by Adam Kunz
“Yeah, she said you got a few texts, but she also said you read them to her. She never physically saw them herself,” he explains, dragging his hands up and down his face in a show of exhaustion.
“What about Janice? What about Kevin’s truck?”
He releases a heavy breath before he speaks. “At the moment, we’re looking into Janice’s cause of death. We just put a warrant out for Kevin Donnelley. We’ll catch him soon. Don’t worry.”
“Don’t you get it? Kevin didn’t do this. I’m telling you the truth. It was this Unknown bastard who did it. He has Kevin. I got a message about it earlier,” I explain, battling my irritation. I want to slap my dad across the face in hopes that he’ll actually listen to me.
“Now, you listen to me. I getting really fed up with—”
“You’re getting fed up? You’re getting fed up? Christ, Dad. I’ve been fed up this whole time! Call Parker Reed. His number’s in my phone. He’ll tell you I’m right.” The moment I mention his name, I regret it.
My father clenches his jaw so tight that I expect him to come away with some broken teeth when he opens it to talk. “Samson, get Mr. Reed on the phone,” he orders, handing Samson my cell.
There’s an uncomfortable silence that falls between my dad and me until Samson re-enters the office.
“It went straight to voicemail both times I tried, sir,” Samson says, handing the phone back to my dad.
“Well, it looks like we’ll be making a quick trip over to Blackburn University tonight,” he murmurs while rising from his chair.
My dad’s thunderous knock on Parker’s door echoes loudly throughout the empty hallway. I hear some shuffling around on the other side of it, but no one answers. He knocks again and I’m surprised to see who’s standing there when it cracks open.
“Parker, some officers are at your door,” Sarah announces back into the room. Her stare homes in on me and I see the shock register on her face.
The next voice I hear is Parker’s coming from behind the door. “Sarah, I told you I’d get the—” He goes speechless the moment our eyes collide after he opens the door the rest of the way. “Dani?”
The instant my name leaves his lips, I want to storm off. A scream bubbles up in my throat, but I swallow hard, trying to show some restraint. I seriously can’t believe that after what just happened between us, he’d go running back to his ex. My head and heart ache with all of the emotions running through them.
“Actually, it’s me who’s here to talk with you, Mr. Reed,” my dad says, causing Parker to switch his focus over to him.
“What’s this about?” Parker asks, panning back over to me with a knowing glance. I’m sure he realizes this is about Unknown.
“May we come in?” my father asks, removing his sheriff’s hat.
Parker moves to the side and allows us to enter his dorm room. When I pass by him, he puts his hand on my shoulder, but I shrug it off. I hear him whisper, “This isn’t what it looks like, I promise. She just came over to talk.” For some stupid reason, I think I believe him.
“I should probably get going,” Sarah says, collecting her jacket that’s draped over the back of the couch.
You shouldn’t have come in the first place, I think.
Sarah leaves without even saying goodbye to Parker, so maybe he really is telling the truth. They didn’t seem romantic or anything, and she reeked of shame, but not in the cheating kind of way. The empathetic look she gave me just before she left might’ve been a hint that nothing really happened between them.
“My daughter claims you can vouch for her testimony about an unknown assailant,” my dad states matter-of-factly, sounding annoyingly by the book.
I dodge Parker’s gaze when he looks over at me for support. He lets out a small laugh while shaking his head. “What she says is true, and you’re probably wondering how I know this,” he says. I look in his direction, fearing what will happen if he goes any further with that statement. “This Unknown person used our relationship against us.”
“Your relationship?” my father asks, and I see the sparks igniting within his eyes. I become more worried when I notice his hands ball up into fists by his side. I see the veins pop to the surface.
Parker takes in a deep breath after seeing my dad’s reaction. “I really like your daughter, sir. Have for quite some time now. And truthfully, it may be more than ‘like.’ That’s why I wouldn’t lie to you about this, or us. What happens to her really matters to me.” He smiles in my direction.
Okay, so it wasn’t the “L” word I’ve been hoping for, but that doesn’t mean I’m not happy to hear him confess his feelings to my father.
My dad’s eyes move to rest on the twin bed in the corner of the room. Then my heart sinks when he looks at me. “Is this the guy whose bed you woke up in after the party?” he asks through clenched teeth.
My surprised eyes dart from my father’s over to Parker’s, and worry sets in. I fear my father’s about to lose it.
“Yeah, I’m the guy,” Parker pipes up, drawing my father’s attention to him like a shark to blood.
My dad rears back and throws a punch right at Parker’s face. The sound of his fist connecting with Parker’s jaw causes me to flinch, and I instantly feel guilty. Parker whips his head back around to face my father, seeming unfazed by the hit. He wipes the blood from the corner of his mouth, all the while still staring back at my dad.
“Dad!” I yell at him from behind my cupped hand. He storms out of the room with Samson right behind him.
“We’re leaving, Dani,” he calls out to me from the doorway, implying that I should follow.
I stand there looking at Parker, not really knowing what to do or say. I move in front of him, his eyes never leaving mine. Reaching up, I wipe away the little trickle of blood running down his chin, which I feel completely responsible for.
