then she backed out at the last minute and herded it your way. She knew exactly what she was doing. Setting you up to fail. You’re prettier than her, more talented than her, and it’s all a bunch of bullshit.” Panting, Drew swiped the tears from his face viciously. “She deserves whatever we give her.”
Carrie Ann ran her hands through her hair. What if Drew was right? What if Julie had orchestrated everything over the years to help her own career? “Oh, God,” she moaned, her stomach turning. All these years of sticking by her, being there whenever she needed a friend, and Julie had taken everything and stabbed her in the back. What kind of friend had Julie turned out to be?
Bile rose in Carrie Ann’s throat. She hadn’t told Julie that after her audition with Ari, she’d stayed in his office. She’d let him ride up her short skirt, peel down her thong and fuck her on his desk. She’d tolerated his ashtray breath and strangling cologne, all in the name of getting the best part of her life, because Julie had told her she would be perfect for the role. But had it worked out? Not just no, but fuck no. Julie told her she’d fight for her, but instead she took the role for herself. This was all Julie’s fault.
“We nearly did it at lunch,” Drew mumbled.
Carrie Ann barely heard him. “What?” Then she remembered the fall. Drew had plowed into her like a defensive end and she’d slammed into Julie full force, knocking her downstairs. If Troy hadn’t broken her fall, she’d have probably been seriously injured. Or dead.
“You know I’m right,” Drew said. “She has to go. She’s hurt us enough.” He paused, his breathing rough before he continued, “You can do it, Carrie Ann. You can make it right. For you. For me. For both of us.” The tears returned to his eyes, and seeing his pain made Carrie Ann want to howl. Tears trickled down her cheeks. “Please, Carrie Ann. Please make it right. Please make her disappear for good. I can’t do this anymore.”
Maybe Julie should pay for what she’d done. Maybe they would both be better off without her around. Her presence wasn’t doing either one of them a fucking bit of good. She made promises she couldn’t keep. She’d turned Drew into a hollowed-out farce of a man.
Weighing her options, Carrie Ann stared into Drew’s devastated eyes. He was her brother. Her flesh and blood. She owed him her very best. He deserved to be happy. He deserved so much more than he was currently getting.
His shoulders shook and he curled up into a ball again, shaking and rocking.
Maybe if she did this now, he’d snap out of this free fall.
Carrie Ann couldn’t stand it. “Okay, Drew. I’ll take care of it. I promise.”
* * *
The sun managed to escape the clouds as it arced down toward the west. Troy had pulled off the interstate a while back to answer a phone call and Julie had quit asking him questions. She didn’t blame him for wanting to avoid a painful topic. He had been physically abused by his dad. Did she really want the details? Did she want him to relive those terrible times? She didn’t want to push him or alienate him, so she shut her mouth. Now, as he drove down a street, she checked out the scenery of small-town America.
He took a right turn into a grocery store lot, found a spot and parked. “I won’t be long. Just need to get some provisions for the cabin.”
“How do you know your uncle isn’t there with a houseful?” she asked. It seemed pretty presumptuous to think it would be empty just because Troy wanted it to be.
“It’s early August. He goes at the end of June when he’s finished teaching. As soon as school’s out he heads to the cabin for vacation. He likes the weather before it gets too warm.”
“Oh.” That made sense, but hadn’t he said it had been years since he’d been here? “What if he retired and lives there full time?”
“Then I’ll find us a hotel until I can find a rental property for a couple of weeks.”
She rolled her eyes. “It won’t be that long. I have to be back before a couple of weeks and it took four days to get here.”
“Like I said, I’ll make it work.” He opened his door and she moved to open hers. “I thought it