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"Because I've been fighting with Stanley about this. And you're not letting me in on your life, Corey. I had no idea this was going on. Stanley said it's not the first time you texted that number. You're up early, going on hikes, and now you're talking to someone from Memphis."
"It was a customer," I said, since Owen was a customer.
"How would a customer get your personal phone number?"
"He came in the store and I gave it to him."
"So, it's a man?" I could see the panic and fear in her eyes when she asked. She shook her head when I didn't answer her question right away. "Stanley doesn't know that, but I knew itwas a man. How does he have your phone number, Corey? That's not safe."
"How does Stanley know who I'm texting?" I asked, feeling frustrated and defensive.
"He doesn't, and he'd be livid if he did. Why did you give a customer your personal phone number?"
"You didn't answer me, Mom. Why are you guys looking at every text I write?"
"To protect you, Corey."
"What's even my real name?" I said, crossing my arms. I stood and regarded my mother.
"What?" she asked, spitting out the word and glaring at me. She peered at me as if I should be ashamed of ever asking such a thing.
"What name did I have when I was born? I'm curious. I should be able to know."
"This is exactly what I was afraid of. You start texting strangers, and now you get things in your mind and start to bring all of this past up. This is nothing but lies from the enemy, trying to disrupt our peace." She winced and grabbed her back, reaching for the wall and steadying herself. She braced herself and flinched like she was in pain. "Dios mio, I knew this storefront was a bad idea."
"You don't have to tell me what my name was, but it's not this big of a deal for me to ask. It also wasn't a bad idea to have the store—even if we don't keep it open, I'm glad we tried it. Nothing is hurt."
"We need to close. Not just for the day, but for good. You need to come on home. It's already been too much today."
"What do you mean it's been too much, Mom?"
"The texting, Corey! You've got to answer for that. Stanley was a nervous wreck. He said there were other texts to that samenumber before today. What would you be talking to a customer about for that length of time?"
"It was that big order—the one with the gold pieces. I told you about that. I ran the credit card."
She grabbed her back, flinching again. "Listen, Corey, I love you, and I'll do whatever I can to keep you out of trouble. You need a reality check. You're a beautiful young lady, and men, when they see you, they want to… just think about John and what a good man he is. He has been with you all this time, and has never pressured you to do anything… John's a good, patient man, Corey."
"Mom, I know, but you don't have to freak out. I talked to a customer, and that's it."
"It's not it, Corey. I can tell you're lying to me right now. Stanley can get access to your texts. He'll know if you're lying to us. We prayed about it a lot today. We fought and prayed and really brought this to the Lord, and we both think it's best for us to close this store. That's why I drove here. You need to come on home. John's out guiding a group, but he'll help us get your workbench and all this other stuff back to the house later."
"Mom, slow down."
"Just, let's go, Corey. My back's killing me, and we need to get back to the house. We spent our whole life making sure that John would never lay a hand on you, and you're trying to start giving your personal information to the first man who walks into this store. It's like you're thirteen. I hope you can see this is for your own good."
I felt embarrassed and angry. I thought I had privacy on my own telephone. It was violating to find out that I had been spied on. I went from having one of the best days of my life to one of the worst.
I felt a lump in my throat and I swallowed against the bitter taste of embarrassment and regret. She was flustered and inpain, and she was making it obvious that I was the cause of it. She snapped twice, loudly, holding out her hand between us.
I blinked at her scowling face.
The whole moment felt like I was a baby.
"What?" I asked, glancing at her hand.
"Your phone," she said impassively.
"What about it?" I said, feeling like I wanted to cry at the thought of her reading my texts to Owen.
