Secrets On the Clock

by Nicole Disney

  “Don’t you even care what the emergency is?”

  “You not liking the food in the fridge isn’t an emergency. Nor is running out of serum, wanting a milkshake, or being pissed I didn’t answer on the first ring.”

  “It’s Mom, ass.”

  “I’ll talk to her when I get home. I have to go, Callie.”

  “She’s on her way to your work.”

  “What?” Jenna stood up.

  “Told you it’s an emergency. She’s probably almost there by now since you wouldn’t answer.”

  “Why didn’t you stop her?”

  “Right, just tackle her and drag her to the basement and lock her up?”

  “Talk her down, Callie. Be kind.”

  “You can’t honestly think it’s that simple.”

  “I do it all the time, Callie. It is that simple.”

  “Well, she’s already gone.”

  Jenna felt an angry groan rumbling in her chest.

  “I’m sorry you don’t like having a freak show of a family, Jenna, but you do.”

  “I don’t mind freak shows. I mind selfishness and laziness.” Jenna slammed the phone on the receiver. She looked out her office window into the parking lot and searched for the Volkswagen. When she didn’t spot it, she hurried out of her office, hoping she could catch her mom in the parking lot.

  When she reached the ground level she heard her mom’s voice and grimaced in dread.

  “Jenna Thompson!” her mom screamed at the receptionist. “Where are you keeping her? What have you done to her?”

  Jenna circled the corner. “Mom,” she called out. Her mother spun. She looked wild. Her face was contorted with fear. She ran over and wrapped her arms around Jenna.

  “Sorry, Ms. Thompson.” Jenna recognized the receptionist’s voice who had just transferred Callie to her. The poor thing had been berated by two of her family members in a matter of minutes. “She doesn’t have an ID. We didn’t want to—”

  “It’s okay.” Jenna wrapped her arm around her mom, guiding her away from the desk. “Mom, what are you doing here?”

  “I woke up, and you weren’t there. And your sister…” Her mom checked over her shoulder. “I know she had you taken away. I told you she’s been scheming. She lied about you and they came to get you.”

  “No one came to get me. I’m right here. I just had to work.”

  “They didn’t come?”

  “No, Mom. No one’s coming.”

  “But your sister, I heard her, Jenna. It wasn’t the voices. I heard her.”

  Jenna sighed. “I know you did. She did call, but just my boss. Nothing bad is going to happen.”

  “Your boss? Here?”

  “Yes.”

  “That’s it, then. We have to get out of here before it’s too late.”

  “These people aren’t dangerous, Mom. They’re not going to hurt me.”

  “Oh, Jenna, don’t be naive. They follow you everywhere. I see them more and more. They watch the house. Your sister told them where to find us. She’s a traitor.”

  Jenna tried to urge her mother down the hall, hoping to make their way outside eventually, but it was a long corridor and her mom would only be moved a few inches at a time.

  “Callie is your daughter,” Jenna said. “She loves you. She loves both of us. She was just mad at me. It’s not serious. She’s just young.”

  Her coworkers seemed to be passing by in record numbers, something she knew wasn’t a coincidence. Word was spreading, and they all wanted to watch. She wanted to yell at them, but she couldn’t draw her mom’s attention to them. That would make things much worse. She had to focus on her mom. She had to calm her down.

  * * *

  Danielle threw her jacket in her locker and glanced at the empty door where Jenna used to keep the picture of the gorgeous model. She glanced at the supply closet where they’d stolen their forbidden kisses. She was running out of ideas, out of ways she wanted to apologize, out of reasons to stumble into Jenna’s office, and out of certainty they belonged together. What if Brianna was right, and she simply wasn’t Jenna’s type?

  Danielle looked at the ring her brother had given her. For when she felt alone. She certainly felt alone now. She’d wanted to be the only one in charge of her opinions and decisions about Brianna, but it resulted in painful isolation. All she had now was Brianna, who was hardly the sort of company she needed.

  The door to the locker room open and a group of people melted inside in a fit of weak-kneed laughter. Danielle glanced over and found Val’s face among them.

