And Then There Was One by Michele Castleman

Author:Michele Castleman [Castleman, Michele]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781636796871
Amazon: B0D4BMJ85G
Goodreads: 213574265
Publisher: Bold Strokes Books
Published: 2024-06-10T22:00:00+00:00

Chapter Seventeen

I returned to my room sore and desperate for a shower.

Ms. Eldonforth and I had called Weston and taken an emergency trip to Sandusky. Rock had received two stitches. Charlotte had been frantic with each call I’d made on Ms. Eldonforth’s cell updating her about the situation. But Ms. Eldonforth had insisted each time that Charlotte stay at school and attend her classes. She’d be coming home tomorrow night to stay for the weekend anyway. She would see Rock soon enough.

Once back on the island, Rock calmed after consuming his fourth melting Popsicle. We’d colored. He’d described how his mom drew the best fish after I’d tried to draw three for him. He’d complained while I rinsed his mouth with warm, salty water. He’d finally fallen asleep after several readings of the picture book, Swimmy. I didn’t know how he could keep listening after a tuna munched all of Swimmy’s siblings, but Rock had kept insisting on hearing the story again and again. At least it gave me a break from This Is Not My Hat.

In my room, I stretched before changing into a tank top and shorts. I sighed, hearing the hush of the air-conditioner and the tiny finger noose swinging under the vent and tink-tink-tinking against the windowpane. A miniature death hovering over my head.

I powered on the cell and opened Rose’s text. I hadn’t replied. And now, instead of finally answering, I called THE BOYFRIEND. Despite having to pick my words and topics carefully, it felt nice to have someone to talk to each night. Or to listen to, which was mostly what I did.

The static on the line and the miles and lake between us made Derek tolerable. He sounded happy whenever we spoke, glad to hear me breathe against the speaker, and content with, “uh-huh” as he rambled. He seemed to be the only loved one who’d endured Skirty’s funeral and could still find reasons to smile and feel thankful. I could survive with him at this distance. But my stomach roiled at the thought of him coming close or touching me.

We connected, and I put him on speakerphone. After saying hi, I paced and listened to him talking about his classes at Terra State before bouncing onto the bed with the digital camera in my hands. I turned on the old camera as Derek prattled on about an activity he’d done in his psych class.

“Uh-huh,” I said, checking the camera’s battery life.

“I couldn’t wait any longer,” he said. “I caved and ate the marshmallow.”

“Uh-huh,” I repeated and toggled the display switch to show the photos saved on the SD card, but instead of the usual torment of seeing the last photo of our faces pressed together with a rocky beach in the background, I found a new image.

A photo I had not taken. I sat up straighter and studied the camera’s display screen.

“I bet you would have been able to resist the urge to eat the marshmallow,” he continued.

A close-up shot of words written in black pen: You little liar next to a winking smile.

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