The Word Game (13 page)

“Did you realize that would happen?” Mark asked her. “Did you know, when asking her for coffee, that you were about to open a can of worms no one could ignore?”

“She’s not just the principal. She’s also a friend.” Alyson’s chin rose. “That’s how I expected her to handle it. I just needed to know if I was overreacting or not and figured she would be the one to know.”

Mark laughed.

“Hey, lay off.” Scott placed his arm around Alyson. “Alyson’s actions weren’t wrong.”

“How do you know?” Tricia asked. “How do you know that she’s right? There’s no proof other than what a child said. There is no proof that she has been sexually abused.”

“What about what she said though?” Alyson asked.

“What did she say?” Myah asked.

There was a silence in the room as Myah stood in the kitchen, next to Ida, her face stricken from what she’d obviously overheard.

“Myah,” Alyson whispered.

“What did Keera say? That’s who you’re talking about, right? My daughter?”

Tricia rose from the chair and came to stand in front of her friend. “We didn’t hear you come in,” she said.

“No, but I heard you. From the moment I walked in the door, I heard you.” She took a step backward. “I heard you think my daughter is being abused. Is that why Rachel keeps calling me? Is that what she wants to talk about?” Her eyes widened as understanding dawned on her face. “Oh my god, that’s why you wanted to talk to me, and asked me about Keera, isn’t it?”

“Myah—” Tricia didn’t know what to say or even how to say it, but she hated what she saw on her friend’s face.

“Let’s sit down,” Ida said, her voice soft but commanding. She led Myah to the table and stood behind her, her hands on Myah’s shoulders. “Everyone needs to calm down and explain to Myah what is going on. Alyson, I suggest you be the one to start.”

Alyson took a deep breath and slowly let it out. She fiddled with the napkin on the table, folding and unfolding it, until she raised her gaze, first to Tricia, who came and sat back down, and then to Myah.

“First, let me say that everything I did, it was to protect Keera.” She hesitated, as if waiting for Myah to nod, to show she understood, but Myah didn’t.

“It’s not your responsibility to protect my daughter, Alyson. It’s mine,” Myah said with quiet determination.

“I know.” Alyson nodded. “But I—”

“It’s my job,” Myah interrupted. “And it’s your responsibility as my friend to come and talk to me about any fears you might have.”

“You’re right, and I’m sorry.” There was honesty in Alyson’s voice. “Lyla came home yesterday and told me about things that happened at the sleepover, and I got worried. I talked with Tricia who said she would talk with you, but . . .” Alyson’s gaze went from Myah to Tricia to her husband, Scott. “But I was worried that everyone thought I was just overreacting once again and wouldn’t listen.”

“What did Lyla tell you?”

Alyson stared at the table. “When the girls sneaked out to hang with the boys, it was because Keera wanted to see if a boy could kiss like a man, and that—” Her voice broke, and she wiped her face with her palm. “Eddie taught her dances and played games with her as rewards for learning the moves.”

Myah gasped.

“I’m sorry, Myah. I should have come to you first. I should have.” Alyson reached her hands out toward Myah who only shook her head at her.

“So you think Eddie is . . . that Keera is . . .” Her mouth gaped open as she visibly struggled to find the words.

“I think Keera is being sexually abused by Eddie.” Alyson laid it out there, without any hesitation or doubt.

“How? How could you possibly know my daughter is being . . .” She choked. “That Eddie would do . . .” She shook her head in disbelief. “How can you be so sure? Because Lyla told you? Don’t you think I would know?” She looked to Tricia then.

Tricia wanted to say something, but Ida shook her head before placing her hands back on Myah’s shoulders.

“Sometimes we’re the last ones to know,” Ida said quietly.

Myah turned in her seat to face Ida. “But I would know. I know the signs . . . I know Eddie.”

Tricia couldn’t handle it anymore. She pushed her chair back and went to Myah, kneeling on the ground beside her.

“It’s not your fault if it’s true,” she said to her friend, taking her hands and holding them.

