The Follower by Kate Doughty (ebook reader with built in dictionary TXT) 📕

tell our fans that I’m sorry for taking actions to protect my daughter from—some creep—”

“Dad!” Amber says, but Rudy can tell that Dad clearly hasn’t received the training that they’ve had.

He tries again, but he’s clearly still stressed, exhausted, and angry: “I’m sorry that the stress of the renovation—made me react—I’m sorry he got scared, but after all the internet stuff, well, he shouldn’t have tried to lift the rug—”

After three or four more takes that get them absolutely nowhere, Amber throws up her hands. “Dad, it’s an apology video. You can’t blame Steve—”

“Well, it’s his fault!” Dad says. He stands up, shoving the chair behind him. “Just—you—I hate having to lie. I’m not sorry, I—I need a break.” And he storms out, leaving the triplets alone.

Amber swallows and turns to Cecily behind the camera. “Was any of that usable?”

She shakes her head. “I don’t think he’s coming back,” Cecily whispers, moving to turn the camera off. “What are we going to—”

Amber stares at the camera. “Keep filming,” she says. Rudy doesn’t know what Amber’s planning, so he steps out of the shot to stand with Cecily. The camera rolls.

“Hi,” Amber begins. “I’m Amber Cole. And here’s what’s really been happening at the Tremont house.”

She spends the next twenty minutes detailing every horrifying incident that had happened leading up to their father’s meltdown. The only thing she leaves out are the tapes and the triplets’ search for clues. Rudy feels his mouth slowly open as Amber speaks. She appears calm, cool, collected. But this is still absolutely an unapproved video. Amber has never done anything like this before.

When she’s done, her eyes are red. She looks at Cecily and Rudy, who are watching in awe.

“Post that one,” Amber says. “It’s about time someone is honest on this channel.” And, just like that, she gets up to follow their father. Rudy and Cecily look at each other. Rudy never in a million years would have thought that Amber could do something like this. He’s impressed. He’s not sure that even he would have had the stones to pull that off.

They post the video and wait in Amber’s room for the fallout to begin.

It doesn’t take long for their mom to spot the video, and her reaction is swift and severe.

Rudy realizes that this is Amber’s first time being eviscerated by his mom. As the veteran rule-breaker, Rudy has to admit that she takes the verbal lashing well. “After everything, you have to do this? I bet Cecily—”

“I had to tell them what happened!”

“You can never tell them what really happens!” Mrs. Cole says, running her hands through her hair. “I thought you would have known that by now! Nothing is real, Amber—come on!”

Amber stiffens. “What if I want it to be real?”

“Well, it’s not your account then, is it?” she says. “It’s ours—and Cecily—”

She cuts herself off, but Rudy knows how his mom would have finished the sentence: Cecily would never have done this. Mrs. Cole continues. “We’re so lucky that the sponsors agreed to take you. You know I didn’t want you on those front-facing posts anyway—”

“Why not, Mom?” Amber yells back, surprising them both. “Why not?”

“I—I thought you wanted to stay in the background . . . I only meant that I didn’t want to make you uncomfortable—”

“It never made me uncomfortable! Why would it? Because I’m not skinny?”

Mrs. Cole hesitates. Rudy cringes. “I was just trying to protect you.”

Amber rolls her eyes. “Me, or the account? Me, or your stupid brand integrity? Me, or your dumb sponsors? Afraid they’ll pull out because of my weight? I don’t want a sponsor that would do that, anyway. I thought you wouldn’t either.”

Rudy watches out of the corner of his eye as Amber’s face tightens. But Mrs. Cole . . . she’s clearly on the verge of tears. Maybe that’s what makes Amber turn and stalk away. Before Rudy follows her, he catches sight of Cecily, bandaged and huddled on the stairs. He doesn’t know how much she’d heard, but, knowing this house, he’s willing to guess everything.

Later that afternoon, Sheriff Yang and Officer Perry return to document the break-in. They scan the crime scene, but the open house had obstructed any evidence that might have been left behind—fingerprints, footprints, or otherwise. Rudy sees his mom deflate; he remembers all too quickly that, last night, she had decided to postpone the investigation to focus on having as good an open house as possible. In hopes of making a sale. And now . . .

Officer Perry seems . . . exhausted. Her voice is brusque, clipped. She’s probably frustrated with the Coles—well, with Mr. Cole in particular—about the display at the open house. Rudy guesses as much when she opens the conversation with the news that Steve’s mother is considering going after Mr. Cole for harassment. Rudy imagines that the Coles hadn’t exactly started off the day in Perry’s good graces, either, what with being woken up at four a.m. when they called to report the break-in, or the fact that his mother had begged Perry to be present at the open house for security and then return again afterward to investigate the break-in.

Rudy is glad that his dad, at least, is being very quiet and respectful as the officers explain that they have no leads on Cecily’s injury. Rudy is trying to behave himself, too, but man, it is difficult not to interrupt with a thousand questions, suggestions, and theories. But the last thing he wants now is another remark from Perry about how he is “quite the investigator.”

Perry continues. “However, we think that there’s a high likelihood that this damage was done by the same person—although we’re unsure how they could have broken in without the alarm system being triggered.”

Rudy imagines that this must be more than the local police usually deal with. Maybe Yang shares his sentiment, because he turns to the Cole parents. “Sir, ma’am, if you feel uncomfortable here, I can recommend several hotels in the area.”

Mr. Cole looks at his wife, then back to