Death by Society by Sierra Elmore

Author:Sierra Elmore
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Elm Street Publishing

CHAPTER 24

ABBY

I’d begun to think Daddy was so absorbed in his case that he wouldn’t call to check in.

Silly me.

The call comes in the morning, when Mother is still asleep and I’ve just finished my run. Daddy knows enough about our idiosyncrasies for this timing not to be a coincidence. Though it’s still really late or very early over in California, depending on your perspective.

“How’s it going?” Daddy asks with a yawn.

“Did you go to sleep?” I ask, trying to distract him.

I can almost hear him rubbing his eyelids. “No. This case is taking the life out of me. Turns out that….”

I prepare my breakfast as Daddy gives me the salacious details of the case, which ended up being more complex than he thought. Turns out, the guy really might be a victim of malpractice. Daddy’s still not buying it and is waiting on crucial records from the defense to argue his theory. The case has grown boring to me, and I suddenly can’t wait until it ends.

The tedium of the case isn’t the only reason I want it to be over, though. Mother and I are getting along as well as can be expected, but that doesn’t mean we’re getting along. Fights over the television, arguments over what we eat for dinner (my healthy meals aren’t healthy enough for her), and fracases over my friends coming over erupt nearly daily. That’s progress, actually—when Mother first started living here, we fought at least once a day, usually more. We’re falling into a rhythm, trying to find our way into a mother-daughter relationship.

Daddy finally stops talking about his case, as he’s mistaken my silence for interest. “How’s it going with, er, your mother?”

“Fine.”

“Fine?” He knows both of us well enough to know that “fine” isn’t a word I’d use to describe our relationship.

I laugh in spite of my bleak mood. He’s so hesitant to bring up the elephant in the room. “Okay, awful. But you stuck me with her.”

“Yeah, uh, I’m sorry about that.”

“I’ll live.” I hate that I said that. I hate that phrase now. I’ll live. I’ve seen what happens when people don’t want to live.

Which brings us to the other elephant in the room. Mother says she didn’t tell him about Carter. “I will if you want me to,” she claimed, “but that decision is up to you.”

I’ve got to say, it’s a large improvement from the way she acted the last time an awful thing happened to me.

Daddy and I chat a bit more about school before hanging up. Right when he does, Mother comes to the kitchen. No coincidence there.

“I didn’t tell him,” I say to myself as I serve our agreed-upon breakfast of egg whites for her, real eggs and cheese for me, grapefruit juice for her, orange juice for me, and yogurt for me, nothing else for her. I personally believe that a great day begins with a great breakfast, but if Mother wants to keel over in the middle of her morning meetings, that’s her decision.

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