“I’m so sorry. That’s so unlike him,” I whisper, causing a smirk to sprout on Parker’s face.
“I want you to know I meant everything I said,” he replies as his smirk changes into a full-blown smile.
“I know you do, but I’m not sure how faithful you can be to me, even with having those feelings. You’re too much of a gamble, Parker. It pains me to say that, but it’s how I feel,” I explain and kiss him on the cheek. He tries to turn it into more, but I pull away. “I better get going.”
He exhales heavily. “Yeah, maybe you should.”
As I reach the open door, I turn back around and see Parker’s gaze on me. It breaks my heart to leave him like this, but maybe our perfect opportunity to be together was ruined the moment he left the first time.
Chapter Thirty
By Monday morning, I’ve been awake for almost two full days. I find that every time I close my eyes in an attempt to sleep, all I see is Janice’s body, causing me to wake up.
My eyes are heavy and strained as I stare out my window at the early morning rain falling outside. Not only haven’t I slept, but eating is becoming an issue as well. I can’t keep anything down. My system is totally out of whack, and the tremendous stress I’m under definitely isn’t helping.
My dad and his deputies are still searching for Kevin, but I know they won’t find him until Unknown wants him found. I’ve completely given up on convincing my father to listen to me. Even after he talked with Parker, things didn’t get any better. In fact, things managed to get worse, which could be directly related to my stubbornness over the whole Parker situation.
I groan as I stare down at the cheap little flip phone my dad gave me to use from here on out. It’s an old deputy phone that has a tracking chip in it and can only perform the basic functions. He’s the only one who has the number. My other phone is stuffed in a plastic bag somewhere at the station. They’re holding onto it to see if they can find any trace of the evidence Parker backed up with his statement.
I don’t even want to get dressed for school today. The fact that I haven’t picked out my clothes to wear echoes that sentiment. I f
ind it funny that Dad thinks I’ll be safe at school.
A knock at the door ushers in my father. “Dani, you better hurry up or you’ll be late.”
“I’m not going,” I reply, still gazing out my window at the puddles of rain forming in the yard. I’m still pissed at him for cheap-shotting Parker. I know he feels it was justified, but I don’t think it was. He did apologize to me, but I wasn’t the one who deserved that apology.
“Why do you have to make everything so difficult? Being at school will be good for you. It will keep your mind occupied until all of this blows over.”
I laugh hollowly. “You have no idea what’s good for me. Do you realize this will be the first day I won’t see Mr. Whitman at school? And that’s just the first thing on a list of shitty things that I’ll experience if I go.”
“I’m sorry about that, but you can’t hide from your problems, Dani. They have ways of coming back to bite you in the ass,” he replies, which only makes me turn and glare at him.
“I guess I learned from the best, huh?”
He doesn’t appear to have some snappy comeback. He just stands there looking at me. Eventually, he says, “Come on…get dressed. You need to get going.” Then he shuts the door before I can argue.
This is the moment I’ve been dreading all day. I stand in front of Mr. Whitman’s office and stare at the nameplate resting in a little metal frame on the door. Running my fingers across the embossed letters, my chin begins to tremble and an ache pulses within my chest. I didn’t go to my independent study this morning for obvious reasons, so this is the first time I’ve been in front of this door all day.
I had a meeting with the principal earlier about the state of the newspaper. He’s decided to put the whole project on hiatus for the time being until he can find a replacement for Mr. Whitman. When I asked what would happen to Parker, he mentioned that he had already dropped out of the program. I wasn’t really surprised by his answer. It was really a relief. Now I wouldn’t have to worry about bumping into him today.
I reach out to grab the door handle and shiver when the cool metal touches my skin. Turning it, I pull the door open and stand there at the threshold, scanning the familiar space. The first step inside is the hardest. I slowly make my way over to his desk and run my fingers across the smooth, cherry oak wood finish, remembering all the laughs and discussions Mr. Whitman and I shared during my independent study. I was lucky to have a teacher like him in my life. He had believed in me and in my writing so much.
The moment I get misty-eyed, I sit down in one of the two chairs in front of the desk. For a moment, I pretend he’s sitting in his chair, leaning back with his hands resting on his chest, letting out a jolly chuckle. Somehow, I manage to smile through the tears.
“Dani?” a familiar male’s voice asks behind me.
Sitting up and turning around, I see Parker standing there in the doorway. “Hi.”
“Sorry, I saw the door was open and—”
“What are you doing here, Parker?” I interrupt.
He sighs. “I had a few things I needed to return to the newspaper office.”
“Oh.”
“Hey, about what happened the other night, I—”
I cut him off again. “Just stop. I don’t want anything to ruin this moment, okay? I’m finally dealing with some things, and I need some space.”
Before he has a chance to reply, a melodic chime fills the room. It definitely isn’t my phone. Parker groans while removing his cell from his pants pocket. The expression he sends my way after looking at the screen fills me with concern.
“What is it?”
“A message from an unknown number,” he replies, moving closer to show me.
I take the phone from his hand. “What? Why is he sending you a message?”
“I don’t know.”
