Fairest (An Unfortunate Fairy Tale #2)(44)

Mina stilled at his words. He thought she had broken the mirror and was trying to commit suicide. It was completely absurd, but she couldn’t argue when the evidence spoke against her.

“No, it’s not what it looks like! I wasn’t trying to-I don’t know how to explain-I wasn’t…” She bit her lip when he pulled open a drawer and poured peroxide on the cut. He began to wrap the wound with bandages from the same drawer. She had to hand it to him; the good doctor sure did keep his supplies stocked.

He paused and looked at her carefully. “Then try and explain what happened here. Otherwise, I’m calling your mom and you are going home. I don’t care if you are Nan’s best friend. I don’t want her hanging out with someone that is a bad influence.” On the word influence, he pulled the bandage a little too tight and her leg flinched and she thumped her head against the bathroom cabinet in sudden surprise from the pain.

“Ow!” she mumbled, rubbing her head carefully. “Would you believe that I am just that clumsy?”

“Then what was with the glass?” He held the piece of mirror that he had taken from her; it still had a few specks of blood on it. But it gave Mina the proof she needed.

“It’s only spots of blood. I was washing my hands when the mirror detached from the wall and fell on me. I used my hands to protect my head when it fell. Look around. Other than a few scratches from the glass on the outside of my arms, I have no injuries. I cut the inside of my palm when I tried to clean up the mess. That’s when you came in.”

She held out her arms, exposing her wrists and flipping them to show the back of her hands. “All the damage is on the back of my hands. Proof I wasn’t trying to hurt myself. You have to believe me when I say I am extremely clumsy and have inherent bad luck.”

“Hmm,” he intoned, before slowly regarding the bathroom and broken mirror thoughtfully.

“Where’s Nan?” Mina asked quickly before he accused her of anything else.

Dr. Martin didn’t look at her; he continued to scrutinize the wall where the mirror had hung earlier. She could tell he was weighing the possibilities, still deciding if he was going to believe her. “Out on the dock with Veronica--they are getting ready for a boat ride.”

“Oh,” Mina moaned sadly. She was surprised that her best friend had left the house without telling her. It was obvious Nan had forgotten about her; she was preoccupied.

“Come on,” he mumbled and pulled her up to her feet. “She wouldn’t let Veronica take off without you. It’s getting dark soon, and then we have to light the bonfire.”

Her spirits lifted instantly.

He held stubbornly onto her shoulder when she tried to move away. She looked at him, and he spoke quietly, barely above a whisper. “I don’t believe you are telling me the whole truth, but I want you to know that I love Veronica and her daughter like my own. If you do anything to influence Nan or cause her harm, there will be serious consequences.”

“I understand, but let me--” Mina started.

Dr. Martin held up his hand, cutting her off. “This conversation is over.” He held the door open and waited for Mina to pass through it first. She couldn’t help but pick up her pace and practically ran down the stairs out of the house, feeling duly chastised and ashamed.

She ran past the students gathering by the bonfire and felt the sting of tears. She would not cry. It was stupid to cry.

Veronica waved at Mina when she made it to the dock. “There you are, sweetie. We were worried about you,” Veronica called out kindly; her long blonde hair was braided into a single plait over her shoulder. With the excitement of being on the speedboat making her cheeks flushed, she looked very much like Nan at the moment. Nan, on the other hand, was sitting on the bench wearing a red polka dot swimsuit and engaged with every word that Peter spoke.

But it was just the two young people with Veronica; Brody wasn’t on the boat. She wasn’t sure why, but she had assumed he would take the boat ride with them. She turned and scanned the dock and saw Brody by the unlit bonfire with Savannah and Pri. Dr. Martin had just joined them by the bonfire and was arranging the kindling to get it started.

Mina was about to change her mind and get off the boat, but Veronica started the engine and backed away from the dock. It was too late. Great, Mina thought wryly to herself. Now she was going to be stuck on a boat ride with two love birds. How awkward. She desperately wished she was back on dry land. The ride would be beautiful; the sun was setting and was the perfect backdrop to a magically romantic evening for Nan and Peter. Mina could see how awestruck Nan was by Peter, and he seemed to be equally entranced with Nan.

The two of them were holding hands, and he was whispering into her ear, neither one of them paying any attention to the inspiring sunset. When they had pulled far enough away from land, Veronica took the boat as fast as it could. Circling back around the lake, riding the crests of their previous waves, the boat would lift off of the water over and over.

Nan and Peter screamed in excitement holding their hands above their heads in triumph, similar to riding a roller coaster. Mina held onto the seat and hated every minute of it. She hated her circumstances, her lot in life, and was even beginning to hate Nan’s absolute luck with finding a boyfriend. Mina thought the second time around would be easier for her and Brody to start over, but it was proving more difficult. She felt her fingernails dig into the leather seat angrily.