The House Guests

by Emilie Richards

  “What about Will? Is he in on this?”

  “Will Blair?” Helia clearly thought Cassie was missing crucial brain cells.

  “How about Madeline? Is she involved somehow?”

  “Madeline Ritter? Not likely. They’re not friends. Not after the fish thing.”

  “Minh?”

  “Miss Follow the Rules? She and her family went to the East Coast this weekend.”

  “None of this is making sense, Helia.”

  “I don’t know what else to tell you. I’m sorry you’re worried. But she’s smart. She can take care of herself.”

  “She’s fifteen.” Cassie realized there was nothing else to learn. “Thanks for talking to me.” She started to turn away, but Helia stopped her.

  “Did you see her get on the bus?”

  Cassie had already decided that if this turned out okay, and Savannah came home unscathed, she would never turn her back on her daughter again. Not until Savannah was at least fifty. “I guess I thought I could trust her. But she seems determined to prove how little she cares if I do or not.”

  “If she did run away, she would go to California to be with her real mother.”

  Cassie didn’t flinch. She hadn’t felt like Savannah’s real mother in a long time, so why would anybody else see her that way?

  “Maybe it’s time she did,” she said.

  This time when she turned away, Helia let her go.

  31

  IN SAVANNAH’S OPINION THE trip back to Tarpon Springs was even worse than the trip to Blayney. They hadn’t been lucky enough to score a real motel. Savannah had forced Will to try one about forty miles north of home, but they had been turned away. Pelican Paradise, which looked like a haven for drug dealers, hadn’t believed she and Will were brother and sister.

  Instead they had spent the night in something called a Wilderness Preserve. Will had known exactly what to look for. After a fast-food dinner when conversation had consisted of “Do you want my ketchup?” and “These fries have been sitting out all day,” they had set up in a wooded area not far from the restrooms, which only had pit toilets and cold water faucets. Will had put the Mustang seats down making something that vaguely resembled a flat surface for her, and padded it with one of the two sleeping bags. He had slept on the ground beside the car.

  No s’mores. No Kumbaya. No sneaking out of camp to reconnoiter with the boys in a different campground. Instead they had silently settled in after the sun went down and the crickets and frogs began their serenade. She had never slept that badly in her entire life, not even when she’d been sick with the flu.

  By the time they pulled into Roxanne’s garage, she felt filthy, and she was pretty sure she smelled. After a good wipe down, the Mustang was safely parked. There were no notes on the garage door from Cassie or Amber, a hopeful sign they hadn’t figured out what their children were up to.

  “I can’t go anywhere like this,” Savannah said, once they left the garage for the house. “I have to take a shower.”

  “The buses are going to start arriving pretty soon.”

  “I’ll be done in time. And it’s better if we don’t arrive at school together anyway. Cassie knows how much I hate being dirty, and I don’t want her to suspect anything. I’m sure they had real showers on the field trip.”

  Will headed toward the front door. “You need to haul your own stuff to school. And you need to get there in time to merge into the crowd.”

  She hoped none of the kids she had to “merge” with would ask where she’d been all weekend. Certainly not in front of Cassie.

  She’d had hours to ask Will how he felt about everything, but somehow she hadn’t. Now she saw her last chance escaping. “Are you angry because I thought going to Georgia would be a good idea?”

  “I’m not angry at you, if that’s what you mean. I just don’t want to talk about it.”

  “Are you going to tell your mother you know Roger Hart isn’t your father?”

  Like her, Will had turned off his phone as they left Blayney, just in case one of their mothers called to chat and figured out something was up. Last night, though, she’d half expected him to turn it back on and call Amber from their campground to confess. Now, though, he shook his head, then without another word he left, his bedroll neatly tied and his gear in a backpack.

  Savannah made careful note of everything in the bathroom before she got into the shower. When she finished, she put everything back the way she’d found it, made sure the house showed no signs anyone had been there and locked up behind her, hoping no neighbors were gawking.

  By the time she got halfway to school, she felt hot and dirty all over again. As she made the last part of the hike, she faced a few questions about her motivation. It was only right that Will learn more about his history. That part was true. Amber’s silence wasn’t fair to him—nor were the lies they had discovered. But on top of that, Savannah had to admit she had also liked orchestrating a secret trip behind her stepmother’s back.

  She and Cassie hadn’t been fighting as much since Christmas. Sometimes Savannah even wished they could go somewhere fun together, the way they used to. But every time that happened, she imagined Mark Westmore watching and wondering how she could abide the same woman who had made him so angry that awful afternoon that he had gone sailing when he never should have.

  The trip pointed out something she hadn’t expected. When faced with Amber’s lies about Roger Hart, Will hadn’t gotten angry or vowed to get even. He was wrestling with what he’d learned, but one thing was clear. He still loved his mother, and he realized his questions had forced her into a lie. He believed she had a reason for what she had told him. Will knew how to forgive.

  Savannah’s takeaway? She did not. Which of them was wrong?

