but there was enough fear there that it shut down her every objection. Because he was right. He supported her, fully and completely. She was broke without him.
“You know what?” I asked as I pushed back my chair and stood. “I’ll serve you some paella. How’s that?”
He pursed his lips, his gaze still locked on my mom, but then he nodded. “Maybe you aren’t so useless after all.”
Lovely.
Before Mom could object, I grabbed the skillet and moved to stand beside Dan so that I could spoon some paella onto his plate. But the moment my skin came into contact with the handles, the world became cloudy around me. Frowning, I blinked. Everything remained shifting blobs of dark and light.
I gripped the handles tighter, taking deep breaths in through my nose. I couldn’t have another panic attack, not right now. Talk about the worst timing in the world. My step-dad would probably have me committed if he knew just how bad the attacks had become. But it was no use. Nausea churned through my stomach, my head felt light and full of swirling clouds, and my palms went slick with sweat.
And then I lost my grip on the skillet. It fell with a heavy thud onto the hardwood floor, and rice and seafood soared through the air. Some of it splashed into my face, but I didn’t care. I needed some fresh air. I needed to sit down. I stumbled away from the dinner table, in the direction of my room.
But a strong hand shot out and wrapped around my arm. It lurched me back. His grip was so tight that it sent sparks of pain through my body. “Where the hell do you think you’re going? You think you can just walk off and leave your mother to clean up your damn mess?”
“Dan, please.” My mom’s voice was soft, pleading.
Suddenly, the doorbell rang. Dan let out a grunt and threw his napkin onto the table, standing so abruptly that his chair almost toppled to the ground.
He pointed at me. “Stay here and start cleaning up. If that’s one of your friends ringing our doorbell during dinnertime, you’re going to be in even more trouble than you are already.”
And then he stormed off, his fisted hands shaking by his sides.
As soon as he disappeared out of the room, I breathed a heavy sigh and slumped lower in my chair, thankful for the moment of sweet relief of not having my step-dad around, even if it would only last five seconds. Luckily, the person at the door wouldn’t be any of my friends. Mostly because Bree was pretty much the only one I had, and she knew better than to stop by during dinnertime. Bree knew all about my step-dad.
“Norah, honey, you need to be more careful around him,” my mom said quietly, hands pressed tight against the napkin in her lap. “You know how he gets sometimes.”
“Mom. Maybe he’s the problem and not me.”
She hissed and flicked her eyes to the empty doorway. Deep voices drifted to us from the hallway, but thankfully, my step-dad hadn’t returned just yet. “Don’t say things like that. If you make him angry enough…”
Her words trailed away into nothing. The truth was, neither of us knew just how far he would go if he got angry enough. And while I certainly didn’t want to find out, I was finding it increasingly difficult to keep my thoughts to myself. Things had to change and change soon. We couldn’t keep living like this.
Footsteps thudded on the hardwood floor, and my step-dad darkened the doorway before stepping into the dining room. Behind him, two police officers stood with their hands resting lightly on the guns on their hips. My heartbeat roared in my ears, and a new kind of cloudiness began to creep into the corners of my eyes.
I wanted to ask why they were here, but I already knew.
It was about Lars’s murder.
“Norah, these two police officers are here to ask you some questions about the death of one of the crew members at that theatre where you work.” His eyes flashed, full of anger. I had blatantly not told him about what had happened, and he was going to punish me for it.
“Norah?” My mom rose from the table, her slender hands pressing against the wood for support. “What’s all this about? A death at the theatre? You didn’t mention something had happened there. Why didn’t you tell us?”
I winced.
“Yes, ma’am,” one of the officers said.