Baby Doll(18)

Lily thought back to the girl she’d been in high school. She’d loved coming here. She would have been a total dork if she hadn’t been athletically gifted. She’d won top attendance her freshman and sophomore years. She always made the A honor roll. She was a member of every club her schedule would allow. She’d readily embraced high school’s absurdities, all of its ups and downs.

Today there was a group of wide-eyed high school kids milling around the quad, laughing and teasing each other. Was it possible she’d ever been that young and hopeful? Lily wanted to scream at the top of her lungs, “You’re wasting time. Don’t waste it.” But that would be pointless. That was the privilege of being young, she realized. Lily would have wasted her freedom too.

As she stood staring at the school, Sky slept in her arms. Lily realized that she had another decision to make. She had never let her child out of her sight. Maybe she should listen to the sheriff and let him handle it. But she knew Rick was here. She knew how close he was. This was her chance to make sure, to know with absolute certainty that he would be caught. Lily knew there was no other option. She had to finish this. But she wouldn’t put Sky at the center of it. Lily knew her mother would protect Sky, that all these cops would make sure they were protected.

“Mom, can you stay here with Sky? Will you keep her safe?”

Without hesitation, Eve enveloped the sleeping child in her arms. “I’ll take care of her, Lil. Just be careful.”

Lily gave Sky one more gentle kiss. She took Abby’s hand, leading her to the entrance of the school as Sheriff Rogers and an army of officers followed. As they neared the entrance, an older woman with salt-and-pepper hair, glasses, and a forceful gaze intercepted Sheriff Rogers.

“Sheriff, what’s going on here? What’s the problem?”

Lily assumed that this was the principal, but she didn’t care. She pulled Abby inside the building before anyone could stop her. As they made their way into the school, a part of Lily wanted to tell Abby his name. They’d never kept secrets—Lily had told Wes as much when they’d first started dating.

“You mean, she knows everything about you? Like everything?” he’d asked.

Lily hadn’t realized how strange that had sounded until he said it out loud. She’d racked her brain trying to think of an event or moment she hadn’t shared with her sister, some deep dark secret. But there were none. With a flicker of sadness, she realized there were so many things she could never tell Abby. Things she couldn’t share with anyone.

“If you want to wait with Mom, it’s okay.”

“No way, Lil. I’m here with you. All the way.”

Abby’s support kept her going as she moved through the halls. There was a time when they’d owned this school, identical and in total unison. Now they were complete opposites. Abby so much larger, her feet heavy on the polished tile floor, Lily nothing but bones, her steps hesitant and delicate.

Lily walked past the admin office, and a photo caught her eye. Her photo. It was her sophomore class picture. She’d worn her favorite lilac sweater and a matching headband, and she was laughing as if she’d heard the world’s funniest joke. A simple gold plaque hung below, the words In Our Hearts Forever etched in a perfect cursive scrawl.

A tribute. A memorial. They’d thought she was dead, Lily realized. They thought he’d killed her. Lily’s pace quickened. She passed the gym, the sound of sneakers screeching on the hardwood as gawky teenage boys did basketball drills. She passed several classrooms filled with bored students staring dully back at their teachers. She turned down the hall and stopped a few feet from Rick’s classroom, where she could see him but he could not see her. He’d always bragged about the fact that he got the best and biggest classroom space. He prided himself on decorating it in a way that separated him from the other teachers. On the walls there were posters of Led Zeppelin, the Beatles, Jim Morrison—all “true artists,” or so Rick said. He prided himself on being “cool,” and his classroom was a reflection of those efforts.

The early-morning sunlight streamed through the windows illuminating Rick’s casually tousled black mane (though nothing with Rick was ever casual). He was almost forty, but with his smooth, angular features, he could easily pass for early thirties. His jeans were designer, of course—and he wore a black button-down shirt with the sleeves rolled up, and a skinny green tie. He smiled back at his students, his chiseled features and dimples on full display, his eyes bright as if something one of his students had said was the cleverest thing he’d ever heard. Even now, Lily could understand why they worshipped him, how simple it was to fall under his spell. He knew the texts. His intelligence was indisputable as was his charm.

She stood frozen for a moment, simply staring at him. The decibel level in the hallway was growing by the second. Sheriff Rogers moved beside Lily as two deputies and a school security guard pushed their way to the front, the principal trailing them. Through the window, a student spotted them and interrupted Rick’s lecture.

“Hey, look it’s the cops!”

Rick stopped talking and followed his students’ gaze. In a life filled with spectacular moments—and Lily intended to have many—this would go down as her favorite. His expression of confusion and disbelief faded and was replaced by a look of pure rage. She’d spent years avoiding that look, learning how to recognize the signs of his impending fury, knowing what awaited her when she miscalculated. But not today. Today she absorbed it, used it to fuel her. She turned to Sheriff Rogers.