“Because it’s possible he could give you some advice here,” my mom said, with more than a touch of bitterness. “You know he beat a sexual harassment suit right after we got divorced.”
“What?” I said, sitting up and resting against the wall. My room smelled stale, of sweat and sleep. The curtain was edged in a bright square of sunlight. Birds chirped noisily, right outside my window. “No, I didn’t know that. What happened?”
My mom exhaled, loudly. “A woman who worked with him claimed that he promised that if she slept with him, he would use his friendship with their captain to get her off of night shifts so she could spend more time with her kids. There was an investigation, but because he wasn’t her superior and it was shown that she willingly initiated meeting with him multiple times over a course of several months, he was cleared.”
“Wow,” I said, shaking my head. “I can’t believe he never told me.”
“I think it scared him,” my mom explained. “And since then, you know he’s slept with a disgusting number of women, but I’m pretty certain none of them have been from work.”
I thought about how, over the last few years, since I started my job, my dad had warned me about doing just that. “Don’t shit where you eat, Son,” he’d say. “Don’t dip your pen in the department ink.” Now, the frequency with which he’d said it made sense.
“I don’t want him to know about this,” I said, trying not to sound like I was begging. “Okay, Mom? He’ll just make it worse.” I could already hear how my father would berate me for getting stuck in a situation like this. For finally having the courage to make a move on Amber, but then royally fucking it up. It would only add fuel to what he’d said about me. It would only prove his point.
“All right,” she said, reluctantly. “But you need to work things out with Amber. And I’ll try to talk with Helen again.”
“No!” I said, feeling panicked at the idea of her hearing details from Helen that I couldn’t control. “Let me handle this, please.”
“I’m sorry, Tyler, but I can’t stand the idea of my best friend thinking you would be capable of hurting her daughter. I don’t work until five tonight, so I’m going back over there this morning. You can come with me or not. It’s up to you.”
I felt torn. Part of me was worried that if I showed up at her house again unannounced, Amber would freak out. But another part of me reasoned that maybe all she had needed, like me, was a good night’s sleep to put the events of the party in proper perspective. Maybe she had come to terms with the fact that she was just as liable for what had happened.
It was this last thought that had me meet my mom at the Bryants’ house a few hours later. I’d showered and eaten a good breakfast, grateful that my hangover was gone and, for the most part, my head felt clear. Both Helen’s and Tom’s cars were in their driveway; I knew Helen’s job at the elementary school gave her the summer off, but Tom was typically so busy meeting with clients, he rarely worked from home. The fact that he was here made me uneasy. An uncomfortable lump formed in my gut.
“It’ll be fine,” my mom said, running her hand down the side of my arm. “We’ll work it out.” She wore jeans and a light-blue top that I had given her for Mother’s Day.
I gave her a weak smile, nodding my head once as we made our way to the front steps, which felt a little odd—too formal. I was so accustomed to entering on the side of the house, like family, through the kitchen. I raised my hand and rapped on the door three times, lightly.
When it swung open, Tom stood in front of us, his hand still on the knob. He glared at me with a look so hateful, I dropped my eyes to the ground. “You have some balls showing back up here,” he said, practically growling the words.
“Tom, please,” my mom said, reaching out her hand to try to touch his arm, but he jerked out of her reach.
“Please what, Liz?” he said, forcefully. “Ask your son to come into my house for a sit-down? He raped my daughter. He raped her. And now he’s standing on my fucking front porch, acting like nothing’s wrong.”
“That’s not what happened,” I said, glancing around to see if any of the neighbors were watching from their windows. “You have to believe me—”
“No, Tyler. I don’t.” Tom’s face was red and his blue eyes were dark. I’d never seen him like this. “I believe my daughter. I believe you got her drunk and you forced yourself on her. And now she won’t leave her bedroom. She won’t eat. She’s in more pain than I’ve ever seen before and it’s your fault.” He paused, breathing hard, looking like he wanted nothing more than to punch me. “So forgive me if I don’t invite you inside. Just be glad I’m not holding a gun.”
“Hold on, Tom!” my mom said. “This is crazy. You know Tyler. You know he’d never—”
“The only thing I know is what I saw,” Tom said. “I saw how frightened Amber was of him when he was in her room yesterday. She was terrified, Liz. I’ve never seen anyone so scared in my entire life. I know he’s your son and you’d do anything to protect him—”
“I don’t need to protect him because he didn’t do anything wrong!” my mom said, throwing her arms up in the air, then letting them drop back down to her sides. “Amber got drunk! She kissed him and led him to believe she wanted to have sex with him, even though she’s engaged to someone else! So who, exactly, is in the wrong here?” My mom was breathing hard, too. Her previously calm demeanor had vanished. “Amber cheated on Daniel and now she’s just looking for someone to blame!”
“Shut up, Liz!” Helen appeared out of nowhere next to her husband, as though she’d been hiding behind the door, listening. Her red hair was a tangled mess and her skin was pale beneath her freckles. She crossed her arms over her chest and shot a look full of daggers at both my mother and me. “Just shut the hell up! My daughter is upstairs, still shaking after what your son did to her. I always told you if you didn’t get him into counseling he’d end up just like his father, and now he has! He raped my daughter! He took advantage of her trust and now she can’t stop crying. She’ll never be the same.” Tears rolled down Helen’s cheeks as she spoke, and she angrily brushed them away. She looked at me. “How could you do this, Tyler? Tell me, please. How?”
“I didn’t mean to hurt her,” I stammered, hating the thought that Helen believed I was anything like my father. That she had told my mother I might turn out just like him. “I just . . . I thought . . . we’ve been flirting so much since she’s been home . . .”
“Honey, you don’t need to say another word,” my mom said, but she was too late. Tom flung the door open and it crashed against the wall with a loud thud. He curled his fingers into fists.