Collateral Damage (From the Damage) (3 page)

“So, hopefully, I just have to deal with her this weekend, right? By Monday she could be in jail.”

Jodi chuckled lightly. “I don’t think she’ll see any jail time. You might just have to get used to the idea that she’s staying here.”

“No.” Kelly rubbed a hand across her face. “This is a perfectly awful ending to an even worse week.”

To this, Jodi looked concerned and not amused. “Worse week? What happened? I thought things were going better for you.”

Kelly dragged herself over to the stairs and took a seat. “So did
I.”

Jodi sat down on the steps next to her daughter. “You want to talk about it?”

It took her a minute, but finally Kelly whispered, “I was right there when the car hit him, mom. There was so much blood…and he looked so…” tears clouded her vision, thickened her voice. “So weak. I always thought Alex could handle anything, you know? That he’d be okay, no matter what. Seeing him like that tonight…” a few tears finally fell, and Kelly dipped her head, letting them escape. “I thought he was going to die.”

“Oh, honey,” Jodi said soothingly, wrapping an arm around Kelly’s shoulder. “How’d he look when you talked to him? He looked better, didn’t he?”

“I didn’t go back to see him,” Kelly said, shaking her head. “I just…I couldn’t.”

“That’s okay,” she assured her. “You can take your time.”

“I know Alex and I haven’t been getting along, but I never wanted him to get hurt.”

“Of course you didn’t
, honey. You’re not that kind of person.”

“Then what kind of person is she?”
Kendall sashayed into the foyer and stopped at the foot of the stairs, looking at the mother-daughter team expectantly.

“Ken, we’re not finished.”
Jordan followed her, and then stopped at the door to the sitting room when he saw Kelly and Jodi. He looked exhausted.  “Kelly…how’s Alex doing?”

“He’ll live,” Kelly said.

“Good. And the arm?”

“Broken.” Kelly kept her gaze on Kendall. “Just had to make a grand entrance, didn’t you?”

“Please, I didn’t hit him on purpose! How many times do I have to apologize?”

“Until you’re actually sorry,” Kelly snapped.

“Whatever.” Kendall turned to her dad. “Where’s my room? I want a shower and a very long night’s sleep.”

“Kelly, would you mind showing Kendall to one of the guest rooms upstairs? Jodi, can we talk?”

Kelly nodded and stood, while Jodi headed to talk to her husband.

Leading Kendall upstairs, Kelly squeezed her eyes shut and prayed for patience.

Kendall whistled as she looked around. “Can’t believe I was living in that rinky-dink trailer park while you guys had this place. So glad my mom gave me the boot.”

“Yes, what a wonderful surprise.”

“Don’t worry, princess. I’ll try to stay out of your way.”

Kelly cringed at the nickname. “Promise?”

Kelly took Kendall to the room at the end of the hall, furthest away from her own bedroom. “This one’s the biggest one we have. Plus it’s got a bathroom and a bay window.”

The bathroom was the main reason Kelly took her to this room. Since Kelly used the bathroom at the other end of the hall, she didn’t want to share. Kendall was always doing things like leaving her make-up all
over the counter and her clothes in the floor. Not to mention she squeezed the toothpaste from the middle of the tube.  

Kendall ran inside and jumped onto the bed, flopping back against the mattress. She let out an exaggerated moan that sounded like she was having sex. “This one’s perfect.”

“Great.” Kelly turned to leave.

“One more thing, princess,” Kendall called after her.

Kelly tightened her hand into a fist at her side as she slowly turned back around to face Kendall. “Yeah?”

“You got any PJ’s I can borrow? The police impounded my car and I didn’t have a chance to grab my bag.”

“I’ll bring you something,” Kelly said, her voice tense with annoyance.

“Great. And no pink!”

