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“That was before I had a little talk with him,” Peyton singsongs.
“Right. I bet you had a long talk with Troy,” Sydney giggles. “Question is, was it before or after you got on your knees?”
“What can I say? Whatever gets the job done,” Peyton admits with a calculating little laugh. “The town will benefit from the new condos Roger wants to build. Since his father passed away and he gambled most of his inheritance, Troy has struggled to even keep up with the property taxes. He was going to have to sell eventually. Why not to Misty?”
My jaw twitches at their conversation.
It’s true I have no love for Troy Baker and couldn’t give a rat’s ass about his financial troubles, but the way Peyton and Misty took advantage of them for their own gain doesn’t sit well with me either.
“Sounds to me like Misty owes you one,” Brooke says, putting in her own two cents.
“Misty doesn’t owe me anything. That’s just what friends do for one another,” Peyton says, and the second her words are out of her mouth, they all burst out laughing.
I get the distinct feeling I just missed something.
“Someone should probably remind our classmates there’s an FBI agent sitting right here. Or at least give them a dictionary so they can look up the definition of coercion,” Mikayla says beside me, obviously also eavesdropping on their entire conversation.
“Don’t worry, Mikayla. I’m taking notes,” Sienna says with a broad smile.
I don’t think I’ve ever seen Sienna smile quite like that, but here we are.
“Good luck trying,” Tammi chimes in with a frustrated sigh. “Nothing ever sticks to either one of them. Case in point, everyone in this town knows Misty only got all the permits she needed in record time because Peyton pushed them through, yet no one batted an eye. Not only are those two inseparable, but they’re also thick as thieves. Pun intended. I doubt they’re stupid enough to leave a paper trail leading back to their under-the-table dealings.”
“Can’t argue with that. After all, they got away with murder back in high school. What’s a little fraud and extortion?” Mikayla says, only to look ashen when she remembers I’m sitting beside her. “Sorry. I didn’t mean—”
I wave her off, not wanting to talk about it. But that’s when I realize someone is missing from this brunch.
“Where’s Kayla Cushman? Has anyone seen Kayla?” Everyone at our table goes silent. “What? Did I say something wrong?”
“No. Not at all,” Holly finally says after an awkward pause. “It’s just that I don’t think Kayla will be attending any of the reunion events this week.”
“Why not?” I ask, genuinely curious why someone as popular as Kayla was back in the day would ditch an event like this.
It’s especially unfathomable to me considering Kayla had been a Red since getting tied her sophomore year.
Why would she pass up an opportunity to be celebrated? I thought the Reds lived for that stuff.
“Kayla has fallen on hard times since…” Holly hesitantly explains, looking at everyone at the table for help.
“She’s an addict, okay?” Sienna cuts in. “We can call her that because that’s what she is. Why tiptoe around it?”
“An addict?” I repeat, surprised.
Kayla was an athlete. Track, cheerleading, basketball, softball. You name it. Chances are Kayla did it. Much like her twin brother, Kody.
I’m having a hard time reconciling the girl I remember with the one they’re describing now.
An addict? Kayla? No. Can’t be.
I shake my head, not believing what I’m being told.
“Are you sure we’re talking about the same Kayla Cushman? I was just with her parents last night, and they didn’t say anything about Kayla being on drugs.”
“What could they say?” Tammi asks, sadness coating her voice. “Life hasn’t exactly been easy for the Cushmans. Admitting that their daughter…”
I can’t exactly blame her for not being able to finish her thought. Betty and Bill already lost one child. I can only imagine the heartbreak of watching the other slowly lose herself too.
“She was never the same after Kody died,” Sienna says, her voice uncharacteristically soft.
