Two Can Keep a Secret(53)
“I’m going to kill you,” Daisy shrieks, drawing her arm back threateningly.
“Stop being so dramatic,” Mia says, but her eyes don’t leave the candlestick.
“What the hell?” I ask, and they both turn toward me.
Daisy’s furious expression briefly recedes, then comes roaring back like a tidal wave. “Oh, him too? You’ve got the entire Scooby Gang here while you lay this bullshit on me?”
I blink. I’ve never heard Daisy swear before. “What bullshit?”
Mia speaks before Daisy can. “I told her I know all about Declan, and I’m going to tell Mom and Dad if she doesn’t explain why they’re both back in Echo Ridge.” She takes an involuntary step back as Daisy fastens her with a withering stare. “It’s going a little worse than I expected.”
“You have some nerve—” Daisy brandishes the candlestick for emphasis, but stops in slack-jawed horror when she loses her grip and sends it flying directly toward Mia’s head. Mia is too startled to move out of the way, and when it clocks her in the temple she drops like a stone.
Daisy’s hands fly to her mouth. “Oh my God. Oh my God, Mia. Are you all right?” She falls to her knees and scrambles toward her sister, but Ellery—who I never even saw move—is already there.
“Malcolm, can you get a wet towel?” she asks.
I stare down at Mia. Her eyes are open, her face pale, and a stream of blood runs down one side of her head. “Oh no, oh no,” Daisy moans, her hands covering her face now. “I’m sorry. I’m so, so sorry.” I fast-track it to the bathroom, grab a hand towel, and run it under the faucet and jam back to the living room.
Mia is sitting up now, looking dazed. I hand Ellery the towel and she gently pats up and down the side of Mia’s head until the blood is cleared away. “Is she going to need stitches?” Daisy asks in a shaking voice.
Ellery presses the towel to Mia’s temple for a few seconds, then pulls it away and peers at the cut. “I don’t think so. I mean, I’m no expert, but it’s actually tiny. Looks like one of those shallow scrapes that just happens to bleed a lot. It’ll probably leave a bruise, but it should be fine with a Band-Aid.”
“I’ll get it,” I volunteer, returning to the Kwons’ bathroom. Dr. Kwon is an obstetrician and her medicine cabinet is so perfectly organized, I find what I need within seconds. When I return this time, some of the color is back in Mia’s face.
“God, Daze,” she says reproachfully as Ellery positions the Band-Aid on her temple and presses down. “I didn’t realize you literally wanted to kill me.”
Daisy slumps back, her legs tucked to one side. “It was an accident,” she says, skimming her fingers across the hardwood floor. She looks up, her mouth half twisted in a wry grin. “I’m sorry for drawing blood. But you sort of deserved it.”
Mia brushes an index finger across her bandage. “I just want to know what’s going on.”
“So you ambush me while your friend is here?” Daisy’s voice starts to rise again, but she checks herself and lowers it. “Seriously, Mia? Not cool.”
“I needed the moral support,” Mia grumbles. “And the protection, apparently. But come on, Daisy. You can’t keep on like this. People know where Declan lives now. Stuff is gonna come out. You need someone on your side.” She gestures toward me as I lower myself onto the edge of the Kwons’ stone fireplace. “We’re all on Mal’s side. We can be on yours too.”
I glance at Ellery, who doesn’t look convinced. I don’t think Mia picked up on what Ellery was hinting at in Chuck E. Cheese’s—that Daisy and Declan could have been involved with one another while Lacey was still alive. That kind of thing would fly right over Mia’s head, because even though she complains about Daisy, she also trusts her completely. I’ve never been able to say the same thing about Declan.
Daisy turns toward me, her dark eyes brimming with sympathy. “Oh, Malcolm. I haven’t even told you how sorry I am about what’s been going on. The way people are … whispering. Accusing you without any proof. It all brings back so many memories.”
“Daisy.” Mia interrupts before I can answer. Her voice is calm and quiet, nothing like her usual strident tone. “Why did you leave your job?”
Daisy heaves a deep sigh. She lifts a hunk of shiny dark hair and spills it over her shoulder. “I had a nervous breakdown.” She purses her lips as Mia’s brows shoot up. “Not expecting that one?”
Mia, wisely, doesn’t mention trailing Daisy to her psychologist. “What, were you, like … in the hospital or something?”
“Briefly.” Daisy lowers her eyes. “The thing is, I never really dealt with Lacey’s death, you know? It was so horrible. So twisted and awful and painful that I pushed it down and forced myself to forget about it.” She gives a strangled little laugh. “Great plan, right? Totally worked. It was okay for a few years, I guess. But when I moved to Boston, I started having nightmares, then panic attacks. I couldn’t function. At one point I called an ambulance because I thought I was dying of a heart attack.”
“You went through a horrible loss,” Mia says comfortingly.
Daisy’s lashes flicker. “Yes. But I wasn’t just sad. I was guilty.”