“Perry? You there?”
I laughed, astonished. “Yeah, I’m here. I’m sorry, I don’t know what to say, dad. What the hell kind of question is that?”
“Stop using that word.”
“Dad?”
“Perry, I am serious.”
I wiped the sweat off my forehead and looked back at the house, where Dex was probably still flipping through the books. I guess technically I was “sleeping” with him, but…
“No, dad. I am not sleeping with him, sheesh. He’s kind of my boss in a way.”
Now that was a weird thought.
He sighed, long and heavy. Silence hung in the air. I knew better than to say anymore.
“I just don’t see why you’re doing this, that’s all, pumpkin.”
“Oh, so you thought I was doing all of this for sex, is that it?”
“Ghosts don’t exist Perry. You know they don’t. Anyone who says they do are after something else themselves. You’re chasing after an illusion and the sooner you drop this charade and start putting your extra time and effort into your career, your job, the better off you’ll be. You need to get serious about your life.”
My turn to sigh. It was amazing how being in a wind-dusted barren field, with an azure cloudless sky, could feel so restrictive. Cell phones were the devil.
“Dad. We can talk about this when I get back. I’m here now, this is what I’m doing, I’m smack in the middle of it. You’re just going to have to deal with it for now.”
The front door to the house opened and Dex came out, the bigger camera hoisted on his shoulder this time. I raised my finger at him to indicate I was busy, if he couldn’t already tell, and turned my back.
“And by the way, it’s not cool to call me when I’m out here working and lay all this stuff on me,” I hissed into the phone. “That’s not being very adult.”
My dad started to say something back but the phone was suddenly snatched out of my hands. Dex put it up his mouth.
“Hello dad!”
“No!” I yelled and tried to take it back from him but he just pushed me away with the camera.
“Yes, this is Dex.” He grinned, looking far too pleased with himself. I felt sick.
“Oh, I’m taking real good care of your daughter,” he said in a tone my dad was bound to find sarcastic. “Actually, I should say she’s taking real good care of me.”
“Please give me back the phone,” I pleaded.
He gave me a dismissive look and listened to whatever my dad was saying.
“Oh, I know career is very important,” he said, winking at me. “Believe me, if I found out that she’d trade in a good job for what we are doing here, well…I’d probably call her an idiot.”
At the mention of idiot, I knew my face fell. Dex didn’t know about my situation still and I didn’t want him to know but at that exact second my face probably said it all.
But if he picked up on it, he didn’t show it. He watched me as he continued, “She’s a smart girl though, you raised her well. She knows what’s important. Yes, I’ll make sure she calls you tomorrow. Okay, see ya pops.”
And with that he hung up and tossed the phone up in the air. I scrambled for it and barely caught it before it smashed on the hard earth. It’s just my freaking ultra-breakable, irreplaceable iPhone, no big deal, you stupid jerk, I thought wildly.
“What the f**k, ass**le?” I exclaimed, and wiped down the screen.
“You’ve got good reflexes,” he said nonchalantly and started off towards the car.
I stayed put. “No I mean, don’t you dare talk to my parents again.”
He stopped and gave me a lazy look. “What’s the big deal? I only said nice things.”
“You don’t understand,” I said simply. That’s really all I could say. I was lying to both of them.
“You’re right. I don’t. Now let’s get moving.”
“Where are you going?”
“We are going into town. Meet up with Max, walk around, take some set-up shots of the town, maybe ask around, talk to some people, perhaps find those guys who got attacked a few days ago.” He walked towards the car.
“You go,” I found myself saying.
He stopped, turned and folded his arms, thinking. He looked angry at first, then confused, then concerned, all in the space of a few seconds.
“I kind of need you,” he finally said.
“No, you don’t. Not for setting up shots. And you’ve got your buddy there to help you anyway.” I put a sarcastic spin on the word buddy.
He frowned but didn’t say anything.
“I just want some time alone, that’s all,” I admitted. “I need to process everything that’s happened so far.”
He rubbed his mouth with the back of his hand. I could tell he was mulling it over.
He walked back over to me and stopped a few feet away. His eyes roamed all over my face. Sometimes Dex reminded me of a truth-sniffing dog.
“I don’t feel good about leaving you here,” he said in a low voice. “I’d feel better if you were with me.”
“Are you worried about me or about what might happen to me?”
He nodded at that and looked at the barn. “Just stay put. Stay around Will or Bird. I’ll be back soon. Call me the minute you…need to.”
I gave him a quick smile. “Thanks dad.”
He walked over to the car, calling over his shoulder, “I don’t need to be your dad to worry about you.”
I watched him get into the Jeep and speed out of the ranch, dust clouds blooming behind him until they disintegrated into the blue. I breathed out a huge sigh of relief. I know that being alone may have seemed like a bad idea, but I honestly needed some time to just be.
I thought about going back into the house and maybe reading those books again but I was sure Sarah would be prowling about somewhere. I hadn’t seen her at breakfast, thank goodness, but figured by now she was in the living room, knitting a voodoo doll version of me (I had seen traces of her yarn collection), or perhaps complaining to Will and Miguel as they worked on the window. It’s not that I was afraid of Sarah, but there was something about her that made me extremely uneasy. And I didn’t like her impulsiveness and her total lack of tact. If I was alone with her I might end up saying something I’d really regret and spoil everything for us.