Big Fat Disaster (11 page)

Leah stood so abruptly that her chair fell backward. “Look, Dad, I know you don’t believe that Mark was abusive to Ryan and me, but he was; he—”

Dad jumped in. “The Mark Ellis I know would
never
do the things you claim he did, Leah. Admit it: You got bored, and you wanted out.”

Leah’s eyes shot sparks. “The Mark Ellis
you know
is a phony, Reese.” She reached into her purse and pulled out an envelope of photos. “I—I didn’t show you these before, but I want to prove to you that he did what I said. These don’t even show half of…just look, okay?”

At first no one would accept the envelope from her, but Aunt Judy started it off, and I peeked over my mom’s shoulder when it was her turn. Of course, Leah was younger, but her face was nearly unrecognizable. Her nose was obviously broken, and a close-up photo of her neck clearly showed handprints.

She accepted the envelope back from my dad, who muttered, “I still have a hard time believing that Mark did these things. He’s on my campaign committee, you know…”

Leah said softly, “He—he choked me until I passed out. If it hadn’t been for Ryan—my God, he was only nine years old at the time—jumping on his back and clawing his eyes—I’d be dead.”

When Ryan spoke clearly for the first time that day, it was a growl. “My dad’s an asshole, Uncle Reese. I hate him. Wish I could run him over with a truck.”

All of the adults except Leah started yelling at Ryan for his language and for wishing such an awful fate on anyone; then they jumped on Leah for poisoning his mind against his dad.

It was like watching a movie that doesn’t make sense: Leah
proved
that what she was saying was true, but her own parents and brothers—her
family
—still didn’t believe her.

Leah shrieked, “Stop it!
Stop it
! Please!” She held up both hands in surrender, closed her eyes, and her voice was barely above a whisper when she spoke. “Believe me: I would
not
be asking this if I weren’t desperate. Ryan’s hospital bills are swallowing me, and I can’t catch up. You—you have no idea how hard it is for me to come to you, but I need help. Please…I’ll pay you back; I don’t know how long it’ll take, but—”

Aunt Judy tiptoed over and uprighted Leah’s chair, put her hands on Leah’s shoulders, and gently pushed her down into the seat, then gave her three soft
pat-pat-pats
. Leah looked up at her and nodded gratefully.

Grandpa crossed his arms. “Same rule about rescuing applies here as anywhere else, Leah Jane.
Why
did those boys attack Ryan?” He narrowed his eyes and tucked his chin, giving Ryan a beady-eyed stare. “What did
you
do to them?”

“I’ll bet you gave them as good as you got, right, Ryan? You
are
from Denton stock, you know!” Uncle Dale winked at him and mimed giving a one-two punch.

Ryan clenched his jaw and glared at the ground. His eyes filled with angry tears, and he impatiently brushed at his cheek with the back of his hand.

Leah calmly explained, “Last May, Ryan attended a party at one of his football teammate’s homes. The parents were out of town, and there was underage drinking going on. Some girls from Cedar Points were there, too, and one of them, a girl named Kimmie, drank too much and passed out. While she was unconscious, the team’s quarterback, Jared, raped her.”

I gasped. “Oh, my God, is the girl all right?” It was as if my words were carried away by the light breeze blowing through our campsite.

At the mention of the word “rape,” my mother ordered, “Go into the motor coach,
now
, Drew Ann.”

Of course, my little sister immediately obeyed, because that’s what
she does
. Mom watched her go, then snapped, “Leah, I will thank you to not use words like that around my seven-year-old daughter!”

Leah gave Mom a dull look and continued the story without acknowledging her.

“Afterward, Jared not only bragged about what he’d done; he texted a video and nude pictures of Kimmie to his teammates. He even posed in some of the photos, showing himself in the act of…violating her in a variety of ways.”

My dad bolted out of his chair and stood threateningly over Ryan. “What do you have to do with this? If the press finds out that
my nephew
—”

Aunt Leah jumped up and put herself between Dad and Ryan. “Jesus Christ, Reese! Is that all you ever think about? Your fucking campaign?”

