Don't Blame Me: Genius

Anonymous Tipper

~Tess Pov~
Tuesday Morning
I'm pacing back and forth in my room. Anonymous tipper? Seriously! That's the stupidest shit I've ever heard. I've thought about this the whole night. How could there be anonymous information if there was no one else there? I pause when I hear someone come through the front door. "Oh hi, come in come in," my mom greets them. I hear the teeter of a deeply high voice, almost faking politeness. "Goodmorning, Mrs. Larou". Peyton. "Goodmorning, Tina". Sheriff. I growl at the sound of their voices. I didn't even have time to pick a trauma response, I went straight into fight mode.

I stomp downstairs interrupting the grownups' conversation. "So you were just going to leave me in the dark, right?" I accused all of them, my mom mostly.

She comes down from a soft chuckle. "Oh hey little me, what do you mean?," mom furrows her brows.

"Wha-what do I mean? Your friend here is getting anonymous information about the investigation, mom." I shouted. "Kinda unreal, since there wasn't anyone out th-" I stopped myself. I felt Peyton stare at me. I was about to tell on myself, and he knew that.

"Since what, Tess?," my mom asked. "I just feel like I should be in the know," I crossed my arms to make a point. My mom sighed, "Tess honey, we're trying but giving the deposition, it's kind of hard," she said with ease. "Mom, it doesn't feel like this is going anywhere, and any moment someone could get blamed for something crucial," I turned away to head back up the stairs. I get to the first step to look over my shoulder at the three adults watching me, "and what's up with you two?" I questioned.

"Us two? No. I'm just checking in.," sheriff sounded like a scared teenager hiding his girlfriend from his parents. I scoffed at the pleading desperation in his voice.

After slamming my door, I threw myself on my bed. I took a deep breath and let it out. It was silent for a minute. "Tess?,". It was Peyton knocking on my bedroom door. I jolted up quickly, I didn't know what was about to happen. I stayed silent. "Tess, can I come in?," he begged.

I walked over to open my room door. I stood facing Peyton, him locking me down with his cringy grin. "Ugh. What do you want," the ick ran all over me. "Can I come in?," he asks again.
"No. What do you want?,"

Peyton looks behind him like he is getting ready to tell me a secret. He crosses his arms,  leans back into the threshold, and bends his knee to rest his foot onto the wall. He grazes his eyes over to me.  "Listen. You need to stay calm," I furrowed my eyebrows at the comment. "Yes calm. Because everytime you blow up that makes detective red think you're hiding something and all the more reason she'll blame you."

"Me? I didn't-" Peyton interrupted me.
"Tess, you don't have to lie to me. The look on your face when you walked into the station the first time, you thought you were a goner," he chuckled, trying to make light of the conversation.

"Are they trying to blame Hope?" I asked curiously. He stood up straight from the wall.

"I didn't say all that," he stuttered, shaking his hands.

"You didn't say it but you know, so are they?," I grabbed his arm to keep him from walking away from me. "Please tell me,"

He pulled away from me, "I don't know Tess," he said, making his way back downstairs.

I thought about texting Hope but I was sure she didn't want to speak to me.

Tuesday Afternoon
I woke up to the sound of yelling underneath me. The voices were distorted as I was still coming out of the short nap I took. I rubbed my eyes trying to gain assurance in my surroundings, I must've slept hard. When my hearing became clearer not only did I realize that my mother was screaming at the detective but that taking naps is a good way to miss out on the tea.

I rushed out of my room stopping at the top of the stairs to listen in on the argument held.

"I don't know what you think you're about to do here," my mother shouts. "You can get however many tips but you won't touch my daughter," she continued. I didn't hear a word come from the detective's mouth yet. "You can only apply real evidence to the investigation. And the only thing you have points to Hope, your own daughter,"

I trickled down the stairs more to see the action. My mom was face to face with the detective, sheriff partly standing in between them. "And deep down you know that no matter how much you want to get into Hope's good graces, if you let Tess go down she will never forgive you. You should've been a parent first."

I seen Detective James step closer to my mom. The need to protect her rushed over me and I flew down the rest of the stairs. I abruptly stopped at the side of my mom. "You know what. I want you to put my name on every piece of evidence you have. But you won't," I screeched through my teeth. "Because you know that, although you have the power to make this go away, you'll still be nothing but a detective to her anyway." my eyes shifted between hers.

The silence was deafening. My heart was beating out of my chest.

Detective took a deep breath, pursing her lips into a straight line. "Good looks, Tess. Good looks." She maneuvered past us and out the front door.

Why do I feel like I just fucked up.
——
Tuesday night
I was feeling frustrated, and I couldn't go to sleep so I called Hope. I thought she wouldn't answer. It rang three times before she finally picked up.

"Hello?," she answered sleepily.

My voice shook, "Hey, um don't mean to wake you but-,"

"-you can't sleep. I know. I'm tossing too," she yawned. Good to know we were still on the same wavelength.

We sat in silence for a while. We didn't need to talk, only needed each other's presence.

"Listen. I didn't mean what I said yesterday," I spoke softly.

She blew out a breath, "yes you did, and that's okay," .

I sighed heavily, " no I didn't, you know I didn't,".

"Honestly Tess, I don't know what you meant, but so much for sticking together," Hope sounds so tired.

"Come on, I just meant it would be easier for them to focus on one of us," I tried to explain.

"And you thought it'd be me?," she scoffed. "You have done nothing but look out for yourself this entire time."

"No. Hope listen, your mom-," she hung up the phone before I could say anything.

Definitely fucked up.

I grabbed my jacket and ran out of my house quietly. I stepped out of my front door but was soon halted by a strange sight.

It's almost eleven, I saw Peyton snoozing in his car per usual. But there, behind the car, the sheriff was talking to him.

Him.

Christian White.