Page 30 of Making the Save

“Yes,” I said. “For them.”

She shook her head. “I’m sorry, I don’t follow hockey, what team does Wyatt play for again?”

“The Denver team,” I said quickly.

“The Peaks,” Wyatt said. “She was there when I needed her and that’s all that matters.” Wyatt said, putting an end to that conversation.

“Yes,” Tricia smiled. “Obviously. But you haven’t been on any of her red carpet events. The Grammys last year? Her album launch party in New York?”

“Well, it’s real hard to get to know each other when all the cameras are around,” Wyatt said.

“Right. All this secrecy and time alone. Then you must know each other pretty well?” Tricia asked and I wanted to stand up and cry, it’s a trap! Wyatt put his hand on my shoulder like he knew what this woman was doing and he still wasn’t scared.

“I like to think so,” Wyatt said, smiling down at me. His eyes were warm and reassuring. “What about her favorite meal? Tell me you’ve made that for her at least once, Wyatt.”

I froze. Tricia was probably referring to that interview I did last year when I said…

“Oh yeah. Sure. She loves it with a lot of ranch dressing,” Wyatt said.

Oh no.

“Interesting. You make peanut butter and jelly sandwiches with ranch dressing?” Tricia asked, looking confused, only somehow not. Like she knew exactly what she was doing with these questions.

“I dip it. In the ranch.” I interjected. “It’s amazing. You just take that peanut butter and jelly and dip away. Doesn’t ranch make everything better?”

“If you say so,” Tricia said, her smile now pure evil. “On to more serious topics, Wyatt. Your mother died at the beginning of the post season.”

“She did,” he said, and now he was stiff. I put my hand on his knee, trying to reassure him the way he had me, but his knee was rock hard and starting to bounce.

“You said Sydney was there for you when it mattered, but Sydney wasn’t there, was she? In fact…” she made a big show of pretending to check her notes. “Sydney, you were at a club opening in Manhattan, while you, Wyatt, were burying your mother a few states away in Vermont.”

There it was. She’d had that in her back pocket all along waiting to lead us to it.

I could hear Tyler hiss behind the lights like an angry cat.

“Yes,” he said stiffly. “The funeral was very private.”

“So private you didn’t have your girlfriend there?” Tricia hit us with the infamous head tilt. The one that screamed through the cameraAre you lying? Because I think you are.

“I hope you both know you can tell me the truth. You wouldn’t be the first couple to let things get out of control in Vegas.”

Oh, she was so patronizing. I would have gagged if my stomach wasn’t in knots.

“Tell me, Sydney,” Tricia shifted away from Wyatt back to me. “What does your record label say about all of this? Rumors are that they aren’t too happy with your sales or your reputation for being a problem in and out of the studio.”

“I’m not a problem in the studio,” I said. At least that was true.

Wyatt took my hand and stood, pulling me up with him.

“What’s happening?” Tricia asked.

“Interview’s over,” Wyatt said firmly. “Turn that camera off.”

“Wyatt, it’s okay, we just need to…”

I was stopped by the expression on his face. It saidback me upand so I did.

“Interview’s over,” I said. Behind the lights, Tyler looked apocalyptic.