“Uh,” Jamie says, glancing in the rearview mirror at me. I squeeze my eyes shut again, hoping that I’ll pass as being asleep. “Eden’s here.”
“And?” Tyler fires back. His tone is no longer gentle, but aggravated. “Unless you’ve knocked up that girlfriend of yours or something, then whatever you gotta tell me you can tell me right now. What is it?”
When I peek through my eyelids again, I notice the way Jamie turns to look directly at the road, both hands gripping the steering wheel. He remains quiet for a while, his posture stiff. Tyler angles his body to face him as he narrows his eyes, waiting. Very slowly, Jamie’s shoulders sink as he sighs deeply. “I’m only telling you this because Mom was planning not to, and I just think you should know,” he says. He sounds nervous and he pauses again for a long moment. Finally, he glances directly at Tyler, and that’s when he says the words I least expect to hear. “Dad’s out.”
Tyler’s lips part. “What?”
“He got out a couple weeks ago,” Jamie says, voice feeble. When I glance at the rearview mirror, I can see him frowning. Tyler, however, turns pale as he falls back against the seat, staring blankly out of the windshield as he tries to process the news Jamie has just hit him with. The radio is still playing, the quirky pop song out of place in the tense atmosphere of the car.
I really do open my eyes wide this time, pushing myself up from my slumped position. I’m a little shocked too. I’ve always known their dad was in prison. I’d only ever imagined him being locked up in a cell. But what I’d never thought about was the fact that one day he’d be getting out, because that’s the part you don’t think about. You don’t think about that person walking the streets again. You don’t think about that person having the free will again to do whatever they want. You don’t think about that person living a life again. That’s the scary part. That’s the part that no one wants to think about.
“It’s been seven years already?” Tyler asks almost in disbelief as he shoots forward, his body upright. Pressing a hand to the dashboard, he releases his seatbelt and turns directly to face Jamie, eyes fierce, voice angry. “I thought it’d only been six,” he snaps. “It’s only been fucking six!”
“It’s been seven,” Jamie mumbles. He glances between Tyler and the road as he tries to focus on his driving, but Tyler’s growing fury is making it difficult for him. “Mom’s hardly telling me anything,” Jamie continues, “but do you remember Wesley Meyer? He came around so often we used to call him Uncle Wes?” Again, he glances quickly at Tyler to gauge his response, but Tyler’s only clenching his jaw in return. “Well, Mom thinks Dad’s been staying at his place.”
“He’s in the fucking city?” Tyler hisses, immediately turning off the radio. The car falls silent, the only noise the sound of the engine as we continue through Santa Monica, crossing Pico Boulevard. “He’s here?”
From the backseat, I feel helpless. There’s nothing I can do about the situation, but I do know that Tyler is growing more and more livid with each passing second, so I move forward and place my hand on his shoulder. I squeeze tightly to let him know that I’m here.
“Drive there,” Tyler orders out of nowhere, thumping his fist twice against the dashboard as he fixes Jamie with a firm, slightly threatening glare.
“What?”
“Wesley Meyer’s place. Right now.”
“Tyler . . .” Jamie tapers off and shakes his head. “I’m not driving you over there.”
“Alright, then pull over.” Angling his body away from Jamie and toward the door instead, he reaches for the handle and glances back at Jamie again over his shoulder, still glaring. Only this time, he’s waiting.
“I’m not pulling over,” Jamie says. He grips the steering wheel even tighter.
“I’m not kidding, Jay!” Tyler growls, slamming his palm down against the dashboard once again. The abruptness startles Jamie, because he flinches and the car swerves slightly to the right, almost mounting the curb. If Ella’s car gets home without a single scratch, then I’m pretty sure that at the very least the dashboard will have some dents in it. “Pull the fuck over.”
Groaning, Jamie finally succumbs to the pressure. Pulling up against the sidewalk, he leaves the engine running as he throws open the car door and slides out. “You know this is a stupid idea,” he mutters. Kicking at the road, he makes his way around the vehicle.