Chapter 2

Kay

Early Saturday morning, Kay hurried down the steps. She was on her way to visit Alex in the hospital and she couldn’t wait to see him. The night before, she’d been unable to sleep because she couldn’t stop picturing him lying bloody and wounded in the street. Alex may not have been perfect, but he’d always been there for Kay without being judgmental, and seeing him hurt had really troubled her.

She was on her way out the front door when she heard her mother’s voice, overly enthusiastic as usual. “Good morning, Kaytlin! Come have breakfast with us.”

Kay turned, surprised to see her mother come into the foyer from the kitchen. For the first time that morning, she smelled the scents of eggs and bacon and tried to remember the last time her mother had cooked. Suddenly, the betrayal stung much more than it ever had. All Kay could think about was her mother, gallivanting across the country and taking secret trips to meet her lover while Kay struggled against her ruthless and miserable father. “I can’t,” she said. “I’m on my way out.”

“Why, I missed you, too, daughter,” her mom said in a sweet, cooing voice that dripped with sarcasm. “Thank you so much for the warm welcome.”

Kay rolled her eyes and turned toward the front door. “I didn’t know you were coming in today. I made plans.”

“What kind of plans?”

“Does it matter?” Kay responded, the bitterness seeping through. 

“Look…Kaytlin, I was hoping we could talk about the other day…when you called me.”

“Like I said,” she interrupted, turning around and grabbing the doorknob. “I’m kind of busy right now.”

Her mom reached out and grabbed Kay by the shoulder. “You’re upset with me, I understand. You have every right to be. I just want the chance to explain.”

“I’m not interested in your explanations,” she said, a glare fixed in her eyes. “You want to have an affair? Whatever. Just leave me alone.”

“Look, I want to thank you…for not mentioning this to your father.” Looking worried, but hopeful, Melanie looped her arm around Kay’s waist and led her out the front door. “I got you something…to show my appreciation.”

Kay followed her mother’s gaze to the driveway, where a shiny Jeep Liberty sat, sporting a giant purple bow on the hood. She stared, unsure of what to make of the gift. She’d been begging her mom for a car for over a year and saving up to buy one. As secretly thrilled as she was, she couldn’t help but feel like this was a bribe. “You didn’t have to get me this. I would’ve kept my mouth shut anyway.”

Melanie’s smile fell. “Why are you being like this, Kaytlin? It’s not like my love life affects you personally.”

She gaped, anger flooding through her. “You don’t even know me. And it’s because you’re always gone…with someone who’s not even a member of our family. Why is he so much more important than I am?”

“You
are
important,” her mother insisted, although the words rang empty. She took Kay’s hand and put a keychain in her palm. “Take the car, Kay. It’s not a bribe…it’s just a gift.”

“That’s crap. This is your way of asking me not to tell Dad your dirty little secret.” Shaking her head, she tried to keep herself from totally lashing out.
“Don’t worry, Mom. I’ll keep your secret. That’s what I do best.”

Feeling guilty and ungrateful, Kay turned and stalked down the sidewalk, stopping long enough to yank the stupid bow off the hood. Getting into the car, she revved the engine and backed out of the drive. She glanced in the rearview mirror and noticed her mother was already gone. It was silly to think she’d wait around and watch her leave.

As Kay drove to the hospital, she forced herself to ditch the residual baggage her mother had stewed up. She refused to dump any of it on Alex, and if she couldn’t turn her mood around, he would know something was wrong. And her visit was to support him, for a change. So she blared the radio, so loud she couldn’t hear herself think anymore.

After stopping by Jill’s Grill to pick up breakfast, she made a quick trip to the mall and grabbed a gift for Alex. By the time she arrived at the hospital, she was feeling better and most of the tension her mother had created was gone.

She found Alex’s hospital room and was relieved to find him alone. He looked like he was asleep, she noticed as she stepped into the room. Bouquets of flowers, greeting cards and anchored balloons decorated the surfaces. News had travelled fast—it looked like he’d had at least a dozen visitors bringing get well wishes.

