“Answer it,” Mason ordered as he pulled onto the winding road that would take us to my cabin.
I stared at him with surprise as the phone thrummed in my hands. “Are you sure? I thought you didn’t want me talking to anyone?”
“I don’t, but I think he suspects something. We need to find out what he knows.” He nodded at my cell. “Answer it.”
“And act normal.”
I stared at him for a moment then I took a deep breath, my mouth as dry as a desert as I pressed the answer button.
“Hello?” I tried to sound as innocent and as cheery as possible.
“Hey pumpkin!” Brian greeted cheerfully, using his favorite old nickname for me. How’s my favorite girl doing?” There was static in the transmission and I had to turn up the volume to hear him over the motor. He didn’t sound angry or pissed, so that was good at least. Maybe this was just his routine welfare check up.
“I’m fine,” I replied, relaxing a little and keeping my voice even. “How are you?”
Brian chuckled. “Good, good. How’s your mother?”
“You know what? That reminds me. I haven’t talked to her in a while. I so need to call her. But the last time we talked, she was doing just fine, complaining and carrying on . . . you know how she does sometimes.”
“I sure do,” Brian laughed dryly. “Good, God, I do.”
I flashed an easy smile at Mason, letting him know the call was going well.
“Everything alright with your new gig at that newspaper you said you were working for?”
I cringed. Not wanting any sympathy, I lied to Brian about what I was doing employment-wise. He’d paid for my college tuition and I didn’t want any more handouts.
“It’s going real smooth,” I lied. “Really good. In fact, I’m getting a promotion next month.”
Shit, I’m such a terrible liar.
“Really?” he asked, sounding surprised. “Well I’m very happy for you!”
I grimaced. “Thank you. I couldn’t have done it without the support of such kick ass parents.”
Mason stuck his finger in his mouth and made a gagging sound. I slapped him on the arm.
“I always knew you would succeed, Carly,” Brian was saying. “You always worked your ass off, getting good grades, raising the bar with each achievement . . . and at least you didn’t waste my hard-earned money like someone else we know,” he muttered.
An awkward silence settled over the phone. I didn’t know if he was trying to bait me into talking about Mason or not. I did know for a fact he was bitter over Mason, so it wasn’t hard to believe he was just being genuine.
Surprisingly, I found myself coming to Mason’s defense. “Well, uh, you know, maybe he was going through something and couldn’t handle all the pressure—”
“Oh please!” Brian snarled. “The boy was spoiled, that was his problem! I gave him everything he wanted growing up when I should have been harder! Had I done my job, maybe he wouldn’t have gotten into those damn drugs.”
“Mason’s not on drugs.” The words slipped out before I could stop them.
Fuck.
Mason noticed my slip and looked over at me. He started making a cutting motion at his throat, signaling me to end the call.
Suspicion laced Brian’s voice. “How would you know that?
I motioned sharply at him to quit his antics. I couldn’t just hang up on him and invite more suspicion. Besides, he’d probably just call right back.
“Uh, because it doesn’t seem like him. He never was the type. He was all about keeping his body in perfect condition.”
“Not what I heard.” Brian crackled. “Your brother’s a damn crackhead!”
I twisted my lips. There was no use in arguing and casting further suspicion on myself. He was probably talking in anger anyway, still bitter after all this time. “If you say so.”
There was a slight pause. “Have you seen him?”
I tried to play stupid. “Huh?”
“Have you seen Mason?”
“No, why would I?” I tried to sound as convincing as possible. “I haven’t heard from him since that day he walked out.”
There was a very long pause this time and I began to sweat beneath my palms.
When Brian spoke next, his voice was calmer. “Some detectives came by here looking for him. You know he’s in trouble, right?”
I let out an exaggerated gasp of surprise, my eyes going wide. “You’re shitting me!”
Suddenly, Mason started laughing and I looked at him with alarm, slapping him on the arm. Thankfully, it was a silent laugh, the type that you have to hold in but your whole body shakes from it. Mason’s shoulders rocked as his face turned red. He literally looked like he was gasping for breath, his hands barely holding onto the wheel.
He was so distracted that he drifted slightly into the other lane just as a red pickup came speeding around the corner. At the last possible moment, he swerved back into our lane, narrowly avoiding a collision.
“Jesus Christ!” I yelled, my heart pounding within my chest.
The pickup blazed past us, honking at us, the driver flipping Mason the bird.