Chapter Eleven Crook County, WY Present Day #2
Chrissie’s eyes widened at her daughter’s sudden lapse into territorial devotion. This was a new—and delightful—twist. She had no idea Kat cared this much.
“It’s not a scam. She basically kidnapped me. I was just minding my own business at work and all of a sudden she pops up out of nowhere and starts, like, mothering me.”
She said the word mothering like it filled her whole mouth. To Chrissie’s surprise, Kat relented.
“Yeah, she does that to everyone, even if she’s only known them for all of three seconds.” A pause. “What do you want?”
“Other than to teach you much better ways of getting back at your nemesis? Just that I promised your mom I’d check in before we performed another duet. The place we’re staying asked us to play at dinner, but your mom was worried you might not like it.”
“Mom!” Kat practically screeched. “You’re talking smack about me to strangers now? I thought you were, like, morally obligated to always take my side. It’s supposed to be in the parental bylaws.”
This, too, sounded more like possessiveness than anger. Chrissie leaned into it. “Sorry, kiddo, but I can’t help talking about you. I’m too proud to keep quiet for long.”
Chrissie could practically hear the eye roll from her distance of fifteen-hundred miles, but in the pause that followed, she could also detect her daughter’s pleasure.
“Whatever,” Kat muttered without any of her usual heat. “Go be famous. Don’t be famous. But tell that girl if you start getting creepy online stalkers after this, I’m going to glitter-bomb her vagene.”
“What’d she do to you anyway?” River asked as she shifted from one foot to the other. So far, she hadn’t shown the least bit of discomposure at finding herself on the bitter end of a phone call that Chrissie was pretty sure they could hear at the top of Devils Tower.
“Um, other than abandon me to go on the adventure of a lifetime while I waste away in Medford? Let me see—”
River tsked impatiently. “No, not your mom. She’s pretty cool, as far as old people go.”
“Old?” Scarlett demanded. This time, it was Chrissie’s turn to hold her friend at bay. “Who’s she calling old?”
“I meant the girl,” River said, ignoring them both. “The one whose underwear drawer you’re going to rig tonight.”
Kat giggled—actually giggled in a way that Chrissie hadn’t heard in a very long time. “I can’t do that. Walsh—he’s my volleyball coach—would be the one who has to clean it up, and he’s really nice. Besides, the cat would probably try to eat the glitter. He’s certifiably stupid.”
“Hmm. If you can get into her phone, you could change all her contacts to the same name. That one always pisses people off—especially if you pick someone super random like Nicolas Cage.”
Scarlett brought her lips to Chrissie’s ear with a low chuckle. “That one’s kinda funny, actually.”
Chrissie waved her hand to shush her friend. She didn’t want to miss whatever else Kat had to say. This was more personal information than she’d gotten out of her daughter in months.
“You know a weird amount about pranking people,” Kat said.
“Yeah, well. We all have our strengths. Mine just happen to be pissing people off and occasionally singing a halfway decent song.”
Chrissie held her breath, afraid that a return to the topic at hand would shut Kat down again, but all her daughter did was sigh and say, “Lily’s not that bad.
She’s just one of those people who’s good at everything, you know?
Like, she never breaks out right before photo day or has a tampon string accidentally hanging out the side of her volleyball shorts.
I’ve never seen her study for a test, but she somehow always gets the top grade, and she even reads for fun.
Like, a lot.” Louder this time, and clearly for Chrissie’s benefit, she added, “Perfect people are impossible to live with—and the worst part is, they’re always nice about it, which makes it that much worse. ”
Scarlett’s chuckle sounded once more. “She’s got you pegged, huh?”
“Me?” Chrissie returned, her brow puckered. “Since when has anyone ever accused me of being perfect?”
“Unless I’m mistaken, Kat just did. Poor kid.
I never really thought about it, but sitting across from that over the breakfast table every morning must be rough.
” Scarlett swirled a finger in Chrissie’s general direction.
“Especially since I have no doubt you do things like make happy faces in the pancakes.”
Chrissie didn’t say anything. She did put happy faces in the pancakes, but that was because some days, it was the only time anyone in their house smiled.
She also slipped notes into Kat’s lunch with encouraging messages and kept her Starbucks app well supplied in case she wanted to stop by after school for a little treat.
None of the things she did were earth-shattering—or, as Kat might say, perfect—but they were the sort of attentions that she’d always wished her own parents would show.
Hello. How are you? I’m thinking of you. I’m glad you exist.
She was so deep in her own reflections that she didn’t realize River had finished up the call until she handed her back the phone and said, “There. Permission granted. That Lily girl sure sounds like a piece of work, doesn’t she?”
“Wait.” Chrissie blinked, taking in her surroundings as if seeing them for the first time.
The golden-hued wood tones and scent of furniture polish, the animal heads staring down at them from almost every wall…
It was as far from her cozy, floral house as possible, and it suddenly felt wrong. “That’s it? She just…gave in?”
“I mean, I think she was serious when she said you were under no circumstances allowed to wear your ‘In My Volleyball Mom Era’ sweatshirt while you play the piano, and to be honest, I’d find that pretty uncomfortable myself, but yeah.
” River snapped her fingers. “Oh! And right after I turned off the speaker, she said to tell you that Rufio actually used the fake grass and that Walsh is taking them out to Wharf Fresh to celebrate. They’re going to, like, order extra shrimp for the cat?
I don’t know. It all sounded random to me. ”
Chrissie could only stare as the words sank in, so it was probably for the best that Scarlett took the lead and directed them to grab their bags.
“Good. It’s settled. Let’s get changed and then head down for our next big showcase. By the time this road trip is done, we’ll have you both on the path to superstardom.”
* * *
When Chrissie emerged from the bathroom a half hour later, it was to find Scarlett seated on the edge of her log bed, considerably overdressed in a silky red blouse buttoned up to the top and a black leather miniskirt that left little to the imagination.
By comparison, her own clothes were…well. Intentional.