tired of you soon enough.”
“Like you?” Emma spat. “Like you’ve grown tired of me?”
He looked surprised. “You know what I’m tired of? I’m tired of you acting like a spoiled little brat! None of this has anything to do with you!”
His words were like ice water to her face. She couldn’t believe he’d just said that. She looked at her mother. “I love you, Mom. I’m going to go check on Jason.”
She slammed the door so hard that the house shook. Only then did she wish she’d grabbed some clothes and supplies.
She would sneak in later. Right now, she had to get to Jason.