  As she rounded the corner to head to the back of the school building, where she intended to hang out until the buses arrived, she saw she was too late. One of the buses was already parked in front, and parents and students were greeting each other. She looked for a way to cut across yards and go in from a less conspicuous side road, but no options presented themselves. She hoped everyone would be too busy to notice her approach.

  Closer to the school she saw that Will had already merged into the first group fresh off the bus. Another bus turned the corner and pulled in behind it, and Savannah sped up, hoping that with that arrival, no one would notice her.

  Quite possibly nobody would have, except the dark-haired woman standing to one side, motioning to Will.

  Cassie.

  Savannah sped up, sure she could still pull this off. There was no reason to assume she and Will would have ridden in the same bus. If she could just skirt the school and come in from the other side, she could blend in. Or she could wait for the third bus. She was sure if she just made it around the school.

  Cassie turned and looked directly at her.

  Savannah froze, at least her body froze, but her mind continued whirling. With no better choice, she walked toward her stepmother, trying not to look guilty. As she closed the distance, she composed a story. When she was standing almost in front of Cassie, she managed a smile, hoping it looked as casual as needed.

  “Hey. I was just heading over to Roxanne’s to call you. My phone’s been out of juice all weekend, and I didn’t see you or Amber waiting.”

  Cassie didn’t say anything.

  Amber arrived just then in her own car, pulling up on the other side of the street, and Will, who had been walking slowly toward them, saw his mother, waved and took off, like he’d just got a stay of execution.

  Savannah forced another smile. “I guess Will’s going home with Amber.”

  Cassie looked as if she hadn’t slept any better than Savannah. “I know you weren’t on the trip.”

  “What are you talking about? Of course—”

  “I asked a chaperone on the first bus to che
ck the girl’s roster. You aren’t on it.”

  “That’s weird. I guess they left me off for some reason. But I—”

  Cassie raised a hand to stop her. “Shall we talk to the kids from the second bus? Who did you sit with? I’m sure whoever it is will back you up.”

  Savannah didn’t answer.

  Cassie waited, and when it was clear nothing was forthcoming, she stepped closer. “I tried repeatedly to reach you or Will on your phones, but I didn’t get an answer. I spent last night terrified something awful had happened to you, Savannah, that you had made a terrible decision that might haunt you for the rest of your life. So right now I’m furious, and at the same time so relieved you’re here and okay, I want to shake you and kiss you and I don’t know which to do first.”

  Savannah tried to ignore a rush of guilt. “Look, I just spent the weekend alone at Roxanne’s, okay? I needed time by myself to think about everything. And I knew you wouldn’t give it to me. You treat me like I’m a baby.”

  Cassie just stared at her.

  “So?” Savannah said.

  “No fifteen-year-old girl wants or needs three days alone in an empty house. I wasn’t born yesterday. We’re going home for a good conversation. And on the way, I’d like you to consider telling me the truth about where you’ve been. The truth will get you a lot further than another lie. You have that long to decide.”

  “Or what?”

  “I don’t know.”

  “Then that’s how you can spend your time. You can come up with some stupid punishment. Won’t that be productive?”

  Rage sparked in Cassie’s eyes. Rage that Savannah had never seen before. Cassie moved closer, and for a moment Savannah thought she was actually going to slap her. Some part of her thought that it might be better for both of them if she did.

  Then Cassie started toward her car. Savannah considered whether to follow, but she knew she had to see this through.

  The drive home was absolutely silent. Cassie parked in the garage. Amber’s car wasn’t there, and Savannah wondered if she had taken Will out for lunch to give Cassie time alone with her. Her own stomach grumbled, which was particularly humiliating under the circumstances.

  Inside Cassie gestured to the sofa. “Have a seat.”

  Savannah sat reluctantly. “I’m sorry you were worried. But nothing bad happened. That’s the truth.”

  Cassie perched on the sofa edge, but not within touching distance. Savannah wondered if she didn’t trust herself. “Let’s hear a little more. Truth, I mean.”

  Savannah had made her decision on the trip. This was not Will’s fault, and it looked as if his absence from the field trip might not have been discovered. She wasn’t going to spoil that. If she did, then he would have to tell his mother where he’d been. That story wasn’t hers to expose.

  “I’m finished explaining,” she told Cassie. “That’s all I’m going to say. I promise it wasn’t anything you need to worry about. I was safe. I didn’t take any stupid risks.”

  “Where were you?”

  Savannah shook her head.

  “If you were safe, and everything was fine, then why not explain why you set up such an elaborate lie ahead of time? Because you pulled poor Helia into it. I know that much. And Will? Did you pull him in, too?”

  “Will doesn’t know anything about anything. There were a lot of kids there. I knew he wouldn’t be worried if he didn’t see me.”

  “So why won’t you tell me?”

  Savannah leaned forward. Turning this back on Cassie was the only way to escape. “I told you the truth about what happened at Pfeiffer Grant, and you couldn’t care less. You thought I was lying. So what’s the point of trying to explain?”

  Cassie’s cheeks had turned pink, as if an explosion was near. “I was not alone, Savannah. Your father didn’t believe you, either.”

  “I think you convinced Daddy I was lying. I think if you’d left him alone, he would have believed me. He would have taken my side. He always did!”

