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We had only had two really good days together. I wouldn’t be making a job decision because of that. Would I?
“Only two days a week?” Saint said as I closed the door behind me.
I nodded. “Yep.”
He studied me. “Is it because of what I said to you?”
The night in the club last week seemed so distant now. I’d almost forgotten. I shook my head. “I promise you it’s not. Summer is here, and I want to have more time to do things with Cullen.”
Saint didn’t seem convinced. “You’re the best server we have.”
I knew that, and I felt guilty about it. “I told Marley I would work Saturday and Sunday nights. Those are always the busiest.”
He frowned. “When you need more hours, they’re always yours.”
“Thank you,” I replied.
“Maybe seeing less of you will get you the fuck out of my head,” he said.
I hoped it did, but I wasn’t sure I should say that.
“You have my number,” he added.
I nodded. I did have it, but I would never use it.
“I’ll walk you out to your car,” he said.
I knew he did this with most of the girls if someone else couldn’t do it, so I didn’t argue this time.
Once I was in my car and driving away, I felt relief. My nights working topless were less now. I’d done it. I had saved up the money we needed. I had overcome my fears to make sure Cullen had security. There was no need for me to continue. Maybe, in the fall, I could get a daytime job here in town. Now that people no longer turned me away in stores and I didn’t get glares from strangers on the streets, I could probably get hired doing something here.
Once at Marley’s guesthouse, I crawled into bed with Cullen and went to sleep instantly.
The next morning after arriving back at the apartment, I was making waffles, and Cullen was playing with his new Spider-Man figures when there was a knock on the door. Smiling, I wiped my hands on a towel. It was early, and Rio had texted he would stop by before work if he could get away from his grandparents soon enough. My stomach was all aflutter with the excitement of seeing him even if only for a moment.
Without checking to see who it was, I swung the door open, but the smile on my face instantly fell as I stood there, staring at a police officer. I hadn’t broken any laws.
“Can I help you?” I asked.
“Are you Bryn Wallace?” the officer asked.
I nodded my head, starting to feel panicked. What had I done that the authorities had to come to my door? Sure, they’d come to our door many times but always because of Tory. I racked my brain as I stood there, staring at him. Trying to think of any reason they would need to come see me.
Understanding slowly started to dawn on me, and fear weighed heavy in my stomach as I asked, “Is it Tory?”
The officer nodded. “Yes, ma’am, I’m afraid so.”
“Oh God, what has she done now?” How could she get in trouble in jail?
“Ma’am, your sister, Tory Wallace, was found dead in her cell this morning at five a.m. There was a lethal amount of fentanyl in her system. We don’t know who gave it to her, but it was taken between the hours of midnight and three a.m.”
There was a pounding in my ears as I listened to him speak, but accepting what he was saying was difficult. How could she have overdosed in jail? Hadn’t she been safe there from drugs?
I shook my head and then remembered Cullen. Spinning around, I found him watching his Spider-Man movie with his toys in his hands. He hadn’t heard. Thank God for Spider-Man.
“Aunt Bryn, are the waffles ready?” he called out then, only realizing I was at the door. He jumped up and ran over to me. “Is it Rio?” he asked excitedly. However, seeing the officer, he grabbed my leg and held on to it tightly. He had seen too many of them at our door in his short life.
“Not yet, buddy. Go on back to your show. I’m finishing up here with this nice officer, and then I will get your waffles done.”
He didn’t budge. His small hand went up and held mine tightly. Twice, his mother had been taken away by officers in front of him. They hadn’t kept her, as the offenses were misdemeanors, but it had still been traumatic for him.
“My aunt Bryn ain’t a bad guy,” he told the officer. “She didn’t break any rules.”
The officer looked down at the boy and nodded, then lifted his gaze to me.
“Can we talk about what I need to do over the phone?” I asked, not wanting him to say anything about Tory’s death in front of Cullen.
