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How could he think I’d do something like that? Maybe he knew better, but it makes him less of a bad guy if he can point the finger at someone other than himself?
Other than the other day when I went to the hardware store, I’ve done my best to avoid him. Maybe that needs to change. Maybe he needs a little in-his-face to set him straight. If Emily is there to witness it, then so be it. Let her get up on that high horse of hers. By the time I’m done with Chase Woodson, they can climb up there and ride right out of town together.
“I need to save my battery juice until someone comes to help me,” I tell her.
“Help you?”
I give her the details about the interview and my realization, and then pulling over for my own pity party only to end up broken down. I turn down heroffer to find a tow service because I have no doubt my mother has already dispatched help.
“I’ll call you when I get back home later this evening,” I assure her before hanging up.
While I wait for help to arrive, I pull up my notes app and make a pros and cons list of whether I should dig Chase’s shallow grave in his yard or my own.
Chapter 39
Chase
Hope builds in my chest when the doorbell rings, but it’s the wrong Kelly standing on my front porch.
“Mrs. Kelly,” I greet. “Is something wrong?”
“I’m afraid so, dear.”
Terror runs through me. The only thing keeping me from imagining the worst is that Madison’s mom doesn’t seem too distressed.
“What?” I say, more snap in my voice than can be considered respectful when she just stares at me.
“Mads needs help.”
My heart pounds. I’d like to do a lot more than just help Mads, especially after the conversation I had with Adalynn earlier.
“You should call her,” Mrs. Kelly continues.
“I tried calling her,” I confess. “It wouldn’t connect. I’m fairly certain she has blocked my number.”
And honestly, good for her. She should never let someone treat her the way I have. I can’t really expect her to forgive me when I don’t know that I’ll ever be able to forgive myself.
“I have her pinged location,” she says, holding up her phone.
“Pinged location? What’s going on?”
“She’s had a bit of car trouble.”
I look behind me, gearing up to tell the boys they need to get their shoes on. Out of stubbornness, I’ve been letting them traipse through the house with them on, but that changed the second we got back from the bakery. I was supposed to drop them off at Dad’s house but he’d forgotten he made plans to go fishing with a couple of the guys from town.
“Boys!” I yell as I bend to pull on my boots. “We’ve got somewhere tobe.”
I won’t mention Madison to them just yet because I don’t know that she’ll be happy to see me. I know I have a lot of groveling in my future, and even that may not work.
Before the boys can even make their way down the stairs, I look over Mrs. Kelly’s shoulder and see my dad coming up the driveway.
“What is going on?” I mutter as I stomp my foot on the floor when my boot gets stuck on the heel.
“Madison needs help,” she repeats as if she thinks I didn’t hear her the first time. “Car trouble.”
“Where is she?”
“At that old gas station on Highway Twenty-nine. This side of the lake.”
