Page 68 of The Banned Books Club

Apparently, Sharon wasn’t the only one who’d heard about the debacle at the restaurant. But Cormac thought it took some gall for his father to show up angry. According to Gia, Evan had even lied about what’d happened at the drive-through.He’dconfrontedher, gone so far as to block her escape while he harangued her. Last night in the hot tub, she’d explained the whole thing in greater detail. The guy who’d stepped in sounded like Grizzly Bowman. He owned the shooting range about five miles out of town, and his pit bull was a patient of Cormac’s. If it was Grizzly, Cormac would be able to corroborate her story—unlike what’d happened before. “Come on in,” he said.

His father had gone to the trouble of combing his hair and shaving. That was nice to see. The scruffy look wasn’t flattering on him; it made him appear too unkempt.

“Is it true that you went to the restaurant last night and told everyone there that I’ve been lying about Gia all these years?” he asked as soon as he’d slammed the door behind him.

“Haven’t you?” Cormac said.

His father’s face turned beet red. “You really did. Louisa and Edith were right. I can’t believe this! I could take it from almost anyone else, but not from you.”

“You lied to me about what happened at Delia’s,” he pointed out.

Evan spread his hands. “What’d I say?”

“You said she started screaming at you and made a big scene.”

“That’s true!”

“No, it’s not!Youwere the one who sawher. You kept driving past, glaring at her and trying to intimidate her. Then you turned in, blocked her car and said some very nasty things.”

“That’s not true—”

“Itistrue!” Cormac interrupted. “Grizzly was there! He saw the whole thing. He told you to leave her alone, didn’t he?” It was a bluff to pretend he’d already spoken to Grizzly. But he was dying tofinallyhold his father to the truth.

Evan’s eyes went flat, devoid of feeling. “How’d you know Grizzly was there?”

“She told me.”

“When did you talk to her?”

“I’ve talked to her several times. She’s staying in the house right behind this one, for God’s sake.”

“She doesn’t know Grizzly. He moved here after she left.”

“Is that what you were counting on?” Cormac demanded.

“She deserves whatever I say to her and then some,” he replied, suddenly changing his story.

Cormac froze. “So youwerelying...”

He threw up his hands. “Are you even listening to me?”

“I’m listening. I just don’t like what I’m hearing.”

“She destroyed my life!” his father shouted. “And for what? What I did—it was hardlyanything!”

Cormac gaped at him. Had he just admitted to molesting her seventeen years ago? “Making a sexual advance on one of your students is a very serious offense, Dad.”

“I barely touched her!”

“But youdidtouch her. First, you set her up. You gave her a bad grade, so she’d come to you to get it changed. Then you tried to use the power you held over her to coerce her into having sex with you. Isn’t that true?”

His father straightened. “No.”

“You just said you ‘barely’ touched her. ‘Barely’ is still touching her.”

“I didn’t do anything wrong,” he insisted.

He was only taking it back because Cormac wasn’t accepting his justification, and Cormac could tell. “You’ve been lying all along,” he said, feeling stunned. “You know it, and I know it!”

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