Fuck?
No, I definitely did not know that.
Not that it’s something I would have known.
I mean, I was 13 when they went away. What did I know? My biggest concern was when I’d go on my first date or get to cop a feel – from anyone.
“A deal?” I manage to ask. My voice is thick and my throat hurts a little in this moment.
“Yeah,” she whispers. “I found out about it when my mom...”
Her voice trails up and I sit up straighter.
“Your mom? What the fuck happened to your mom? Is she okay?”
“No, she’s not okay, Gavin.” Emilia looks at me curiously. She doesn’t speak for a minute, as though she’s trying to decide whether she can trust me or not, and then she seems to decide that it’s okay.
“She was committed.”
“What?” I feel sick to my stomach. How did I not know this? Wait, so who takes care of Emilia? Who looks after her? I realize that I really did have her all wrong. She’s not some spoiled little rich bitch at Crescent Academy.
She’s basically an orphan: same as me.
“When she went into the hospital, I had a bunch of paperwork to go through,” she says. “Well, my attorneys did. They tried to keep most of it from me, but I happened to see a lot of things I probably wasn’t supposed to see.”
I bite my lip so hard it bleeds. Shit. What the fuck did she see? What does Emilia know that I don’t know?
And why the hell didn’t she tell me?
Why did she let me push her around for five years and treat her like shit when she knew something I didn’t know?
She knew her dad wasn’t a bad guy. Is that it?
I think I’m going to be sick.
“When they went to trial, there was enough evidence to lock both of our dads away for years,” she says. “But my dad took the blame, Gavin. It wasn’t true. They were both involved. There was plenty of evidence that showed
they had equal partnership. My dad, though,” she shakes her head and a tear splashes off her cheek. It lands on my hand and I just look at it.
“What happened?” I whisper. Suddenly, nothing matters as much as knowing what happened next.
I need to know.
“My dad took the fall,” she whispers. “Your dad...he needed to be there for you. He knew you were going places and he didn’t want you to have the stigma of a dad behind bars. Not with the career you wanted.”
She means playing football.
That’s what it always comes down to.
But I don’t know if I can believe the things that Emilia is saying because they’re all too fucked up.
“How do I know you’re telling me the truth?”
“Gavin, there’s a reason your dad only got a year but mine was sentenced to life in prison. He took the fall for yours. He took all of the blame entirely and you know what?” She shakes her head like it’s the stupidest thing ever. “It was definitely not worth it.”
Chapter 6
Emilia