His eyes lit up.“Panetti!”
“That's right. And he's perfectly positioned to set Mr. Mask up since we just found out from the Stevens kid that this Mask guy wants more dealers who are high school kids. He already worked with Panetti before; he trusts him. We just need to get Panetti to make contact, say he's interested in dealing again, and set up a meeting – we're waiting there with a hidden camera... And we get him. Bam!”
“I don't know, man,” Ben replied uneasily. “I mean, this guy is a killer, Ev. We should really be getting the cops in on this.”
“Remember, there's a good chance the cops around here have already been bought by Mr. Mask. I’m afraid we need to do this another way. I have a friend with the State Bureau of Investigation. I’ll see what kind of help he can offer. I totally understand that you're nervous about the fact that this guy is a killer, and that's a totally legitimate concern. Worst case scenario, I can ask a buddy of mine to help – someone who has been shot at plenty of times, someone who has also done a lot of shooting himself.”
“You know people like that?” Ben questioned me.
“My friend, he used to be a Navy SEAL.”
“Oh man, yeah, if he could help, that's just the sort of person we need.”
“If I know him, he'll be down to help.”
“Alright, alright... This sounds promising. I guess we need to meet with Panetti then and figure it out,” Ben stated.
“I’ll get in touch with my friends tonight. We'll call Panetti into the office at school tomorrow,” I said. “We don't want to arouse suspicions by visiting him at his house – you never know who might be watching.”
“Yeah, good idea. Okay, well I guess we're done for the day then. I'll see you at school tomorrow,” Ben said.
“Sure. See you then, Ben, bye.”
I drove home excited; things were finally starti
ng to look like they could be solved here. Getting Mr. Mask would be a good one. I was eager to tell Vivienne about all of it; I knew she'd be relieved that it was all going to end soon.
I took out my phone to check the time and saw the message from Liza again. Ugh, I'd forgotten about that. Well, I guessed now was as good a time as any to get this out of the way. I pulled over to the side of the road and typed out a response.
“Liza, I'm flattered by what you've said, but I'm sorry, it was over between us a long time ago, and it's always going to be over between us. I've forgiven you for what you did, but that’s as far as this goes. That's a slate that simply cannot be wiped clean. Also, I've moved on now, and found someone I truly love. I'm sorry you're going through a rough time in your personal life, but there's nothing I can do to help you out there. We went our separate ways years ago, and I think it's best that we keep things that way. All the best, Everett.”
I pressed “send”. It had been hard to say those things, but they were truth, and the truth could sometimes be harsh. I took no pleasure in hurting her, but I didn't need her in my life, not now, not ever again. I had Vivienne, and it hadn’t taken long to realize that she was who I wanted to be with.
I scrolled through my contacts and found the number I was looking for—Scott Lane. He’d been the only other member of our squadron who had left the Navy. Unlike Jimmy and me, though, he couldn’t leave the life of service completely behind. So, he’d joined the SBI.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Vivienne
It took a while for the shock of what I had seen on Everett's phone to really kick in. I would never in a million years have thought that he would be a cheater and had never imagined that he would do it so early on in our relationship. Yet, there it had been in black and white – proof of the kind of man he really was. I didn't know who this Liza woman was, but I knew that he’d had his arms around her at some point earlier that day... and who knew what else they had done together in private.
I suppose I shouldn’t have been too shocked. After all, he had kept his secret about being a Navy SEAL for so long; I couldn't help wondering what other secrets he must have been keeping. Well, I knew one of them: a secret named Liza.
I felt like throwing up. Of course, I had been too shocked to say or do anything when he'd taken his phone, so I had just watched him go – go out to “find the drug dealers,” if that was his excuse. I ran the whole gamut of emotions in the first 20 or 30 minutes after he had left; rage, pain, broken trust, disbelief, shock, grief. Everything. With everything that had happened recently, it was almost too much to take. I was fighting the overwhelming urge to break down right there and then.
I knew I had to do something about it; I couldn't just let it slide. I couldn't pretend I hadn't seen it because I would know. I would always, always know... And who knew how long this thing with this Liza woman had been going on, how long he had been carrying on with her. For that matter, it was more likely that I was the other woman and she was the one truly being cheated on.
Still, he had put on a good show. Everything about him had seemed so real, so genuine. The way he had cared for me, how deeply he seemed to care felt so sincere. That’s why this came as such a shock. I guess, in retrospect, I shouldn't be so surprised. He’s young, extremely attractive, and apparently has a really high sex drive as well. How could he not want a woman – or women – on the side? What hurt the most was being fooled. He had seemed to be such a genuinely decent man. And now, now I knew the ugly truth of the matter.
Well, no more. If he thought he could make a fool out of me, he was mistaken. He was in for an even bigger shock than the one he had given me.
I was done and never wanted to speak to him again. I would have done it the moment he left the house, but I couldn't just leave his daughter alone. And as soon as I thought of poor, sweet little Jane, the tears started. She was the real victim here; her father, her only parent, was a womanizer who would drive away every mother-figure who came into their lives. She would live a life with female role models who just weren't there, flavors of the week who came into and then drifted out of her life like ships in the night.
But what could I do about that? Live with a liar, be made a fool of for the sake of his child? I cared very much for that lovely little girl, but it was a sacrifice I couldn't make. If I did, I would probably just end up blaming her and resenting her down the line.
I couldn't go back to my place, not with the threat of Simon lingering as it had been. Hell, I'd probably have to sell the place anyway. I couldn't stand the thought of having to see the reminder of this liar, this deceiver who had ripped my heart out every day. I couldn't live like that.
My friends here all had families, so I didn't want to intrude and push my way into their homes. And I couldn't exactly go across the road to ask Mrs. Dobbins if I could stay there. Ah, but wait – there was one person I knew who was single, someone who wouldn't mind, hopefully, putting me up for a night or two before I could arrange a safe place to stay on my own.