That video would mark a before and after for me. Not even the best hacker in the world would be able to erase it. Little did I know it would cause the death of so many people.
I couldn’t see the light at the end of the tunnel. The darkness was approaching and threatening to swallow me up and never let me out again.
For the first time, I needed her. Her. I looked at my phone and dialed.
“Mom,” I moaned. “Please come and pick me up.”
***
“It’s OK,” Mom said, running her fingers through my hair as I lay there crying, arms around her, on the couch. “We’ll press charges against him and the school and anyone who’s been involved in ruining your reputation. I promise you.”
I wiped my face.
“It’s not about my reputation,” I said.
There was a fire in the fireplace, and Mom, Grandma, and I were in the living room after I asked them to pick me up and told them what had happened.
I remembered all the times Danny had wanted to record me when we hooked up. Obviously, I’d always said no. But that asshole… Had he drugged me so he could record me, or had I just been asleep? I had no idea, and now he’d uploaded the video to ruin my life and humiliate me in front of everyone.
“Are you sure it was Danny Walker?” my mother asked.
“Who else would it be, Mom?”
“Aren’t you going out with Taylor Di Bianco?” She pursed her lips.
“Taylor would never do something like that! Are you out of your mind? Jesus… I’m going to go call him. I just realized he has no idea what’s happened. He doesn’t know where Thiago is or where I am…” When I picked up my phone, I saw ten missed calls and dozens of messages from him. The last one read:If you don’t respond within five minutes, I’m coming to your house.
I looked at the time. He had sent it exactly six minutes before. Just as I went to write back, the doorbell echoed through the living room, making us all jump.
“Who the hell is here at this hour?” my grandmother asked, looking offended.
“It’s Taylor,” I said, getting up.
My mother grabbed my arm.
“I don’t know if you hanging out with guys right now is the best idea, Kamila…”
“He’s my boyfriend…and he’s my best friend too. I need to see him.” I pulled my hand away and ran to the door.
When I opened it, he didn’t even say a word. He just grabbed me and pulled me into a hug that mended my broken heart, just a little bit. His big arms squeezed me tight, pressing my ear into his chest. The sound of his slow and steady heartbeat soothed the tension in my chest. He was my soothing balm, the remedy for my never-ending pain.
“It’s going to be OK,” he said. “But you have to tell me everything. And I need to know where my brother is.”
