Page 31 of The Secrets We Hide
Valerie said, “You need to be honest.”
Talia swallowed so hard that her throat made a sound. “Mandy told me she was seeing somebody, but …”
Emmy waited for her to finish the sentence.
“It’s a secret ’cause he’s older.”
Emmy felt her stomach clench. “Older like my son?”
Talia’s gaze flitted toward Cole before resting back on the handkerchief. “I don’t know. She never said.”
“Did she tell you his name?”
“No, ma’am. She wasn’t allowed to ’cause it was a secret and her mom would get really mad if she found out they were spending time alone together.”
“My God.” Valerie’s hand went to her heart. “Was he ever alone with you?”
Talia shook her head. She was more alert now, being careful with her words. “I think I saw her get in his car once but they were really far away so I didn’t see his face or what kind of car it was. I promise.”
Emmy kept her voice calm. “Did Mandy describe the man, or give you any details about who he was?”
Talia shook her head. “She never talked about him. She said they would both get into really bad trouble if people found out.”
Emmy paused to think through the next part, because relationships between girls were complicated. “Would Skylar Guthrie know? My son told me that she was one of Mandy’s friends, too.”
Talia shook her head again. “Mandy wasn’t talking to Skylar lately. They were mad at each other.”
“Do you know why?”
“No, ma’am.”
Emmy couldn’t tell if she was being truthful, but she movedon. “Let’s talk about this older man. How long had Mandy known him?”
Another shoulder shrug. “A few months?”
“Do you know how much time they spent together?”
Again, she shrugged, but said, “A lot, ’cause she stopped hanging around with me as much, like, especially the last few weeks.”
“Okay.” Emmy tried to regroup. “This next question might sound bad, but I promise you, no one will be in trouble. Have you ever heard Mandy say the nameWoody?”
“Oh.” Talia’s eyes went wide in surprise. She clearly knew who Woody was. “No, ma’am. Mandy would never.”
“That’s not the name of the older man she was seeing?”
“No, ma’am. He was older than that. At least she made it seem like he was. He had a real job and everything.”
“What kind of job?”
“She didn’t say, only that he got paid and sometimes he bought things for her.”
“Do you know what things he bought?”
Talia was sitting up straighter now. She shook her head.
Emmy pressed, “Was Mandy using drugs?”
“Drugs?” Valerie sounded aghast. She squeezed Talia’s hand. “Have you been using drugs?”
