Page 122 of It's One of Us
He pulls the trigger again but misses. He kicks with his other leg, connects with the bullet wound, and Peyton’s hands release Park’s leg. Park scoots across the deck, getting as far away from his son as he can.
His son.
He has just shot his son.
Olivia is screaming. He can hear her shrieking but can’t seem to rise to comfort her. Perry drags himself back onto the boardwalk, blood streaming down his hand. His arm looks broken; the angle is all wrong.
Peyton is bleeding profusely, his skin growing pale. He twitches, his brain finally getting the message that he is dying. His legs jerk spasmodically in time with the slow, furious pumps of his heart. Once. Twice.
A few moments pass before the third.
He is almost limp now, and Olivia finally gathers herself and scrambles to Park, helps him stand. Perry crawls to them; Park drags his brother to his feet. And the three hold on, watching Peyton’s life’s blood leave the wound in his neck. It inches across the letter, the foxed, yellow edge turning pale crimson as the blood soaks the worn linen.
Peyton’s last words are a whisper, but loud enough that all three of them hear clearly.
“It was you. I know it was you. I read your letter. Now it’s destroyed. Your secret is safe with me.”
“Secret?” Park asks, kneeling down, touching his son’s shoulder. “What are you talking about?”
But Peyton has eyes only for Olivia. “Don’t worry. I’m the only one who knows. I’ll never tell.”
He dies quietly, the words drifting around them, both Park and Perry staring at her.
“Tell what?” Perry asks.
“I have no idea,” Olivia says. She snatches up the bloody mess of paper and photo, looking away from Park’s terrified gaze as the police come streaming up from the beach, guns drawn, too late to save them.
48
THE WIFE
But she did.
Olivia only wanted to surprise Park.
The drive from Nashville to Chapel Hill wasn’t overly long, less than eight hours, but it was the farthest Olivia had ever driven by herself, and that excited her. She had snacks in a tote bag and a six-pack of Diet Coke in the cooler, her overnight bag in the trunk. Everything organized, everything just so. She’d even vacuumed out her car the night before and sprayed the interior windscreen with Windex, cleaning off the residue so it sparkled. And good thing, too, the sun was bright, and she hated that hazy glare.
She stopped twice, once in Knoxville, once in Asheville, and arrived just as the sun was setting on the campus. She had his address—Lindsey had given it to her ages ago—but she’d never been here, never written him. She hadn’t talked to him since Perry left, actually.
This was an important moment for her. For him. For them. She missed him. Gosh, she missed them both, but Perry was gone, and she would never see him again, and that meant she had to make things right with Park.
She’d felt so alone since he’d left for school. She was busy enough with her classes at Belmont. She was in her second year of Architecture and Design and loved everything about the program, even the extra work created by double-majoring in both fields. She dated, had a couple of boyfriends, but nothing serious, nothing that felt like the love she had for him, definitely nothing like the dark love she felt for his brother, desire mixed with shame and horror. She couldn’t imagine ever being in the same room as Perry ever again, not after what she’d done. He would never forgive her, so he must never know. Simple as that.
She found a parking space on South Street and locked the car carefully. She didn’t want anything to happen to her things, but she also wanted to take a walk around the campus first. All part of her newly embraced independence. She was satisfied with the path her life was on. She just missed Park. She needed him back in the mix, and things would be perfect again, like they were before prom.
She had a three-day weekend, so she figured she’d drive to Chapel Hill and surprise him. No strings, no expectations. Just to see if he still cared. Just to see if he still wanted her.
It was a stupid thing to do, but she was a kid still, ripe and lush and sure enough of her own sexuality that she could lure him back even if he’d found someone else. He wouldn’t have, though. Not Park. He was hers, and she was his, and that’s just how things were going to be. They’d been planning it since they were kids, and yes, they’d hit a little speed bump, but she was going to make it right, and then they’d get back on the planned path. Together. Going forward, it would be them together. Chapel Hill had a fabulous A&D program. She could transfer all of her credits. She’d already checked.
Park would be thrilled. She knew he would be. She knew him, inside and out.
She wandered across the quad, taking in the huge sundial, the ancient trees with their long arms spread protectively over the redbrick buildings. Everyone was so happy. Smiling, healthy, beautiful people. She felt at home immediately. She felt safe.
She walked around campus for an hour, admiring, then made her way back to the car and drove to Park’s address.
She grabbed the bag of chocolate chip cookies she’d made fresh last night from the cooler, leaving the rest of her things in the car. She wanted to greet him with her best smile and a sweet treat, and they could deal with the rest later.
She wound her way up the stairwell and stopped in front of his door. She raised her hand to knock but hesitated when loud voices rang through the thin wood. Park’s voice, raised in anger. And a girl, fighting back. Olivia leaned closer to the door, practically put her ear against it. Thankfully no one else was in the corridor; she must look totally ridiculous, eavesdropping while holding a pie tin full of cookies covered in foil. A demented Junior Leaguer.
