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Coming to the realization that it’s true, I know that I need to come up with a plan to get Paisley out of that house tonight. I need to protect her, no matter what I have to do.
“We have got to get Paisley out of that house tonight, no matter what. She can’t stay with her mother,” I tell the guys.
“What about having her sneak in and sneak out every day and night? It’s basically only for tonight, right? Because tomorrow night at midnight, she turns eighteen and can legally leave of her own free will,” says Mateo.
“While that’s an idea, we run the risk of her mother catching her when she is sneaking around. I wouldn’t want to put her in that type of situation,” I tell the guys.
“Why doesn’t she just come over to our house tonight?” Kade asks.
“Problem with that is, while she may not know our address immediately, I’m sure the police could find it, and our place will be the first place she looks for her,” I explain.
“What about hiking and camping? No money trail. It’s still warm enough that we can be outside at night. We can tell Betty that we are going to go see colleges or some bull so she won’t get in trouble,”Luca signs
“Why won’t I be getting in trouble?” Betty asks as she comes into Paisley’s room.
“Oh, nothing, Mom. We are thinking about what we are going to be doing this weekend. We might go visit Virginia Tech tomorrow. Is that okay?”
Betty narrows her eyes at me, looks at the other boys, and then lands back on me, completely seeing through my lie.
Smiling, she says, “Sure. Maybe pick me up a hoodie, if you plan on attending. Now, I need you four to get out and go home. I need to clean up in here.”
Heading to the parking lot, we figure out that we are going to sneak over to Paisley’s house and tell her—well, sign to her—the plan. Hopefully, she trusts us to protect her and goes along with it.
CHAPTER38
PAISLEY
“Why wasthat boy in your hospital bed with you? Have you slept with him? The other three? How do you think that makesmelook, Paisley?! Having a whore for a daughter who just spreads her legs for all the new school transfers? It makes me the talk of the town!” Mother screams in my face immediately as we walk through the door.
It’s as if the safety of the house protects her from outside eyes.
I say nothing, because no matter what I say, no matter what Ido, it won’t be the right answer for her. I’m always in the wrong.
As I take a few steps toward the stairs while Mother’s back is turned, hoping to avoid a tirade, the floor beneath me lets out a loud squeak. All my muscles tense up, and I stop moving immediately.
“Where do you think you are going, whore?! Trying to sneak behind my back just like you did with those boys?!” She’s yelling again, getting in my face.
I shrink back, trying to make myself as small as possible. She likes when I fear her. She gets mad when I’m indifferent. If I act afraid, maybe she will let me go up to my room without getting hit tonight.
“Go make dinner and clean this house up! I don’t care if you are hurt or not.”
Heading towards the kitchen, I rummage through my head, thinking about what to cook. I could make spaghetti, tacos, chicken enchiladas, chicken parmesan, or cheeseburgers.
Looking through all the cabinets, fridge, and freezer, I decide on cheeseburgers with homemade fries. I start with peeling the potatoes and chopping those into fry-sized pieces and adding oil to them. Then I salt them and throw them in the oven, once the pre-heat is done.
Measuring out two patties for Mother, I get them ready for cooking. I wash my hands after, as I can’t stand the stickiness of the meat on my hands. Taking a second, I think about making a third one for myself and then hiding it, but I know I’ll get caught. I’ll eat some of the fries. She won’t be able to tell I ate those. I can put them in a bag and hide them in the kitchen. I can’t hide a cheeseburger.
With my hands now dry, I head to do all the chores that she told me to do, the same as a few weeks ago: laundry, picking up the alcohol bottles, sweeping, mopping… Anything and everything to make this house as spotless as it can be.
Hearing the beep go off for the oven, I put down the rag I have in my hand and grab the bag of bottles to take with me into the kitchen. It’s then that I see them through the back porch double doors.
I’m left breathless. They came for me. I didn’t ask, nor did they have to, but they came for me.
“What are you doing here?” I sign with worry on my face.
“What do you mean, what are we doing here? We are here to save you. We have a plan, but you need to trust us. Do you?”Atlas signs.
“Well, of course I do. I told you I do,”I sign back.