“Of course it’s my fault. I’m the one who brought him into her life, the one who trusted him . . . but I can’t . . . I don’t believe . . . he’s with her right now at the studio.” She leaned forward and pulled her arms in so she wasn’t being touched by anyone. “Where is Lyla? I need to hear this myself.”

“Myah.” Alyson sat up in her seat. “Now isn’t the time.”

Tricia knew what Alyson was doing, knew that her sister wanted to prepare her daughter, but it was a little too late.

“Aly, she needs to know.”

“I’ve already said what Lyla told me. You don’t need to bring her into this. What about Katy? She was there too. Did you talk to her? What did she say?”

Tricia rubbed her wrist and stood. “I talked to Katy. Their stories don’t match.”

Myah laughed, a loud and vicious laughter that grated the nerves. “You’re kidding me.” She stood and leaned down, her palms flat on the table. “You’ve got some nerve, Aly. Before checking facts, you drew your own conclusions and decided to destroy my life.” She spread her hands wide. “Welcome to the club. Anyone else want to join in? It’s bad enough I have to deal with Eddie’s threats about my career, but now you’re ruining my name and my family all because of what?” Her arms dropped to her side. “All because you can’t deal with your own past? That’s not fair, Aly. You can’t keep projecting your fears onto others and think it’s okay.”

“Myah, I think we should check in on Keera and Eddie, like right now.”

“No. I don’t want to hear anything you have to say. Do me a favor and call Rachel and tell her it’s all a mistake?” Her eyes blazed with fury before they changed to fear. “Please? Before it’s too late?”

“I . . . I . . .” Alyson tripped over her words.

“It’s not all Aly’s fault, Myah.” Tricia was more than willing to take the blame.

“That’s enough.” Ida moved back toward the kitchen. “Anger, accusations, and anything else that is happening will not help. Tricia and Alyson will talk with their daughters and get this settled. Myah, we are here to protect you and love you, and I’m sorry we’ve also hurt you in the process.”

“Don’t give me the whole ‘good intentions’ lecture, Ida.” Myah gathered her purse in her hands and walked out of the kitchen.

“Myah,” Tricia called after her, quickly following and stopping her at the front door. “I’m sorry. I don’t know what else to say.”

“Tricia, I need to get my daughter. I’ll call you later, okay?”

“Why don’t I come with you?”

Myah shook her head vehemently. “I’ve got this. I know my daughter. I know when she’s hiding something from me and when something is wrong. I’ll find out.”

The screen door banged shut behind Myah, and Tricia just stood there, in shock. What just happened?

She turned to find her mother behind her. “I don’t know what to do or say or even feel right now,” she admitted.

“You’re in a difficult position,” Ida said. “You want to protect and defend all at the same time. Sometimes life isn’t fair. It’s how we handle things that matters. And right now, we need to deal with this as a family, figure out what the next steps are and have it dealt with—tonight.”

“What did Katy tell you?” Alyson didn’t even wait for Tricia to sit back down at the table.

“Alyson, I’m not going to fight or argue with you, okay?”

“Who’s fighting?” Alyson said, laying her hand palm up on the table. “I just want to know what Katy said.”

“Katy said it was a regular sleepover,” Mark answered. “Nothing like you said happened, according to her.”

“Do you believe her?” Alyson asked.

“She’s our daughter. Of course we’re going to believe her. Why would you even ask that?”

“Because it seems like you’re asking us to not believe our daughter,” Scott spoke up.

“Guys, I appreciate that we all want to stick up for our daughters,” said Tricia. “But the issue here isn’t a ‘she said versus she said’ one.”

“Of course it is. It’s a word game after all. Who’s telling the truth? Who’s lying? Who’s hiding something?” Alyson crossed her arms.

“Exactly,” Tricia said. “Something is wrong with this whole picture, don’t you think?”

She let her words sink in. Lyla wouldn’t say what she’d said without cause. But was it because Keera was actually being molested by Eddie, or was it because Keera was trying to show off? Was Lyla being insecure and telling Alyson what she thought her mother wanted to hear? Was Katy protecting someone by her lies, if she was lying?

