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She’s like an apparition. It doesn’t make any sense. It’s pouring rain out—it’s
the kind of day I would have just as soon preferred to stay in bed. But not Ann. I note her running clothes. They’re new. I note the way they hug her body. Jealousy washes over me like rain. If only she didn’t have to be so hardcore. She never misses a run, not even for rain, apparently not even for time with Paul.
It’s not just her attire that is seductive. She wears a Cheshire Cat grin, as though I’ve been caught doing something interesting, when really I’m just going to work.
She waves and I ease up on the brake, roll backward a little, and let down my window. Ann rests her hands on the door and leans in. “Where are you off to?”
“They called me to sub.”
“Oh,” she huffs, glancing toward the house. After a few seconds she backs away from the car. She folds over to rest her hands on her knees. She’s panting hard. When she speaks, it’s forced out in bursts. “Speaking of…I’m glad I caught you. I wanted to ask…”
I wait and wait and wait. Rain trickles in.
When she finally looks up, her brow is knitted. “Have you noticed anything strange with Amelia?”
“Amelia?” I shake my head. “No. Why?”
“Who’s been picking her up after school?”
My heart picks up pace. “I’m not really sure. Subbing is still slow. Today is the first time I’ve gotten a call in forever.”
Ann has the icy look down to an art. She offers it so freely now.
“What? They haven’t really needed me.”
“Before that.”
I pretend to mull it over. “I couldn’t say. I’m in the classroom. Mostly.”
“But you’ve seen her, right?”
“It’s a huge campus.”
“Still, you must have seen her…she hasn’t been riding the bus. As a matter of fact—I’m pretty sure she’s been lying to me for weeks.”
“Oh...”
Ann rolls her neck, and then arches her back in full stretch before resting her hands on her hips. I mustn’t forget, she’s trained at spotting liars, trained at sussing out the details she wants. “Who was she with, Sadie? When you saw her?”
I want no part of this conversation. It’s not the time, and even if it were, I’m in a hurry. Even I know enough to know that delivering bad news about someone’s kid is akin to telling them their spouse is having an affair. It never turns out well for the whistleblower. “Umm…the girls from the party…I think.”
It’s hard to tell a lie if you aren’t sure.
“Kendall and Elea?”
I shrug. “I don’t know their names.”
Unfazed by the fact that the rain has picked up, Ann whips her phone out, scrolls a bit and then holds it up to my face. “Is this who you saw her with?”
I squint at the screen. “Yeah, the girls from the party.”
“Anyone else?”
“Not that I’ve seen. But like I said, I haven’t been there.”
“Okay.” It’s as though she is speaking more for herself than to me. “That’s good.”
“Why?”
