“Newsflash, what’s in here is mine,” I say when she starts rummaging through another drawer. Yanking, I grab at her hand, shoving her away. “Obviously, we need to set some boundaries around here,” I puff out.
She yanks herself from my hold, trying to bypass me but I block her.
“Whatever is in here, yeah, it’s mine.”
Her narrowed eyes widening as they spotted something on my shoulders. Next thing I know she’s yanking at the straps of my book bag. I bare my teeth and she backs off the littlest amount.
The expression on her face, twisting from a glower to a knowing look. My stomach turned at the sight. Her eyes glittering of a depraved thought.
The room exploded in a strain that I was pretty sure it was only felt by me. Lorna looked downright sinister.
She was quiet for a moment before her voice dropped. “You know, I know a little secret about you.”
Lorna had said little but with the way her face glowed, I knew it wasn’t. Not for me at least. Forcing back the thick pool of saliva in the back of my throat I say nothing, recognizing that look.
She was trying to sweat me out. I may be shaken but I arch my head, angling my chin, not giving her the satisfaction. The woman will have to put in overtime if she wants anything from me.
Her smile turned tight-lipped as her lips pursed in annoyance.
You thought you could break me that easily?I wanted to say. She had no idea what I’d been through even though my gut was telling me she did.
Maybe it was her blind positivity. I wasn’t sure but I couldn’t stop stomaching the thought that she’d somehow figured it out. Pieced it together. Hired someone?
Lorna may be may not be dense or stupid, but money always talked.
“Know what the giveaway was?” she purrs and I want to throw up.
I bite the inside of my cheek, tasting blood. The distraction overshadowing my racing heart.
“Never made sense to me how someone who had gotten so much money frommy husband.Couldn’t afford to splurge on buying a shirt that didn’t look like it’d come from a donation box.”
“Sorry, we don’t all prefer to dress like over-polished purebreds.” My breathing turns hard but slow.
She lets out a noise, something like a breathless cackle knowing she was getting to me. Her words heady and drawn out.
“Fine, you didn’t care about your appearance then.” Her voice is honeyed, while I did my best to mask my terror. “Still, why would a young lady need to work at a sketchy diner if she had that kind of money, right?”
My teeth grind. “Spit it out, Lorna.”
We both know what you’re really trying to say here. The whites of her eyes turned bright and shiny. Her words getting me to.
“Doesn’t seem to make much sense,” she quizzes, baiting me.
I stay standing, unmoving, frozen to my spot. Every last muscle wound tight. Like a rubber band that’s pulled too snug. I was seconds away from snapping as the ringing in my ears started.
Lorna knew. I wasn’t sure how much, but that didn’t matter. She knew the worst of it and that was enough. I was about to face my worst demon head-on.
“You worked a job that makes pennies compared to what your father gave you.” She scoffs. “Especially after the mess of a fire you created in that barn.”
My nostrils flare.
“Not that I owe you or anyone an explanation, but I liked having a job.”
Her face turns into a sneer. Mocking me, knowing.
Almas was a perfect distraction when I needed it most. The diner was the only place that gave me peace of mind. A purpose.
That was the truth, but not the whole of it. I didneeda job. The money from tips was the only way I’d managed to survive the last few years on my own.