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“What’s going on?” Mom asks when a cop shows up shortly.
Britney is right behind her on the staircase.
“Someone snuck onto the property and broke into the guest house,” I explain to them as Dad leads the police around back.
“My gosh,” Mom sputters in astonishment and presses her palm to her heart. “Was anything stolen? When did it happen? I haven’t noticed a thing.”
“Friday,” I answer. “Whoever it was only wanted to ruin Kayla’s paintings. They left after.”
“Oh no,” Britney gasps. “Kayla must be so upset.”
“Did you mention anything to people at school?” I ask her.
She purses her lips as if appalled. “No, Bran, you know I don’t tell those phony ass kissers anything.”
Mom clicks her tongue at Britney and cuts back to me, tightly draping her cardigan around her. “If your girlfriend has issues with someone, I don’t think she should be coming here. I can’t deal with any more problems.”
My brows shoot up. “Yeah, Mom. We all know you can’t deal with shit. Last time, you bailed on us for a month.”
She winces and shuts her eyes. “Brandon, when are you going to stop using that against me? It was a terrible mistake.”
“It was a choice,” I snap. “You decided it was too much, so you left me.”
“It was four years ago,” she argues, tone biting.
My stomach churns in disdain. “Well, it still feels like it was yesterday.”
Her face hardens. “I have done nothing but try to make it up to you since, and yet you refuse to give me a chance.”
“You haven’t done much,” Britney murmurs, looking down at the steps. “You just switched all your focus to me.”
Mom slants to her with her features scrunched up.
Dad enters before another word is said. He looks around at us.
“What did the police say?” Mom asks him.
He combs a hand through his graying chestnut hair. “They’re checking for clues. Maybe the culprit left something behind. Who knows if they’ll uncover the identity.” He sighs heavily. “I’ll call the security company in the morning. Perhaps one of their IT guys can get a better look at our feed.”
“God, the thought of someone entering our home so easily,” Mom mutters and hugs herself tighter.
“Why don’t you all get some rest,” Dad tells us.
Mom and Britney head back to their rooms.
I linger in the foyer with Dad.
“That moron left quite a mess,” he utters, sticking his hands into his pockets. “It looked personal.”
Those were my thoughts when I stepped into the room behind Kayla. Witnessing the hurt in her glossy eyes pricked my heart so much. I wanted to hold her, but she put up a wall between us, torn in her emotions.
I rub the nape of my neck while staring at the floor. “Kayla is upset, and so am I.”
“Bran, this girl...” He pauses. “You truly care for her. Don’t you?”
At his question, I lift my head to meet his gaze and answer honestly, “Yes, that’s why I want this person to pay.”
Dad frowns. “I’ll find out who it is. Don’t do anything reckless if someone at the academy takes responsibility.”
I turn away, going upstairs to my room. If I discover it is someone from school, I’m going to allow the beast to come out and play with the asshole. And it won’t be pretty.
