CHAPTER 13 – THE TRUTH EMERGES #2
I stare at the carpet, picturing exactly where in the site I was, and how sure I was that I’d wiped my tracks.
Oh god, oh god. Why did I use the family computer?
I was so stupid, but I was running out of memory on my laptop, and so I decided to do a quick fix on the family one downstairs.
I’ve screwed up, bad. My cheeks burn, but I say nothing.
“Is this because you’re lonely?” Nancy says, her voice cracking. “Is it because your friends are all moved away, or because you’re not happy with us?”
“Mom, it’s not like that,” I mumble.
“Then what is it?” Dad snaps. “You think this is funny? Some joke? Do you think it’s okay to do whatever you’re doing on these sites in my house?”
He’s shouting now, and I can feel the neighbors’ ears pricking up across the cul-de-sac.
I take a breath, let it out slow. “It’s not a big deal, Dad.”
Gerald surges up from the chair. “It’s not a big deal?
” He’s red, veins throbbing at his temples.
“You are on camera! We know you are, Eliza! Don’t pretend because why else would a young girl like you be accessing a triple X streaming site!
That’s what you’re doing! Stripping! Talking to perverts! Are you out of your goddamn mind?”
Nancy gasps and buries her face in her hands. “Please, Gerald, stop yelling—”
He doesn’t stop. “You could ruin your whole life with this. If anyone finds out—if this gets to the wrong person—you’ll never get a real job. You’ll never get into law school. You’ll be humiliated, and so will we!”
I meet his eyes, even though my chest is caving in. “I’m not ashamed,” I say. “I don’t care if people know.”
My dad gapes at me, stunned. “Why? WHY would you do this?”
I feel something loosen inside me, something that’s been wound tight for years. “Because I want to,” I say in a defiant voice. “Because it pays. Because I’d rather make my own money than beg you for it. Because I don’t want to live at home forever because I can’t afford to live on my own!”
Gerald’s face goes slack, then hard. “You have no idea—”
“I’m not apologizing,” I cut in, louder than I mean to. “It’s my body. My life. I can do what I want. I’m twenty-one years old, and not a child anymore.”
Nancy finally looks up, mascara pooling under her eyes. “Are you… is someone making you do this, Eliza? Are you being blackmailed, or threatened?”
I almost laugh. “No, Mom. It’s just me.”
“Is there a man?” Gerald demands. “Is some guy making you do this?”
I open my mouth to say no, but the words won’t come. Jack’s face floats up in my mind: the smile, the blue eyes, the calm that cuts through every storm I ever bring him. Suddenly, I feel safe telling the truth because I know my boyfriend has my back, no matter what.
“I’m seeing someone,” I say. “But he’s not making me do anything. He knows about the camming, and he supports me.”
Gerald sits back down, hard. “Who is he? Is it that gym guy you used to date? Is it someone at the law firm?”
I shake my head. “You wouldn’t approve of him.”
My dad shoots daggers at me.
“Try me.”
I look him dead in the eye, and it comes out clear and true. “I’m dating Jack Landry. Your friend.”
There’s a second of stunned silence, the kind that feels like the whole world’s holding its breath.
Then Dad’s voice, soft and lethal: “How long?”
“A few months now,” I say. “We’re in love, Dad. I know it’s weird, but I—”
He’s up again, pacing the perimeter of the room. “That son of a bitch. He’s been grooming you. He’s been—”
“He hasn’t!” I shriek, louder than I thought possible. “He never touched me when I was a kid. He never even looked at me that way until I was legal, until I made the first move.”
“You’re twenty-one,” Gerald says. “He’s forty-five. He’s twice your age!”
Nancy squeezes my hand, desperate. “Are you sure he’s not pressuring you, baby? You can tell us. We’ll help you, no matter what.”
I pull away, shaking my head. “You don’t get it. Jack listens to me. He makes me feel like I matter. He’s the only person who treats me like an adult, and not some child you can control.”
Dad’s face is purple. “You’re moving out. Tonight.”
I swallow. “Fine. I’ll get my stuff and go.”
“Don’t you dare go to him,” he spits. “If you do, you’re dead to me.”
“Gerald, stop!” Mom pleads, but he ignores her.
“Call him right now,” Dad thunders. “I want to hear what that son of a bitch has to say about his relationship with a girl half his age!”
I reach for my phone, fingers icy cold. Jack picks up on the first ring.
“Hey, sweetheart,” he says, and just hearing his voice nearly undoes me.
“My parents are here,” I say, my own voice trembling. “I have you on speaker. They want to talk. They know about us.”
Jack doesn’t miss a beat. “Put Gerald on.”
I do. Gerald’s voice is steel and fire: “You piece of shit. You’ve been screwing my daughter behind my back? How could you do this to me?”
Jack’s voice is steady. “I love Eliza, Gerald. I respect her more than anyone I’ve ever known.”
“You’re a predator. If I ever see you again—”
“I understand you’re angry,” Jack cuts in. “But you don’t get to decide who Eliza loves.”
There’s a brutal pause, then Dad hangs up and chucks the remote against the wall, where it explodes into pieces.
“Love? Are you fucking kidding me? That man has a trail of women behind him, discarded and used. And you!” he thunders. “You’re a young woman who knows nothing! You don’t even know when you’re being manipulated.”
“Jack’s not manipulating me,” I respond in a steady voice. “He loves me—”
Gerald’s eyes bulge from his head.
“You know nothing about love. Get out of my house,” he snarls. “Right now.”
I don’t wait for another word. I head upstairs, and start yanking clothes from drawers.
I can hear my mom sobbing on the couch, my dad stomping around like he’s about to rip the banister off the wall.
I shove everything into a duffel, skip the sentimental shit—no point in nostalgia when you’ve just been disowned—and pause at my dresser, hands shaking.
There, propped against the mirror, is a photo of me and my parents at the Science Museum. I’m maybe six, missing a front tooth, beaming up at Dad as he holds me on his shoulders. Mom’s behind us, smiling soft and tired.
I stare at it until my eyes sting, then slide the photo facedown in the drawer and zip up the bag.
I go down the back stairs, and slip out into the yard.
As I step into the dark, the cold hits me like a brick. The air is sharp, but it smells like spring, like possibility. I text Jack: Can I stay with you tonight?
His reply is instant: Always.
I walk to my car, feeling the burn of tears but not letting them fall. Not yet. I’m not the child they think I am. I’m not a fuck-up, nor a victim, nor a dirty secret.
I’m just Eliza. And for the first time in my life, I’m done hiding.