When her dad pulled into the driveway, her mother turned around to her. “Sweetheart, I’m sure this has been an ordeal. Why don’t you go ahead to bed.”
“Mom, this was a big mistake. I didn’t do anything wrong—”
“Shannon, you heard your mother.” Her dad stood at her open car door. “I think I’d do what I was told if I were you.”
“Don’t you even want to hear my side?” Shannon climbed out of the backseat and stood inches from him, her eyes locked on his. Her father was a big guy, a head taller than she was with broad shoulders, but right now, she was too angry to be intimidated. “Or have you already made up your mind?”
“Don’t start with this.” He shook his head and stepped away. “We just had to pick you up at the police station. Whatever your side is, it doesn’t change the fact that you were arrested at a party for being underage.”
“I wasn’t drinking!”
“Then how did it get on your breath?”
“I had one drink—”
“Which was it, Shannon? Drinking or not?”
“A sip, Dad!” She held one finger up toward his face. “I had one sip. I didn’t even know that it had alcohol in it—”
“What if it had one of those date rape drugs in it? What were you thinking?”
“You’re being ridiculous!”
“I’m not going to argue about this out here in the driveway. Go inside and go to bed.” He slammed the car door a little too forcefully.
Shannon stormed in the house without bothering to shut the front door.
* * *
“Have you lost your mind?” Bobbi rounded the car and headed for the house without waiting for Chuck to catch up.
“She was drinking, and she was arrested. You saw the pictures of Tracy’s wreck. That’s where this leads.”
“Will you listen to yourself? Sipping a mixed drink at a party does not lead to Tracy. That sounds like something I would say.”
Chuck closed the front door and turned the deadbolt. “How can you take this in stride? She doesn’t have any idea what she’s playing with, and to do this to you a week after losing Brad is the height of insensitivity!”
“And I’m warning you that if you don’t hear her out, you’re going to do more damage than you understand!” Bobbi dropped her purse by the stairs and lowered her voice. “If she loses your approval, then nobody else matters. That’s the way it is with daddies and daughters. Trust me on this one.”
“What are you talking about? She’s not going to lose my approval.”
“But what’s it look like from her side? After my mom died, all I wanted was to know that my dad loved me, and that he’d be there for me. Shannon just lost her brother. Don’t abandon her.”
“I’m not abandoning her. I was trying to do what you said and wait until morning to talk about it. She started it.”
“Who’s the grown-up here?” Bobbi shook her head. “Girls are different, Chuck. Is that how you would have talked to me?”
“You’re my wife. It’s a little different.”
“That’s not what I mean. I want to hear your heart, not your head. Lining up your facts has never worked with me, and it won’t work for Shannon.”
Chuck took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “So what do I need to do?”
“She needs to know that you love her, no matter what happens, no matter what she does.”
Chapter 6
Provocation
Saturday, June 21
Shannon awoke, drained and disoriented, surprised that she had slept at all. She rubbed her eyes and took a moment to regain her bearings, and as she waded back through the events of last night, and the exchanges with her father, her anger reignited.
How could he . . . ? He, of all people, should understand what it was like to be in the wrong place, to make a bad decision. Where was that grace he always talked about? “Go inside and go to bed,” he said. Well, if he wanted to talk to her this morning, he could come and drag her out of her room.
When she heard the knock at the door, soft and inquiring, so obviously not her father, she convinced herself she had imagined it.
“Shannon?” It was her mother. “Katelyn’s downstairs. She brought your car back.”
So she had to leave her room after all. What were the chances her dad was someplace else, and she could make it downstairs and back without crossing his path? Slim to none.
“Be right there,” Shannon answered. She pulled a sweatshirt on over her pajama top and opened the door just a crack. Her mom was standing there in the hallway, waiting for her.
“He’s in the kitchen,” her mother said with a reassuring smile. She was good.
“So can I just run downstairs and come right back?”
“I don’t think so. You need to talk to him.”
“I didn’t do anything wrong, Mom. It was a huge misunderstanding.”
“And he needs to hear that from you.”
“Will you be in the kitchen?”
“If you want me to.”
“He won’t go off if you’re there.”
“He won’t go off, period.” Her mother patted her arm and headed down the stairs.
Yeah, right. Shannon crept down the stairs to the entry hall where Katelyn stood, shifting her weight and glancing back toward the kitchen.
“So how much trouble are you in?” Katelyn asked, just above a whisper.
“I don’t know yet. I got the ‘we’ll talk about it in the morning’ treatment.”
“He’s really mad,” Katelyn said.
“Ya think?”
“My mom and dad had it out on the phone this morning over it. I gotta go. My dad followed me over here, and he’s waiting for me. Here’s your keys.”
“Thanks.”
“Good luck,” Katelyn said as she slipped out the door.
Shannon held the keys in her hand and looked toward the kitchen, then back up the stairs. Just get it over with. She sighed and shuffled back to the kitchen. Her father sat at the kitchen table, newspaper in one hand, his glasses perched halfway down his nose. He sipped a cup of coffee as he read.
