I waited for the bomb to drop. Who was the girl in your car? I'd fucked up huge. Lake was innocent. Last night, I'd made some mistakes. I hadn't been thinking straight. Now, in the light of day, I saw how bad it was. Fooling around with her could have lasting effects on her. If they brought her in, it would traumatize her. People would talk. Her bright future could be tarnished. Her dad, fuck, he would fucking murder me, and who knew what kind of emotional punishment he'd put Lake through.
"We haven't spoken to Phil over at the bar yet," Krout continued, "but we'll get to that. I assume he'll remember you. Tall. Dark hair."
I nodded mindlessly. Just say it. Just ask me who she was. I didn't know how I'd answer, but the anticipation was killing me.
Krout straightened his file on the table. "That's all I got for the moment. We'll have to keep you here, though. We're vetting some other suspects, then we'll need you for a line-up."
I didn't know what to feel. There were other suspects-that was good. Lake hadn't been mentioned. Also good. But I was too apprehensive to feel relieved; it didn't seem like they believed me.
"We go home today," I said. "They're packing up the buses as we speak."
"Not much we can do about it, Mr. Sutter," Vermont said.
It's Manning, I wanted to say. Mr. Sutter was my piece-of-shit dad who was in prison for a real, actual crime, and whom I wanted nothing to do with. "I didn't do this," I said. "I swear."
"If that's true, then it'll work itself out," Vermont replied automatically, as if he'd heard it a thousand times before. "In the meantime, we'll confirm your story with the officer on duty last night. Is there anyone else we should talk to? Anyone who saw you come or go? Maybe vouch for your whereabouts?"
Lake. She was the only one who knew where I was last night. That I was innocent-at least of what they were accusing. But there was no way in hell, none, I'd be bringing her into this. I couldn't put her through it, and I was pretty sure it'd do more harm than good anyway.
I swallowed for what felt like the millionth time in an hour. My throat was raw. "I think I'd like to speak to a lawyer."
24
Lake
Everybody went about their business as if nothing had changed.
As if Manning hadn't been gone almost two hours.
As if taking away an innocent man in a police car was normal.
I helped every girl in the cabin pack her things, leaving mine for last. The cabin was messier than I realized. Hannah and I worked in silence to pick up, strip beds, empty the trash. The girls sat outside in the sun on their packs.
"Can we turn on the radio again?" one asked.
"No."
They were quiet after that, and even though I wanted them to be, it didn't help. My hands were busy, but my mind wandered. Manning had said I wasn't involved with why they'd taken him, but I couldn't see how that was possible. I'd been there every step of the way. The officer had to have seen something and gone back to the station with it. Would they come for me next?
I hoped so, that way I could explain everything. The sneaking off, the driving, the swimming, the almost-kissing-if the alternative was Manning getting in trouble for being with a minor, I'd tell them the truth: it was all me. I was responsible for all of it. I'd make sure they knew that, even if it meant being grounded for life. Even if the result was ruining myself in my dad's eyes.
When the cabin was clean and all the girls had their bags in hand, Hannah looked at my bunk. "We're supposed to take them over now."
I wiped sweat from my brow. I wished I'd showered, because I was sure after all that labor, I smelled like a swamp. "It'll only take me a second to pack. Let's get them situated."
Kids were everywhere, bees buzzing around a hive, as we walked the girls to the buses. I searched the area for anyone who might have news. Manning wasn't back yet; I could sense his absence.
I spotted Gary before he saw me. "Start loading your things," I said to the girls, and to Hannah, "I'll be right back."
Gary looked up, waving his clipboard at me. "Hey, Lake. You girls ready to go?"
"Yes. What happened?"
He made a note. "What?"
"With Manning? Where is he?"
Gary glanced around the immediate area. "He's still at the station."
"Why? What happened?"
"I can't tell you that."
"Did Tiffany go?"
"No." He looked back at his list. "In fact, go check on her for me. She isn't here yet, and we have to stay on schedule."
My mouth dropped open. "We can't leave him here."
"We have no choice."
"But he's by himself with no way of getting home."
Gary dropped the clipboard to his side. "What am I supposed to do? Keep the campers here all weekend while we wait to hear if one of our counselors is getting arrested? How do you think the parents would feel about that?"
Arrested. The word hit hard enough to make me step back. "But we can't just-"
"I think you ought to get your sister. I need her girls here, and . . . she's probably more upset than you, don't you think? He's her boyfriend after all."
Anger rose in me like a wave. Tiffany only cared about Manning when it was convenient for her. I was the one who cared. She had no right to be upset. I did.
I wanted to explain all that to Gary, but my frustration must've been written on my face. Gary put a hand on my shoulder. "You have to calm down, Lake."
"I need to see Manning."
"You can't."
"Then I want to talk to his lawyer."
"Why?"
"I can't say."
Gary frowned. "I'm starting to get concerned."
"About what?"
"I don't know." We stared at each other. "Should I be concerned?"
It probably looked as though I were overreacting. Gary didn't get why this was so important to me, but making him understand could get Manning and me in more trouble. I'd promised Manning I'd keep my mouth shut. "No," I said with a deep breath. "He's just been a good friend to-us. Our family. And Tiffany."
"Okay. So you'll go check on her?"
There was nothing left to do. It wasn't as if I could go into town and talk to Manning myself. At least Tiffany could drive. Once again, she was my only link to Manning.
Tiffany was frazzled. She'd thrown her hair up in a messy bun, and her bangs stuck to her forehead. "Kimmy, why are you taking everything out of the bag we just packed?" she asked.
"I can't find my Walkman." As Kimmy dug around, her dirty socks jumped onto the floor like fugitives on the run. "I need it for the bus."
"But you guys wouldn't shut up on the way here!" Tiffany began shoving Kimmy's things back into the duffel. "You didn't even listen to music."
I put my hands on Kimmy's shoulders. "We have games planned for the bus. You won't need your Walkman. Right now, I need you to do a job for us."
Kimmy pouted. "What job?"
"Go around to every bed that doesn't have a sleeping bag, yank the sheets off the mattresses, and pile them in the middle of the cabin. Sounds fun, right?"
I'd given her permission to cause mayhem. She sprinted the two feet to the nearest bed. "You make it too hard on yourself," I told Tiffany.
"If I ever, ever mention having babies, remind me of this experience," Tiffany muttered. "I'm just glad Manning isn't here to see me like this."
That's because he's with the police, I wanted to snap at her. But that wasn't the way to get through to Tiffany. "What'd he want?" I asked. "When I sent you to talk to him."
"Iris!" Tiffany gaped behind me. "Are you kidding me?"
I looked back to find Iris grinning in red lipstick. She made kissing noises. "Oh, Manning. I lo-o-o-ve you."
I recognized that lip color-it was Chanel. This wouldn't go well. I was about to intervene when Tiffany stood up. "Come here," she said to Iris.
Iris took a step back.
"You did it wrong. I taught you guys the other night how to use lip liner. You should've put that on first because now the lipstick is bleeding. You look like a hooker."
"Tiffany," I said through my teeth.
"What?" she asked me. "Do you want her to look like a hooker?"
Iris narrowed her eyes and then went to Tiffany, digging the lipstick from her pocket. She handed it over. "Sorry."
"It's okay." Tiffany popped off the cap, inspected the lipstick, and muttered under her breath, "This would cost you a month's allowance, but it's okay."