Mending Fences Read online

  “For as long as he believes we have a solid case,” Grady said. “Which means we need to get out of here and make damn sure we do.”

  When Emily got home again, she found Derek pacing in the living room. “I don’t suppose I need to ask what you’re doing here,” she said, leading the way into the kitchen and pouring them both glasses of iced tea. “You heard about Evan.”

  “It’s been hard to miss. You’d be amazed how people, who have absolutely no facts, take sides in something like this. I was ready to bash in a couple of faces myself, and I don’t even know what’s going on. Do you believe what they’re saying?”

  Emily hesitated. “God, I don’t want to, because the whole idea that Evan is capable of such a thing makes me sick.”

  Derek nodded. “A few years ago, I’d have said absolutely no way, but lately? I don’t know.”

  She regarded him curiously as she sipped her tea. “What changed?”

  “Evan changed,” he said simply. “He’s gotten more and more like his dad.”

  Emily frowned. She’d seen the same thing, but hoped she’d been wrong. She wanted Derek’s take on the changes. “What do you mean exactly? How’s he changed?”

  “Haven’t you noticed how he talks to Marcie? He sounds exactly like Ken.”

  She sighed. “I’ve noticed it,” she conceded. “But I figured it was a phase, like a lot of teenage boys go through.”

  He lifted a brow. “You ever heard Josh talk to you like that, even on his most belligerent days?”

  “No, but our son is perfect,” she said, smiling.

  Derek grinned. “True enough, but you know you wouldn’t tolerate it and neither would I.” His expression sobered. “I’m just saying that the way Evan treats Marcie could be indicative of how he treats other women.”

  “I don’t want to believe that,” Emily said firmly. “And it’s a huge leap from mouthing off to his mother to raping a co-ed. I’m withholding judgment till all the facts are known. You should too. We’ve known that boy almost his whole life. I love him as if he were one of our own. He and I have probably had more heart-to-heart talks than Josh and I have. I always had the sense that he was growing up to be a basically decent guy.”

  “I know. Me, too,” Derek said. “But, like I said, lately he’s been saying some stuff to his mother in a tone that gives me chills. I called him on it once and he got really defensive, told me it was none of my business.”

  Emily cringed. “He actually said that to you? He always looked up to you, asked for your advice.”

  Derek nodded. “I know. It caught me off guard, too, but it’s one more example of how he’s changed. Maybe it’s all the attention he’s been getting lately. Maybe it’s given him a false sense of his own importance. Some kids just can’t handle the kind of celebrity that’s come his way now that he’s playing ball for the university.”

  “But Evan’s been preparing for this practically his whole life, at least as long as we’ve known him. He was a superstar in high school sports, too.”

  Derek shrugged. “Not the same. He’s interviewed on ESPN practically every weekend now or on the sidelines by whichever network is broadcasting the UM games. Could be it’s gone to his head.”

  Emily shook her head. “I just don’t see it. He still wanders over here for an afternoon snack or to hang with Josh by the pool. Since they’re both still living at home where there’s some parental influence in their lives, I actually convinced myself that he was staying pretty grounded. Josh is.”

  “Maybe because Evan is underfoot over here all the time, you haven’t noticed the changes the way I have. I only see him once in a while when I get together with Josh, and Evan tags along. To me the change has been dramatic and unpleasant.”

  “I suppose,” Emily said. The whole conversation was making her uneasy. Had she missed some important clues about Evan, as Derek was suggesting? Had she just locked in on the polite, sweet boy he’d been and turned a blind eye to the man he was becoming? The possibility was disconcerting.

  “Were you with Marcie when I got here?” Derek asked, interrupting her thoughts.

  She nodded.

  “How is she?”

  “She’s a mess.”

  “What about Josh and Dani? How are they taking it?”

  “Dani’s upstairs. She was really upset by the talk at school. She practically begged me to go take Caitlyn out of school, so I did.”

  Derek looked surprised. “Marcie let her go to school today, knowing what she’d be facing?”

