I just want this day to be over.
We drove back to town in silence, except for the wind howling through the broken window. We could barely see through the smashed windshield, but Jayce drove slowly. He still cradled his injured arm against his body, but he wasn’t wincing with pain anymore. He pulled up next to the community center and slammed on the brakes. I opened my door and wondered what I should say to him, but the moment my foot hit the ground he was already driving away.
“Long day?” Mindy asked inside the diner.
“Something like that.” I started to tell her what Jayce had called me, but didn’t want to sound like I was whining. “I met Sid today.”
Mindy’s eyes widened.
She sat across from me in the booth while I told her everything that had happened. Her lips grew more and more pursed to the point that I thought her mouth would disappear inside her face by the time I was done.
“You’re lucky,” she said. “Jayce’s lucky, really. Sid could kill him whenever he damn well pleases, but he’d rather toy with Jayce. I don’t know why that boy doesn’t just ride out of town and never come back.”
“He does have the community service to finish.”
Mindy snorted. “The penalty’s a small fine. Nothing worse. That ain’t worth dying over.”
A motorcycle rumbled in the distance, but it was a different sound than the Copperhead bikes I’d heard earlier today. Jayce’s motorcycle came into view down the road, distinctly him thanks to his flowing dark-and-sandy hair, and the way he held the handlebars with just one hand, cradling the other in his lap as he rode. He passed the diner, rode another block, and then turned down a small dirt road that led into the forest.
“What did he do?” I asked. “To upset the Copperheads. Did he backstab them, or something?”
“Something like that.” The kitchen dinged to announce a plate of food was ready, and Mindy rose from my booth. “Now you see why I told you to stay away from him?”
I smiled up at the hard woman. “I can’t stay away from him when we both have community service.”
“That,” she said, “isnotwhat I meant.” She gave me a long look before going to get the food.
Jayce’s motorcycle reemerged from the dirt road a few minutes later. It slowed down as it turned onto main street, then shot away with reckless speed.
Why don’t you run?I wondered as I ate my food.
*
“Hi sweet pea,” Dad said on the phone. “I’ve got more bad news.”
I groaned as I sat on the motel bed. “Don’t tell me.”
“There’s nothing I can do. Nobody will go anywhere near Eastland, not even for a favor. The law isn’t strong there, I hear.”
“Tell me about it,” I said.
“I’m so sorry,” Dad said. “You know if I could do anything I would…”
I didn’t blame him. After what I’d seen today, I was beginning to understand why everyone steered clear of Eastland. The last thing I wanted was for my dad to poke around asking for favors and upset the wrong guys.
“I’ll be okay, Dad. Honest.”
“Have you noticed anything dangerous?” he asked in a different tone. The voice of a sheriff casually brushing someone for information. “Anything out of the ordinary?”
“Not really,” I lied. “It’s just a quiet little town with a power-tripping sheriff. You know the kind.”
I could hear the smile in his voice. “If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you were poking fun at me.”
“Just teasing, Dad.”
He put Momma on the phone. “Do you want us to come pick you up this weekend?” she asked. “Bring you home, give you some home cooked meals. Are you eating well? What is the food like in that town?”
“I’m eating fine, Momma.” I sighed. “And as tempting as it is to go home for a weekend, I’m not sure it’s a good idea. I’ll never want to come back. It will just remind me how crappy I have it here. Plus, Mindy says I might be able to get some community service hours on the weekend. Better to knock as much of it out as I can and come home sooner in the end.”