  “What’s so funny?” she asked.

  “Jenna’s mom is flipping shit in the lobby.”

  “She’s here?”

  “Oh, yeah. She ripped the front desk a new one. Thinks we kidnapped Jenna and brought her here.”

  Danielle slammed her locker shut. “That’s not funny.”

  Val turned serious. “Oh, come on. Jenna’s with her. She’s in good hands.”

  Danielle passed them. “Not funny,” she repeated.

  Val grabbed her arm. “Don’t get involved. It will make you both look bad.” Val tried to maintain eye contact to emphasize her insinuation, but Danielle wouldn’t have it and pulled her arm free.

  “She likes to handle her own business anyway,” Val said. “You’ll just embarrass her.”

  “Embarrass her?” Danielle said. “You mean like having people laughing at her would?”

  Danielle left the locker room and headed for the lobby, not sure what she planned to do when she got there. The yelling was clear and loud from two rooms away. She turned the last corner and saw Jenna standing a few feet away from a woman, her mother, who held a lamp poised to strike. Danielle’s breath stopped in her chest.

  “They got you!” the woman screamed. She was the mirror image of Jenna, appearing closer to her age than she possibly could be. The whole family shared a striking resemblance. “They brainwashed you, didn’t they?”

  Jenna tried to approach, but her mother swung the lamp, sweeping it horizontally between them, catching only air.

  Danielle saw the receptionist pick up the phone out of the corner of her eye and rushed over. She clicked the receiver to disconnect the line.

  “I’m supposed to call the cops for this kind of thing.” The receptionist couldn’t be a day over nineteen, and the scrambled emotions ran through her face like a parade.

  “Did Jenna ask you to call them?”

  “She’s a little busy.” The young girl gestured at Jenna.

  “Okay, we’re not calling the cops,” Danielle said. “Call Tina Richards.”

  “Who?”

  “From the fourth floor. In the directory under mental health counselors. Tell her it’s for Jenna.”

  A loud crash sounded, and Danielle looked up to see Jenna’s mom had thrown the lamp, but she wasn’t sure if it connected. If it did, Jenna barely flinched. Her hands were still in front of her, her voice still soft, her focus absolute. Danielle doubted Jenna even knew she was there.

  “I’m calling the cops,” the receptionist said.

  “Tina Richards,” Danielle snapped. “Now.”

  The girl shook her head and dialed. She was only on the phone a moment before she hung up, and the woman who must be Tina appeared seconds later from the elevator.

  She was in her forties and had a small, unassuming frame, but she walked over with an air of steadfast confidence. Surprise swept through Jenna’s face when she noticed Tina by her side.

  Jenna’s mom looked around the room, trying to spot a new weapon.

  “Who the hell are you?” she screamed. “You’re not taking me away!”

  “My name is Tina,” she said. “We met a few years ago. I’m not taking you anywhere you don’t want to go. I just want to know what’s going on.”

  The words were simple, but her tone was soothing, soft and sure. It had a relaxing effect on the entire room. Danielle could see Jenna’s mom try to place the woman, then finally vague recogniti
on. She looked calmer by a degree, but her gaze bounced from face to face, landing on a few that weren’t there.

  “What are you all looking at?” she yelled.

  Danielle gently grabbed the receptionist’s arm and pulled her into the next room. “Let’s give them some space.”

  The girl was annoyed, but went with her. Danielle knew this was probably the highlight of the girl’s month and couldn’t work out why she was so keen to pretend to be put out. Once they were around the corner, the yelling died out instantly, and it was only another few minutes before they heard the voices fade and the front door close. When Danielle looked around the corner again, she could see Jenna through the glass doors. She was hugging her mom, then she helped her into the Volkswagen that was parked on the sidewalk. It was the same car she’d seen at Jenna’s house. Tina circled the car and got in the driver’s seat, then drove off, leaving Jenna standing on the curb.

