Page 127 of Love Takes Home

“That’s Nate and Grady,” I point them out, respectively. “Nate’s the one who used to give me shit before you were my girl.”

“So I need to give him as much shit as I can?” she whispers to me.

“Always.” I smile at her.

“Before we start the shit-slinging portion of the meeting, why don’t we let the law officer fill us in, hmm?” Daniel asks, a grin on his face.

“Probably a good idea, I’ve watched Ms. Mills sling shit before and it should be criminal how badly she can create a burn.” Sammy laughs. “That’s your warning.”

Ginny reaches over me to fist bump the officer, and I smirk at all the guys. “High school teacher, remember?” I remind them.

“Oh, fuck,” Nate mutters. “Nice to meet you officially, Ginny.”

Grady narrows his eyes, sizing her up, before smiling. “While I think I could put up a good fight, I know when to walk away.”

“Smart man.” She grins back at him.

“Okay, now that the boys have all been put in their place, Officer Carmichael?” Daniel brings us back around.

“The newest development is that all four boys have been checked into rehab. They are going to go through it together with the same team of counselors to help them get through, and will also have a teacher come in to keep them on track for graduation. They have very limited recollection of what happened that morning. They know that Mr. Brown gave them a substance that he said would make them feel invincible. I guess it did the trick.”

“I still feel so bad for those kids,” Ginny says quietly, more to herself than anyone else.

Sammy turns to her. “They feel absolutely horrible. And their parents wanted me to pass along the message that they appreciate what you tried to do.”

Ginny nods, acknowledging him, but doesn’t say anything.

“We want to know what she did, if possible,” Daniel states.

Sammy gets the nod from Ginny, and he continues. “Part of their punishment after rehab was community service, and that they had to repay Ginny for her cello. She spoke to the judge, and he agreed that instead of purchasing her a new cello, they could split the funds up over the next two years and purchase new instruments for the school.”

“But don’t you play?” Aiden asks. “I mean, I’ve been watching all your stuff online. You’re going viral with your old performances.”

“I do play, but that wasn’t my only cello,” she tells him. “It wasn’t even my most valuable one. But it was the most sentimental one, and nothing was going to replace that.”

“I feel like there should have been more. They could have killed someone,” Grady grumbles.

“Well, they can’t play baseball for a year,” Sammy tells them.

“And to a sixteen-year-old boy who’s played since he was four, that’s crushing,” Ginny confirms. “Just ask my brother how he would have felt if he couldn’t play in high school. It was their entire identity. Gone.”

“Are you going back?” Daniel asks Ginny.

She’s shaking her head before the words come out. “No. Not there, at least. I loved that school, but I feel that my presence will keep reminding everyone about what happened and cause drama that doesn’t need to be there.”

“What else do we know?” I ask Sammy, taking the attention off Ginny. She sighs in relief and I see her sag a little in her chair, knowing she’s not in the hot seat still.

“We’ve mostly finished going through all of Keith’s belongings, and I think I have a few names you all might be interested in. Stefon Devore, Heather Bailey, and a third name—Katya Sokolova.”

“Katya?” Daniel clarifies. “Not Karina?”

“Nope.”

“Do you think it might be a coincidence?” Aiden asks.

“That we have two women from Russia connected to Keith?” I ask.

“Oh, she wasn’t born in Russia,” Sammy tells us.

---