Recovery by Abigail Stone

don’t.”
    Layla was exasperated, a tired look etched across her youthful features. No one in the bistro knew who she was – at least not as far as Layla could tell – and that was exactly the way she wanted it. Rolling her eyes, Layla shoveled a forkful of spinach into her mouth, chewing but not really tasting it. She listened absently as her mother spoke, making small talk as the waitress approached with their bill. Emily handed over her credit card and Layla’s mind wandered.
    It had been a few weeks since the ordeal at the cabin. Since Leo and Chase. Since the accusation. Since her revenge. Layla mulled over the sequence of events in her head, idly taking in her surroundings. After Leo had accused her of sleeping with Chase, his best friend and second in command, Layla had left him sitting at his kitchen table without an answer.
    It wasn’t that it wasn’t true. It was, and Layla didn’t feel bad about it either. She looked at the incident with Chase as pay back. Retribution for the fact that Leo, her father , had lied to her. His accusation lingered in the air as he watched Layla gather her things, sliding on her platform shoes and making her way towards the door.
    “Where are you going?” he asked her, standing up. “I asked you a question.”
    Layla laughed bitterly, opening the door and descending down the cabins rain soaked front steps. Her ankle still hurt and there was still a limp in her walk, but it was bearable. She made her way down the hill in front of the cabin, towards the clearing where she had parked, keys in hand. Leo followed her, urging her to stay. To answer him. But Layla wasn’t listening.
    Finally, Leo stepped forward, grabbing Layla roughly by the wrist a few feet away from her car. “Look,” he began, his voice deep and unsure. “I just…something didn’t seem right.”
    Yeah, Layla thought to herself. A lot of things aren’t .
    She stared up at Leo, a piercing look in her eyes.
    “We fucked,” she said bluntly, watching with slight satisfaction as a look of disgust, sadness, and then rage flashed across Leo’s face. He pushed away from Layla, stumbling backwards. This time, he was the one to slip in the mud. But Layla wasn’t about to help him up.
    Instead, she climbed in her car, starting up the engine. Leo stumbled to his feet, slamming his fist against her window.
    “You what ?” he bellowed.
    Feeling a sudden burst of confidence at the confrontation, Layla rolled down her window.
    “We fucked. Screwed. ‘Made love’. Call it what you fucking want.”
     Layla raised her voice, watching as the color drained from Leo’s face. But she wasn’t done twisting the knife yet.
    “What’s it to you daddy? ”
    Leo stumbled away from the Range Rover like a hit dog.
    “Yeah, that’s right.”
    Layla laughed bitterly, putting the car into reverse.
     “I know everything,” she yelled, pressing her foot down on the brake. “You lied to me. You fucked me over. So I fucked your right-hand man.”
    “Doesn’t feel too good, does it?”
    “Chase told you?” Leo asked, his voice deep and perplexed. But it was more of a realization than a question.
    Layla didn’t respond. The look on Leo’s face told her that he already knew the answer. He crumbled before Layla, clearly wounded by her words. It was clear that he never thought Chase would betray him. He had trusted him with the knowledge, fully believing that he would never tell a soul – especially not Layla. The next words to stumble from her mouth were sharp and to the point.
    “I never want to see you again. Any of you.”
    Layla shifted into drive, pressing down lightly on the accelerator. She sped forward down the hill before Leo could stop her, onto the gravel road that stretched towards the freeway. Reaching up, Layla adjusted her rearview mirror, looking into it. She could make out Leo stumbling inside his cabin, a dejected mess.
    And that was the last she saw of him.
    “Layla? Are you listening?”
    Layla