Her mother stood at the sink rinsing out her cup. She smiled at her. “You want a cup of coffee?” When her mother spoke, her father dropped his newspaper.
Shannon shook her head. “Here Dad,” she said, sliding the car keys across the kitchen table. “I’ll save you the trouble of taking them away from me.”
He took off his glasses and folded his hands. “I don’t want your keys. Shannon, do you know how much I love you? Do you have any idea what kind of panic I felt last night?” He spoke with a quiet intensity.
“Dad, I . . .”
“Let me finish,” he said, holding up a hand. “This is not about punishing you. It’s about keeping you safe. From the day you were born, all I ever wanted was to be sure that nobody ever hurt you. I know you think I went too far, that I overreacted, but I have to protect you. Now, tell me what happened.”
Now she, the thoughtless, selfish child, was supposed to blubber how wrong she was, how sorry she was, and bow and thank him. She’d rather be punished than mocked and humiliated. Shannon looked at her mother then back at her father and set her jaw. “You had your chance last night.”
She turned to walk out of the kitchen, but before she could get away, he scrambled around the table and took her by the arm. “You hold it right there! All I heard last night was about your side.”
“And you immediately thought the worst about me!” Shannon shouted back. “Maybe I was leaving the party. Maybe it wasn’t even my idea to go. Maybe there’s a simple, reasonable explanation for why I had a drink.” She dropped her voice and glared at him. “You know, if you don’t have any more confidence and trust in me than that, then I don’t care what you think.” She jerked her arm loose from his grip and ran up the stairs.
* * *
“Shannon!” Chuck said sharply, as he started to follow her.
“Let her go, Chuck.” Bobbi crossed
the room, intercepting him just in time.
“But she’s wrong about me.”
“She’s hurt because you didn’t give her the benefit of the doubt.”
“You heard the policeman. What was I supposed to think?”
“Yes, the evidence was stacked up against her. Open and shut case.”
Chuck rolled his eyes and scowled at his wife. “Mocking me is not helpful.”
“Did it ever cross your mind that there must be some other explanation?”
Chuck frowned. “No.”
“Then she has a point.”
Chuck pulled one of the kitchen chairs around and sat down, trying to sort out how he ended up the villain in all this. “So you believe her?”
“Yeah, I do. She hasn’t lied to us before, and she has a good head on her shoulders. I don’t think we should punish her.”
“Not at all?”
“All right, Mr. Negotiator, what’s the goal here?”
“We don’t want her to ever do this or anything like it again.”
“Exactly. You and I are not going to be beside her the rest of her life, making her decisions for her. We have to trust her and let go.”
“Trust and let go?” Chuck asked, managing a smile. “That doesn’t sound like a mother talking.”
“I didn’t say I’d done it yet,” Bobbi replied, “not with any of the four . . .” She quietly corrected herself. “Not with any of them.” Bobbi looked away for a moment. “Just stop trying to win, and listen to her.”
He frowned and looked back toward the staircase. “I don’t think she has anything to say to me right now.”
“Then take Jack out somewhere, and let me try to mediate this one.”
* * *
Bobbi waited a couple of hours before knocking on her daughter’s bedroom door, hoping it was less obvious that she and Chuck were coordinating their efforts. “Shannon? Can I talk to you?”
“Just you?”
“Just me.” Moments later Shannon opened the door, glancing down the hall. “He’s not here. He took Jack and left a while ago.”
Shannon dropped on her bed with dramatic flair, causing it to squeak loudly. “Mom, I promise you, I didn’t do anything wrong,” she said, holding back tears. “The party was Katelyn’s idea. I knew I shouldn’t be there. I had a hot pepper and grabbed the first drink I could get my hands on, but as soon as I realized it had alcohol in it, I was ready to go, but that’s when the cops showed up. It was a horrible misunderstanding. You believe that, don’t you?”
Bobbi joined her daughter on the bed, put an arm around her, and pulled her close. “Sweetheart, your dad believes that, too.”
“Then why is he being such a jerk?” She sat upright, pulling away from her mother and wiping her eyes.
“Simply put, your dad is a control freak.” Shannon smiled. “He just lost Brad, and he’s trying to find some reassurance that things are still familiar, predictable, that they still make sense. If that means he has to impose his own order on things to get there, then he will.” She patted Shannon’s knee. “When the police called last night, everything spun out of his control again.”
“He can’t control me.”
“No, but when things go nuts, he feels like he’s not protecting us, sheltering us. It really shakes him up.”
“He can’t take this out on me, though. That’s not fair.”
“No, it’s not. Be patient with him.” She took Shannon’s hand and placed her car keys in her palm.
“Patience works both ways.”
* * *
Thursday, June 26
Shannon scrolled through a list of obscure science fiction titles on the store’s computer, searching for a book a customer had requested. She was the last one in the house to get back to work, back to a routine . . . except her mother. After three days, things were starting to feel normal again. At least as normal as they were ever gonna be.
