Persey started, flustered. She hadn’t even told them what the plan was. “No, I mean…”
“Because this is me not caring.”
“Dad, the Peace Corps—”
“DON’T CARE.”
And that was it. Years of being beaten down, denigrated, ignored, and yelled at finally boiled over. Persey’s well-practiced calm vanished, replaced by the one thing she’d apparently inherited from her father: a white-hot temper.
“Oh yeah?” she said, rocketing to her feet. “You don’t care about me? Really? I didn’t hear you the first three million times you told me that.”
Her dad flushed. “How dare you speak—”
“No, how dare you, Dad.” It was the first time she’d ever interrupted him, which left her dad momentarily speechless and allowed Persey’s semi of rage to keep on trucking. “I’ve spent my entire life trying to earn your respect. I know you think I’m lazy and useless, but I’m not. I’ve tried so hard at school. Twice as hard as my brother. But everything came easily for him and hard for me. And now he’s off burning through your money while he runs away from a missing-persons investigation, and I’m just asking you to let me join the Peace Corps for two years. Which will cost you like a fraction of what you’re paying for him right now.”
“My poor baby.” Her mom was crying now, drowning her tears in more wine, but Persey wasn’t sure who the tears were for—her or her brother.
“Don’t talk about your brother like that,” her dad barked. “He’s worth more than you’ll ever be.”
Persey snorted. “Yeah, more in legal fees.”
Her dad kicked the chair out from behind him as he rose to his feet. “Say another word and you’ll—”
“Regret it? Please. I’m already out of this family, and unless you want the press crawling all over you for turning your sixteen-year-old daughter out in the cold, you can’t actually make my life any more of a hell than it already is. So you can hero-worship your son all you want, but don’t pretend like we don’t know the truth.”
“Which is?”
“I saw him that day. I caught him stealing. And he told me last week that you’re cutting him off.”
“WHAT?” Only, the wailing question didn’t come from her father; it came from her mom.
“He just needs to come home,” her dad said, placating his wife. “I’m just trying to force him to go back to school.”
Persey laughed. “He’s not coming back to you, Daddy. He’s running from the law, remember? Or don’t you know why you had to pay for all those lawyers?”
Her dad clenched his teeth. “Shut. Up.”
“Lawyers?” Persey’s mom said, her voice breathless. “Is our son in trouble?”
You have no idea, Mom.
“He’ll be fine,” her dad said, though the words lacked his characteristic conviction. “He’ll be home soon.”
“No, he won’t.” For the first time in her life, Persey had the upper hand in a conversation with her father, and she let the power go to her head. “He’s found someone. A girl. They’re planning to get married.”
The next wail her mom let out sounded like a wounded animal. “Nooo! My baby. He can’t!”
“Look what you’ve done.” Her dad turned on Persey viciously, spitting the words through clenched teeth. “Get out of here. Out of this house.”
But Persey stood her ground. “No. I’m going to my room.”
“My baby, my baby, he’s leaving me,” her mom sobbed.
“You’re going to regret this,” her dad said. His voice shook with rage. “You’re no longer my daughter.”
Fine with me. Persey turned toward the door.
“Don’t you walk away from me without a word!”
Persey spun around, eyes narrowed. Usually her father wanted her to stay quiet, and now he wanted her to talk? “How about this? I FUCKING HATE YOU AND I WISH YOU WERE DEAD!”
Finally. The words she’d spoken silently in her head a thousand times. They exploded from her, taking all the rage and anger and resentment with them. She didn’t wait for him to respond, but stomped out of the kitchen, ignoring her father’s face, red with rage, and her mother’s painful wailing from the sofa.
By the time she got to her room, Persey was pale and trembling, the bravado gone, and she was left with the cold, barren realization of what her life would now be.
What have I done?
THE LIGHTS WERE ALREADY ON INSIDE THE NEW ROOM BY the time Persey followed Kevin inside, and she had to yank the night-vision goggles off her head to