Page 28 of Everyone Loved Her
It just wasn’t going to happen.
She wouldn’t have to worry about that.
I stepped down off the sidewalk and reached for the handle, wrapping my fingers around it.
“Beth!” a deep voice caught my attention. “Beth Young, is that you?”
You have to be kidding me.
I plastered a smile on my face as I looked up, expecting to see someone who went to church with my parents or something, but instead, the face I saw made my chest feel tight. “Hey, Lucas.”
“Hey,” he sounded out of breath with his snapback hat on backwards and his rugged complexion dotted with beads of sweat. “I was hoping to catch you around.”
“Yeah?” I studied his faded and stained jeans paired with an equally faded red T-shirt. “What can I do for you?”
“Uh, see, I was talking to Ty and Gabriel, and they said they saw you at Outlaws with Sarah the night she...you know.” His face contorted with emotion, and for a moment, I thought he might break down in tears right there on the street.
“I was there with her,” I admitted, my eyes searching around the empty area. “But not very long. She left before I did.”
He nodded, his expression difficult to read. He had once been one of the most popular guys in school—the cliché quarterback of the football team and what not—and had been with Sarah since sophomore year. “I just wanna know if you saw anything.”
“I didn’t. I didn’t see anything but her walk toward the exit.” I chose my words carefully. I didn’t evenactuallysee her leave the place. I just made that assumption. “I’m so sorry that you’re going through this. I hope they can find some an?—”
“You just lost your dad, right?” he countered, his voice going up a notch as he cut me off.
I tugged on the handle, opening the door a little. “Yeah, I did.”
“How’d you lose him, if you don’t mind me asking?”
Well, I do. But whatever.
“He was allergic to wasps and was stung.”
“Dang, that’s brutal.” Lucas said, though his voice seemed devoid of any real sympathy as he took a step toward me. “So, what did Sarah tell you that night?”
“Um, I don’t know what you mean. We just had a couple of drinks and then she left—that’s it,” I reiterated, watching his lanky frame closely as he took another step toward me. It only left a few feet between us, and I squeezed the door handle a little tighter.
Lucas was unfazed, his eyes staying trained on me. “You keep saying that, but did she mention me at all? Did she mention the divorce? I can’t see her trying to take you under her wing, and not mention me.”
I couldn’t tell if he was searching for some kind of closure or if he was angry with me, his tone of voice growing more strained by the second. “Lucas,” I began calmly. “She briefly mentioned the divorce, but we didn’t get far into the conversation before she had to go. She didn’t say much at all…”
“Go where? Where’d she go?”
Jeez.
“She said the bathroom, but she never came back,” Ianswered quickly, holding up a hand in surrender position. “I don’t know anything more than that.”
He shook his head, and I noted his clenched fists. “Was Garrett there?”
I knew the color drained right out of my face, and as I opened my mouth to conjure up some sort of vague answer, Lucas closed the distance between himself and my truck.
“He was there, wasn’t he? He’salwaysthere!” Lucas’s fist slammed down onto the hood, rage turning his face red. “He had something to do with it. Iknowhe did!”
“I don’t know,” I said, trying once again to remain calm. I took a step to the side, popping the driver’s side door open and situating my body just behind it. It put something between us—just in case. “I’m really sorry for what happened. I know that it can’t be easy?—”
“And you know what?” Lucas cut me off, his voice still oozing with anger. “His daddy down there at the sheriff’s office ain’t gonna do athingabout Sarah. Just like he didn’t do a dang thing about Sam. He’s just too busy tryin’ to cover up his son’s messed up head!”
My chest tightened a little more as I slid a little further behind the door. “I don’t know. I just really need to get home.”