Page 63 of Roll With The Punches
Emma’s eyes widened. “I didnotput that in my bag!”
“A-ha!” Pat shrieked. He turned on Jeff and Stuart. “She’s going home with us, and you tell Brandon he drops that stupid court motion, or I’m calling the sheriff’s office and having Emma arrested for theft!”
“What?” pretty much everyone else, including Tracey, said.
Jeff had started filming this insanity with his cell phone after Pat first got the staffer’s attention. He was trying to figure out something to say when someone’s voice roared out over the din, silencing everyone.
Stuart.
When everyone was staring at him, he pointed up, at the overhang above the bleachers. “Emma hasn’t seen Corey in weeks. And she hasn’t left the pool deck since Corey arrived. There’s an easy solution—we’ll pull the security camera footage.”
They all looked up. Jeff counted at least six cameras at first glance, and knew that since there were kids using this facility that they probably had many more they couldn’t see around the pool deck.
Pat’s face turned red. “Bullshit. I’mnotwaiting around for that! She obviously stole his phone, and—”
“Pat, shut the hell up,” Tracey said, shoving Corey’s phone at him. “No one’s calling the damn sheriff, and I know damn well Emma didnotsteal his phone.” She returned Emma’s bag to her and turned on the staffer. “How do we pull the video footage? Let’s end this nonsense right now. I know my daughter is innocent.”
Still looking confused and stunned, the staffer seemed to be taking them all in. “This way. We’ll talk to the facility manager.”
Pat blustered and protested the entire time, but it only took ten minutes for the facility manager to run the tape back on the camera that best caught the angle where Emma’s bag had been sitting and find clear footage. Corey had walked around the deck during an event when everyone had been focused on the swimmers, a relay, and did something to Emma’s bag. He’d also had his phone in his hand before bending over the bag…
And then he didn’t when he stood and walked away.
Pat turned on Corey. “You lied to me!”
“But Dad, youtoldme to—”
“Shutup! Let’s go! Tracey, come on.”
She crossed her arms over her chest. “No, you go.Now. BeforeIcall the sheriff’s office on you for trying to smear my daughter’s reputation and threatening to file a false report.”
Pat stormed out, dragging Corey by the arm. During this whole time, Grace had stood next to Emma, her arm around Emma’s shoulders. Poor Emma hadn’t even been able to change out of her swimsuit yet, not wanting to leave so she could see her exoneration. Grace had kept herself positioned between Emma and everyone else, and Jeff knew there probably wasn’t a more loyal friend in the world than that girl.
Meanwhile, Emma had stood, arms tightly crossed over her chest and her mouth set in a hard, thin line.
Tracey turned to her. “Honey, I’m—”
Grace held a hand out to her, palm forward, a death glare on her face.
When Jeff tried to intercede, Emma turned and stormed out, followed by Grace like a pale, glowing, glowering, growling shadow.
Tracey stared down at the floor for a moment. Jeff was still filming and wondered how much memory his phone had left.
“I’m sorry,” she softly said. “I…” Apparently sensing she didn’t have any sympathy there, she turned and left.
The facility manager stared after her. “Well, that wasn’t the weirdest reason we needed the CCTV system, but I’m glad it ended well for Emma.”
Jeff slowly shook his head. “Thanks, but it’s not exactly ended well at all.”
* * * *
Brandon had all but booked a red-eye home to Florida when Stuart called him back.
“What is going on?” Brandon screamed at him.
“Master, it’s okay. It’s handled. We reviewed the CCTV tape. It shows Corey put his phone in her bag. Emma’s clear. Tracey and Pat and Corey are gone. Emma’s changing now.”
Brandon closed his eyes and fell back against the mattress. “Jesus fucking Christ, what thehelldid Tracey think she was going to do?”
