Eden High: Series 1 (Eden High 1-6)

Everyone had come together, there wasn’t a second that went by that someone else wasn’t showing up to lend their support.

The parents of our friends came and went; even some of the kids who had been on the peripheral of our little group came by with flowers and balloons when word had spread that she was awake.

We were all excited to have her back, but everyone wanted their pound of flesh for what had been done to her.

The parents were rightfully pushing for answers because in their minds this could’ve been one of theirs that had been attacked.

The mayor had been called, as well as the police chief, but again the dads were dealing with that noise. I had no interest, because I knew down to my core that there wasn’t some madman loose in our midst.

This was the work of a lunatic no doubt about it, but not in the way they thought.

I looked down at my baby and choked back the rage. Her face was untouched, and looked sweet and at peace. Looking at her you’d be hard pressed to find anything wrong with her, and I think that scared me more than anything.

The doctors couldn’t find any reason for her being out of it this long. There was no brain damage and the cut to her head hadn’t been close to anything major.

Their diagnosis was that maybe it was her way of protecting herself from the ordeal, her way of hiding from it and not having to relive it.

I was willing to give her that, but not for much longer. I needed her here with me, laughing and mouthing off at me, making my life hell.

The worse thing of all was wondering what more I could’ve done to protect her. In some part of me I knew that it was ridiculous to blame myself, but that didn’t stop me from trying.

Nothing would ever convince me that I wasn’t partly to blame. Had Mandy done this because I’d threatened her?

I’d learned some things about that girl over the summer, things that I didn’t judge her for per se, but I didn’t want any part of her after that.

It wasn’t like I’d been in danger of spending the rest of my days with Mandy no matter what she thought.

Like I’d told her, she was just something to do while I was here. It’s what all teenagers do, unless like me, you’re lucky enough to find your one and only while you were still this young.

When the anonymous letter had come, I wasn’t sure at first that it wasn’t a hoax. It seemed so calculating, the things that she’d been accused of. Nothing at all like the girl I thought I knew.

There were things about her that I hadn’t liked, things she’d kept hidden until after we’d started dating, but nothing as bad as this.

At first I was just going to ignore it, or try my best to. I never once thought of sharing what I’d learned with her though, which was a good thing.

Instead, I decided to watch for myself. I started to subconsciously distance myself from her even before I’d had the proof.

The letter just made me do something that I’d been avoiding until then. I’d known for a long time that she wasn’t right for me.

First of all my parents hated her. I know some people might brush that off, but for me that was huge.

Had I really been in love with her, I would’ve tried to win them around I’m sure, but I wasn’t that interested.

I even had a few rough moments when I thought I was being unfair to her, but then that letter fell into my hands and I was forced to make a move. One that was long overdue.

After I’d seen her in action with my own two eyes, it got me started wondering who else knew about her little games?

Obviously the letter writer did, and I had yet to learn who that person was, but who else?

I’d called things off right away after following her one night and seeing her wrapped around Carter Stern, Cassandra’s dad.

I knew the family well; her mother had been one of mom’s friends before some tragedy in the family had sent her into hiding. Well not exactly, but she hadn’t been around for a while.

I hadn’t been interested enough to do anything, people have affairs all the time it’s damn near a way of life in these parts, but maybe if I’d said or done something to bring her true nature out in the open back then, none of this would’ve happened.

That letter after all, was filled with more than just the affair between her and that one man but several.

And what else the writer had gone on to share had left me cold. To realize that I’d been that close to evil and hadn’t known it was sickening. The shit had left me shaken.

But then school started and I met this little firecracker. She made everyone else pale in comparison, made me wonder what the hell I’d even seen in anyone else before her. Now I have to wonder, did this happen to her because of the love I bore her?

I took her hand and willed her to wake up and look at me. “Baby, can you hear me? I want you to open your eyes now, you’re starting to worry everyone.” I kept my voice low and even although I really wanted to scream.

Nothing, not a twitch, not a flicker, it was as if she wasn’t even in there.

I rested my head back against the chair back and let my mind wander. If Mandy was involved, as I was sure that she was, then she obviously had help, but who?

I needed to make some calls to get the ball rolling to find some answers, but I wasn’t allowed to use my cellphone here, and I wasn’t about to leave her for a second.

It was good that I didn’t have to butt heads with her parents. After they’d been reassured by the doctors that she was okay, I’d pretty much taken over her room.