Prologue- Was it my Fault?
Sunday, September 19, 2016
People say that the weather can reflect people’s emotions.
Emma stood at the grave of her best friend. Her mind in turmoil as the intense downpour chilled her to the bone. The rain came down so hard and so fast that she was soaking wet before she could even think about putting up her dingy umbrella. Not that it offered her that much shelter anyway.
She was cold, uncomfortable and in her mind swirled dark thoughts.
She just couldn’t move from that spot.
She clenched her hand around the umbrella, and winced. Her hand was still sore from punching Brett Simmons in the face a couple of days ago at the Sheriff’s Station.
It was worth it though.
Emmett would’ve loved that.
She smiled sadly, thinking back.
She had just arrived at the station, demanding answers. Her friend hadn’t even disappeared a full week yet and they wanted to call off the search. She wasn’t happy and confronted the Sheriff. She was about to blow a gasket; you could hear her shouting from a mile away. They tried to calm her down, but she wasn’t hearing it.
Then he showed up.
He was always a sleazebag, trying to sleep with anything with a skirt. The star quarterback of the football team, with impeccable looks, and he was very aware. He had tried to get with Emma on several occasions, but a firm “No” always greeted his smug face. He didn’t like that. He wasn’t as lazy as his father, the mayor, and wasn’t afraid to get his hands dirty. He was cunning as well.
And his father made sure to cover up his mistakes. As long as his father was backing him, he could get away with anything.
That made him dangerous.
Emma always wondered how he got re-elected every year.
Small towns were hell.
“Sheriff Gayle, I don’t understand!” she remembered saying. She was pleading with him, pacing up and down the floors of his office.“I need your help!”
He sighed, running his hand through his greying strands. He was getting too old for this crap.“I’m sorry Em. My hands are tied. We don’t have the resources-”
“Screw the resources! You just don’t care!” She was fuming, and ignored all the sheriff’s warnings to calm down. “A boy allegedly jumps off a cliff and you’re telling me that you’re gonna call off the search after four days? It’s a small fucking town, I’m sure if you don’t use the boats to fish for a couple of days the town won’t starve! Half the time you guys don’t even catch shit! Four days isn’t enough!” She glared at him, waiting for an answer.
He started to speak "Watch your mouth-!", but she cut him off.
“I bet if it was the mayor’s son out there everyone would be out there probably coming through every goddamn molecule of water to try and find him.” She folded her arms, glaring at him again, waiting for him to object. But he couldn’t answer her, he couldn’t even look her in the eyes, his head down, looking at the telephone on his desk.
Then it hit her.
“He did it, didn’t he?” she said softly, her eyes wide. He heard her, and scrunched up his face. His eyes glanced around in a frenzy, his body trembling.
“Who?” he asked, feigning ignorance.
“You know damn well who I’m talking about!” she was mad again. “Everybody knows that Brett Simmons bullied my friend day in and day out! And no one would do a damn thing about it!” She slammed her fist into his front desk.
“Now hold on Missie,” the sheriff replied with sass. “There was no proof of that-”
“Oh shut up!” She screamed, silencing the whole station. “You’re just gonna push it aside because the mayor signs your paycheck!”
“Excuse me?” His face was beet red now. He was getting angry. But she didn’t care. She was tired of all the secrets. Of all the lies. She was gonna get to the bottom of it one way or the other.
Then suddenly a hand was on her shoulder, and he was beside her, grinning. Smiling that smile that helped his dad win the seat for mayor year after year. “Because everyone in this town is a family! So vote for the Simmons family! ” That was his slogan last year, and shockingly, they won by a landslide. Emmett used to joke and say whenever a Simmons flashed a smile, hell got a new soul. She felt sorry for that person, but not as sorry as Brett was gonna be if he didn’t get his hand off her shoulder in the next five seconds.
“Now, now.” He said in his authoritative voice, as if he was talking to a child throwing a tantrum. That seemed to make Emma angrier. “What seems to be the problem here?”
She shrugged his hand off, giving him a once over with contempt. Brett Simmons was the star of everything. He was popular, the king of sports, the head of every club; he made the rules. With his father up his ass, who could say no? And because of that , the school flourished. They accepted him, and his douchey attitude, because the money was too sweet to pass up.
And his good looks weren’t lacking either.
