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Maddox stands and hugs me. It’s unusual because we haven’t had many, if any, moments of hugging. “You got us, man, and the moment you talk to Blaire, you’ll have her too. We’ll all be there with you. You have us there for support and you can bet your ass we will all be in that courtroom excited to see Chloe’s ass being sent to jail.”
I hug him back. Having friends like these guys is something I’m grateful for. I didn’t have this in high school. My focus was my family and soccer and while I had my teammates on the field, our relationship off was nothing like these four guys. “Thanks, man.”
He pulls away, but not before slapping me on the back. “Now let’s get those discharge papers signed and head over to your girl. From the texts Conrad got from Em, Blaire has been gone all day. She needs to know what’s really going on.”
After signing the necessary paperwork, Maddox and I head out to the waiting room where our friends and Piper are waiting. Mateo called Jules and told her what was going on and she rushed down to be here also. As I come into the room, she jumps up from her seat beside Mateo and runs to me.
“Oh my gosh, I am so sorry, Camden. I can’t believe that bitch did this. I hope she rots in jail.” She squeezes me around the neck, and I feel wetness on my shoulder.
“Hey now, don’t cry. It’s okay,” I soothe her and run my hands up and down her back.
She pulls back, wiping away her tears, but more are right behind them. “Sorry. I shouldn’t be crying like this, but I just can’t help it. This is so messed up.”
Dropping my arm over her shoulder, I steer her toward our friends. “It’s all good, guys. The police said they’re picking Chloe up now and charging her. We’ll probably have to go to court, and I’m sorry, Piper, you will most likely need to testify. I hope you’re okay with that.”
She nods. “Of course.”
“Piper is going to stay with me for a while,” Jules chimes in, smiling at Piper. “A few of the girls at her house didn’t take the news so well and we went to get her clothes off the lawn and brought them to my apartment.”
“Shit, I’m sorry, Piper. I didn’t think of that.”
She waves me off. “Don’t worry. I wouldn’t change my mind about telling you. What Chloe did was wrong and the girls in the house she told, the ones who were encouraging her and hiding it, were horrible. I don’t want to be part of any sisterhood like that.”
“All right.” Maddox comes over and claps his hands. “We have a relationship to fix. Let’s go get your girl.”
It’s late by the time we leave, and Jules and Piper decide to head back to the apartment. I’m grateful for Jules taking Piper in like that because I wouldn’t have felt right with her going back to that toxic house. Knowing she is with someone as great as Jules makes me feel better. Piper seems sweet and I will forever be grateful to her and her honesty.
Maddox, Conrad, Mateo, Levi, and I pile back into Mateo’s SUV and Conrad texts Emree to tell her we’re on our way to explain everything to her and Blaire. Especially Blaire. Conrad doesn’t get a response back right away, but as we get closer to their apartment, his phone goes off.
“Oh shit,” he says after reading the message.
Instantly, I worry. “What? Is it Blaire?”
He looks across Maddox at me on the other side of the back seat. “Um, I have some bad news.”
I hold my breath. “What?”
“She’s gone.”
“What do you mean ‘she’s gone’?”
He looks down at his phone. “Emree said Blaire asked her to pack a bag for her and took off somewhere. She didn’t tell Em where she was going or when she would be back.”
Dropping my head into my hands, I groan. “Fuck.”
35
BLAIRE
After I touched down in Austin, I then took an Uber the two-hour drive to Maskon. After giving my parents’ address to the driver, I sent a text to Emree and told her I landed and was turning my phone off. Camden had called me during the flight, and I saw a couple texts, but each went unread. I wasn’t ready to hear from him. I had something else I needed to handle and then after this, maybe I would be ready to talk to him. At this moment, the betrayal felt too raw.
The drive feels like it goes by faster than it ever has before. The familiar views of where I grew up fly by me through the window. The neighborhood I grew up in brings back many memories of riding my bike down the road with friends, playing hide-and-seek at night, and sneaking out to meet boys during sleepovers. I smile at the fond memories and wonder if life would have been different if I never said yes to Harvey and went on that date. Maybe I would have ended up at a different school, one that my friends and I talked about going to together. Although that was a dream of mine for so long, I’m happy it never happened. I learned those friends’ true colors.
The Uber driver pulls into my parents’ long driveway, and I smile at him and say thank you. He helps me with my small suitcase that Emree packed for me and then drives away. I stare up at the large, two-story house. The exterior is an off-white with royal blue shutters on each window. There are large pillars in the front and a three-car garage on the side of the house. This place never felt like home to me. It felt cold and distant and in the two years I have been gone, not once have I missed this empty house.
The only place that has felt like home to me was Camden’s.
I shake my head of that thought. Now is not the time to think about Camden. I’m not ready for that yet. I need to handle this first. I need to talk to my mom. I need to get far too much off my chest, and I have questions that deserve answers.
