“I will,” Holly said as Leah and Chloe started to argue again.
“And, forgive me, but who are you?” Leah’s mother asked.
“I’m Steven and Lissa’s cousin, ma’am.” Holly cleared her throat and began to speak. “As you probably know, someone looking like Chloe vandalized the school. Chloe swore she didn’t do it, so Steven, Lissa, and I have been helping her try to find out who it really was, so she can clear her name. Her parents called off the bonfire because of the vandalism, and she was devastated.”
Leah’s mother nodded. “Yes, I’ve heard some of this.”
“Okay, so we started looking for the jacket that was worn in the video, because it’s been missing from Chloe’s closet for a little while. Today, after Leah came to visit Chloe, the jacket magically appeared back in her closet. She’d looked this morning and it wasn’t there. Chloe thought up a plan so we could see if there was any evidence in Leah’s room.
“Chloe asked Leah if we could come over here. Earlier, I looked at the vandal’s shoes on the video and took a picture of them. You see, Chloe almost always wears flats and the person in the video is wearing athletic shoes.” Holly held up the image on her phone, so Leah’s mother could see what she was talking about.
Her eyes became wide as she recognized the shoes. She looked at Leah before she said, “Go on.”
“The last thing was the hair. We assumed that whoever did it must have worn a wig.” She gestured toward the wig still tightly clenched in Chloe’s fist. “We found that wig hidden under Chloe’s bed.”
Leah’s mother took the wig from Chloe and looked at it carefully before bending over and picking up the shoes. She put the wig in the box before closing it and tucking it under her arm. “Leah, what do you have to say for yourself?”
Leah opened her mouth, but no sound came out. She looked as though she were planning to argue, but then she evidently decided it wouldn’t do her any good. “It’s true,” she finally said.
“I see,” her mother said as she stepped forward. Her voice became low as she sternly spoke. “You will fix this. Today. Call the school and tell them everything, as well as apologizing for vandalizing the lockers. Then, you are to call Chloe’ parents and explain everything to them, as well as apologize to them. Chloe is supposed to be your best friend, Leah. How could you do this to her?”
Leah began to speak, but her mother silenced her. “I don’t want to hear it right now.” She turned to Chloe, Holly, Lissa, and Steven. “I’m so sorry she did this, Chloe. Please accept my apology, but I’m going to have to ask you to leave while I further discuss this with my daughter.”
“Yes, Mrs. Cortez,” Chloe said politely. They quietly slipped through the house and headed for the car.
“Are you okay, Chloe?” Steven asked.
“I-I,” she began but her voice broke and she began to cry. “No.”
He pulled her into his arms, and she went willingly, her tears turning into sobs. He spoke softly into her hair, speaking consoling words to help her relax. Her shoulders shook as she continued to cry. Soon she pulled away and the other two girls patted her on the back.
“Why don’t you let Steven drive?” Lissa asked. “He’s really not that bad, and I think you need a little time to pull yourself together.”
She glanced from Lissa to Steven, her eyes red and puffy. “Okay.”
They climbed into the car, Steven behind the wheel, and Chloe in the passenger seat. She opened the glove box and pulled out a small package of tissues.
“Well, at least now your name is cleared,” Lissa said, “and that’s a good thing.” Holly couldn’t help but feel terrible for Chloe. To be best friends with someone and then have them do something like that had to really hurt. And why did Leah throw everything away just to get even with Chloe and for what? Because Chloe was better at something than she was? Maybe a boy? Was what she’d done really worth the loss of her reputation and Chloe’s friendship?
Holly knew people threw away relationships all the time over the slightest things. A misunderstanding or rumor. It often didn’t take much.
“Yeah, I guess so,” Chloe sniffled. “I just can’t believe she did it. Out of everyone who came to my house that day, she was the last one I ever thought would do something like this.”
“It will all work out in the end,” Steven said softly. Chloe turned and looked at him, a look of genuine appreciation on her face.
