I could lie, but the truth is going to come any minute now. Best if it comes from my mouth instead of anyone else.
“Yes,” I admit, making sure I look him in the eyes as I say it. “We were involved.”
“Were? It’s finished now?”
Pausing, I gaze at her through the glass. Her wide, tear-filled eyes snare my heart in her grip. All I want is to run over there, take her in my arms and promise this will end soon. But that’s going to have to wait.
“Yes. It’s over.”
A lie has never hurt so much. The words rip through my throat, spilling into the space between us. Murphy looks skeptical but doesn’t voice his concerns. Leaving me in the room, he joins Scarlett’s father and Detective Rubio in the hall.
Swiftly, I pull out my spare phone and send off a quick text to Scarlett, doing my best to keep her calm and reassure her of my love in a short, simple message.
After I shove it back into the inner pocket of my jacket, I rise and stare at my reflection in the mirror hanging on the wall.
Well, Scarlett’s father definitely does more damage than my wife.
The entire right side of my face is swollen and hot, re-injuring wounds that only days ago healed. Coagulated blood coats my upper lip, staining it red while it bubbles in my nose.
Grabbing a tissue off the desk, I attempt to blow out the mucus and gore, but the pain is too much to bear, even with the slightest pressure.
I don’t think it’s broken, but it’s definitely fucked up, possibly fractured. I fully expect to wake up tomorrow with two black eyes and a busted jaw. But I can’t say I don’t deserve it. If it was my daughter? Fuck, I would’ve done the same.
As I’m examining my wounds, Murphy slides back into the room. Then, shoulders weighed down by the burden of my choice, he asks for me to sit. That’s all I need to hear to know I’m done at the school. Whatever Rubio and Dane revealed to Murphy was damaging enough to end my career as a teacher. It should be devastating. At the beginning of our affair, this was my biggest fear. But now, in the thick of it, there’s nothing but relief.
With the money my grandfather and mother set aside, I’m set for life.More than set.I could take care of Scarlett and all her needs without ever needing to work another job again, though that would never happen. I’m not the type of man that could remain sedentary. I need work to keep my mind and body busy.Even if it’s something small and menial, at least it’s something.
Faintly, I listen to Principal Murphy release me from my position. He promises I will be paid for my time up until next month.Because we’re friends, he says. There will be an investigation into me and my conduct with previous students. It isn’t a surprise but a bit insulting. They won’t find anything.Scarlett is my one and only.
With his permission, I’m allowed to gather my things from my office. I depart with a final apology, slipping out of the room, out of sight of Scarlett or her father.
Scarlett Dane
CHAPTER XXXVII
“Miss Dane, I know this is difficult,but I need your honest answer. Did Mr. Ellis force you to do anything you didn’t want?” Principal Murphy asks, staring at me as if he wishes to be anywhere but here.
Same. There’s nothing more I want than to be miles away from my fuming father.
I always expected to get caught, but not like this. Not with my dad storming through the school and beating the shit out of the man I love. I had hoped it would have been after I graduated, but we can’t always get what we want.
Glaring at Principal Murphy, I deadpan, “No. Mr. Ellis never forced me to do anything I didn’t want.” I know it pains my father to hear this, but it’s the truth. Everything Theodore and I did was consensual. “I wanted it all.”
“How long has this been going on between the two of you?”
This is coming from my father’s partner, Detective Rubio. He stands off to the side, out of the way, sort of blending into the shadows.
“It isn’t going on anymore.” It’s the same story Theodore told him moments before. Had he not sent me a message telling me what to say, I never would have thought of it. “But it wasn’t very long… a couple of weeks at most.” That lie is mine. Hopefully, if officials get to Theodore before I do, he’s quick enough to follow along.
Clearing his throat, Detective Rubio sticks his notepad in his back pocket and asks Principal Murphy to give us a moment of privacy.
Once the door closes softly behind him, the tension builds again, but at least Rubio’s there to break the intolerable silence.
“Miss Dane, this is a lot to take in at this moment. I understand you are under a high level of stress, as is your father, who I respect very much. Because of all this, I believe it would be best if we conclude this for now and resume at the station tomorrow. Would noon work for you?”
My father answers for me without giving me the option to get my say in.
“She’ll be there.”
