According to Dad, the last ten weeks have pulled a lot out of Natalie. She’s always been jealous of me. Even before I could stick up for myself, she was thinking of ways to hurt me. As her treatment progressed, she started inviting my parents to the meetings where she spoke. In these, she apologized for most everything except for her hatred of me.
Her main counselor thought she was coming to grips with her intense jealousy and the mistakes she made, but suggested she stay for several more weeks to work on her coping techniques. While drugs were her crutch, she’d never be able to stay clean without completely purging her reason for using them. Apparently, I was the reason… or so she blamed.
The room is hostile. Cruz and Alex sit with their arms crossed, glaring. Chloe’s face is red as she grips her glass until her knuckles turn white. Robbie’s body is tense. We stare at my dad, and his eyes won’t move from mine.
“Uncle Thad, please tell me you told these fucking kooks that this is bullshit and Ember’s no more responsible for her troubles than the man on the moon. Isn’t admitting responsibility one of the first things you have to do? Are these even licensed therapists?”
Shame and humiliation fill my dad’s face. “I was skeptical, as well. We conferred with another specialist and agreed to bring in someone to talk to her. We chose Brad Jones.”
The little food I did consume threatens to reappear and I choke. “What?”
Hisses fill the room and Robbie takes my glass away and moves me effortlessly to his lap, draping his arms around me protectively. “You’re shitting me.”
Dad’s eyes dart around the room but come back to me. “I had to think fast. He agreed, and when he met with her, he confirmed. If she left after ninety days, she would regress rapidly. Serena and I decided to leave her for another six weeks. We’ll re-evaluate then.”
No one says anything, but all eyes are on me. I find a small voice and sit up, gripping Robbie’s forearm. “It’s a good plan. She obviously needs the help. And it’s really no surprise she blames me. She always has. At least there’s a place for her to vent, to work through the issues.”
“Yeah, but why the hell is Uncle Thad so fucking sympathetic all of a sudden?
She’s a worthless bitch. Someone needs to tell her she’s got to take responsibility,” Cruz spews.
The word responsibility tumbles in my mind, and I realize she set me up to take hers. Another stab at me for being born.
“Cruz, I hope to God you never have your first born child hold you tight and cry her eyes out, admitting her mistakes and begging you to help her, to forgive her. I wouldn’t even have it in my heart to forgive her if it wasn’t for Ember. But she’s my daughter, too. And as much as I hate to admit it, this is partly my fault. It’s time I do right by both my daughters, even if one is completely fucked up. If she can walk out of that place sober, clean, and ready for a future, it may help heal me.”
I fight to remain calm. I can’t tell my dad about anything that happened today. He’s turned. Because I pushed him to forgive, he’s being the man I’ve always known him to be.
Now what the hell am I going to do?
Chapter 37
Don’t Be Stupid
Ember
The last week has been hell. Robbie and a few of his co-workers have been working late every night on a special project that he can’t talk about. It’s the first time he’s never given me any details at all. He always wakes me up when he gets home, just to pull me against him and fall asleep fast.
The text messages started the day after the dinner with my dad. Usually, they are shots of Robbie, but yesterday, the picture was of Cruz at school. Whoever is doing this knows how to scare me. What frightens me the most is knowing that Robbie is oblivious. He explained to me before that he’s formally trained to observe his surroundings; however, he has no idea he’s being watched.
Lying in bed last night, guilt consumed me. I decided that I wasn’t going to be a pawn in this game, and formed a plan. Hopefully, when this guy is caught, Robbie will understand why I needed to keep this a secret. It is for his own protection.
Robbie eats his oatmeal as I finish my notes on the offer on the house we chose, handing him the final agreement.
He looks them over and steps beside me. “I’ll take care of all this. We’ll know soon if they accept.”
I nod against him and kiss the underside of his jaw. “I love you, Robbie.”
He leaves quickly, and I clean the kitchen, trying to stay calm. The entire drive to the police department, my stomach coils. I repeatedly tell myself this is the right thing. The police can help find the man tormenting me. I’m pretty sure it’s the Trey guy Robbie learned about from Shake, but since I haven’t actually spoken to him since the day he delivered the phone, I can’t confirm.
I pull up and look around, not sure what I expect to see. I’ve never been to the police department before. No one seems to be out of place. What do I know? I nervously get out and walk to the entrance, when the phone rings. My hands shake as I answer, backing against a wall.
“Hello?”
“You’re not planning on breaking our agreement, are you?”
“Agreement?”
“The one where you keep your mouth shut and no one gets hurt?”