You tell Melissa she should leave

At some point in the early morning, your mind stopped racing enough to let you sleep. You wake up to the sound of dishes clanging in the kitchen and the smell of bacon. Rolling off the couch you head into the kitchen to find Melissa placing eggs, bacon, and toast on a plate. She puts the plate on a tray along with water and juice. There are also pain relievers on the tray.

You mutter “Good morning.”

She doesn’t smile. “Will you bring this up to your daughter? I imagine she’s hurting after last night.”

You nod your head and carry the tray up to Ashley’s door. Your gentle knock is greeted by a groaning “come in.”

She’s still in bed wearing the clothes from the night before. Her eyes are bloodshot and her hair a bird’s nest of tangles. Mascara is smudged all around her eyes. “Your mother made this for you.”

“She’s mad, isn’t she? Are you mad, too?” Ashley says sitting up on the bed.

You’re actually sympathetic, but don’t show it. “Very much, but I’m trying to stay on your side until you figure things out for yourself.”

She looks at her lap, ashamed. “Thank you, Daddy, and I’m sorry. I’m just going through some personal stuff now. I...” she pauses and looks up at you with a sad pleading in her eyes “...never mind.” You wonder if she was about to come clean about the ****. That can’t happen. If she decides what she’s going through is worse than Cindy’s parents seeing the beach photos she might admit being blackmailed. There’s no way to know if your blackmailer will take it out on you.

You decide the best course of action is to have Melissa removed from the situation, so Ashley isn’t tempted to admit anything to her. It would also be worth it to exert more leverage on your daughter to keep her quiet.

You place the tray next to her and lean down and kiss her forehead. “When you’re ready to talk I’ll be here for you.”

"Daddy," she says as you're about to walk out the door, "Can I stay home from school sick today?"

"Of course, sweetheart."

Instead of heading back to the kitchen to have the dreaded talk with Melissa you cross the hall to your office. Quietly closing the door and sitting at the computer you open your anonymous email account. You draft a lie to Ashley in an effort to keep her silent:

“Don’t think your mother and father finding out about you going to the strip club means you’re out of the woods. They still don’t know what a slut you were on the stage. Your entire performance is on video which I’ll send unless you continue to do what I say. I’m sure your parents would love to find out their little girl spread herself for a stranger and ate out a dancer while everyone in the venue watched. I’ll also make sure a link to the video is made available to everyone in your school. You’ve been warned and I’ll be in touch with your next task soon.”

Whispering “I’m sorry, Ashley” you click send. Closing out the account and shutting down the computer you head downstairs where Melissa is sitting at the kitchen table sipping coffee. You sit at the other end of the table.

She says, “So. Did you make a decision?”

Taking a deep breath you respond, “Yes. I know I’ve let you down with how I’ve approached this situation. And thinking it over I’ve decided I want to prove myself to you. I think, considering how volatile your relationship with Ashley is at the moment, maybe you should go stay with your mother for a month.”

She takes another sip of coffee. “You can’t be serious. I only gave you one rational option and this isn’t it.”

“No, it is. I think Ashley seeing leave might scare some sense into her. This will give me the chance to help Ashley pull herself together. Obviously, you’re having a hard time seeing how she’s dressing, so I can spend the next 30 days getting her back to dressing like a typical 18-year-old girl. I can also have some conversations about the stripping and maybe find out why she chose to do it.”

Melissa stands up and walks her now empty cup of coffee to the sink. She stands with her back to you. “Why does it feel like I’m the one being punished here? Fine, John. If this is what it’ll take for you to act like a responsible father.”

By the time you return home from work, Melissa has packed and left. Ashley is sitting on the couch when you walk in the door wrapped in a blanket. She looks at you with bags under her bloodshot eyes. She's been crying. "Mom told me she was leaving for my own good."

You rub the back of your neck. "We just want to give you some time to work through whatever you're going through. Speaking of, this morning it sounded like you maybe wanted to talk about things? I'm on your side, Ash. You can tell me anything."

Ashley twirls her hair around her finger and looks down at the blanket. "No, it's nothing I can't handle."

Apparently, your anonymous threat worked. "Well, okay, I'm here for you though. Want some dinner?"

You make some dinner and the two of you eat while sitting on the couch. When you finish you watch some television and she curls up against you. You stroke her hair reassuring her that everything will be okay. It makes you feel happy to have her in your arms like this, although you feel guilty that it took everything you've been putting her to make her want to be close to you again.

After a couple of hours she tells you she's going to turn in for the night, so she can get caught up on the school she missed. Shortly after her door shuts your cell phone goes off with a message from your blackmailer:

"Well done getting Melissa out of the picture. Now it's just the two of you. Let's move this to the next phase, shall we?"

Evidence Remaining

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