Standing at 6′2, with the blondest hair and the bluest eyes, button nose, strong jawline. He was a player, and reveled in in the attention. But he could never get hers, and that irked him to no end. To him, not getting a girl he wanted was like a punch to the gut. His reputation would be ruined, his ego hurt that he couldn’t get another notch on his belt. Especially since she was from the other side of town. He just couldn’t understand that some one “beneath” him found him repulsive. And for that, she suffered. But she was strong. And didn’t let it affect her.
Emmett didn’t either.
“Mr. Simmons! No-n-n-no need to get involved.” The sheriff’s face was white. She never saw a change in emotion so quick. Minute he was blazing mad, the next, he was sweating bullets, a nervous wreck. “We were wrapping up-”
“We weren’t wrapping up jack shit! And you know it!” Emma wasn’t going to let a pompous pretty boy interrupt the matter at hand.
The sheriff’s eyes flitted from her to Brett. This was gonna get out of hand, this little shit was ruining everything.“Now-now lis-listen here-”
“No. This seems very interesting. I would like to here the concern of my fellow townspeople. ” He smiled; God, that repulsive smile. And his eyes ran around the quaint little room, he straightened his jacket, fixing his collar. His demeanor changed, like he was looking down on her.
She couldn’t have that.
He extended his hand, “Why don’t we sit down and discuss these issues over wine and dinner?” Flashing his pearly whites, he thought that he had won her over.
He was so wrong.
“I’m sorry Brett,” she tried to keep the disdain out of her voice. “But obviously, I’m in the middle of something. Maybe a rain check?” She turned her back to him and eyed the sheriff.
Then there was booming laughter. It echoed through the office, drawing the attention of the deputies and other officers. She faced him again as he had his hand on his knees as tears rolled down his eyes. After a couple of minutes, he stood up straight, wiping the tears from his eyes. Then, he was in her face. He grabbed her hand, and pulled her close, almost like an embrace.
She wanted to throw up.
“Now listen here you little tramp.” He whispered directly in her ears, so that she alone could hear. “I’ve tried being nice, but now, I’m running out of patience. So why don’t you be a good little girl and come along quietly?” He let her go, and massaged her shoulders.
And he smiled smiled down at her.
Emma could barely keep her anger at bay.
She took a deep breath. “You want an answer?” she smiled, so wide that her cheeks hurt.
Brett was stunned by her sudden change in attitude, but they all bowed to him in one way or another. It was just a matter of using the right tactics. “Come on, Em. I can take you to my favorite place in all of Stonybrook.” He wrapped his arm around her shoulder, motioning her to the door.
“Alright. I’ll give you my answer.” With lightning speed, she whirled around, punching him square in the face. He went flying, landing on his back with a loud plop! He lay there for a few seconds, winded. Then he sat up slowly, his hand cradling his jaw, his eyes ablaze.
Which is how she got herself into a sticky situation.
Brett was so angry that he ordered her to spend the night in jail, in which she had to get bailed out the next morning by Emmett’s mom, Patricia Daze. She was a stout woman, with Emmett’s bright red hair and blue eyes. If they were side by side, someone would think they were twins. But he towered over her 4′9 height.
She contemplated silently, hating herself for causing trouble for the Daze’s. They were mourning, and shouldn’t be the ones taking care of her mistakes. But Mrs. Daze laughed, and squeezed her hand tightly. She giggled, and said, “Us girls have to look out for each other. You’re like a daughter to me, Em.” Her eyes turned downcast as she drove them back to her house. “Please don’t cause anymore trouble. I can’t bear to loose you too.” The mood became sullen as the rain started to pour. She cursed the rain, turning on her windshield wipers.
“Emmett loved the rain,” Emma could hear her voice cracking as she pulled over to the side of the road. ” I remember you and him running about in my kitchen towels, saying how you were superheroes, always ready to save Stonybrook.” The tears started to leak out, and then, she started to cry. Emma leaned over from the passenger seat to sooth her. They hugged each other and cried together.
“I’m sorry I wasn’t there.” Emma bit out through the tears. It haunted her every day. The day her friend needed her the most, she wasn’t there.
Mrs. Daze wiped her tears. “You couldn’t have known darling. No one could.” She sniffed a few times, and wiped her eyes again. “Now let’s get going. We don’t want Mr. Daze to get worried now, do we?” She started the car again, and drove off.
There it was, those words. Words she hated.
If only they had known..
Known what? That Emmett was suicidal? Even though they we’re from the rough side of town, and they we’re ridiculed for it, it never made his sad. He always had a big smile on his face, was friendly. He always had her back(which is why most of the fights were started by him, and he rarely lost). Emmett never had those thoughts. She knew her best friend.