The security system dinged, so she reflexively checked the door. Dylan Snider walked in. He parked his sunglasses on top of his head, and she caught the glint of a diamond in his ear bigger than her mother’s engagement ring. His T-shirt was at least one size too small, so it stretched across his chest. He wore the same type of long cargo shorts that Jack liked, except Dylan didn’t look like such a dork in them.
I didn’t know he could read. She went back to the computer, back to the search. Maybe it’s listed under fantasy instead of sci-fi.
Within moments, Dylan appeared at the counter with a video game magazine. “I didn’t know you worked here,” he said.
“Two years now.” She picked up his magazine and ran the bar code across the scanner. “Is this all?”
“Yeah,” he said, reaching for his wallet.
“Do you have one of our members’ discount cards?”
“What? No. Listen, Shannon, I’m really sorry about the party and everything. I’d like to make it up to you. Can I take you for dinner somewhere tomorrow night?”
“Serious?”
“As a heart attack,” Dylan said with a smile.
Her head, her gut instinct, everything inside her screamed “say no!” but what better test of her dad’s sincerity could there be? If he really trusted her, he would let the date go without much comment. If he went off, well . . . then she was right about him.
“Okay, Dylan.” Shannon dropped the magazine in a bag. “I think I’d like that.”
“Six?”
“Six is fine. See you tomorrow.”
* * *
Friday, June 27
“I had a great time,” Dylan said with as much smooth sincerity as he could muster. He eased his car to a stop in front of Shannon’s house, then he twisted around to face her. “I hope this isn’t the last time I get to take you out.”
“I have to admit,” she said, “in spite of your reputation, you’re a really nice guy.”
“So do nice guys get to kiss you good night?” he asked with a sly grin.
“Just a quick one.” She leaned over and kissed his cheek, then hopped out of the car. “Thanks again!”
Dylan watched her walk up the driveway, then he pulled out his cell phone. “Wes, you better be saving your money. You’re gonna have to pay up on this one. I’ll have her in five dates, maybe three.” A nice guy. He laughed and drove away.
* * *
Chuck spent a solid week encouraging and prodding, but it paid off. He convinced Bobbi to join him for an at-home movie date. He popped a bowl of popcorn and rented a couple of chick flicks the girl at the video store recommended. Two hours. That’s all he was asking for. If he could take Bobbi’s mind off everything for just two hours, it would be a major victory.
For a sweet hour and a half, he thought he’d pulled it off. He sat on the sofa with his arm around her, enjoying just being close to her. When she laughed gently, he felt a boost, like things were turning around, that grief was subsiding at last. Before the movie finished, he heard Shannon come in.
She shuffled in and leaned against the doorframe. “Where’s Jack?” she asked.
“Upstairs,” Bobbi answered, motioning for Shannon to come and sit. “Did you have fun?”
“Yeah, I did, actually.” She sat on the arm of the easy chair across from the sofa.
“What’d you do?” Chuck asked, trying his best not to sound like an interrogator.
“I, uh, I had a date.”
“Sweetheart, we need to meet these boys before you go out with them,” Bobbi said. “You know that.”
“You can meet him. That’s no problem.”
“Before the date, not after,” Chuck said, his voice rising ever so slightly. “Who was he?”
Shannon glanced at her mother, then faced him and said without wavering, “Dylan Snider.”
“The boy who had the party? What were you thinking?” He jerked the remote control off the coffee table and turned off the television. “Is this how you repay us for cutting you a break over the arrest? For believing you that you were innocent?”
“You never believed me! You only went along with it because of Mom.”
“Give me your car keys.” Chuck held his hand out. His voice was quiet and steady. He wasn’t going to get angry and make things worse.
Shannon took the keys from her purse and dropped them in his hand. “You can’t keep me here. I have a job. I’m eighteen now.”
“I don’t care how old you are,” Chuck said. “Check the deed. This is my house, and you will live by my standards.”
“So is adultery okay, then?”
“Shannon!” Bobbi stood between them. “That’s enough!”
Chuck took a step back. If Bobbi intervened, things would calm down.
“Mom, I’m sorry.” Then she turned to him, her eyes narrowed in bitter anger. “Just remember that whatever happens, it’s your fault.”
“Where is this coming from?” Chuck asked, his fists clenched in barely controlled fury. He could feel the heat on the back of his neck, the surge of adrenaline pushing his pulse. “What has gotten into you? Is it Katelyn? Is she putting you up to this?”
“Leave Katelyn out of this,” Shannon seethed. “You brought this on all of us when you decided to sleep with that whore!” She pointed a finger at his chest. “You’re just like King David. His baby paid, his kingdom paid, his sons and daughters paid. . . .” Bobbi reached for Shannon’s arm, trying to pull her into the kitchen, but Shannon wouldn’t budge. “Brad’s dead. Joel and Abby can’t have kids. Everyone has paid because of you, Dad.”
“Shannon, you need to—” Bobbi began, but Chuck cut her off.
“No, let her say what she’s got to say.”
Precedent: Book Three: Covenant of Trust Series Page 6
