Unravel(61)

There was no crazy dream with me plummeting to my death and waking up seconds before I landed. I was wide awake and alert for no good reason.

I looked at the time. 5:32 a.m.

Lana’s apartment was quiet. I shot out of bed and jerked open the blinds. It was the start of a new day. The sky was painted pale gray as the sun was getting ready to rise. Most of the city was still asleep. The streets were cloaked in fog.

I crossed my arms and leaned against the window. Everything was so peaceful and quiet, but my gut told me something was wrong. This felt like the calm before the storm.

That instantly brought me to Lana’s dad. Weeks had passed since the altercation between Max and him. Max and I had waited for her dad to retaliate. To call. Harass. Press charges. Or even to go so far as to have someone do his dirty work.

But nothing happened. Not a damn thing.

In a few weeks I would go back to school. My parents would be home within a few days. My old, normal life was waiting for me. Yet, it seemed impossible that I could ever slip back into that life. How could I, knowing what I knew?

No retaliation from Lana’s dad should’ve made me feel at ease. But it didn’t. I was incredibly anxious. He had the upper hand right now. I knew it. He knew it. He was waiting for that perfect moment to strike back.

Lana knew what had happened. It was too big of a scene not to tell her. She reacted just like I expected. Withdrew from me and Max. Blamed herself for what happened, holed herself away in her apartment. It took a few days for her to return to normal. Whenever I saw her I would look at her searchingly, trying to see if there was any clue to show she had talked to her dad. She would stare right back and shake her head.

That gut feeling refused to leave and the longer I stood there, watching the sun slowly rise over the city, the more anxious and scared I became.

I closed the curtains and left the bedroom. I made my way over to the fridge, searching for something to eat. I tried to tell myself that I was overreacting and that this feeling stemmed from my paranoia. My fingers drummed against the edge of the fridge when I heard the thump of the newspaper hitting the front door. My back became erect. I slowly turned.

I couldn’t say that I watched the news, let alone read the newspaper. The most I ever did was scan the front page before walking away, going about my business. But right now, the clock ticked, and the fridge hummed and I stayed still, my gaze directed at the door. I walked over and opened the door. The newspaper was rolled up and held together with a green rubber band.

I didn’t reach for the paper. I just stared down at the small piece of the front page. What I saw was a profile of a face: one eye, sharp line of a nose, and lips pulled into a thin line. My heart slowed and my entire body felt numb.

“Oh, God,” I whispered.

Everything became hazy as I picked up the paper and walked into the living room. I read the words over and over, but nothing would stick in my brain. Just the phrases: arrested and insider trading. Blood rushed through my ears. It became hard to stand.

With the paper in hand, I walked to Lana’s bedroom. I knocked a few times. No one opened the door. I grew impatient and walked in. Her bed was made. The lights were turned off and there was no Lana.

I stood there completely stunned before I ran out of the room, changed my shirt, snatched up my keys and left the apartment.





I called Max. All my calls went straight to voicemail.

In a desperate attempt to prove the newspaper wrong, I drove to his house. I didn’t even bother pulling into his driveway. I just pressed the brakes and peered through the passenger side window. There were cars parked that I’d never seen there. Maybe his parents?

There was no point stopping by if he wasn’t there, and I knew he wasn’t.

I drove to Lana’s parents’ house next.

If Lana knew what’d happened to Max, and I think she did, then she would be here. She would retreat back into her parents’ hold. Partially out of fear and to be reassured that everything could be smoothed over if she came back.

I sat in my car, parked in their driveway. The newspaper sat in the passenger seat, like an ominous being, waiting to attack. The sun had risen, but clouds had moved in, creating a gray veil over McLean.

The longer I sat here, doing nothing, the more time was wasted. What was I waiting for? I snatched up the newspaper and scanned the front page.

The short version?

Max was accused of insider trading for six of his clients. None of those clients’ names were listed. The article didn’t say the proof they had or the person behind the accusations. But at the very end it said that anyone accused of insider trading could face up to 20 years behind bars and a ridiculous amount of fines.

This entire story was cloaked in mystery. None of it was true. I knew that. I knew that Max was smart enough not to go down the road of insider trading, but not everyone else would. Even if the charges were dropped, it didn’t matter because it would blow up into this huge scandal that would ruin Max and his family’s company.

Lana’s dad had a hand behind this. I was positive.

With the paper in my hands, I got out of my car. I had no idea what the hell I was going to do. I just knew I had to something.

I barely thought twice about barging into Lana’s family’s house. There were voices coming from the kitchen and upstairs. They soundproofed my entrance well enough that Lana and her mom didn’t look up when I walked in. They were in the formal living room. Lana was sitting on the couch and her mom was sitting across from her in the Louis XV armchair. Her mom’s back was straight; her feet leaned to the right with one tucked behind the other. Lana had her hands on her lap. Her right knee wouldn’t stop bobbing.