She also knew that there was something wrong with this whole situation. It had cover up all over it.
The next couple of days were hectic, because they were planning Emmett’s funeral. Patricia tried to hide it, but Emma could see her anxiousness, and the hidden calls the mayor made to the house.
Two days later, it was Emmett’s funeral.
She had gotten up early, just sitting and staring into space. She could hear the Daze’s downstairs, but she just lounged in bed. Was she really ready to say goodbye? No one really was, but they could do nothing to change the situation. She thought of many ifs. If only she had been there.
If only she didn’t go to that track meet a few towns away.
If only her brother ... She couldn’t finish that thought.
If only Brett Simmons wasn’t a total prick and bullied her best friend to make himself feel better.
So many ifs.
Patricia knocked her out of her thoughts. “Dear, are you ready? We leave in half-an-hour to go to the church. ”
“In a minute Mrs. Daze!” She called out, finally getting up. She sighed, knowing she was gonna dread this day.
At the church, she almost cursed when she was barred from entering.
“What the?” She stuttered when she was grabbed and pushed back by Brett’s clowns, Able and Cross.
“What’s going on here?” Mr. Daze shouted, moving to stand beside Emma. He glared at them while Mrs. Daze stood not far off.
“Go on Mr. Daze, I’ll handle this.” Emma was so tired, and now she couldn’t even get to say goodbye to her friend? He gave her a once over, and nodded. He didn’t have the strength to argue. He walked into the church with his wife, their shoulders drooped.
Emma couldn’t add to their worry.
“You’re not allowed here, delinquent.” Replied Able in a deep, sinister voice.
Emma glared at them,” Let me pass dimwits.”
They looked at her, then looked at each other, “Was she calling me or you a dimwit?” Cross asked, scratching his dusty blond hair.
“I don’t know... ” said Able, genuinely thinking about it. “But that wasn’t nice.”
“Yeah, it wasn’t.” replied Cross. “Whichever one of us she was talking about.”
“I said ‘dimwits’, which was plural, which means I was talking to both of you!” Emma was going to explode. She didn’t need this right now. “Now let me in!”
“No can do. ” Able shook his head. “We got strict orders not to let you in. ”
Emma was puzzled. Strict orders from who?
Suddenly, Brett Simmons appeared from behind his minions.
Emma was past mad now. She was livid.
“Payback’s a bitch, isn’t it?” He smiled his twisted smile. “I had to get you back someway...” He paced around her, and it took Emma every fiber in her body not no attack him. “And then I thought, what’s the perfect thing that will hurt you the most...” He stopped, staring her down, a few centimeters away from her face. “The it occurred to me-”
“You son of a bitch!” She lunged at him, trying to claw at his wretched face. But she couldn’t, as his minions grabbed her before she could do any serious damage.
He laughed. He was pleased at her misery. She hurled curses at his back as he retreated back into the church, and struggled, but Able and Cross’ hold wouldn’t budge. The Dazes came out to help, but there was nothing they could do.
It turned out that this funeral was paid for by the lovely donations of Mayor Simmons. Brett was put in charge of the proceedings, and if she insisted, he could have her arrested for trespassing. He had stolen something else from her.
Eventually, she didn’t have any strength left. She walked away.
Barred from her friend’s final resting place, that was a low blow. Brett seemed happy he had won this fight. She didn’t have anything else to do, and she couldn’t go to the Daze’s house since they were at the funeral, so she walked around town aimlessly, her mind in a clouded haze.
Which brings us to the present.
Clutching the umbrella, teeth chattering, soaked to the bone.
It was late in the afternoon. The coast still wasn't clear, as he had his goons posted at the graveyard entrance. She had to climb the fence. She snuck in, planting a rose on his freshly dug grave.
“I’m sorry. ” Her shoulders shook as the tears finally flowed. “I’m so sorry I abandoned you, that I hurt you.” She took a deep breath, wiping her eyes. “I’m sorry that when you needed me, I wasn’t there. ” She kneeled down, scooping up some dirt in her hands.
“I don’t know how long it will take, but I will avenge you.” She sprinkled it slowly, each grain of dirt a promise. “I will give you the justice you deserve Em. And they will be sorry. I..” She stood up, her teeth gritted in resolve, her heart hardened. “I love you, my friend, I always will.”
She walked away, vengeance on her mind.
"I'll make them pay." whispered in a venomous tone, a promise.
They would regret their mistakes soon enough.