  “That’s the first truthful thing you’ve said, because yes, most of the time your father did take your side. He couldn’t say no to you. He left that up to me.”

  “And aren’t you good at it?”

  “Apparently I should have said it a lot more often. Every time you’ve been rude to me, which is almost all the time these days, I should have told you that you had to stop. Every time you refused to do homework, or do anything constructive with your time after you left Pfeiffer, I should have told you no. I gave you space. I gave you time. I know your dad’s death was terrible, and it affected—”

  “You killed him!” Savannah stood and began to pace. “Do you think I don’t know? You two were fighting right before he left to sail. Daddy was a great sailor, and yet he missed the changes in the weather? You think that ever happened before? He didn’t go back to port, because he was upset when he left. Because of you.”

  Cassie took a long time to answer. “There are fights in every marriage. That was not our first and I had a good reason for it. And yes, your father was upset. I’m beginning to learn just how upset. But not at me. And nothing I said drove him to ignore a squall. It appalls me that after years of being your mother—”

  “You are my stepmother! And I wish to God you weren’t! I wish Gen had raised me. I wish my parents had never split up. I wish you’d married somebody else and had your own children! I am not your daughter. I have a mother! A real mother. And it’s not you.”

  Spent, she stopped, shaken at everything she had said.

  Cassie’s eyes were closed, but her fists were clenched. Finally, eyes open again, she stood, too. “Is that what you really think, Savannah? That all the years I’ve spent loving you mean nothing? That baking birthday cakes and going to ballet recitals and reading you a million bedtime stories meant nothing?”

  “Anybody can do those things.”

  “But I was the one who did them.”

  “I needed my real mother! Somebody who loved me just because I’m hers.”

  Cassie nodded. “I see.”

  “You probably don’t!”

  “I do. And, you know, there’s still time.”

  Savannah’s heart was pounding so hard she could hardly hear her own words. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

  “Your father and mother worked out a custody agreement when you were a baby. Now your father is gone, but nobody has worked out a new one. I love you, so I did what I thought was best for you. I kept you with me, even though it meant moving for both of us.”

  “Like that was a good idea!”

  “Your mother, you know, your real mother, was in Africa. I didn’t think you wanted to go to high school in Kenya. Maybe I was wrong. But whether I was or not...” She swallowed hard. Savannah could see the muscles in her throat constrict. “Whether I was or not, your mother is now back in California.”

  “Then maybe I ought to go live with her!”

  Cassie looked at her for a long time before she spoke. “Maybe you should.”

  For a moment Savannah wasn’t sure she’d heard her stepmother right. She and Cassie had fought before, and she’d threatened to live with Gen more than once. But Cassie had always convinced her to calm down and stay. This was different.

  “So, you’re kicking me out?”

  “No, I’m finally giving you what you say you most desire. I’m handing you over to your real mom, who will automatically understand every need and thought you have because she shares your genes, while I only shared your life.”

  “Handing me over?”

  Cassie didn’t hesitate. “And Savannah, if Gen agrees to have you there, I think you should go right away. Because, and this is only the woman who raised you talking, but it would be best for you to enter a new school when their spring break is over. I suspect that the schedule in California is similar to the one here, and i
t won’t seem as strange to the other students if you show up after they’ve been away on vacation.”

  “This sounds like you’ve given it a lot of thought. How long have you wanted me out of the house?”

  “I can call Gen or you can. Which will it be?”

  “I’ll call her!”

  “Pack enough to hold you over. If everything goes as planned, I’ll have all your other things shipped.”

  Cassie paused, then she rubbed her forehead, as if she had a headache. “I’m sorry I’ve failed you so terribly. I tried to be everything you need. I know that’s impossible, but all I ever wanted was for you to be my daughter, too. Mine, Gen’s, Mark’s. All of ours. I just wanted to be part of that. I’m sorry it didn’t work that way for you. Maybe it’s impossible... I don’t know. But I’m still glad I tried. Because when it did work, those were the best moments of my life.”

  She turned and walked away, leaving Savannah to stare after her and wonder exactly what she had done.

  32

  ON WEDNESDAY AMBER STAYED in her suite until she heard Cassie’s car pull out and the garage door close for the second time. The second thunderous bang meant that Cassie and Savannah were on their way to the airport.

  She’d said goodbye to Savannah last night when she’d given her a denim travel wallet she’d made as a goodbye gift—a zip pouch would have been a slap in the face. She hadn’t expected or gotten much of a response beyond thank you, nor had she been able to gauge the girl’s feelings. Will claimed Savannah was glad she was going to live with her mother, but Amber hadn’t noted excitement. She had taken a chance and suggested that if Savannah had anything to say to her stepmother, the ride to the airport would be a good time. That, too, had fallen flat.

  Cassie had been resolved but fragile. In Amber’s presence she told Savannah when they needed to leave for the airport and how many bags she was allowed to take. She asked if Savannah needed help washing her laundry or packing snacks. The girl had refused with one shake of her head. Now they were gone. Amber hoped that if they did hold a conversation, Cassie could stay on the road.