“I don’t know what I would have done without you, Steven,” she said. “Oh, and you two, of course,” she said looking over her shoulder at Lissa and Holly.
When she turned back around, Lissa gave Holly a pointed look and wagged her eyebrows at her. Holly couldn’t help but giggle. It did seem as though Chloe was starting to see Steven in a different light.
“This whole thing has me feeling totally confused,” Chloe said as she turned toward the passenger window. “It’s like my world has come crumbling down, and I don’t know what’s happening.”
“Give it time,” Holly said. “Sometimes you just need to keep your head above water while you wait for everything to settle down. Friends fight, people lie, nobody’s perfect. If anything, it’s when a person tries to be perfect that things really go downhill. Before long everything just piles up and then explodes.”
Chloe was quiet for a moment, letting it all sink in. “Maybe you’re right. Maybe it’s my fault.”
“That’s not what I was saying at all,” Holly objected.
“I know,” Chloe began. “But I heard what Leah said. She thought that I thought I was better than everyone else. That wasn’t it at all, but maybe if I had done things differently…”
“Hey, don’t even go there,” Steven said quickly. “You did nothing wrong. You were always nice to everyone and always tried to help people. You can’t worry about how other people took it. I’ve never seen you do or say anything unkind to anyone. If anything, sometimes you were too nice.”
“How could I have been too nice?” Chloe asked as she turned towards him.
“You don’t have to help people that don’t try. Sometimes, people need to learn from their mistakes. You don’t need to invite absolutely everyone to your bonfire if you don’t want to.” He sighed heavily as he turned a corner. “If anything, maybe you need to be a little more selfish. Life’s too short, you know?”
Chloe began to nod slowly. “Maybe you’re right. But right now, all I want is a big greasy cheeseburger and some chili cheese fries.”
Everyone laughed before Steven said, “That sounds great, but let’s find your parents and tell them the good news first.”
CHAPTER 22
“Thank you so much for all of your help,” Chloe said as she walked Holly, Lissa, and Steven outside. They’d just finished explaining everything to Chloe’s parents after they’d gotten a call from Leah. “Now I can text everyone and tell them the bonfire is back on,” she said with a smile.
“Are you sure you’re going to be okay?” Steven asked.
Chloe nodded. “I will be, thanks to you.”
The front door opened and Chloe’s brother, Seth, jogged out to them. “I just heard the news,” he said with a grin. “Congratulations, you guys saved the bonfire.”
“We could have never done it without Holly,” Lissa said. “If it wasn’t for her, we wouldn’t have known where to even begin.”
“Is that so?” Seth asked as he walked up in front of Holly. “Then I guess I owe you one, Holly.”
Holly waved her hand, dismissing him. “It really wasn’t that big of a deal,” she said easily.
“Why don’t I take you out sometime? I can show you a good time,” he said as he raised one eyebrow.
“Thanks, but I don’t think so,” Holly said as she stepped back. “I have a boyfriend back home, and I don’t think he’d like me going out with another guy while I’m gone.” Holly wasn’t exactly used to guys hitting on her so blatantly, and the whole thing was making her feel more than a little uncomfortable.
“O
h, come on,” he said as he grabbed her hand. “You don’t have to tell him. Nobody has to know, it can be our little secret.”
“But I’d know,” Holly insisted as she pulled her hand away. “And I’m not like that.”
Seth raised his hands in surrender. “Your choice, but if you change your mind, you know where I am.” He nodded to Steven and Lissa before turning and heading back in the house.
“I don’t think he knew what to think about a girl turning him down,” Chloe chuckled. “That’s not something that happens very often to him.”
Holly shrugged. “Sorry, I’m just not into the pushy type.”
“Me neither,” Chloe said as her eyes drifted over to where Steven was standing.
Holly noticed that the two of them were standing fairly close together. “Hey Lissa, why don’t you and I give Chloe and Steven a little time together,” she said.
