Fantastic. Now I get to fret for an hour over this conversation. I force myself into the kitchen, feeding my sourdough starter and starting up another batch of cookies, all the while repeating my arguments in my mind.I’m nineteen years old now. I’m not a little girl. I can leave the tower if I want.
Yeah, this sounds like it’s totally going to convince them.
Five minutes before they’re supposed to call, there’s a knock on my door. “Come in!” I shout.
Agatha walks in, still dressed in her silver cape. The book club’s new pick is a dystopian sci-fi novel, and Agatha is embracing the character wholeheartedly. “Your father said he’s going to call in a few minutes and wants me to be here too.”
“Fabulous,” I mutter, washing my hands in the sink.
Agatha walks over to me and squeezes my shoulder. “I’ll be here by your side, my dear. Don’t worry.”
I look over at her and sigh. “You think he knows about my late-night escapades?”
“It’s possible.” She rubs my back. “But everything will be all right.”
I can’t believe her, but I dry my hands and we walk over to the kitchen table. I set my phone next to the cracked photo of my family. When the phone rings, Agatha puts her hand on my leg in solidarity. I answer the video call and see my dad, Adam, Henry, and even Peter in their own little rectangles. There’s another man I’ve never seen before, with small round glasses and a bald head. He looks friendly enough, but I’m unused toseeing strangers.
“Hey, everyone,” I say, hoping I can keep the tremble from my voice. My brothers wave and say hello, and Dad grins. “Lily, my dear. It’s so good to see you.”
Okay, he’s a little happier than I expected. “You, too. And Peter, I haven’t seen you in forever.”
“Yeah, sorry about that,” he says with a bashful grin. It’s so hard to be angry with him when I see his smiling face. “You know how these startups can be. Things are so busy.”
“I bet,” I say, but I know the truth. Ryder has told me many times how little work Peter and his friends are actually doing.
“This is Mr. Calhoun,” Adam says. “Lily, he’s the consultant who’s been advising us this whole time.”
“Hi,” I say. “It’s nice to meet you.”
“You as well,” he replies, his voice warm and comforting. “I’m so sorry about these circumstances. I truly hope we can get you out of this lockdown soon.”
“Thank you. That would be great.” He doesn’t seemtoobad. Hopefully he won’t be irrationally angry about me playing the piano after all.
“Agatha, lovely to see you,” Dad says.
“You too, brother,” she says cheerfully.
There’s an awkward pause. “So, what’s up?” I ask, eager to get this over with.
“One moment,” Dad says. I see him tapping his screen. “There we go. Bethany’s ready now.”
Bethany’s on this call too?!Why does my lawyer cousin need to be on this call about me sneaking out and playing the piano?
Bethany’s face appears in the final rectangle on my screen. “Hello, family!” she says cheerfully.
We all wave hello. My heart is beating out of my chest and I feel like I’m going to throw up. I’m on the pulpit, waiting for my sentencing.
“Well, I’m so happy to see you all today,” Bethany continues. “Lily, we have great news. Tristan’s team has officially dropped the lawsuit.”
“And,” Adam says, “Mr. Calhoun agreed that with Tristan dropping the suit, you can be safe to leave the tower now.”
Wait. What?
I sit, blinking at the screen, trying to catch up.
They don’t know about Ryder.
I’m not in trouble.
