𝒂 𝒄𝒐𝒍𝒍𝒆𝒈𝒆 𝒃𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒅 𝒆𝒙 𝒃𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒆𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒂 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒂 𝒎𝒊𝒔𝒖𝒏𝒅𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒕𝒐𝒐𝒅 𝒃𝒂𝒅 𝒃𝒐𝒚.
Charlotte Lancaster grew up as a nobody in her hometown Cherryville, California. Never interested in school gossip or boys. She was always dedic...
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"I got the call a few weeks before Maxine's party. Robert, who's Maxine's dad, said that the trials would take place during the end of the month," I explain, "but things got pushed forward because other cases finished early. So then he said that the case got pushed to this week."
Charlotte stood there with her arms over her chest. She was staring at me with an unreadable look in her eyes. Even when she was disappointed with me, it didn't fail to make her look attractive as ever. I loved the new haircut she got, she accentuated the sharpness of her cheekbones and the color made her eyes even brighter than before.
"Why didn't you tell me the same day you found out?" She asks, sighing at my confession.
"I was trying to take care of a couple of things at the same time. Julie kept seeing Bill's friends around town and she was afraid to go anywhere alone. I had to make sure the twins were always with her or she was with someone if she ever planned on going to town for something other than school."
"Did you figure something out?"
I nod. "I had to talk to the drug lord I was working for and ask him for a favor," I hesitate to say for a second.
Her face changes and she stares at me with wide eyes. "Why the fuck would you do that?" She raises her voice.
"I wasn't going to do the dirty work! I had to do something to make sure Julie felt safe! Bill was going to do anything to stop her from talking and getting out!" I say, raising my voice in the process.
"What do you owe them in return?" She asks, "Huh?! What do you have to do for them to get rid of them?" She snaps at me.
"Money."
"How much?" She questions, but I don't answer immediately. "How much?!" She yells.
"20,000."
She scoffs and shakes her head. She pinches the bridge of her nose and sighs. "How are you even going to pay them that?" She mumbles to herself.
"I also have to work for them again," I say in a low voice.
"How long?"
"For a couple of months," I say, "or until I am able to pay that debt off."
"So you're going to pay them through the deals you make?" She asks in disbelief.
I hesitantly nod. Her facial expression falls once again. "I needed to so that he could send a couple of his men out there to get rid of them. I'm not a part of the plan nor do I know what they'll do to them, but I'm doing it to make sure she'll be okay before the trials."
Charlotte nods slowly and goes to sit down on the bench by the front door. I follow her lead and sit down next to her. "I get it. I'm mad at you for putting yourself on the line like that, but I understand why you would do it."
"I was overwhelmed with everything and I took my frustration out on you. Daniel kept asking questions and you were just trying to be there for me," I take her soft hands into mine, "I didn't mean to, but I didn't want to make it worse by fighting with you everyday. I thought it would be better to stay clear from you and handle things on my own."