Lissa looked at Chloe and Steven and her eyes grew wide. “Yeah, I think you’re right.” She raised her voice a little and said, “Holly and I are going to be over here when you’re ready, Steven.”
“Oh, uh, okay,” Steven said. He didn’t even look towards his sister and Holly as they slowly neared the corner with their bikes.
“Chloe seems like she likes Steven,” Holly said once they were out of earshot.
“It’s kind of looking that way, isn’t it?” Lissa said easily. “I guess that’s a good thing, though. He’s had a crush on her for forever. Maybe this whole thing is making her see him in a different light. You think?” she asked.
“Maybe. Or maybe it’s the fact that she sees holding herself to these high standards isn’t doing her any favors. Maybe she’s decided that it’s time to enjoy herself a little.” Holly wasn’t sure and really, it didn’t matter. What did matter was that Chloe’s name had been cleared. If she was able to see a good thing that had been right in front of her face the whole time, even better.
“What do you think they’re talking about?” Lissa asked as they stopped at the corner. They both turned and glanced over at Steven and Chloe before turning away again.
“I don’t know, but it looks pretty serious,” Holly said. Both Steven and Chloe were gazing intently at each other. They were mere inches apart and it looked as though they had forgotten that anyone else was around. Holly thought it was actually kind of sweet.
“Oh my gosh,” Lissa gasped as Chloe reached up toward Steven’s face and lifted her chin. Steven lowered his face to hers and they gently kissed. From where Holly stood, it didn’t look like an earth-shattering kiss, just a simple touch of the lips. But from the look on Chloe and Steven’s faces, their world had just shifted. Chloe’s cheeks flared crimson before she dashed inside her house leaving Steven standing there on her lawn in disbelief.
He began pushing his bike toward his sister and cousin, completely oblivious to them. He didn’t say a word as he passed by them.
“What was that all about?” Lissa asked as they caught up to him. None of them seemed in a hurry to ride their bikes. It was as if they needed a little more time to process everything that had happened that day.
“Huh?” Steven asked as though he were snapping out of it. “Oh, well, Chloe asked me out on a date,” he admitted with a far-away look in his eye.
“You have a date with Chloe?” Lissa asked in astonishment.
“Yeah, I guess I do,” he said with a smile. He seemed to be coming around. “She also said she’s going to talk to her grandparents about maybe moving up the bonfire, so Holly can go, too. She said it’s only right since she helped make sure it was back on.”
“She doesn’t have to do that,” Holly said, embarrassed. “I was just trying to help.”
“And she’s extremely grateful,” Steven said.
“Yeah, we could see that,” Lissa scoffed. “I’m just surprised. She must really be grateful if she’s willing to kiss a troll like you,” she teased.
“Hey now, people say we look just alike,” Steven said over his shoulder. “If I’m a troll, what does that make you?”
“We do not look alike,” Lissa insisted. “Remember, we don’t have the same biological mother. Now come on, let’s hurry up and get home. I’m starving.”
The three of them climbed on their bikes and began to pedal for home.
CHAPTER 23
“Dinner’s almost ready,” Katie called from the kitchen as they entered the house.
Steven headed directly for the kitchen, but Holly placed her hand on Lissa’s arm. “I’m going upstairs to read in my mom’s diary until it’s dinner time,” she said.
Lissa nodded. “I understand. Would you like me to come with you?”
Holly shook her head. “No, that’s okay. I just want to read some more. I think I’m getting close to figuring out what really happened. She’s been mentioning a guy. Maybe it’s leading up to something with him.”
“I hope so. I’m curious about what happened, too. I mean, it seems like something pretty bad had to happen for your mom to not ever want to come back here, and my mom not want to talk about it,” Lissa said with an anxious look on her face. “Good luck.”
“Thanks,” Holly said with a small smile. “Let me know when it’s time to eat.” Lissa nodded, and Holly hurried upstairs. The diary had been on her mind most of the day, at least when they weren’t involved in catching Leah. That had been something else.
Closing the door to her room, Holly flopped down on the bed and pulled out the diary. She read for a while and then things started to get interesting.
