Page 12 of The Perfect Steal

My father’s eyes flashed to mine. “If you’ll all excuse me a moment,” he said to the rest of the group, taking my shoulder and guiding me out of the main room.

“You got pulled over, again? Why didn’t you say anything?” If it were possible, I would have seen fire coming from his nose and mouth.

“It just happened, Dad. I was trying to get here on time.” I paused and said, “I’m sorry, Dad.”

It was a bitter pill to swallow, but something inside me hoped he was still the dad I’d always looked up to, the one who would understand.

Instead, he shook his head. “Once we get home, you’re grounded from the Hummer.”

“For how long?” How was I going to get anywhere if it wasn’t with my car?

“I’ll have to discuss it with your mother. Now get in there and smile. Elections are almost over, and then we can get back to normal.” He walked back into the event room, and I hung back, watching him go.

Back to normal. I doubted we’d ever get back to that.

7

Brynn

Halloween. My least favorite day of the year.

It had been fun back when I went trick-or-treating, but everyone was all about the parties, and I was too tired for that. After a morning run and some cold cereal, I hopped in the shower, trying to decide which part of homework to tackle first.

At least I had a day off from practice. Our first games started in a few days, and I knew we were going to get plenty of practice in, so the day off was a nice reprieve.

“What are you doing today?” my mom asked from behind me, startling me as I walked into the living room.

“Just getting homework done,” I said, surprised to see she was actually dressed in something other than a bathrobe. “Are you going somewhere?”

My mother hadn’t gone out much in the past two years, ever since my younger sister’s accident. Grief had ripped through our family at her loss, but my mother had gotten stuck in it. There were still days when I would think about my sister, Chloe, remembering some of the fun times we had. I would always keep her memory alive, but life moved on, and we kind of had to go with it.

“I’m heading for a haircut and brunch with some of my friends,” she said, pulling out her makeup bag and sitting down on the end of the couch.

“That’s cool. Should be fun.” I might have been slightly disappointed she hadn’t asked to do something with me. We used to do a lot together: go shopping, make dinners, and just sit and talk forever. But now, it was like I saw my mother on the outside, but on the inside, she’d become more of a stranger each time I talked with her.

“I won’t be cooking dinner, so make sure you all fend for yourselves. I think there might be some mac and cheese in the cupboard.” She opened her mouth to apply the mascara, and I stared at her, wondering if she was serious about that comment. John and I hadn’t really eaten mac and cheese in months, but the finding-food-for-ourselves part, that was familiar.

I opened my science book, ready to read all about mitosis, when a thought hit me.

“You know what sounds good, Mom?” I asked.

“What?” she said, only partially paying attention.

“Your lasagna. All those delicious flavors. Can you teach me how to make it sometime?”

She pursed her lips and blinked lazily. “Yeah, some other time. Not in the next couple weeks, though.”

Progress was progress. Maybe if we had a few fun times, she’d be able to remember that John and I were her kids too and that we were still alive.

Closing the book, I stood. “I’m just going to head to my room. Lots to get done today.”

As I climbed the stairs, I had to wipe away an escaped tear. I missed my sister, but I missed my mom more. Would we ever get back to being good friends?

8

Nate

“We’re having a Halloween party,” Colt said as we tossed the ball back and forth before the championship game of the tournament.

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