“I don’t understand.”
He sighs. “She’s fucked up. Like mentally.”
“Oh. I didn’t know.”
My mom never told me that, not that we ever talked about Brock’s first wife, but if she was mentally disturbed, I think my mom would’ve told me.
“She wasn’t always like that,” Braden says. “She used to be normal. Now she just sits in her house and stares at the ocean.”
“What happened to her?”
He doesn’t answer.
“You don’t have to tell me.”
His eyes open and meet up with mine. “She killed someone. A kid. Hit him with her car.”
I gasp. “Oh my God. When?”
“A few years ago. It was after she and my dad divorced.”
“How did it happen?”
“She was driving at night and didn’t see him. He was on his bike and she hit him when he was crossing the street.”
“So it was an accident.”
“Not really.” He looks away.
I wait for him to explain, but he doesn’t. He sinks back in the hot tub, tilting his head toward the sky.
“It wasn’t an accident?” I cautiously ask. When he doesn’t answer, I say, “You can’t tell me.”
He takes a moment before saying, “I guess it doesn’t matter anymore. She can’t be convicted. She got off.” He takes a breath. “She was in a hurry to get to a party and didn’t stop.”
“She didn’t stop and help the kid?”
“Not at first. She panicked and took off, then turned around, but when she got there, it was too late. He was dead. Probably died on impact. Even if she’d stopped right away, she couldn’t have saved him.”
“That’s really sad.”
“She was living with a guy when it happened. But instead of calling him, she called my dad.”
“Why?”
“Guess she trusted him more than the guy she was dating. Dad showed up at the scene and took care of it.”
“What do you mean he took care of it?”
“He brought in his team. Lawyers. Image consultants. PR guy.”
“For what? What’d they do?”
“Made sure my mom didn’t end up in prison. They told her what to say, what to do, how to act.”
“So she never told anyone the truth?”
“She told my dad. I don’t know what story she gave the police. All I know is she got off without any charges, not even a fine. But she’s never been the same. After it happened, she broke up with the guy she was with and just stayed in her room and didn’t go anywhere. Now she sits in her bedroom and stares out the window all day.”