She’s a lot shorter than Dad, but she kept walking forward until he nearly bumped into the flaming grill. She poked him in the chest with every word she said. “My! Son! Is! The! Only! Person! Who! Had! The! Courage! To! Report! Jared! For! Rape!” She stepped back and put her hands on her hips. “When the local police department refused to investigate, he called the county sheriff! Ryan did the right thing!”

The air became heavy, and the only sound was the birds in the forest.

Dad said nothing; just met Leah’s ice-cold stare right on.

Finally, Grandma murmured, “So, why…?” She reached over and laid a hand gently on Ryan’s bright orange cast. He looked to the right and down, but didn’t pull away from her.

Leah dragged her feet through the powdery forest floor as she walked back to her chair. She sat heavily and put her head in her hands. After a minute or so, she spoke. “The boy—Jared—is very well-liked; very well-connected. He was bound for Baylor on a full-ride football scholarship. When the news first broke, his teammates—and much of the community—took Jared’s side. They blamed
the girl
for getting drunk! All they talked about was what a shame it was that such a nice boy with a promising future would lose it all because of”—she shook her head disgustedly—“one bad decision.”

Leah straightened and reached for Ryan’s shoulder, resting her hand on it. “The last day of school, three of the football players severely beat Ryan. They even videoed the attack and posted it on YouTube, but it was quickly removed.”

Aunt Judy was clearly horrified and asked Ryan, “Well, what happened to those boys? The ones who hurt you?”

Ryan shook his head, his angry tears flowing hard.

Leah answered for him. “Nothing, really.”

Grandpa’s voice was soft. “And Jared? What about him?”

“Luckily, the district attorney was able to use the texts that Ryan received from Jared as evidence. Jared is eighteen, so he’ll be tried as an adult.”

“You’re saying he lost everything he worked so hard for, based on what
could have been
a consensual act?” Grandpa sounded like the attorney he was before he retired.

Leah looked like she’d tasted something bitter. “Were you listening to what I said, Daddy?” Her eyes grew huge, and it was like a cartoon when a light bulb shows that somebody just realized a big truth. “Jared
texted photos
that proved his guilt, just like I
showed you
photos that prove that what I’m saying about Mark is true…and yet
you choose
not to believe it.”

Dad slammed the lid on the grill and strode over to Ryan. “…Well, how do
you
know that it was rape, unless you heard the girl tell him to stop? You weren’t there, right?”

Ryan set his jaw and stared at the cast on his wrist.

Dad clapped Ryan on the back, then gripped his shoulder tightly. “
Right
, Ryan?
You weren’t there
when this alleged rape occurred?”

At last, Ryan shook his head.

Grandpa said brusquely, “As far as I’m concerned,
everyone
at that party was in the wrong. Underage drinking! You’re not going to sit here and pretend that you weren’t drinking, too, are you, Ryan?”

Ryan leaned forward at the waist and dragged his toe through pine needles in a triangular pattern. Grandpa cleared his throat, and Ryan finally shook his head.

My grandfather railed, “I agree with your community, Leah Jane. That girl brought it on herself by drinking until she passed out! She may not remember giving consent, but…whatever happened, it was a perfect storm of bad choices.” He looked at me. “Colby, you’d
never
go to a party where underage drinking was occurring, would you?”

I started to answer, but Rachel snorted, “Ha! As if anyone would invite
her
!”

Grandpa raised his eyebrows, and Rachel muttered, “Not that…I would go, you know,
if
…I was invited to one.”

“
Of course
you wouldn’t,” my mother said sharply.

“
Of course
not,” Grandma agreed.

Grandpa set his sights on Ryan again. “Look at me, boy.”

Ryan raised his eyes at last.

“
You
need to get a job and help your mama pay the medical bills that
you
brought on her by going to a party where illegal activity occurred. You’re not going to learn a lesson from this if you don’t pay the price.”

Ryan mumbled, “I
do
have a job. I work at Sugar’s. With Mom.”

