“I don’t either. But I bet we find it.” She pushes her shovel into the dirt.
“Find what?”
“For God’s sake, Callie, if you’re not going to be supportive, just go. But I’m not leaving here until I find something. Anything.”
“All right. I’m with you, sis.”
We both have work in the morning, but what the heck?
I’ve moved several shovels full of dirt when I say, “Maybe we shouldn’t be looking underground. If Pat were here recently, we should probably be looking on top of the ground. Maybe he dropped something.
“Yeah, I thought of that. But we were only looking for the box when we were digging here earlier, so if there is anything underground, we wouldn’t have noticed it. Not unless it was really obvious.”
“I doubt he left any red herrings for us to find,” I say. “He’s not that bright.”
“Normally, I would agree with you. But I think we need to stop thinking that he’s not our intellectual equal. He has managed to get the best of us.”
“Has he?”
“Callie, for God’s sake, you’re not the one who’s going to be hurt by this. He won’t dare expose your photos. But I was over eighteen.”
“Think about it though, Ror. The worst thing that can happen is the town sees you naked. You were gorgeous then and you’re gorgeous now, with a body to die for. What’s the harm?”
I hate the words as soon as I utter them.
“Believe me, I’ve thought about that,” she replies. “I’m not ashamed of my body. I wasn’t then and I’m not now.”
“You shouldn’t be.”
“But still, I don’t want it plastered across social media.”
“I understand that. Really, I do. I’m sorry if what I said sounded harsh. I wasn’t thinking. I wouldn’t want my body exposed for the town either. Of course, mine isn’t as good as yours.”
Rory rolls her eyes at me. “You’re a beautiful woman, Callie. You’re the only one who doesn’t know it.”
I don’t reply. She’s right. It’s time to stop being so self-deprecating. “I’m in this for you and with you Rory,” I say. “Whatever you want to do. Because you’re the one who will ultimately be more harmed by this if those photos get out.”
“I suppose we don’t even know if he has the photos,” she says. “Except we do know.”
“Yeah.” I sigh. “I mean, we kept our evidence even though we agreed to destroy it.”
“And that son of a bitch got his hands on it.”
“Tell you what,” I say. “Why don’t you have a look around? Walk around the perimeter of the area, but stay in the light so I know you’re okay. I’ll do the digging. We can kill two birds with one stone here.”
“Good plan.” Rory leans her shovel against the tree, takes her flashlight, and shines it around the area.
I continue digging. It’s kind of a form of self-flagellation. I shouldn’t have said what I did to Rory about the photos. I’ve always wanted to look like my sister. The perfect face, the perfect body—thick dark hair and dark eyes that could mesmerize a person. But I vow, here and now, to stop holding her up as some vision I want to attain.
I’m Callie. I will never be Rory, no matter what I look like. And that’s okay. In my way, I’m as beautiful as she is. And Donny doesn’t seem to mind that my boobs are smaller.
I can’t help letting out a soft chuckle.
Rory turns. “What’s so funny?”
“Nothing. I’m just… I’m sorry, Rory. I’m really, really sorry.”
“For what? The photo comment?”