offense…”
“He’s getting out?”
“His release is set for May. I’m so sorry, but I don’t want you to think this changes anything. You’re still safe. He’s not allowed to contact you and he still has to abide by the conditions of his parole or he goes right back to jail.”
My mom was still speaking, but my mind was elsewhere. I could feel the old wounds reopening, threatening to bleed me dry. I wanted to weep a river of tears and drown in them. I should’ve prepared better, but there was no way to get used to the idea that the devil would no longer be in his cage.
“Did you know about the hearing?”
“Yes, but our lawyer said it wasn’t likely he would be granted parole. He thought it would be another year or so before it could happen. There are overcrowding issues at the prison he’s been serving his sentence, so maybe that had something to do with it.”
Or maybe because Mr. Bridges was skilled at making people see what he wanted them to see. I’d been a victim of his deception. Trusting Mr. Bridges had been easy. Appearing nonthreatening was what he did best.
“Hon, you’re away at college and the last thing I want is for you to worry. But I’m not sure if the papers are going to pick up on his release and start running stories about the case again. No one knows where you went away to school, just your father and I. You won’t be bothered on campus, only the local gossips will be chomping at the bit.”
“I’ll avoid the local news websites. Last time I went digging online, I didn’t see too many flattering articles about me.” After a beat, I started, “Mom, I’m sorry for all of this. I ran away and you’re still in Newpine dealing with it. Maybe I should’ve never…”
“Don’t you dare, Autumn Dorey. Never say you regret coming forward. If you hadn’t spoken up about the things going on in that school, you and every other female student in Newpine would’ve been at risk.” My mother’s harsh tone softened when she added, “You did the right thing and I’m proud of you for it. Things were hard for us at first but in all honesty it helped weed out the people who weren’t our true friends to begin with. But I know this town doesn’t hold the greatest memories for you. That’s why I thought we could spend the summer at the shore.”
“What about work?”
“I’ve earned enough days off to spend the summer at the beach with my beautiful and incredible daughter. Your dad may not be able to take off for the entire time, but he’ll come down on the weekends and for at least two weeks.”
My father worked as an electrical engineer and my mother was a customer service representative for an insurance agency. My dad’s schedule could be hectic depending on the size of the project he was working on.
“Isn’t that a lot of money to rent a shore house?”
“Not as bad as you think. A lot of the owners are willing to discount the prices if you agree to rent for the entire summer. It saves them the hassle of having to deal with different renters. Besides, when was the last time we’ve taken an extravagant vacation? I think our last trip was Disney World when you were thirteen. You’re in college now and we likely won’t have this chance again.”
I smiled against the churning feeling in my belly. What would I ever have done without her? I remember thinking of her as an annoyance, an overbearing mother who wanted to constantly know where I was going and who I was with. I owed her and it was the reason I would hold back my tears until I hung up the phone.
“It sounds amazing, Mom.”
“Great! I’ll email you some houses I’ve been looking at and you can let me know what you think.” Some of the false cheer diminished from her voice as she said, “I understand how hard this is for you. If it were up to me, they would’ve locked him away forever. But he’s out of our lives and you never have to see his worthless hide again.”
My heart began to thump
“He’s getting out?”
“His release is set for May. I’m so sorry, but I don’t want you to think this changes anything. You’re still safe. He’s not allowed to contact you and he still has to abide by the conditions of his parole or he goes right back to jail.”
My mom was still speaking, but my mind was elsewhere. I could feel the old wounds reopening, threatening to bleed me dry. I wanted to weep a river of tears and drown in them. I should’ve prepared better, but there was no way to get used to the idea that the devil would no longer be in his cage.
“Did you know about the hearing?”
“Yes, but our lawyer said it wasn’t likely he would be granted parole. He thought it would be another year or so before it could happen. There are overcrowding issues at the prison he’s been serving his sentence, so maybe that had something to do with it.”
Or maybe because Mr. Bridges was skilled at making people see what he wanted them to see. I’d been a victim of his deception. Trusting Mr. Bridges had been easy. Appearing nonthreatening was what he did best.
“Hon, you’re away at college and the last thing I want is for you to worry. But I’m not sure if the papers are going to pick up on his release and start running stories about the case again. No one knows where you went away to school, just your father and I. You won’t be bothered on campus, only the local gossips will be chomping at the bit.”
“I’ll avoid the local news websites. Last time I went digging online, I didn’t see too many flattering articles about me.” After a beat, I started, “Mom, I’m sorry for all of this. I ran away and you’re still in Newpine dealing with it. Maybe I should’ve never…”
“Don’t you dare, Autumn Dorey. Never say you regret coming forward. If you hadn’t spoken up about the things going on in that school, you and every other female student in Newpine would’ve been at risk.” My mother’s harsh tone softened when she added, “You did the right thing and I’m proud of you for it. Things were hard for us at first but in all honesty it helped weed out the people who weren’t our true friends to begin with. But I know this town doesn’t hold the greatest memories for you. That’s why I thought we could spend the summer at the shore.”
“What about work?”
“I’ve earned enough days off to spend the summer at the beach with my beautiful and incredible daughter. Your dad may not be able to take off for the entire time, but he’ll come down on the weekends and for at least two weeks.”
My father worked as an electrical engineer and my mother was a customer service representative for an insurance agency. My dad’s schedule could be hectic depending on the size of the project he was working on.
“Isn’t that a lot of money to rent a shore house?”
“Not as bad as you think. A lot of the owners are willing to discount the prices if you agree to rent for the entire summer. It saves them the hassle of having to deal with different renters. Besides, when was the last time we’ve taken an extravagant vacation? I think our last trip was Disney World when you were thirteen. You’re in college now and we likely won’t have this chance again.”
I smiled against the churning feeling in my belly. What would I ever have done without her? I remember thinking of her as an annoyance, an overbearing mother who wanted to constantly know where I was going and who I was with. I owed her and it was the reason I would hold back my tears until I hung up the phone.
“It sounds amazing, Mom.”
“Great! I’ll email you some houses I’ve been looking at and you can let me know what you think.” Some of the false cheer diminished from her voice as she said, “I understand how hard this is for you. If it were up to me, they would’ve locked him away forever. But he’s out of our lives and you never have to see his worthless hide again.”
My heart began to thump
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