Olivia's POV
"Good morning, Olivia," Anya greets me with a voice that sounds like a sleazy whine. She is still standing in the open doorway of our kitchen, looking as if she has every right to be here.
"Sit." Mom gestures for Anya to come to the table, while she heads back to the counter. "Since it's one of the rare Saturdays when Anya doesn't have work, I decided to invite her over for breakfast."
"Your mother really is the nicest person I've ever met." Anya strolls to the table. "It's why I can't understand how you could put her through such worry last night. It's irresponsible to be running around town on your own."
I stare at her uncomprehendingly for another moment and then finally gather my wits. "Get out." I jump to my feet and point at the back door. "Get out right now."
"Liv!" Mom snaps to me with a horrified look. "I'm so sorry, Anya. I don't—"
"Get out!" I scream.
For a second, Mom and Anya freeze. But while Mom continues to look taken aback, Anya shrugs and heads for the door I'm still pointing at.
"I guess the two of you have things to discuss." Anya saunters to the door and I follow a step behind her. "I'll come to visit when you're in a more agreeable mood."
The moment she steps out of the house, I grab the door and send her my fiercest glare. "The next time you enter this house I'll call the police."
Without another word, I slam the door in her face.
"That was unexpected." The voice comes from across the room, where I find Eliza leaning against the wall. "I didn't know you had it in you."
Because Mom is still inside the kitchen, I'm forced to ignore her and focus on Mom instead.
"What was that?" Mom rests her hands on her hips. "If you wanted so badly to be alone with me, you could have said so. There was no need to shout. You need to apologize to Anya right now."
"Never. You may not know it yet, but you're the one in the wrong."
"Because I invited a friend over for breakfast?"
"No." I shake my head. "Because Anya's the customer who got you fired."
"What?" Mom's mouth drops open, but then she quickly closes it. "You must have heard wrong. Anya's been my client for over two years. We might have become friends only recently—around the time of your car accident—but she would never do such a thing. And even if she did complain about me, she would never do it with the intention of getting me fired."
"Why are you defending her?"
"Because she's a good—"
"She's the driver." I can't take it anymore. Mom needs to know the truth. "I remembered what the woman, who kneeled over me after she ran me over, looked like, and it was Anya. She's the person who almost killed me."
While Mom continues to gape at me, Eliza whistles from the other end of the room.
"I knew her Guardian was sketchy," Eliza says, "but I never thought his charge was the same."
"But... But..." Mom's stutter pulls my eyes back to her. "Anya told me... She told me that they arrested some doctor. That she's the driver."
"The police made a mistake. I clearly remember Anya leaning over me right after the accident."
Mom shakes her head and turns to the table. She takes the first step forward, but before she completes it, she staggers to the side. I rush to her and then guide her to the table where she sits on her usual chair. Eliza, in the meantime, takes my chair, which leaves me with no other option but to crouch in front of Mom until we're on the same eye level.
"Are you okay?" I ask her.
"I'll be fine." Mom covers her forehead with her hand and leans her head against the chair. "Are you sure, though? A hundred percent sure?"
"Yes." There's not a single shadow of doubt left within me about who the driver is. "You look like you're about to faint. You should lie down."
Wordlessly Mom raises to her shaky feet, yet when I offer to help her, she waves me off. Instead, she uses the wall for support as she staggers out of the kitchen and down the hallway to her bedroom.
With a sigh, I slump into the chair she occupied a moment ago and glance up at Eliza. She is once again plucking the petals off the bouquet of daffodils set in the middle of the table.
"Aren't you going to ask where Samuel is?" I ask.
"I don't need to." Eliza shrugs and allows the petal to slip off her hand. "I already know he's not your Guardian anymore."
"How do you know that?"
"Because I've been assigned as your temporary Guardian."
"Oh." The already pungent taste in my mouth turns even nastier. "Does that mean there's nothing I can do about it? No way to reverse it?"
"The Head Guardian doesn't change her mind. Ever... So, what's your plan?"
"What do you mean?" I try to read what she means from her expression, but once again she focuses her attention on the yellow flowers between us.
"I've known you since you were a baby. There's no way you're going to sit still and wait for things to fix themselves on their own. So, what are you going to do?"
"Isn't it obvious?" This time I'm the one who shrugs. "I'm going to prove that Dr. Kate doesn't have anything to do with the accident and that Anya is the real driver. Then I'm going to change the Head Guardian's mind about Samuel... But first, there's someone I need to apologize to."
"You? Apologize?" Eliza's eyebrows shoot up as she lifts her eyes back to me. "To whom?"
"Charlie."
"Am I supposed to know who that is?" I open my mouth to explain, but Eliza raises her hand before I can get in a single word. "Don't bother. I don't actually care who he is."
"Since you're my Guardian now are you coming with me?" I rise to my feet.
"It doesn't look like Mina is up to anything interesting, so why not."
In less than fifteen minutes, I change out of my pajamas and take care of my morning routine. With Eliza a step behind me, we head for the front door but are then forced to stop when Mom calls my name.
"Where do you think you're going?" While Mom is still paler than usual, she is back to glaring at me. I take it as a good sign, telling me that the shock wasn't too much for her.
"I need to apologize to Charlie," I explain.
Mom blinks at me, just like Eliza had done before. "Are you on drugs?" She diminishes the distance between us, which forces Eliza to press her back flat against the hallway's wall, so Mom doesn't accidentally brush against her. Mom, on the other hand, stops in front of me and looks straight into my eyes.
"I'm not high." I roll my eyes, but allow her to check my pupils. "I'm going to the hospital to visit Charlie."
"I should have known." Mom purses her lips and shakes her head. "Two boys at once. You're just like your father."
"What are you talking about? Charlie is Nick's brother, and I'm not—"
"Brothers? That's even worse. I don't care how hot they both are, you need to choose one. You can't two-time two brothers. And do you have your phone with you?"
"I do." I pat the pocket of my hoodie where my phone is resting but ignore her ridiculous comment about me dating both Nick and Charlie. "I'm going now. Bye."
The moment Mom closes the front door behind Eliza and me, I pull the phone out of my pocket. While I want to talk things out with Nick, I'm more desperate to know if Samuel is with him. Before I can dial his number, though, the phone begins to vibrate and an unfamiliar number flashes across the screen.
"Hello?" I answer the call as I walk down our front drive.
"Olivia?" Dad's hurried voice fills my ear. "Thank the world you finally picked up. I've been calling you since last night, but you weren't answering. That doesn't matter right now, though. What matters is that I need you to come to the police station."
"What?" I frown at the location he mentions just as I turn the corner onto the sidewalk along our street. "Why are you at the police station?"
"I'll explain everything when you get here, but please hurry. I need—"
Right at that moment I look up at the street in front of me and freeze. Dad's voice continues to fill my ear, but I can't understand a word of it. Instead, I'm focused at the end of the street, where two guys are standing as frozen as two marble statues.
While I skip over Nick's always messy locks, my eyes stop on the guy standing beside him.
"Samuel."
***
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- E