“We’re all going to be meeting with Rachel and the school tomorrow, not to mention Child Protective Services. I think it would be a good idea to find out the truth tonight, don’t you, rather than tomorrow?”

“Mom?”

All heads turned to find Lyla standing there, her eyes wide with fear.

Instantly, Alyson relaxed and pushed her chair back and went to give her daughter a hug. “What is it, hon?”

“What’s going on?”

“Nothing.” Alyson smoothed her daughter’s hair before bending down to give her a kiss on her forehead.

“Principal Burg knows?”

“Yes, honey, she knows. What you told your mom has serious implications,” Tricia spoke up. “Can you repeat what you told your mom? I want to make sure I got it right.”

“Lyla, go back with your cousins, okay? Let us grown-ups handle this,” Scott said to his daughter.

“Lyla, why don’t we go and take Opa some more tea, all right?” Ida spoke up and appeared beside her granddaughter with a teakettle in hand. “I’m sure he could use a refill.” She placed her hand on Lyla’s shoulders, directing her back the way she came.

“That was unnecessary,” Alyson hissed to Tricia, who returned her look, unfazed.

“No. It was completely necessary. When I asked Katy about the dancing and the game and the real reason why her and Keera sneaked out, do you know what she told me?” Tricia waited until Alyson was back in her seat. “She admitted to the dancing but said the videos and moves were probably too old for Lyla, and then when I mentioned the blindfold, she had no idea what I was talking about.” She leaned forward. “Did you hear me, Alyson? She had no idea. Nor about the words Keera supposedly said about Eddie and kissing. None of it. So you see, it was completely necessary. We need to find out the truth of what happened before this goes any further.”

Lies, half-truths, secrets . . . They all had a way of becoming larger than life, until they smothered you and everyone around you. Tricia knew this from experience.

She’d be damned if it happened again.

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

MYAH

Sunday afternoon

There were no other cars at the dance studio, other than Eddie’s. Which meant he was alone with Keera.

She slammed the car door shut. She inhaled sharply before running toward the front doors and pulling them open, but she was stopped short when they wouldn’t budge. Locked? They had a private class booked later today in the back studio, but the front doors shouldn’t be locked. They were never locked when they had classes. She pulled again before fumbling for her keys, her hands shaking as she struggled to fit the key into the lock.

She never should have listened to him this morning when he’d called. She should have hung up the phone or better yet, not even answered.

But instead, she’d enjoyed him groveling this morning, begging for some time with Keera to try to fix the misunderstanding between them, and she’d given in. She’d asked her daughter if she wanted to see Eddie and took the gathering of tears to mean yes.

What if those were tears of pain? She’d never forgive herself.

Myah marched ahead and stopped in her tracks when she saw Keera and Eddie up on the stage, dancing to soft music in the background. She recognized the dance right away. He was teaching her the dance that won them the most competitions—the rumba. Their routine had been very sensual, an extension of their love for one another, one of the many components of what made their dance so original and breathtaking.

Also something she’d specifically told Keera she was too young to learn.

They didn’t even notice her arrival, not until she turned the music off.

Eddie’s hands slowly drifted off of her daughter’s body while Keera jumped away as if embarrassed.

“So when were you going to tell me that you wanted to dance competitively?” Myah crossed her arms over her chest and looked at her daughter, unable to even spare a glance at her soon-to-be ex-husband.

“Oh come on, Myah.” Eddie chuckled, obviously attempting to break the tension.

“Keera?” She ignored Eddie.

“Eddie says I’m good,” Keera mumbled.

“Of course you are, love.” Eddie stepped forward.

“You are good, Keera. But you’ve never shown me any indication or even told me you wanted to do this. If you did, you know I’d support you.” Myah stepped toward her daughter. “All you had to do was tell me. Not practice in secret.” She placed her hand on her daughter’s arm. “Is this why you’ve been wanting to spend time with Eddie? To dance?” She prayed this was it.

Keera didn’t reply.