  Danielle couldn’t believe the turnaround and understood why Jenna had said Tina was the best. She wanted to check on Jenna, wanted to know if she was hurt, what Tina had said to calm her mother down, whether she was taking her home or to some sort of facility, what Jenna was feeling, but none of that was any of her business anymore. She couldn’t go wrap her arms around Jenna the way she wanted to. She turned and left before Jenna could spot her.

  Chapter Thirty-three

  Danielle was so focused on charging through the parking lot she didn’t notice Sasha until she was plowing her over. Danielle stepped on her foot and bumped her hard enough to send her backward and make her drop her papers.

  “Whoa, shit,” Sasha said.

  “I’m so sorry,” Danielle said. “I wasn’t watching.” Danielle crouched and started gathering Sasha’s papers.

  “It’s okay,” Sasha said and chuckled. “You okay?”

  “Sure.”

  She could feel Sasha studying her without looking up.

  “You sure?”

  “Yeah,” Danielle said. “Just on my way to see the Clarks.”

  “Oh,” Sasha said. “How’s that going?”

  “About like I expected,” Danielle said. She forced herself to look up. “No, that’s not true. It’s actually going okay. It just feels wrong.”

  Sasha nodded. “There’s a lot of pressure taking over for someone else, but you’re good at what you do. Can’t be as bad as finding that body, right?”

  Danielle laughed lightly remembering her own history with Sasha. She should feel closer to her, but knowing how close Sasha and Jenna were made it hard to imagine Sasha didn’t hate her. “No, not as bad as the body.”

  They finished gathering the papers and stood up.

  “Hey, we’re all going out tomorrow if you want to come,” Sasha said.

  Danielle laughed.

  “What?” Sasha asked. “Is that such a crazy idea? You’ve been looking down lately. We’re pretty good at picking up peoples’ spirits.”

  “Does ‘we’ include Jenna?”

  Sasha looked taken aback and stumbled for words. “I…hopefully. She’s invited. She seems like she needs some cheering up too. Is that a problem?”

  “We don’t have to do this thing where we pretend like you don’t know,” Danielle said. “You’re her best friend. I know you know.”

  Sasha chuckled. “Okay, but still, does that mean you guys can’t be around each other? You don’t think you’ll stay friends?”

  “Maybe one day.” Danielle fought the ache forming in her chest at the idea. She didn’t want to be friends.

  “Okay,” Sasha said. “But if you change your mind we’ll be at Big J’s at eight.”

  “Thanks.” Danielle nodded and started for her car again. She slipped into the safety of her car, feeling tears welling up. Nothing made her remember how hurt she was like trying to pretend she wasn’t. She choked down the tears. She had to check on Deon and Raylon today, and she had to embody Jenna’s calm and safe presence when she did it. She couldn’t have a red, puffy face.

  Danielle parked in front of their complex and launched out of the car before she could think too much about it. As she approached the apartment building she heard yelling, but it took her all the way to the Clarks’ door to be certain it was coming from their apartment. There was a booming male voice screaming inside and loud bangs as if he was throwing things.

  Danielle leaned closer and stood perfectly still. She strained to hear better and finally made out a small whimper, but the high-pitched voice could be female or child. She debated whether or not to knock, looking over her shoulder as if the answer would somehow be back in her car. Just as she decided she should call the police, things went quiet. She held her breath. Voices started up again inside, closer to a normal volume, and she knocked before she could second-guess herself. She hated the idea of standing outside waiting while someone might be getting hurt, while the boys might be hurt, when her presence alone would probably stop everything. The moment her knuckles hit the door the talking abruptly stopped, then resumed in hurried whispers.

  “Coming,” Ladona said. Danielle guessed it had been her voice she had heard, which relieved her in at least some measure. Several seconds went by while Danielle stood outside. The door opened, but stopped violently just inches later when it caught on the chain. “Oops.” Ladona closed the door, removed the chain, and opened it again. “Ms. Corey,” she said.

  “Ladona.”

  “I’m so sorry to keep you waiting out here. Come on inside.”

