blood tests we took indicate that you’re three months pregnant.”
“Pregnant?” The word sounds foreign coming out of my mouth. It makes no sense. “No, that can’t be.”
“I’m afraid the test doesn’t lie. You’re young, and you’ve been victimized. If you want, you can terminate the pregnancy.”
“Terminate?”
He coughs. “Abort it.”
“Have an abortion, you mean?”
“Yes, and it’s totally your decision. You don’t even have to tell your parents if you don’t want to.”
This conversation feels surreal. Then I suddenly remember that night with Dakota, after he read his fake poems to me. He unrolled the condom and then peeled it off after a few minutes, telling me not to worry, that he would be very careful. I was high and scared and stupid. It was my first time having sex. This is the last memory to come back to me, that painful night when I lost my virginity.
I thank the doctor and then walk out of the room in a daze.
KARL
THING WENT BACK TO NORMAL. HE RECEIVED A COMMENDATION FOR THINGS WENT BACK TO NORMAL. HE RECEIVED A COMMENDATION FOR his brave actions and quick thinking in that home theater. He went back to his regular day shift, cruising the streets and pulling over the occasional speeder. Showing up at domestics and taking drunk, abusive husbands to jail. Chief Scroggins finally retired, and he applied for the job. Everyone said he’d be the perfect candidate after the way things had played out. The other officers liked and respected him, and the money would be better. Why not? he figured.
He hiked all that summer, on his days off. It cleared his mind and helped him fight the intense feelings of loneliness he often experienced. His daughter visited for a few awkward days, and the visit proved to be a baby step forward in their relationship. He noticed that the Briggses’ house went up for sale. What had become of Julian, he didn’t know. The bitterness and evil of the past few months had left a sour taste in his mouth.
At least a few times a week, he drove by Isla’s little shop. Business seemed good, as she was always working on a client whenever he cruised past. They hadn’t talked much since it all went down, and that was probably a good thing. It seemed like nothing had changed in her life. Ray was still in the picture, although Karl couldn’t for the life of him understand why. Was she waiting for when the kids graduated from high school? Would she leave him then? Or maybe—and this was something he couldn’t even begin to fathom—she still loved him. It seemed incomprehensible. But there it was.
Today the sun shone with a late summer intensity. He put on his hiking gear and made his way up the mountain he and Isla once climbed together back in high school. He remembered when they reached the top, then held hands and kissed. As he recalled that day, he pulled out the sandwich he’d packed and began to unravel the wax paper. He could see Shepherd’s Bay down below. And Harper’s Point, the suspension bridge, as well as the rugged Atlantic Ocean. A cool breeze refreshed his face as he gazed down at the town he had sworn to serve and protect.
Life could be worse.
ISLA
ALREADY NOVEMBER AND A LIGHT SNOW HAD STARTED TO FALL. KATIE sat next to her on the couch, and Raisin lay sprawled on the carpet, with Scout curled by his side. A fire crackled in the wood stove. Raisin was putting together a Lego starship, and it appeared nearly done.
She glanced at Katie while waiting for their favorite show to come back from commercial break. Her belly bulged, as she was due to give birth in a few weeks. Understandably, her daughter had changed during the ordeal, and Isla detected a noticeable coolness in her demeanor, as if she’d decided to keep a psychic distance from everyone. It was a subtle observation that only a mother could make. Then again, Katie was a senior in high school and eager to graduate. She had endured that terrible ordeal, only to come out the other end carrying a dead boy’s baby.
Isla couldn’t believe she was going to be a grandmother.
Drew had not taken the news well when Katie broke up with him. He had come to her and cried, had begged and pleaded for her to take him back, saying he would raise the baby as if it was his own. But Katie had refused and had told him it was over between them. Isla was glad that they were no longer together. No way did she want her daughter to end up like her, stuck in an unhappy and unfulfilling marriage. Sure, her life could be worse. At least she had Katie and Raisin—for the time being. And Ray being away from home all the time wasn’t the worst thing in the world. She realized that she could survive and prosper without him.
She thought of Karl when lonely, which happened on more occasions than she cared to admit. Okay, she thought about him a lot, which was why she hadn’t had any contact with him. She always noticed when he cruised past the shop, but she wasn’t leaving Ray anytime soon. A vow was a vow, no matter that Ray had broken his own vow so many times now that no one would blame her if she left him.
Of course, things could change. She told herself that she reserved the right to kick him out once the kids graduated from high school. He was the one who had broken their marriage contract, not her.
Everything seemed fine at the moment. Her shop had grown, and she was busier than ever. Raisin’s blood sugars seemed to be stabilizing as of late. Katie’s grades were stellar, and she was planning to enroll at the community college come fall. All Katie’s plans had changed when she learned of her pregnancy. It had been the same way for Isla all those years ago, after that lecherous professor had put his filthy hands on her and ruined her college experience. Then Ray had gotten her pregnant, forcing them to marry.
Leaving this town would have helped Katie escape the horrors she suffered. But the decision to keep the baby had been all Katie’s. At least she had her family to assist her through these tough times, as well as a supportive community willing to help her raise the child.
Beckett had died from his gunshot wound, but Samantha had managed to live. One day she and Julian had vanished from town without a trace. Isla had no idea where they’d moved to, but she felt sorry for them. The Briggses’ home had sold quickly, to no one’s surprise, and rumor had it that Willow was set to inherit everything once she turned eighteen. But then Willow had also disappeared from Shepherd’s Bay, and no one had heard from her or seen her since. Not even Katie had heard from her. Had a relative whisked her away? Where had she gone?
But maybe that was a good thing. No, that was most definitely a good thing. Through no fault of her own, Willow had become a bad influence on her daughter. Isla didn’t blame Willow for what had happened to her while she was growing up. Gil and Felicia had messed her up so bad that she had no sense of right and wrong. This was why she had gravitated to such a nice girl like Katie. Isla couldn’t believe that parents could treat their own child so horribly. She wished her the best in life, but she was also glad that Willow no longer lived in Shepherd’s Bay.
The sound of Katie shrieking brought Isla back to reality. What was wrong? Had her water broken? Was she ready to give birth? Their favorite TV show, a sitcom, had returned from commercial break just before Katie sounded off. The three of them loved this show. It was about a blue-collar family struggling to make a life for themselves. It was a clean family show they could all relate to. The two teen daughters were hilarious and were total opposites, and the older son, Jake, was the kind of boy all the girls dreamed of dating.
Katie shrieked again. Isla turned and noticed that she was pointing at something. Raisin shot up, as did Scout. Had Scout scented her son? It took Isla a split second before she saw what Katie was pointing at. She gazed at the drama on-screen and couldn’t believe her eyes.
The girl Jake had brought home to meet his parents was none other than Willow Briggs.