“Let’s go home and talk, okay?” Myah placed her arm around her daughter and held her close. “I love you, Keera,” she whispered, before she led her daughter down the stairs and off the dance platform.

“Wait. You’re just leaving, like that?” Eddie followed them.

“Go out to the car, okay?” Myah told Keera and then turned to face Eddie. She waited until she heard the door close behind her daughter before she said anything.

“Why lock the doors, Eddie?” Her foot tapped the floor, and she crossed her arms in front of her.

“What?” The confusion on his face was almost laughable and completely unbelievable.

“There are lessons here later today, or did you forget? Not to mention, we have an open-door policy to our members, remember? So why lock the doors?”

“Myah, love, I can tell you’re mad. Don’t be.” Eddie tried to placate her.

“Mad? You think I’m mad, Eddie? I’m bloody furious! If you . . .” She couldn’t even say the words.

“If I what?” Eddie stepped forward, closing the distance between them. “Spit it out, love. If I what?”

“If you ever hurt my daughter, I will kill you.” The words came out on their own.

For a moment, there was a look in Eddie’s eyes, a glimmer of something . . . fear, worry, dread? But it was gone the next instant, causing Myah to wonder if it’d even been there.

“Threatening me now? Myah, that isn’t like you. I’d hate for that to come out during our divorce proceedings.” His voice was low, gentle almost.

“It’s not a threat, Eddie.” It was a promise. If he were hurting her daughter, he’d be the one destroyed. She’d make sure of it.

“Keera is very special. We both know it. There’s more to her than meets the eye. If you won’t mold and shape her to be the woman she can be, then I will.” He took another step forward, but rather than take a step back, as she knew he expected, she stepped forward until there was only an inch of space between their bodies.

“You will have
nothing
to do with molding my daughter into the woman she will grow to be. Do you understand that?” She jabbed a finger into his chest. “If you have hurt her in any way, touched her in any way that is inappropriate, I will destroy you. Do you understand me?” She jabbed again and enjoyed the way he winced as her finger dug into his chest.

He backed away, his hands up high in surrender. “I would never hurt Keera. Never. I swear, Myah.”

She turned on her heel and marched out of the theater, head held high, while Eddie continued to speak of his innocence, of his love for Keera and Myah.

When she pushed open the door and listened to it slam behind her, she finally let herself relax a bit.

Keera sat in the car, her legs drawn up to her chest, and even though she hated that her shoes were on the seat, Myah didn’t say anything as she got in and turned the ignition.

Silence reigned in the car while Myah drove home, this time obeying the speed limits. She was trying to read her daughter, but Keera was closed off, and Myah wasn’t sure what to say. So instead she kept quiet and waited until they got home.

“Keera.” Myah stopped her daughter as she was poised to head upstairs once they walked in the door. “Honey, can we talk?”

“Do we have to?” Keera mumbled. She wasn’t looking at Myah but rather stared downward, as if there was something of interest on the stairs.

“Yes, honey, we have to. Come on, I’ll make hot chocolate.” Myah walked ahead to the kitchen, trusting that her daughter would follow.

“Since when did we start keeping secrets from each other?”

Keera’s head popped up with alarm before she quickly looked down at the floor again.

“Did I miss some spots when I swept earlier?” Myah asked.

“No.”

“So why not look at me rather than the floor? I promise to be more entertaining.” Myah smiled, hoping to alleviate some of the tension in the room.

Keera shrugged and sat down at the table. “What are we talking about? I’m already grounded, and you’ve taken my phone away. What’s next? I can’t watch my shows—do I have to read a book?”

“God forbid you actually read. What about those books I bought for your birthday, have you read them?”

“That’s what you want to talk about? Books?” There was a hint of disgust and confusion in her daughter’s voice.

Myah poured hot water from the kettle into the waiting mugs and stirred before adding whipped cream. She didn’t say anything, just let her daughter sit there wondering, while she tried to think of the right way to bring the subject up.

“Keera,” she said as she placed the cups of hot chocolate on the table. “If you wanted to dance competitively, you should have told me.”

Keera shrugged. “I still don’t know.”

