I hug my knees and fight to keep the contents of my stomach down.
“Mom, don’t get mad,” Milo says warily. “I’m at Jamie’s house. Just hear me out. Sheriff Lennon’s here… It’s Jamie’s mom… They found her.”
I shudder as Milo courageously relays everything to his mother.
After a weighted pause, Milo says, “Yeah. She’s gone.”
“Milo,” I whisper weakly.
He looks at me with heightened concern.
“Can you ask her to call my aunt?”
He gives me a sympathetic smile. “Mom?” He rubs a hand behind his neck. “Can you call Maddy and let her know? Jamie can’t.” Milo nods along, finally saying, “Okay, thank you. See you soon.”
He turns back to me with an exhausted sigh. “Mom’s calling Maddy now.”
I drop my face into my hands. “Oh my gosh. She’s going to hate not being here. This will send her into a meltdown.”
Sheriff Lennon lowers his phone, becoming alarmed. “She’s unstable?”
I lift a hand to slow his reaction. “No, she was just already feeling guilty for leaving me. She’ll hate the idea of me hearing this news without her.”
He nods. “I don’t like it either. I had to notify next of kin. It’s a bad situation, however it needs to be handled.”
Sheriff Lennon’s phone call was about an urgent situation downtown. With knowledge of Mrs. Nelson on her way, and Milo and I insisting we were finewaiting alone, Sheriff Lennon left. Not before ensuring I remembered about the crisis care hotline he mentioned earlier.
“Oh my gosh,” I mumble, pressing my hands over my face.
Milo sits back down, sweeping his arms around me. “I’m so sorry, Jamie.”
I lower my hands as tears pool in my eyes. “I never did anything.”
Milo tilts his head, getting a better view of my face. “What was that?”
“I didn’t do anything to find her,” I whimper, tears rolling down my face. “She’s been gone all this time, and I never looked.” I swipe my hands over my cheeks, smearing the tears dry before new ones appear. “What if we could’ve done something? Milo, I crawled under a house for a cat, but I never did anything to find my own mother.”
“Jamie, you were a kid,” Milo says rationally. “No one expected you to do anything.”
“I grew up. I could’ve gotten off my butt and done something.”
He cups my face, staring into my eyes until my breathing decelerates.
“Jamie,” he says in a low, calm voice. “The sheriff said this guy hid several bodies. If the police couldn’t find them, a sixteen-year-old high schooler wasn’t going to.”
I collapse against him, hugging him with all my might. “Oh, Milo. I’m so glad you were here. How could I have heard this news without you?”
“You’d be okay. But I’m always here to stop you from spiraling.”
I giggle against his shoulder. “I’m never letting you go.”
I lift my head and smile at his beautiful face.
“About that.” He tucks a piece of hair behind my ear. “When the sheriff arrived, you called me your boyfriend.”
I look into his eyes, forming a small smile. “Is that okay?”
He grins, a nervous laugh breezing out of him. “Yeah.”
