The little laugh I tried to stifle behind my hand was the first I’ve had in a long while. Not since she showed up here anyway. Good! I looked back over my shoulder, where she’d already disappeared into the classroom.
She’d already destroyed my life; now, it was my turn to return the favor. After my year in jail, less for good behavior, I’ll be able to pick up the pieces and move on. But what I have in store for her will destroy her beautiful little dream for good.
I ignored the students who watched me as if I’d lost my mind because I was no longer hiding my pleasure but laughed to my heart’s content as I headed back across campus. What was the point of going to classes when they were going to take my degree away from me? I’ll show them all what happens when someone crosses the line.
LISA
The last few days, I must admit, have been like something out of a fairytale once we got past the first day anyway. I’d started taking my cues from Cody when it came to dealing with my family and found that he might be onto something. I listened more and spoke less, and didn’t go into every conversation expecting to be ambushed.
In short, I tried to see them through his eyes, as hard as it was after years of building up walls and resentment. I know, though, that had it not been for him, was he not a part of my life, this would not have been possible now, if ever.
The biggest surprise so far, I must admit, has been my mom. When they’d decided to stay on a few days longer than expected, my hackles had risen, and I was ready to throw down the gauntlet. No matter what, I was still a bit nervous about having them around my new relationship because trusting them not to screw it up was a new concept.
I’d waited until I hung up the phone the very next morning, after being summoned to breakfast so we could discuss Jess and Alexis and the fact that I was stuck with them, whether I liked it or not, to rant and rave to Cody about the injustice of being saddled with an overbearing family that wouldn’t let me breathe.
I admonished him once again to run as far and as fast as he could, only this time I begged to be taken along with him. He’d let me vent my spleen without uttering a word which had only upped my unease, the fact that he didn’t seem to realize the danger we were in, so I kept trying.
“You see what I mean? This is what it’s like with them. You cannot let your guard down because, as the saying goes, if you give them an inch, they’d take a mile. They’ve done this my whole life, treated me like a toddler without direction. I knew it was too good to be true.” He shook his head as if I were in the wrong, which only upset me more.
I was hoping against hope that he’d been right, that maybe I’d read them wrong, but the fact that they were staying and had gone so far as to order us to breakfast showed me that nothing had changed. I’m not sure why I was so annoyed by this; it’s not the first time they’d imposed on me without asking.
“Everything you just said is twisted logic. Don’t look at me like that. Baby, you see meddlers; I see the people who gave you an abundance of love; you just never noticed it. If you think that they’re going overboard, why don’t you ask your mother the reason they protect you so much?”
“It’s because they’re a bunch of control freaks.”
“Is that what you see? I’m more inclined to believe that it’s because they love you. Maybe your mother went through the same thing. You did say she still has guards, and besides, even I think it’s a good idea, so instead of fighting with them about it, why don’t you pretend you’re doing it for me?”
I’d grumbled a bit more but agreed to give it a shot. At least I wasn’t surprised when Jess and Alexis were at the breakfast table in the restaurant they seemed to have rented out for breakfast since there were no other patrons around. My family tends to do that a lot, something else I find way over the top.
I sat through the explanations of why and how and even learned a few new things about both girls, things I never even thought to ask about before. Jess’ cover had been easy to get away with, and so was Alexis’. Why would I doubt that they were what they pretended to be?
But learning that they’d both been left as orphans after the fall of the old USSR had cooled my anger at them a bit. Grandpa Davenport had rescued them along with many others over the years, not specifically to become my shadows, of course, but as the story goes, the coven had got together and came up with the idea, probably something Grandma Astor saw on some show or the other, at least that’s my thinking.