He stirred, his eyes opening. Seeing her, he smiled and sat up. “Hey.”

“Hey,” she said, taking a seat in the chair by his bed. “I hope I didn’t wake you.”

“I was faking. Thought you were one of the nurses.” He rolled his eyes. “They’re in here every hour, like clockwork.”

“I brought you some decent food.” She handed the bag to him. 

“You’re a saint,” he said, happily tearing into the bag to find the food inside. “What would I do without you?”

“Starve.” 

He laughed and took a giant bite of a ham and egg biscuit. After he swallowed, he looked up at her, his eyes lingering on hers. “They said you saved my life, you used the ribbon from your hair to stop the bleeding …pretty smart.”

“I have a lot of first aid experience,” Kay said and then instantly wished she hadn’t. She hated when she brought up stuff like that, it made her feel like she was drawing attention to the fact that her father beat on her. And she saw Alex’s face, like he knew exactly what she meant and he didn’t know what to say. “So…how’d this happen, anyway?”

He groaned. “I was being an idiot.”

She waited for him to elaborate.

“Kelly and I were talking…arguing, really…and she walked away. It pissed me off…she’s always running away in the middle of a conversation. So I followed her. Right into the path of Kendall’s car, apparently.”

“Smart,” Kay said, laughing.

“And then my mom found this picture…an ultrasound…in my jacket,” he said, still chewing. “She was freaking out, thinking it was recent, so I had to tell her everything.”

“Wow…how’d she take it?”

“She was really quiet…pissed at my dad, for sure. She knew right away that the abortion was his idea.”

“Well, you seem to be in a good mood considering the night you had.”

“It’s funny…I feel better than I have in months.” The carefree gleam in his eye proved his point. “I don’t have to worry about football for a little
while, don’t have to try to hide anything from my parents. It’s like I can breathe again.”

“Who knew being hit by a car could be so therapeutic?” 

Taking another bite of the biscuit, he grinned. “It’s been a wakeup call.”

“How?” she asked.

“I’m not going to keep chasing Kelly, for one. It’s time to let go of the past…” He raised his dreamy baby blues to look into her eyes. “I think it’s time I focus on people who don’t run away from me. People who see the horrible things I’ve done and still think I’m worth their time. Like you.”

A flattered burn crept to her cheeks and she looked away from him, unsure of what to say. Setting the food aside, Alex reached across the bed and took her hand, pulling her to sit on the edge of the bed. “I should be out of here by next weekend. Let’s go on a date.”

Kay laughed. “You’re joking.”

“Nope.” His charming smile never left his lips, though she saw a glimpse of fear in his eyes, and she knew that bouncing back from Kelly would be harder than he thought. Still, it seemed like his attention was focused solely on Kay. “Come on, you’re not going to reject me, are you?” he teased. “I just got hit by a car. I’ve got a broken arm and everything.”

“Are you trying to guilt trip me?” she teased.

His hand still clutched hers and he lightly brushed his thumb across her knuckles. “Is it working?”

“Maybe.” His attention was flattering, and she wanted to give in to the urge to welcome it. But it scared her…going on an actual date? Most her relationships were one-nighters, with the exception of Trevor who had stuck around for a week, at best. What if she completely messed up? Then again, what if she said no and the opportunity disappeared? “I’ll go out with you on one condition,” she decided.

He smiled proudly. “Anything.”

“Don’t chase any more girls out into traffic,” she said, squeezing his hand. “There’s nothing sexy about road kill.”

Laughing, he moved his hand up to rub her arm reassuringly. “Deal.”

***

Kelly

***

Kelly woke to the feel of something cold and wet on her face, shocking her out of sleep and into Saturday morning. She sat up, soaked, wondering what had happened. Then she saw Kendall standing to the side of the bed, camera phone held up to take a picture, a satisfied smirk on her lips and an empty water pitcher dangling from one hand.