“But why would you ask Eddie to train you? You could have asked me.”

“He said you wouldn’t let me.”

Myah frowned. “You and I both know I don’t let Eddie speak for me. I didn’t want to push you into something you didn’t want to do. You know that. But if you want to, then that’s a different story.”

“Anyway, Keera.” Myah tried again, quietly. “Don’t you think it’s odd that Eddie wants to spend time with you now? He never really showed any interest before.”

“He said you would say that.”

Myah sat back. “He did, did he?”

Keera nodded. “He told me he realized too late how important I am to him, and that if he wanted to win you back, he had to show you just how much he”—Keera’s voice dropped, and she stared down at her hot chocolate—“loved me.”

“Honey.” Myah hesitated. “My marriage to Eddie is over. I thought you were okay with that.”

Keera shrugged. “I didn’t say I agreed or even believed him. But he told me that it was because of me you were leaving him.”

Myah sighed. “He lied. You know this. Even if I hadn’t caught him cheating on me, I would have kicked his . . . butt . . . to the curb.”

“Swear if you want, Mom. I can handle it.” Keera’s chin lifted and her posture straightened. “I hear worse at school, believe me.”

Her daughter was growing up a little faster than she would prefer.

“Okay then, let me ask you a grown-up question.” She hesitated and sighed. There was no easy way to ask it.

“Has Eddie ever touched you or done anything to you that made you uncomfortable?”

As if struck by lightning, Keera jolted, almost spilling her hot chocolate.

“God, Mom. For real? That’s what you wanted to talk about?” Her face scrunched up in disgust. “You’re so gross.”

Myah’s eyebrow rose. This wasn’t the reply she’d expected.

“So he hasn’t touched you or kissed you . . . ?” She still couldn’t believe she was talking to her eleven-year-old about this, or that she could seem so calm about it. Inside, her emotions were all over the place—fear that it was true, disgust toward Eddie, guilt at herself. But mostly fear.

“Why would you ask me that?” Keera’s forehead furrowed, but she wouldn’t look at Myah.

“Because Lyla told her mom the reason you wanted to sneak out to meet the boys at the sleepover was to see if a boy kissed like a man.”

Keera snapped her head up and looked at Myah before she looked downward again. Her cheeks were stained red, and Myah’s heart sank.

“Did you say that?” she asked. Inside she was screaming,
Say it’s not true. Say it’s not true!
But she knew, even if Keera did say it, she wouldn’t be able to believe her.

Keera shook her head. “She’s lying.”

“Lyla?”

Keera nodded.

“Are you sure?” Myah turned and reached out to her daughter, touching her arm. “Honey, if something happened, you can tell me.”

Keera sat there, her body trembling beneath Myah’s fingers, but she held her ground.

“Of course I’m sure. She’s lying. Why would you take her word over mine? She shouldn’t even have been there. She’s too young.” The denial from her daughter and the attitude toward her friend shocked Myah.

“She’s the same age as you. And she’s your friend. A friend that is worried about you.”

“She’s just a kid, Mom. I get it, she’s my age, but she doesn’t act like it. She wouldn’t even watch music videos with us. She kept saying her mom wouldn’t like it.” The look of disgust on Keera’s face bothered Myah.

“I hope you would do the same if you knew I wouldn’t approve of something your friends wanted you to do. She also told her mom that you wanted to play a game with a blindfold, where you write on each other’s skin, and that this was a game Eddie played with you. Is that a lie too?”

Keera nodded, but this time she kept quiet.

Myah sighed. “I need you to be sure. Lyla’s mom told the principal, and now we’re all going to have a meeting about it tomorrow.”

Her daughter’s eyes widened with fear. There was no question her daughter was petrified. She hugged her arms close to her chest, and for a moment, Myah thought for sure she was going to cry.

“Why would she do that? Why does she have to ruin everything?” Keera pushed herself back from the table and fled up the stairs, her steps pounding on each step as she ran up.

Myah followed her, not happy with how their conversation had ended. In her heart, she knew something was wrong, but why wouldn’t Keera admit it?