Dead Girl Walking ― Aaron Minyard

35. someone else's star

you say another prayer there's a heaven
i say it's anywhere you're forgiven
― finneas

♦

THE SILENCE THAT DESCENDED ON THE HOUSE was almost suffocating, but it didn't last long. Wymack dug his cigarettes out of his pocket and shook a stick into his hand. He had it halfway to his mouth before he paused and looked at Neil. When he held it out in offering, Neil didn't hesitate to take it.

"Look," Wymack said. "I know I've always told you all to take your personal problems up with Betsy or Abby. I've said it's not my place to get into anything outside the court. I hope you've figured out by now I'm just blowing hot air. I'm not real good at being a shoulder, but I do have a working set of ears."

"There's nothing to say," Neil said.

"Maybe not right now," Wymack said, "but that offer doesn't expire. Figure out what you three need to cope with this and let us know. We'll sit down with everyone tomorrow to see how to proceed from here, but you don't have to wait until then to speak up. That said, I have some calls I need to make. Are you good in here for a while?"

When Kevin and Mara said nothing, Neil said, "Yes, Coach."

Wymack went outside to make his calls in the cold. Neil headed back to the kitchen, and after a moment, Kevin and Mara joined him once more.

"Riko is going to tear us apart," Kevin said.

"Maybe," Neil said.

Nicky showed up as Neil was taking the last strips off the pan. He looked in at them but left without a word. Mara listened to him move up and down the hall and guessed Nicky was looking for Andrew. She knew she was right when Nicky went upstairs. Nicky came back down again almost immediately with Abby not far behind him. He lingered in the doorway, phone still clenched in one fist like he'd forgotten he was carrying it, and looked from Mara to Kevin to Neil.

"Where is he?"

"Betsy committed him," Abby said. "She's taking him off his medicine."

"Oh, thank God," Nicky said, voice ragged.

Nicky trudged across the room and sank into one of the empty chairs. He dropped his phone on the table and buried his face in his hands. Abby slid into the seat beside him and wound an arm around his shoulders. Nicky leaned against her but said nothing else. Abby rested her cheek against his hair and looked over Nicky's head at Neil, who pointedly turned away to focus on the eggs.

Wymack showed up a couple minutes later, and the six sat down to the most uncomfortable breakfast Mara had ever suffered through. Wymack's phone beeped at least thirty times in the time it took him to finish his food. Wymack read every message as it came in but didn't respond to any of them. Mara half-expected Abby to say something about the noise, but she let it slide like she didn't notice.

The hours between breakfast and Aaron's arrival felt like years, but finally Waterhouse showed up with Aaron in tow. Wymack didn't protest her following him, Betsy, and Abby to the living room, but she wondered if he should have as the knob twisted.

Was this even her place? Would he even want to see her right now? She couldn't blame him if he didn't. But the door opened before she could consider leaving.

She realized as soon as she saw Aaron that she never needed to worry.

As soon as he saw her, he broke away from his lawyer's side and started for her. Mara opened her arms without hesitation, pulling him into her as he wrapped his own around her tightly, as if afraid she might vanish. He didn't speak, and neither did she—she just held him for a silent moment that she wished could last forever, if only so he wouldn't have to face what was coming.