Page 34 of In the Air Tonight

No one but him.

I only know him by reputation, but I trust him to do the right thing with the information I’ll give him.

I’d forgotten how long the ride from Hope to Land’s End is, how winding the roads are on the way to the remote little town. I recall the anticipation when the LE kids, as they were known, joined us for our freshman year of high school. The infusion of fifty new kids into our class was the most exciting thing to happen to us in years.

Many of them were a bit wild compared to us. They lived way out in the middle of nowhere and had to take an hour-long bus ride to get to school. Their older siblings had the best parties, and their parents were super chill. It was like a whole new world had opened to us, and we loved it. We could look across the river and see their town, but it was as if they’d come from another country.

With Teagan and Arlo having experienced this influx of new friends from across the river before I did, my parents had learned to be wary of what went on “over there” until they had a chance to get to know the kids and their parents. I had a few friends from LE, but I wasn’t super close to them. Wouldn’t youknow that the first party I attended “over there” was the night that changed my life forever.

I haven’t been back here since. My skin feels clammy, and my stomach churns relentlessly as the GPS takes me closer to the police station and my date with destiny.

For a full fifteen minutes after I park in the lot outside the station, I sit staring at the building, which is painted a cheerful yellow with blue shutters and flower boxes. It doesn’t look like a police station, not that I know much about how they should look.

As I get out of the car and walk toward the main entrance, I tell myself everything will be better when I share this burden with someone who can do something about it.

But I don’t know that for sure.

Maybe telling my secret will make everything worse.

How is that possible?

Nothing could be worse than sitting on this horrible information for fourteen endless years.

I pull open the door and step inside, determined to get this over with. Whatever the fallout, I’ll take it to be free of this heavy weight.

“May I help you?” a young female officer asks.

“I’d like to see Chief Rafferty, please.”

“He’s gone for the day. He’ll be back by eight in the morning.”

“I need to see him today. It’s an urgent matter.”

“Your name?”

I lick my lips. Here it is. The do-or-die moment.

“My name is Blaise Merrick, and I’d like to report a crime.”

Chapter 8

Neisy

THEN

Everything is better once Kane arrives. Sensing my precarious mental health, my dad doesn’t object to Kane staying in my room, which would’ve been unthinkable before recent events. Having Kane’s arms around me takes me away from the hell of the last few weeks. I had to delete Facebook and stay completely away from the internet due to the viciousness directed at me since the charges against Ryder were made public.

A photo of him appearing at his arraignment was on the front page of theHope Timesand other local papers. Only because my father had been so adamant was Ryder charged in what the prosecutor has called a he-said, she-said case. They’re leaving it up to the judge to determine if the case should go forward.

In the article, it was reported that his longtime girlfriend, Louisa Davies, had recently entered hospice care after a long battle with Hodgkin’s Disease. The inclusion of that detail infuriated me. What does that have to do with the fact that he raped me? Even the media is taking his side or so it seems to me.

“Let’s take a road trip and get out of here for a while,” Kane suggests deep in the middle of his second night in my bed. I thought it would be next year in college before we’d ever get to spend a night together in a bed. What did I know? “You need a break from this madness.”

“That sounds like the best idea I’ve ever heard. Where should we go?”

“We’ll get in the car and drive. We’ll figure it out on the fly.”

“I’d love to do that.”

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