I focus on the phone and read the text out loud. “You might want to check dearly departed Mr. Whitman’s top left desk drawer.”
The moment I finish reading the message, Parker moves over to the left drawer.
“Should I open it?” he asks with reluctance.
“No. It’s just another mind fuck courtesy of Unknown. And frankly, I’m over it.” I place his phone on top of the desk and slide it over to him.
The phone chimes again as it sits in the middle of the desk. Parker reaches out and snatches it up, bringing it in front of his face.
“The text says that I really should open the drawer,” he says and flashes me a look of worry. “How the hell does this guy know what we’re doing?”
“I’ve stopped trying to figure that out,” I respond in a defeated tone. “You better open the drawer. He only becomes more persistent if you ignore him.”
I watch as Parker slowly pulls open the drawer. A look of confusion appears on his face.
“Well, what’s in there?”
He draws out a manila folder and holds it up for me to see. “It’s full of undeveloped photos. Shit, the light,” he says, snapping the folder closed. “Light ruins undeveloped pictures.”
“I think that’s only sunlight,” I comment.
“Oh, right.”
“Either way, I think we need to get those developed.”
“I thought you said you were over Unknown,” he quips while moving around to the front of the desk.
“So I’m fickle. Sue me,” I reply, taking the folder from his hands. “Doesn’t Phoebe know how to do this whole process?”
It’s like an epiphany hits him. “Yeah, she does. And she told me she’d be in the darkroom for a little while after school.”
“I don’t like how so coincidental this all is right now.”
“You’re right. It does seem off. But don’t you want to know what’s in these pictures? They could give us answers,” he says, tapping on the folder.
“This asshole is really not one for giving answers—just more puzzles.”
“Well, there’s only one way to find out, right?”
“Can’t you see he’s just fucking with us? Nothing good will come of this, I can promise you,” I reply in a harsh whisper, shoving the folder into his hands.
“What else are you going to do? It’s obvious we can’t run from this, and doing nothing will only end up getting someone else hurt. We have to play along if we want any chance of catching this bastard,” Parker argues. I see the fear in his eyes, but I can also tell it’s giving him strength. “I know things are really fucked up between us right now, but I told you we’re in this together, no matter what.”
He holds out the folder like a handshake, waiting for an agreement. I take the folder from him and a nervous smile shows on his mouth.
“Okay, let’s play.”
We move down the hall and through the double doors at the end of it, leading into the next section of the building. Rounding the corner into the right hallway, I see Phoebe standing outside the production lab, locking up.
“Phoebe, we need your help,” I call out while running up to her.
She freezes and stops turning the key in the doorknob when she looks over at us in confusion. “Okay…what do you need my help with, exactly?”
“We have some pictures that need to be developed,” Parker interjects over my shoulder.
“Can’t this wait ’til tomorrow? I’m kind of nauseous from the fumes in there,” she replies, finishing locking the door.
“This is very important, Phoebe. It can’t wait,” I insist.
She sends both of us a suspicious look. “What’s this all about?”
Parker places his hand on her shoulder. “We’ll explain later, okay? But now we need to get these developed.”
Phoebe looks dubiously at both of us again, but then turns the key that’s still in the door, opening it. “All right, follow me. Dark room is in the back,” she says, moving into the room.
When we enter the dark room, Phoebe flips a switch, bathing everything in deep red light. “So, where are these pictures of yours?” she asks after Parker shuts us in the sm
all room.
I hand the folder over to her and she begins removing them one by one. She lays them out on the table behind her in the empty space next to a few trays full of liquid. She snaps on a pair of rubber gloves and places safety glasses over her eyes.
She picks up the first photo, but then stops. Turning to look at us, she says, “Before I go through with this, I’d like a little more explanation on why these pictures are so important.”
“Phoebe, just trust us when we say it’s important,” I reply.
“So, let me get this straight. You have no idea what’s on these, yet they’re important?” she asks.
“Yes,” Parker and I say.
“Okay, okay. I get it. It’s important. I’ll get on it,” she replies with a slight laugh.
Chapter Thirty One
I watch as Phoebe starts the developing process. Laying the picture in the first tray, she moves it around, causing the photo to slide about in the solution. After a few moments, she removes it with a pair of tongs and places it in the next tray. The image gradually begins to appear as she jostles the tray back and forth, making the picture swish around in the liquid. The anticipation is killing me.
“Is that an arm?” I ask when Phoebe pulls out the picture with the tongs.
“Yeah, I think so,” she answers, tilting her head while studying it. She attaches it to the line with a clothespin, letting it drip-dry. “Where did you say you got these pictures?”
“We didn’t,” Parker responds, saving me the hassle of trying to make something up. “Believe me, the less you know, the better.”
“All right, what’s that supposed to mean? Are you guys in trouble or something?”
“It’s complicated, and like Parker said, it’s better you don’t know, okay? You probably wouldn’t believe us if we told you, anyway,” I explain while handing her the next photo.
She takes the picture and tosses it into the solution before saying, “Try me.”
Parker and I look at each other and he nods. It’s probably for the best that we tell her. Phoebe can be pretty persistent.