“What the hell is wrong with you?” Kelly snapped, jumping out of bed.

“You sleep like a dead person,” Kendall said. “I tried to wake you up nicely.”

Kelly pushed strands of her dripping hair out of her face and glared at her stepsister. “Why would you wake me up at all?”

“Dad says I have to go apologize to Alex.”

“Apologize?” Kelly gaped. “You ran him over because you were drunk. An apology isn’t going to cover it.”

“And you’re coming with me.”

Kelly turned to her closet and grabbed a change of clothes. “Forget it.”

“Someone’s got to drive me. My car’s impounded, remember?”

“Take a taxi. Or a bus.”

“Or I could just borrow your car,” Kendall said, grinning.

“No way,” Kelly replied, enunciating every word, “You’re never driving my car.”

“Come on, princess,” she groaned. “Work with me here.”

Kelly sighed and sat down on the stool to her vanity. Picking up a brush, she tried to pull it through her tangled mess of blond hair.

“I mean, he’s your boyfriend, isn’t he? You were planning on going to see him, anyway.”

Kelly turned to the mirror, and frowned at her drenched reflection. “Actually, I wasn’t. Because we broke up months ago.”

“Shut the front door,” Kendall exclaimed, coming closer.

“Who talks like that?”

But Kendall only ignored her, pressing the issue further. “You guys broke up? Why? I thought you were ‘soul mates’?”

Her hair finally free of tangles, Kelly kept her back to Kendall as she separated her hair into four strands and began to weave them together in a fishtail braid.  “It’s a long story.”

“People always say that, and it’s hardly ever true. What happened? Catch him with another fear-leader? Or two?”

“It’s none of your business,” she snapped. Securing the braid with a scrunchie, she whipped around to face Kendall. “Look, I’ll run you up to the hospital. Just get out.”

“Touchy.” Kendall pranced over to the door. “Try not to take too long primping. I wanna get this over with.”

Kelly winced as Kendall slammed the door shut behind her.

***

Standing on the front porch of Seth’s house, Trevor pushed the doorbell until someone finally answered. Seeing Seth, his former best friend, every muscle in his arm ached to take a swing and knock the teeth out of that arrogant grin.

But he couldn’t do that, he reminded himself. He needed to play it smart, obey the laws, or the situation would only get worse and he could end up being the one prosecuted, and not the predator. There was no way he’d let that happen.

“I know what you’re up to,” Trevor said. “And it’s gonna stop.”

“No idea what you’re talking about,” Seth said, stepping out onto the porch. “But I’m glad you stopped by. I was just getting ready to play some Halo on Live. Wanna come in? We’ll teach those noobs a thing or two—”

Trevor narrowed his eyes into a glare. “Really? After everything you’ve done, you think we can go back to playing video games?”

Seth looked completely confused. “Everything I’ve done? Dude, what are you talking about?”

“I’m talking about your little trip to Meagan’s hospital room last night. And the threat you made.”

“Threat?” Seth shook his head. “Look, there were no threats. Nothing maniacal, I swear. Meagan asked me to come see her, so I did.”

“She wouldn’t do that. She hates you. What part of that aren’t you getting? What stops that from sinking into your messed up mind?”

“I don’t know what lies she’s been feeding you, but—”

“I’ll tell you what I know,” Trevor said. “I know you raped her, that you’ve been stalking her, and that you ran her car off the road because you thought she was seeing someone. And even if Ryder wasn’t just a friend-which he is-you have no right to act like you can decide who she sees. The police may not be willing to touch you since your dad’s the sheriff and everything, but sooner or later, that’s going to stop protecting you. There’s only so much they can cover up. So, I’m telling you right now, you better cut it out. Leave her alone.”

Trevor turned to walk away, but Seth followed him down the sidewalk. “You think you’re so different from me? You’re in college, and you nailed a sophomore. Just ask my dad, that’s statutory rape right there.”