“Whoa, what?” I have to shake myself out of Sonya’s words to take in Billy’s. “Why the hell would you video that?” I ask, disturbed whenit computes.Honestly, I am probably far less shocked than I should be. They’re both vile.
“It’s a surveillance video.” Billy grumbles.
Carter leans toward me in his seat. “Becky,” he says, staring straight at me. “She told him to call the Central Office and make a complaint. It’s all on video. Everything she told him to do and him immediately doing it.” His face is a strange combination of excited and disgusted while he relays this incredible information—tide-turning information. He scoots his seat closer to me, reading my excitement and matching it with his own. “We can send all of this to the authorities. With everything we know and collected, plus this new information, Taylor won’t only be fired, but she might even be arrested. She’ll be out of our lives for good.”
Fired. Arrested. Out of our lives.
My eyes prick with tears. Emotion I can’t name filling me. Maybe an overwhelming relief at the idea of her being gone? I don’t think I’ve fully realized how much her presence has affected me. “Gone.”I breathe out the word, tasting it on my lips. I inhale, exhale, and hold up my packet of papers.
“We can’t do anything about the school accusation until Tina Orderly returns to back us up. But, with the video you have, and the documentation and message that I have, I feel that we have enough information to submit to the board to defend me, and to possibly dismiss Taylor instead.”
Carter smiles sadly at me, his guilt still shadowing his features.
“You need to make copies of everything, submit it to Central Office and the school board, and bring a copy to the school board meeting on Thursday.” Vicky chimes in.
Heads nod around the table, and I feel so validated. In my pain, in my frustration, I feel like I’m being seen, heard, and recognized.
“So, first, Becky, you need to decide if you want to pursue criminal charges.” Trevor states matter-of-factly. “Then, Billy submits the evidence to the police to start a case of defamation and slander, and it will get Taylor the start of a sexual indecency. Becky, you submit your evidence to the places Vicky recommended.” Trevor continues to tickitems from a list he made on his legal pad. “You should also get some kind of legal representation. I have a number for a guy I trust. We need to figure out if we can submit the video to the same places, or if it would be considered revenge porn.” Trevor pauses here and looks up at me. “We will walk through all of this with you.” He says this all completely cool, calm, and collected.
My hand is squeezed gently—Carter having snatched it with his own. “We’re here for you.” He says to me softly.
“Don’t worry about Friday, we have it covered” pipes up Vicky sliding an arm around Sonya’s shoulder.
Shit, the Friday Night Music Extravaganza.I look to them, then to Billy. “Are you sure?” They all nod their heads again. I start shaking my head, tears again threatening to spill in wonder, in relief. “Thank you.” I say, simply, quietly, wholeheartedly. I take another deep breath and smile, a real smile.
“Let’s take her down.” Paige speaks up for the first time since she sat down. In her quiet voice, it’s not a threat. It’s a promise.
22
THE COFFEE SHOP
BECKY
We went over some of the finer points one more time as a group, agreed on a game plan, and went our separate ways. Out in the parking lot, Carter parked right next to me, backing into his space, so his door and mine were directly next to each other. We both stood there by our doors, in the middle of the day while everyone moved in the town around us. We’re close enough to reach out and touch, but we keep our hands locked at our sides. A door shut from a few cars over, but neither of us acknowledged the sound. He didn’t say anything, and neither did I.
The problem with our standoff was Billy. When he brought up leaving a third time from the passenger side of the truck, Carter pretended he couldn’t hear him. So Billy finally hopped out, grabbed Carter by the collar of his shirt, opened the driver door, and pushed him into the truck’s cab.
“Jesus, I’m going alright?”
“Well go, mother fucker. She’s not going to disappear, and I have places to be.”
I laughed as I got into my car, starting it up and still managing to make it out of the lot before the boys.
Carter messaged me throughout the rest of the day, not in anaggressive, in-my-face way, but checking in. First when Trevor and Paige went with me to meet their lawyer friend, Joseph Banks. He was a beautiful, intimidating man, and Trevor and him walked me through everything while Paige sat with me, a supportive hand in mine. I walked out of the office a little overwhelmed. When I checked my phone, a message from Carter was waiting for me.
Carter
I know this is tough, but we have your back. Let me know if that douche was a douche, and I’ll take care of him for you.
I snorted at the message because he’s basically a pacifist. He told me that he’s never been in a fight before.Why would I need to throw a punch, when a well-timed joke does the job?
When Billy and I walked out of the police station hours later, the sun was going down, and it was almost my normal weekday bedtime.If I actually had school the next day.Another message from Carter was a comfort. I didn’t message him back, either time, but I read them.
My family is extremely supportive, and I could call them. They would drop everything to be here, as my sister had a month ago. However, Lenny would probably try to set the school on fire, and my brothers would start beating people up or threatening their homes and livelihoods without hesitation, or knowing what the hell was actually happening. They’d all try to take control of the situation, and disrupt their own lives in the process. I didn’t need to manage them on top of the rest of the crumbling mess of my life.
Carter was doing what I needed most in the moment—he was available as a support.
I walk through the door late, having run around town the majority of the afternoon, and then meeting with the lawyer and police in the evening. Two steps through it, and off goes the bra, unhooked immediately. The boobcage is always optional inside the home. Once in my room, I put my most comfortable clothes on, including a shirt I’ve worn regularly. I haven’t let myself considerwhythis shirt with the crossing wrenches andThe Shopwritten on the left breast is my go-to.It just is. I nab my work clothes and my kindle and head back to the kitchen to care for my critters, stopping by the laundry to drop my clothes into the washer.