Grandpa sat back hard in his chair. “Then you’d better get another one. I’m assuming you’re no longer welcome on the football team?”

“I quit,” Ryan said softly.

Grandpa accepted the ice cream churn from Uncle Dale and began turning the handle. “Well then, you’ll have plenty of time this summer and autumn to work.”

Then he set his gaze on Aunt Leah. “And,
you
: the first time I see you in seven years, and it’s to ask for money. You can’t expect us to open our arms and welcome you back just because you’re flesh and blood. Pull yourself together, Leah Jane. Lose some weight. Pay off your debts through hard work and determination. Stop blaming Mark for your problems and,
by God
, don’t teach Ryan to blame those other kids for his lapse in judgment, and maybe—just maybe—you’ll come out of this stronger than when you started.”

My mom sat up straight in her chair and flipped her hair back over her shoulder. “Just look at Rachel, Ryan. She’s got a fully paid academic scholarship to Lewis & Clark College in Portland. She’s going to be a lawyer, just like your grandpa. Get yourself on the right track again, and maybe you can do the same. Bring
pride
to our family, not
shame
.”

“
That’s it!
” Leah bolted out of her chair and gestured to Ryan to follow her. “I
knew
it was a mistake to come here! Just when I start to forget why I avoid this fucked-up family, you people remind me!”

She stomped over to the picnic table, tossed their potato salad into her ice chest, and told Ryan to take it to their car. As they sped away, Ryan rolled down his window and gave us all a one-fingered salute.

About the time they rounded the corner, Uncle Dale’s wife, Judy, clucked her tongue. “You’d
think
a woman her size wouldn’t wear tank tops in public.”

“The way you acted like her best friend, I’m a little surprised to hear you say that,” Mom said snidely.

“Oh,
please
. I wouldn’t be seen talking to her in public. What would people think if they associated me with her? She looks like a…a…biker chick!” Aunt Judy collapsed into giggles, and Mom and Rachel joined in.

“Can I come out now?” Drew called from the doorway of the motor coach.

“Yes, it’s safe,” Dad grinned. “The biker chick has left the building,” he said, sounding like a World Wrestling Federation announcer.

Drew cocked her head. “Huh?” The adults laughed, and she gave an adorable smile, flipped her hair from side to side like Mom does, and practically skipped down the motor coach steps.

Grandma opened her arms; Drew ran into them, and she was enveloped in a White Diamonds–scented cloud.

I brush my teeth, then sit at Mom’s desk and eat a couple sleeves of Pop Tarts while I search the Internet for Piney Creek, Texas.

Mom and Drew come through the back door carrying a few Walmart bags.

“Good morning, sunshine!” Mom smiles—like, she really
smiles
—for the first time since I saw her standing next to Dad when he was shaking hands with supporters at his rally about ten days ago. Feels like it’s been a lifetime.

I wonder if she’s about to go crazy again. “
You’re
in a good mood.”

Mom pops the top on a diet soda and takes a sip. “I spent time in prayer last night. I’ve handed our future over to the Lord.”

“Hmm.” I look up from reading the
Piney Creek Chamber of Commerce
website. “Aunt Leah called. She said it’s cool if we live in the trailer behind her house.” I watch Mom’s face to see if this statement strikes her as odd.

It doesn’t seem to; Mom looks relieved as she empties the plastic sacks. “See there? Prayer works! I’ll call her back in a sec.”

I log off the computer and lean back in the chair with my feet on the desk. “So…you
want
to move to Piney Creek?” I gesture to the monitor. “Have you
seen
Piney Creek?”

Her eyebrows bump up and she shrugs. “Well, the offer of a place for us means I don’t have to ask your grandma or Uncle Dale to let us live with them. It’s not like I’m overflowing with family to rely on.”

Drew kicks off her flip-flops and sits cross-legged on the sofa. “I thought we didn’t like Aunt Leah and Ryan. You and Aunt Judy made fun of her for looking like a biker chick, and everybody said it’s Ryan’s fault that he got beat up, ’cause he has a big mouth just like Aunt Leah.”