Worst Impressions

Bonus Chapter - Forming the Plan

It was alarming to see a plan form so quickly between the girls. I had very little to contribute to the discussion. Instead, I took to my task as was directed and thought upon the insanity of it all.

Throughout the strategizing, Charlie stole glances at Jenny. The admiration was still there. Dare I say, the love, and I felt more than ever how wrong I'd been to come between them. Their feelings weren't the same as mine and Beth's. It was quiet care, but no less real or valid than what was in my heart. In fact, I'd have gone as far as to say that it was a preferable way of feeling for another person when I considered the lengths that I would go to for Beth to be happy. I didn't know that Charlie would encourage Jenny to run across Rome haphazardly just to put her mind at ease.

'Will you've been here before, right?' Beth had asked me.

'Yeah. We have a house out here,' I replied. There was no reason to lie about anything. I'd committed to helping her the moment she'd taken that phone call. Sure, I'd rather we had the police involved for our safety, but I was in too deep to stop her now. All I could do was keep her safe during whatever followed.

'Of course you do,' she teased, not appreciating the dangers ahead. 'Look, I don't think Lisa and Gideon have gone as far as everyone thinks. Chrissy, where's the note?'

That my sister was eager to get in on the plan was a surprise. Mandy had always been level-headed and I'd admired that about her. Anything to do with Gideon made her crazy and, in a way, I supposed that this was her way of making up for her part in it. I understood that level of guilt. I, too, felt that if I'd been more open then all of this might have been avoided. Gideon would have been removed from the school, possibly forbidden from working for any school ever again, no one would have been in danger. Being reckless wasn't going to change the fact that he had taken Lisa along for the ride. Getting herself hurt wouldn't undo any of the damage our family had caused.

Yet, it felt like it was karma.

That we deserved to be put at risk because that was what we'd done to everyone else.

No, Mandy didn't deserve that. She'd been as much a victim as every other woman Gideon had preyed upon. I just didn't know how to stand up and tell her that when surrounded by people who seemed convinced that this was the best idea.

Beth handed me a red pen and asked, 'Gideon's a gambler, right?'

'Among other things.'

'Bars and casinos.'

'What makes you think I'd know where to find that kind of thing?' I asked.

'You're related to Freddie, aren't you? Don't act like you've never had a night out in this city. I wouldn't be surprised if your uncle owns some real estate here, too.'

'Fine...'

If she had noticed my reluctance, she didn't say anything. I bent over the map and circled any areas I knew to be popular with people like Gideon. He'd go for dark, noisy places. Anywhere that made it difficult to identify people by sight or sound. He was a habitual creature and liked to operate in seedy areas, where women were wealthy, drunk, and vulnerable. It was unlikely that he'd go for somewhere low-end. Clubs with poorer clientele were fine for one-night-stands, but he wasn't about to impress Lisa with those, and he certainly wouldn't catch the eye of someone whose bank account he might be able to raid.

While I worked, the girls speculated as to what might have already happened in Lisa's absence, immediately considering the worst-case scenarios.

Eventually, Jenny was the voice of reason and asked, 'Are you sure we should go on our own? You're the one who said we should bring in our parents. Maybe we should tell them the plan?'