  “I don’t think she even stopped to think,” Emily said.

  “What about Josh? You talked to him about this?”

  “Josh hasn’t gotten home from school yet. He should be here soon. I didn’t see him before he left this morning and I doubt he looked at the paper, but I’m sure he’s heard all about it by now. The news must be all over campus.”

  Derek regarded her with an unfamiliar helpless expression. “How the hell could something like this happen?”

  “We don’t know that it’s true,” Emily reminded him again, still clinging to a slim shred of hope. “Right now it’s just an accusation.”

  “Still, do you really think a young girl would put herself through all this, if it weren’t the truth?” he asked. “Come on, Em. Put yourself in her place. It would be a helluva lot easier to say nothing.”

  Emily knew he was right, but she simply wasn’t ready to admit it. Instead, she asked, “Are you going to stay for supper?”

  “If it’s okay,” he said.

  “Of course.”

  “I just thought I ought to be here for the kids, you know, in case they want to talk or something.”

  She gave him a wry look. “That’s new.”

  “What?”

  “You worrying about the kids.”

  He frowned. “I’ve always put their best interests first,” he said, looking injured.

  Emily sighed. In his own way, she supposed he had. It just wasn’t her way. He hadn’t been here day in and day out the way she’d been. Ironically, now that they were divorced, he probably gave the kids more of his undivided attention than he had before. He’d been religious about keeping the plans he made with them.

  “I’ll get dinner on the table,” she said.

  “While you do that, I have some calls to make,” he said. “Mind if I use the phone in the den?”

  “No. I’ll let you know when dinner’s ready.”

  As soon as he’d walked away and as she was pulling hamburger from the freezer, Josh came in the kitchen door. “Is that Dad’s car in the driveway?”

  She nodded. “He’s in the den.”

  “I guess he heard about Evan.”

  “Yes.” She looked at her son as he took a gulp of milk straight from the carton, a habit she’d tried unsuccessfully to break for years now. “Do you know the girl involved? I know her name wasn’t in the paper, but I’m sure everyone on campus has figured it out.”

  “Oh, yeah,” Josh confirmed. “I have a class with her. She wasn’t there today.”

  “What’s she like? Could she be lying? Trying for a few minutes in the spotlight?”

  “Lauren? No way. She’s kinda quiet. I don’t even think she dates that much. I was surprised when I heard she’d said yes to Evan, but I guess nobody turns him down.”

  “Have you spoken to Evan?”

  Josh shook his head, his expression grim. “And I don’t want to, either.”

  Surprised, she met his angry stare. “Why?”

  “Because I saw this coming a long time ago,” he said. “When it comes to women, the guy’s a bully, Mom. Just like his dad. I wish to hell I’d warned Lauren. She didn’t deserve this.”

  A strangled gasp in the doorway had both of them turning just in time to see Dani take off.

  “What’s with her?” Josh asked.

  “This whole thing has really upset her. She always had a crush on Evan, I think.”

  Josh got a strange expression on his face. “
You sure that’s all it was?”

  Emily felt her stomach clench. “What are you saying? Do you know something I don’t know?”

  Josh shook his head. “I don’t know anything.”

  “She never went out with Evan,” Emily protested. “I’d know if she had.”

  “But she hung around over there plenty,” Josh said.

  Just then Derek appeared in the doorway. The color had washed from his face. “Are you saying you think that boy might have hurt Dani?” he demanded. “If he laid a hand on her, I’ll kill him myself.”

  Emily reached for her ex-husband’s arm, felt the muscle clench. “No,” she said. “Dani’s fine.” She simply refused to believe anything else. She would know if Evan had ever hurt Dani. She would know.

  “If she isn’t, Dad’s not the only one who’ll be in line to make Evan pay,” Josh added in a tone that sent a chill down Emily’s spine.

  Dani was looking out her bedroom window when she saw Caitlyn slip through the hedge and make a run for their back door. Caitlyn was the last person Dani wanted to see right now. Her mom had been wrong earlier. She hadn’t wanted Caitlyn to come upstairs with her. She’d been relieved when she’d gone home instead.