In the diary, Maggie and the guy she referred to as C continue to get serious. She’s seventeen at this point and falling in love with him. He seems to say all the right things, makes her feel special, all of it. She goes on and on about how she wants to tell him just how she feels, but she’s nervous to be the one to say it first. All the girls at school tell her that you have to let the guy say it first, but she’s not sure.
Multiple times she wrote how she’d almost said it that night. The words would be on her lips, but instead, she would hold them in. Her insecurity was obvious on every page that Holly read, and then she read something that really surprised her.
It happened. C and I made love. It was my first time. I didn’t tell him that, but I think he figured it out. He was pretty quiet afterwards. Especially after I told him I loved him. I couldn’t wait anymore. While we were lying there together it just came out. Shortly after that I had to leave.
He still doesn’t know how old I am. I probably should have said something before now, but I don’t think it would have mattered. Even though he hasn’t said it, I’m sure he loves me. He’s probably just being careful. Maybe someone hurt him badly in the past. Either way, I let him know how I felt and that was all that mattered.
Holly felt her heart sinking for her mother. It was obvious to Holly that it hadn’t ended well, knowing what had happened to her mother. She found herself wanting to reach into the diary and shake her mother, look her in the eyes and tell her to stop putting her happiness in someone else’s hands. The whole thing seemed like a predictable daytime soap opera. With a heavy heart, Holly continued to read.
There was more of the same until finally, Maggie begins to mention not feeling well. She’d tried to get together with C, but he started having to work late, or he was tired and couldn’t see her. Horrified, Holly understood what was happening.
I went home early again today. Threw up halfway into first hour. The girl who sits next to me was joking when she asked if I was pregnant, but the possibility cut through me. I hadn’t even thought about it. I thought I had a stomach bug. I stopped by the pharmacy on the way home and grabbed a pregnancy kit. Good thing I hadn’t been eating lunch, so I could afford the kit.
As soon as I got home, I took the test. There was no way I could wait. I sat in the bathroom, watching as the two lines that meant I was pregnant instantly appeared.
I have to admit I felt like I was going to pass out. I never thought something like this would happe
n to me. I didn’t think I’d really have to worry about it my first time. Now, I have to find a way to tell C. Maybe he’ll know what to do. But this means I’m going to have to tell him how old I am. He’ll find out sooner or later. It’s probably better if I tell him now rather than wait until I’m painted into a corner. It’s a little soon, but I’m sure he’ll do the right thing. He’s such a good guy and I love him so much.
Holly couldn’t help but shake her head. She was having a hard time connecting the woman in the diary with her mother. They seemed like two completely different people. This one seemed so young and innocent, so very trusting. How could a woman go from being this person to someone who would abandon her young child at home to go out and get a fix? It made Holly painfully aware of how vulnerable people really are.
All the time she’d spent in the public library when she was younger had allowed her to read quite a few books she normally wouldn’t have been interested in. Because of that, and her mother, she’d read a few on addiction and the triggers that can cause an addict to spiral downward.
Was whatever had made her mother go to Colorado and isolate herself also what made her turn to drugs and alcohol? Had she been trying to block the world out, numbing herself to the pain? If she did, then it actually explained quite a bit. The only way to try and find out was to keep reading.
Well, things didn’t go as planned. I wanted to visit C tonight and tell him everything. Instead, he told me how we were going to have to break up because he was moving to Denver for work. I told him I wanted to see him, but he said he just didn’t have the time and that it was probably better this way. At first my heart shattered into a million pieces, but then I remembered what I needed to tell him. I tried to get a word in, but he hung up before I got a chance. But that’s okay. I’ll just find a way to get to his house in the next day or so. Then I can tell him in person.
She sounded so optimistic Holly couldn’t help but hold out hope. Maybe things did work out and then something else happened. It was always possible. She scanned through the diary for the next mention of the situation.
Holly Lewis Mystery series Box Set Page 11