A Beaten Breakfast

Monica Bishop exited, leaving Ashley and Peter to grapple with the bombshell she’d dropped. Well, mostly Ashley, who had to explain to Peter the significance of the DNA test and why it was needed to determine Zack’s paternity. Slowly, the other teens in the cabin began to filter back into the living room, quiet and somber, with the exception of Kurt and Victoria. The mood in the cabin had become heavy, fraught with impotency and an unknowing, like the struggle of what to say at a wake. They mourned the **** of Victoria’s reputation, and the loss of her voice, the distressing reports from that morning still weighing heavily on their minds, more so even than anything Joan or Monica could have said.

Like many people in the face of the great uncertainty of the future, they comforted themselves with some semblance of normality, hoping that by pretending it was true that they would make it so. Chloe offered to make coffee, reminding Ashley that she’d made a pot earlier, though it sat burnt and bitter upon the hot plate now. A fresh batch was concocted, the very scent of the aroma filling the air making everyone feel more energetic already. Ashley proposed to make her mother’s famous omelettes, choosing to forgo her father’s awful egg sandwiches. That would really make it feel like funeral.

Everyone busied themselves in some way, just doing something and feeling useful helping to lighten their spirits and lift the dark cloud that seemed to hang over the cabin. Some set the table, others gathered ingredients for Ashley, mostly working in silence, only speaking to inquire how many of this was need, or how much of that, along with mannerly ‘please’s and ‘thank you’s. It was the clatter of cutlery, feet thudding upon the flooring as they moved back and forth, that filled the air that made them feel most at ease though anyway. The simple sound of life going on, reminding them that the world hadn’t ended.

When the eggs were folded and the coffee brewed, the food was plated up, Ashley dealing out the dishes while Chloe handed out cups. Madison informed Kurt and Victoria. Everyone was a little surprised when Victoria choose to join them, sitting at the table with them, though she didn’t really eat. She stared at her eggs and poked them with a fork, uncaring about the furtive glances all of her friends cast in her direction. Her presence brought the mood back down a bit, but no one was going to deny her a place at the table if she wanted to be there. Being with friends right now was better than being alone.

To salvage the atmosphere of the cabin that had only just begun to be restored, Chloe looked across the table and asked, “So, Ashley what did the police say?”

“It was just one detective, but she was a real pain in my ass,” Ashley noted, hastily swallowing the bite of omelette in her mouth to reply. “She was really pressing me to tell her what happened on the recording of Hannah.”

“I assume you had to tell them,” Gavin continued the conversation. “I mean, leaving out the part where we broke into an apartment and deleted a video of Robert and Heather.”

“Not just that, I left out everything because I refused to talk to them,” she said with a slight, self-satisfied smirk. “I fobbed them off by reminding them who my father was and invoking my right to have a lawyer present. It won’t keep them away forever, I know that, but it’ll keep them off my heels until I’m ready to deal with it.”

“Does this mean Lisa is still in jail?” Kurt asked from the other end of the table.

“Oh, she did mention that actually, though only because Monica asked about Zack,” Ashley revealed to the group. “Lisa was released last night, and Zack must’ve taken her home.”

“Lisa was released?” Madison repeated, after munching thoughtfully on her omelette for a full minute. “It’s strange that we didn’t hear anything about it this morning.”

“Would you want to publicize that you’ve been chasing after the wrong guy all this time?” Peter noted, brandishing his fork. “Or that you wouldn’t have corrected the error had the evidence not fallen onto your lap, from someone completely unrelated to the investigation?”

“Well, when you put it like that, it makes more sense,” Madison conceded, as she took another anxious look towards Victoria. “And I suppose there were bigger news reports that dominated the news channels.”

The conversation died out then, everyone trying not to look at Victoria again, as they were once more reminded of the terrible invasion of privacy that had befallen her. Even though some of the teens, such as Ashley still held Victoria responsible for the consequences for even getting into bed with Shawn, literally and figuratively, and going along with the chaos he created, even she realized that this was a punishment too far. It not only affected her, and her future, but her parents and their livelihood as well. And worse it seemed like nothing could be done. They had no idea where Shawn was or how he would strike again next. All she could hope was that the police would be able to find him before that.

In an attempt to start up more discussion, Chloe asked, “What are everyone’s plans today?”

Gavin was the only one to speak up, the only one with any concrete plans. “I was gonna go into town and talk with Grace, see what she knows about this ‘k3Y$Tr0kE’. I’m positive she was the one that Hannah talked to online that directed her towards the hacker. If someone could give me a ride into town though, that’d be great.”

“I can take you,” Peter offered, setting down his knife and fork as he finished his breakfast and lifting his mug of coffee. “I was heading into town anyway.”

“Oh, yeah, I called you back into town so suddenly, you probably didn’t have any time to tell anyone you were coming back,” Ashley noted, grateful that Peter really had dropped his Spring Break plans to come back to Azure Rocks for her. “I bet your parents will be really surprised to see you.”

“Oh, yeah my parents,” Peter cleared his throat and, with a slight chuckle, added, “Well, truthfully I was planning on coming back for a few days at the end of the week anyway, you just gave me a reason to come back a little earlier.” He turned to Gavin who was just finishing up his breakfast now too. “Say, Gavin, are you sure it’s okay for you to go alone?”

Peter glanced at Ashley out the side of his eye, aware that she was still watching him. She found his response a little peculiar. Not what he said, just how he said it, and then changing the subject entirely. But she couldn’t put her finger on precisely what was off, but something just didn’t feel right. For one, he hadn’t mentioned coming back early at all when she rang him before.

But he had successfully diverted the conversation back to Gavin, as Chloe offered to accompany him into town. “I’m not doing anything else, if you want the back up.”

Gavin shook his head though. “I don’t think that’ll be necessary. It’s only Grace.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Madison asked indignantly. “You don’t think a girl could kick your ass?”

“What, no, of course not, I didn’t mean that. Any one of the women in this room could soundly kick my ass, I’m sure, and Grace is no different. I definitely wouldn’t want to get on her bad side,” Gavin admitted, rubbing his neck. “I just don’t think it’ll come to that. Grace and I go way back thanks to computer club.”

“You mean the computer club where she usurped your president position last year?” Chloe reminded him, raising an eyebrow. “That sure was friendly of her, wasn’t it?”

“I stepped down. She always was better at the politics side of the position. Cultivating hearts and minds just isn’t something I excel at,” Gavin explained sincerely. “There’s no bad blood there, certainly not on my part. Besides, I’m just going to ask a few questions. How dangerous could that be?”

“You’ve never heard that curiosity killed the cat?” Ashley joked. “Well, if you’re sure, but be safe okay.”

Peter stood up as he downed his coffee. Placing the cup on the table, he asked, “Well, I’m ready to go if you are?”

“Sure,” Gavin agreed, already so filled with anticipation of meeting with Grace that he left his coffee half drunk, his heart already beating quite rapidly. “Let’s go.”