  Danielle cautiously stepped inside, surveilling the room. She expected to see the owner of the male voice immediately, but he wasn’t in sight. From the sounds seconds before, she expected to see toppled furniture, but everything was in place.

  “How have you been since we last saw you?” Ladona asked.

  Danielle slowly turned, puzzled by the attempt to pretend such an obvious disturbance hadn’t just happened. “Ladona, who else is here?”

  “Just me and Deon.”

  Danielle paused again, trying to gather her thoughts. “You and Deon?” Deon was growing up fast. He seemed to mature every time she saw him, but she couldn’t believe for a second his voice had turned into that of a forty-year-old man’s over the week.

  “That’s right,” Ladona said. “Raylon had a school project he had to take care of today with some classmates. I hope that’s all right since it’s school and all. I tell you that tutor Ms. Thompson recommended has done wonders for both of them.”

  “Who was in here yelling just now?” Danielle asked. She couldn’t stop spinning, checking every corner of the room, afraid he’d spring out.

  “Yelling?” Ladona spun like she was also looking for the culprit. “There’s no one yelling in here.”

  “Ladona, I heard it. You remember what I said the last time we met, about how I have to report everything? If I don’t know what—”

  “Oh, you know what it must have been, I had a friend over watching football. He gets a little worked up sometimes. We weren’t arguing or anything.”

  “Where’s your friend?”

  “He’s, uh…” Ladona turned. “Carl, come on out here and meet the social worker.” Ladona turned back and leaned closer. “I’m so sorry about all this. He just thought I’d get in trouble if you knew I had someone over because that boyfriend I used to have wasn’t so nice. He was just trying to look out for me. There’s no yelling, though, Ms. Corey. I promise.”

  Danielle scrutinized Ladona for bruises or red marks, but couldn’t see any.

  “Carl!”

  Footsteps stomped through the kitchen and a man appeared in the door frame, taking up nearly all of it. He was a tall brick of muscle with a temper, and Danielle couldn’t help but feel uncomfortable around him, but she couldn’t just leave. She had to ask questions. Questions that might piss him off.

  “Nice to meet you.” Carl held out his hand. Danielle tentatively shook it, checking his knuckles for injury and finding nothing. “I live just a few apartments down,” he said. “We like to
get together and watch football now and then.”

  “Who’s playing?”

  Carl’s bright smile faded from his face. “Just about everybody,” he said. “Games on all day.”

  “Right,” Danielle said. Silence stretched, and Ladona started to fidget and shift her weight while Carl seemed to try to be even taller than he already was.

  “She says she heard you yelling,” Ladona finally broke the silence.

  “Oh,” he said. “Sure, I might have. These refs get me kind of fired up sometimes, no cause for concern.”

  “Yes, that’s what she was saying,” Danielle said. “Carl, I don’t mean to be rude, but since you live just a few doors down, if I could ask you to step out for the time being. We do need to get through this visit, and it’s typically better if it’s just the family.”

  “Right,” Carl said. “We’re not going to have any problems, are we?”

  “I’m not sure what you mean.”

  “About the yelling.”

  “I certainly hope not.”

  “What do you mean by that?” He leaned closer. “You’re either going to make it a problem or you’re not.”

  Danielle’s heart pounded as his shadow swallowed her. She stood up straight and held her ground. “It’s just a routine visit, Carl. There are rarely problems. If you won’t leave, though, I won’t be able to finish the visit. Then my supervisor will have to come by.”

  Part of Danielle wanted to lie her way through this, say whatever she had to just to get the man out, but she also knew making eager promises would ring false, and she wanted to avoid implying it would depend on what the family said, knowing that could put them in a dangerous position. Carl stared at her for a long time before he finally broke out into another smile.

  “I’m just messing with you, girl. Of course, I’ll step out. None of my business how a woman raises her kids. Ladona, you just come knock on my door when you’re finished here, and we’ll get back to the game.”

  Ladona nodded and watched him go. Danielle felt them both take a breath of relief when the door closed, but the silence continued for another minute. Danielle turned back to Ladona.

  “You want to tell me what happened?”