District for graduating from Oregon (Lily finishing college had never been a Sure Thing) because Lily needed plants watered during her frequent Grams-funded holidays. Diana hadn’t thought of staying here earlier, simply because she didn’t want to get Lily involved. But it had all gotten much, much more dangerous, and she needed a shelter beyond the backseat of her mother’s car—an old, classic BMW that lacked GPS, which she was driving as it couldn’t be tracked—or a cheap motel room south of the city, which had been her previous night’s bed.
She let herself in. Her heart jumped into her throat at the warning buzz of an alarm, and for a moment her mind went blank as to the correct code. She scurried toward the soft glow of the pad, studied the keyboard, remembered. She keyed in L-I-L-Y. The alarm went silent, the red light switching to green.
Diana nearly doubled over in relief. The air tasted a bit warm and stale. She listened to the silence; it was as welcoming as a blanket on a cold night.
If they knew she and Lily were friends…but they’d have no way to know that she was here. Maybe they could identify her friends, but even if they drove by—her mother’s car was parked four blocks away. Could they guess she was here?
But she had no place else to go.
She went into the kitchen, dropped her purse on the floor. She felt exhausted. She didn’t turn on a light. In the refrigerator she found orange juice, and she drank a glass, happy to feel the cool sting against her throat. Lily had a little flat-screen TV on the counter. Diana remembered the two of them trying to cook along with a Food Network show, a complete disaster; they’d laughed so hard, sipping wine—that seemed a thousand years ago. She turned on the television, finding the all-local news channel. She wanted to know what the police were saying. The news feed was talking about the weather. She huddled against the cabinets on the floor and drank her juice and closed her eyes.
She’d been running for one day and it felt like forever. It was not like how it was in those innocent-person-on-the-run movies. No. Not at all. It was frightening and mind-numbing and she constantly felt like she was going to vomit.
And her mother was gone and not returning her calls. Holistic retreat, right.
Her mom’s whole life had been a lie. A lie of proportions so gigantic it made her bones hurt to think about it. She didn’t even know her mother and now maybe she shouldn’t even try. Her mother was a stranger. A liar.
I did it all for you, baby , she’d said on the video. Please understand. It made everything so much…easier. I wanted you to have a better life. And he offered this to me. If I did things for him. To help him, and it helped us.
And now she’d vanished on purpose, and these people were trying to find Diana. Either her own mother had told them that she’d called about what she’d found, or…they had bugged her phone. Or bugged her mother’s phone. Diana left increasingly panicked voice mails for her mother, and that’s when the two men began to show up at the Keene Global office, at her condo, at the places where she hung out. And finally showing up at The Select. They knew about her mother’s life. Maybe they’d killed Mom for telling about them in the video.
You will think I did bad things. But I did them for good reasons. Every advantage you have had is because I made this choice. You need not fear him, Diana. The man in charge—his name is John Belias—he has made our wonderful lives possible. He can help you, too. I want you to have as easy a road as I did. Don’t judge me, and remember, I did it all for you, all for you.
All for you? Why would her mother do this to her? Sure, parents sacrificed for their kids. But didn’t they work so they had a nice life as well? She was grateful to her mother, but…not for this. Not for living a lie.
She opened her eyes as a car commercial ended and the newscaster said, “Violence
She let herself in. Her heart jumped into her throat at the warning buzz of an alarm, and for a moment her mind went blank as to the correct code. She scurried toward the soft glow of the pad, studied the keyboard, remembered. She keyed in L-I-L-Y. The alarm went silent, the red light switching to green.
Diana nearly doubled over in relief. The air tasted a bit warm and stale. She listened to the silence; it was as welcoming as a blanket on a cold night.
If they knew she and Lily were friends…but they’d have no way to know that she was here. Maybe they could identify her friends, but even if they drove by—her mother’s car was parked four blocks away. Could they guess she was here?
But she had no place else to go.
She went into the kitchen, dropped her purse on the floor. She felt exhausted. She didn’t turn on a light. In the refrigerator she found orange juice, and she drank a glass, happy to feel the cool sting against her throat. Lily had a little flat-screen TV on the counter. Diana remembered the two of them trying to cook along with a Food Network show, a complete disaster; they’d laughed so hard, sipping wine—that seemed a thousand years ago. She turned on the television, finding the all-local news channel. She wanted to know what the police were saying. The news feed was talking about the weather. She huddled against the cabinets on the floor and drank her juice and closed her eyes.
She’d been running for one day and it felt like forever. It was not like how it was in those innocent-person-on-the-run movies. No. Not at all. It was frightening and mind-numbing and she constantly felt like she was going to vomit.
And her mother was gone and not returning her calls. Holistic retreat, right.
Her mom’s whole life had been a lie. A lie of proportions so gigantic it made her bones hurt to think about it. She didn’t even know her mother and now maybe she shouldn’t even try. Her mother was a stranger. A liar.
I did it all for you, baby , she’d said on the video. Please understand. It made everything so much…easier. I wanted you to have a better life. And he offered this to me. If I did things for him. To help him, and it helped us.
And now she’d vanished on purpose, and these people were trying to find Diana. Either her own mother had told them that she’d called about what she’d found, or…they had bugged her phone. Or bugged her mother’s phone. Diana left increasingly panicked voice mails for her mother, and that’s when the two men began to show up at the Keene Global office, at her condo, at the places where she hung out. And finally showing up at The Select. They knew about her mother’s life. Maybe they’d killed Mom for telling about them in the video.
You will think I did bad things. But I did them for good reasons. Every advantage you have had is because I made this choice. You need not fear him, Diana. The man in charge—his name is John Belias—he has made our wonderful lives possible. He can help you, too. I want you to have as easy a road as I did. Don’t judge me, and remember, I did it all for you, all for you.
All for you? Why would her mother do this to her? Sure, parents sacrificed for their kids. But didn’t they work so they had a nice life as well? She was grateful to her mother, but…not for this. Not for living a lie.
She opened her eyes as a car commercial ended and the newscaster said, “Violence
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