  Caitlyn knew too much, things Dani had never told another human being, things about which she was totally ashamed, things involving Evan and what had happened between the two of them. Most of the time she worked hard to forget, but today had brought it all rushing back. Spending time with Caitlyn earlier had been awful. She hadn’t even wanted to look her in the eye for fear one of them would give something away.

  Still, there was nothing she could do to hide. Her mom would never lie and tell Caitlyn she’d gone out and it was too late to sneak out the front door before Caitlyn could catch her. She steeled herself as she heard the soft knock on her door.

  “Come in,” she called out reluctantly.

  Caitlyn came into the room and went straight to the chintz-covered chair she always claimed. After a silence that seemed to stretch out forever, she cast an accusing glance at Dani. “I’ve been calling your cell phone ever since I left here this afternoon and you haven’t taken any of my calls. I know you’re avoiding me on purpose and I know why,” she said, her tone filled with hurt.

  “Don’t,” Dani said. “I won’t talk about Evan with you. Not now.”

  “Why not? It’s not as if we don’t know what’s going on. Everybody’s talking about it. You’re supposed to be my friend. If I can’t talk to you about this, who can I talk to?”

  “I am your friend,” Dani said. “I got my mom to get you out of school, didn’t I? That doesn’t mean I want to talk about this with you. We’ll just get in a fight, the same way we did when I tried to tell you what had happened last year.”

  Caitlyn stared at her in dismay. “You think he’s guilty, don’t you?”

  “Don’t you?” Dani retorted.

  Caitlyn looked down. “My dad says it’s just a bunch of bullshit, that they’ll never make the charges stick,” she said. “He says girls like to make up things about athletes so they can feel important. He says this will never go to trial.” She faced Dani with a stubborn set to her chin. “I think he’s right. It’s all bogus.”

  Dani stared at her in shock. How could Caitlyn be so blind, especially with everything she already knew about her brother? “You can’t be serious. You actually think that’s what happened, that this girl made up the whole thing? Come on, Cat, you can’t possibly be defending Evan.”

  “I can, too,” Caitlyn said. “He’s my brother.”

  “That’s not what matters now. Just because he’s family doesn’t mean he can’t do something awful. Think about that poor girl. Do you honestly want him to get away with this? I know you love him, but what he did is wrong.”

  Caitlyn flushed. “He didn’t do it,” she said fiercely.

  Dani held her gaze. Eventually Caitlyn blinked and her eyes filled with tears.

  “It might not be true,” she whispered.

  “You know it is,” Dani said fiercely. “You have to know.”

  “Not for sure,” Caitlyn insisted.

  “You know,” Dani repeated. “You know because he did the same thing to me. I know you didn’t want to believe me then, but now you have to see that I was telling the truth, because it’s happened again.”

  And if she’d spoken up, if she hadn’t been so ashamed, so sure it was all her fault, maybe it would never have happened to another girl.

  She knew her mom thought she was upset because she’d discovered that her perfect Evan might have a pretty major flaw, but that wasn’t it at all. She’d known just how badly flawed he was for a while now and she’d kept her mouth shut. Now she’d have to live not only with her dirty little secret about what he’d done to her, but with the guilt over what her silence had cost someone else.

  Emily was thoroughly subdued when she got to school on Tuesday. Dani had told her she had a stomachache. Emily knew it wasn’t true, but she’d let her stay home just the same. She’d had a hurried conversation with Marcie, who was keeping Caitlyn home as well. She’d promised to keep an eye on both girls, though Dani had flatly refused to spend the day at Marcie’s house.

  There were several teachers in the lounge having their morning coffee before classes started. They all fell silent the minute she entered, which told her that Evan’s arrest was the hot topic of the morning once again.

  Paula was the first one to speak. “We’ve been talking about Evan,” she admitted. “None of us can picture him doing anything like this. You know him better than we do. Do you think the charges are true?”

