“Yeah,” she sighs. “Well, just let me know what happens. I’ll be here lying on the couch with Casper.”
I gaze over the rippling water, my eyes falling on a large tree stump that sits about five feet from the dock. A small red bird perches on its top.
“I’ll come over and spend the night once I leave them,” I say, turning back toward the path.
“Okay, see you soon,” she says before ending the call.
I’m halfway down the path when my phone rings again, this time with Satchi’s name displaying across my screen. Confusion floods in. It’s a Saturday and it’s weird that he’d be calling me. So I answer quickly and press the phone to my ear.
“Sir?” I say, stopping between two trees.
“Hey, Jordan, do you have a minute?”
“Sure, what’s up?”
“Sorry to call you, but I just got an invite to an emergency meeting with the disciplinary board.”
“Disciplinary board?” I lean against a tree.
“Yes, I—” his voice cuts out.
“Hello?” I say, stepping away from the tree.
“Sorry. I’m travelling for the weekend. My parents live in rural area. Can you … me?” he says, cutting out again.
“Sort of,” I say, pressing my hand against my ear. “Now, did you say disciplinary board?”
His voice goes choppy again and I’m only able to make out a few words. “Selling exam… expelled, I’m disappointed I didn’t think … the type.” My brow furrows as I tilt my head , asking him to repeat himself.
“Selling exam? Sir, what are you talking about?”
“Jordan?” he says. I call to him loudly, as if my tone of voice will somehow fix our connection issue.
I’m able to make out a few more broken sentences. “You were … had access to them.”
The phone stays pressed to my ear long after the line goes dead. My mind clouds over as a heat grows in my chest and spreads through my body. What does he mean, selling exams? I sure as fuck didn’t, but why would they need me in the meeting?
This makes no fucking sense, I was always very careful when handling students’ work and grading papers. I worked so damn hard to be noticed by Satchi, so what is this bullshit? My hands grip my hair as I sit on a tree stump trying to get my breathing under control. There was no one, and I mean no one, ever near my documents. Not even Xia. I intentionally stayed late in the office when I had to grade papers and I never brought anything home. There’s no way a misstep from me could have turned into this. Someone is setting me up. But who the fuck would do that?
A sinking feeling grows in my chest and everything hits me at once. I was grading the midterm exam when Xia walked into the office the other day. I’m sure she didn’t take the test, she never got close enough to have a chance, but fucking Felicia—I had my back to her after she knocked Xia down on the floor.
A vibration against my ear causes me to pull the phone away and look at it.
Satchi: Be at the meeting Monday at 7 a.m.
“Fuck,” I curse, gripping my phone and slamming it hard against the dry ground. The force causes the cover to fly off. Dust rises from where it impacts. Anger and confusion boil through my veins as I kick a tree and curse again. She won’t get away with this.
Lunging for my phone, I scramble to get off the ground and call Satchi back. Only to find a completely shattered screen. My blood is boiling as I turn back to the path and move quickly toward the house. A high-pitched cadence echoes through the trees and the closer I get to the clearing the more obvious it becomes. I start running, jumping over rocks and falling branches as I close in on the sound of an ambulance. I make it to the yard quickly and run in through the patio door, heading toward the front of the house. Red strobe lights flicker through the window across the living room and the foyer. The door is wide open and by the time I make it there I can hear Cherry’s scream.
“Please.” Tears stream down her face as she sits on her knees with King’s arms wrapped around her. Laying on a gurney is Kenzie, surrounded by two paramedics who are performing CPR.
“Breathe, baby girl,” the paramedic says as the other one sticks a needle in her arm. Kenzie lays lifeless, her eyes closed, lips a pale shade of blue. Roman paces the space, trembling and running his hands over his head.
“What the fuck happened?” I say
“I didn’t know.” Roman looks at me, fear and guilt echoing through his tone. “She just took it, I didn’t realize—" His word are cut short as Cherry cries loudly.
“Kenzie,” she calls. “Kenzie, please, please,” she pleads. The paramedics begin moving the gurney into the back of the wagon. One continues to work on Kenzie as the other crawls out the back. “You, come with us we gotta go now,” he says pointing to Cherry. She jumps to her feet and quickly climbs into the ambulance, then the driver shuts the door and runs to the cab.
“I’m right behind you, baby,” King says, starting toward the driveway before realizing he doesn’t have his keys. He dashes inside the house as the ambulance speeds from the home.
Snatching my keys from my pocket, I run to my car.
“Roman,” I call. He’s still pacing, mumbling to himself and it takes a few calls before I get his attention.
“Come on,” I say. He snaps out of it and runs to the passenger door, opening it and hopping in. At that moment King appears in the doorway of the house, slamming it tightly and running to his car. He backs out of his spot and we follow him to the hospital.
20
XIA
My father’s voice bleeds over my speaker and my heart doesn’t know how to take it. I’m still mad at him, still confused about the picture I found in the couch, but worry for my mother takes precedent over it all and has finally pushed me to seek him out. I fought myself for hours trying to think of anyone else in the world I could call. But no one would be better than him. She seems to be getting worse and he knows her better than anyone.
“Has she been eating?” he asks.
“Barely. Most of the food you bring by goes untouched until Jordan and I start eating it. I make her breakfast every morning before I leave. Sometimes she eats it and sometimes it’s still sitting on the counter when I get home.”
He releases a breath, the sound causing a distortion to ring through the speaker. I’m trying to ignore my racing thoughts. I want to yell at him, blame him for making her this way, but I know it won’t make her better, and right now that’s the most important thing.
“Okay, I’ll leave a message for her doctor in the morning and see what he thinks we should do. Do you want me to come home?”
I hesitate because a big part of me wants to say yes but I’m not sure if this will help or hurt my mother’s condition. “Just tell me what the doctor says.’”
“All right,” he says, and I can tell he’s let down by my answer.
A tone beeps in my ear, signaling an incoming call. I look down at the screen and frown when I see it’s Roman.
“I have a call; I’ll call you back.” I click over, my eyes closed tightly as I grip my hair.