  “I really don’t think I ought to be speculating,” Emily said. “This is serious stuff and it’s not as if I actually know anything about the case.”

  Paula regarded her curiously. “I thought you’d be the first to leap to his defense. He grew up next door. He and Josh are like brothers. Do you have doubts about his innocence?”

  “Honestly, I don’t know what to think,” Emily responded. “Evan has been in and out of our house since he was nine. I thought I knew everything there was to know about him. That said, I doubt the police would arrest him without solid evidence. All I really know is that I’m sick about what’s happening. I’m worried about Evan, but I’m worried about Marcie and Caitlyn and the toll this is taking on them, too. Even if the charges prove to be false or he’s acquitted down the road, right now they’re paying a really high price.”

  “Then you do think he’s innocent?” Paula persisted.

  “Okay, so maybe I do. Or at least, I want to believe that.” She faced her colleagues. “Come on, you guys. You know Evan, too. Was he ever anything but polite and respectful in class?”

  “He was great in my class,” Paula said, her expression turning thoughtful. “And I never heard any gossip about him mistreating his dates, either. That kind of thing can come up in health class, maybe not in front of everyone, but girls will come to me privately and ask what they should do about guys who won’t take no for an answer. None of the girls who went out with Evan ever hinted at anything like that, not to me anyway.”

  Elena Perez, a popular math teacher who’d only been at the school for a couple of years, had been quiet up till now, but she finally spoke up. “I think we can never know what goes on between a boy and a girl unless we are with them,” she said, her voice strained but passionate. “And I think when a girl makes a claim like this, it takes a lot of courage and she should be believed, rather than trying to find excuses for the boy.”

  Emily was surprised by the vehemence in her voice. “We’re not saying anything against the girl, Elena. Not at all. But we’re talking about a boy we all know, a boy who’s never been in any sort of trouble. Rape is a very serious accusation. His entire future’s at stake.”

  “So is hers,” Elena retorted, her voice quivering with outrage. “She could spend the rest of her life feeling as if she were the one who did something wrong, as if she somehow encouraged this attack
. A rape by someone she trusted could forever change the way she views relationships. It could destroy her faith in men.”

  Suddenly getting it, Emily crossed the room to sit beside the younger woman. “You’re talking from experience, aren’t you?” she asked gently. “This happened to you?”

  Elena’s eyes filled with tears as she nodded. “I was in college, as well. I had come from a very strict background and had done little dating in high school. I had been out with the boy only a few times, when he began to push for things I didn’t want. Nothing…” She swallowed hard. “Nothing I said or did could stop him.”

  “I am so sorry,” Emily told her. “You’re right. The rest of us are fortunate not to have been through anything like this. None of us can imagine how devastating it must be for the woman. I would never try to excuse Evan’s behavior if he did this. If he’s guilty, he deserves to be punished, even though my heart aches for him and his family.”

  “Save your compassion for the victim,” Elena said, then rushed from the lounge.

  Paula, Emily and the two other teachers who’d remained exchanged glances.

  “I had no idea, did you?” Emily said, heartsick.

  “No, but it explains a lot,” Paula said. “Haven’t any of you noticed that she never stays in the lounge when she might be alone with one of the men? And even though she’s beautiful, she never talks about dating. She always comes to our parties alone, if she comes at all.”

  “And an incident like this, involving a student she knows, must bring it all crashing back on her,” Emily said. “Something tells me this whole mess is going to have repercussions none of us have anticipated.”

  “Have you seen Marcie?” Paula asked.

  “Briefly, yesterday afternoon. We couldn’t talk too much because Caitlyn was there and she really needed some time with her mom. I’m going to stop by again later.”

  “Tell her I’m thinking about her, okay? I’ll call in a few days when things settle down a bit. If she needs anything at all, though, tell her all she has to do is call me. I owe her big-time.”

  “I’ll tell her,” Emily promised.

  Paula sighed heavily. “I can’t even imagine what she’s going through. This must be hell for her.”