Visiting the police station as a guest versus a criminal were two very different experiences. The former, Madison received friendly smiles and offers of confectionary treats. The latter got her a whole lot of scowls and escorted bathroom breaks.

She fidgeted with the end of her t-shirt as Detective Marks took another sip of coffee. They were sitting at his desk, seated much like Madison had been with his son earlier that afternoon. With him parked in front while she sat parallel facing him.

“Now let’s go over this again, Madison, from the start. How did you get these coins?”

She sighed. This was the third time re-telling she’d done so far. The first had been to her mother. After calling her from school, they decided to convene at their house. Madison sat her mother down in the family room and succinctly described her brief exploit in stealing. She could see the shock in her mother’s face that quickly turned to anger. However, her mother didn’t yell. She didn’t scream. She reigned in her fury and disappointment, saving it for another time. Instead, her mother shocked her by kissing her forehead and telling her how proud she was for coming forth. Then she ushered Madison into the car and drove her to the police station.

It was during the second re-telling that her father showed up. She saw him out of the corner of her eye looking harried and concerned. He marched up to her mother and demanded to know what was happening. She steered him off to the side and explained the situation while Madison answered Detective Marks’ questions.

During the entire process, Madison never mentioned names or alluded to the members of FEC, no matter how hard Detective Marks pushed her. She was proud of sticking to her guns and keeping her promise to Avery. Her ex-friend may not appreciate the gesture now, but she would when she calmed down and thought about it.

It was close to two hours before Detective Marks let her stand up and take a small break. She stretched her limbs and excused herself to the bathroom. Of course her mother followed her. She’d stuck close by since the minute they entered the station. She didn’t know whether it was to keep tabs on her or because she wanted to listen in on the interrogation. Knowing her mother, probably a combination of both. 

She was washing her hands when her mother moved from the wall to stand next to her. The rigid manner of her shoulders and the firm line of her mouth indicated she had something unpleasant to say. Madison held onto the porcelain sink and braced herself.

“It’s those friends of yours, isn’t it? They’re the ones that got you into this mess.”

“Mom, I’m not discussing this with you. I already told Detective Marks all that I know.”

“I knew there was something fishy about them. I felt it the moment they came over. I should never have let you go to Homecoming with them.”

“Mom….” Madison hung her head. She didn’t want to hear this, not right now. She had enough to deal with without her mother’s antagonist views.

“It’s that girl in the glasses—Kelly, right? Was she the one who pressured you into doing this? Did they threaten you somehow? Blackmail you?”

“I don’t want to talk about this right now.”

That was the wrong this to say because her mother exploded. “Well then when do you want to talk Madison? Because every time I tried, you blew me off and said you were doing just fine. Do you remember that conversation last week, Madison? Remember how I asked you what was wrong and you said nothing?”

“I was fine,” she muttered through clenched teeth. She didn’t want to discuss this. Not here, not now.

“No, you weren’t!” her mother yelled, her voice echoing in the bathroom. “You weren’t fine. You were stressed and losing weight and you wouldn’t talk to me! So talk to me Madison. Help me understand.”

Madison set her jaw and looked down at the sink.

Her mother threw her hands up in exasperation. “Why are you covering for them? They are not here. They deserted you. They don’t deserve this type of loyalty. Aren’t you mad at them? Angry? Furious?”

Her hands clawed at the sink as she tried to collar her rising emotions. “It’s fine.”

Frustration clotted the air. Her mother’s eyes turned lived as she motioned around. “Does this look fine to you? Because hearing that my daughter is a criminal doesn’t sound fine to me!”

Madison reached her boiling part, everything inside of her erupting. “What do you want from me?!” she cried, whirling around to face her mother.

“I want the truth!” Her mother slapped her hand. “I want answers! I want to know how my little girl got involved with a ring of thefts!”

“Fine!” Madison screamed, her hands clenching. “You want the truth? You want to know how? It’s because you weren’t there! You’re never there! You’re always here.” She jabbed a finger at the door. “Working. You say we moved here because you wanted to spend more time together and fix our relationship, but the truth is nothing’s changed. Not one single thing!”

Her mother shook her head, her expression pinched. “Don’t blame this on me, young lady. We may have our issues, but I didn’t force you to take that medal. Those actions are your own.”

She took a step back and calmed down, inhaling through her nose and exhaling through her mouth. When she could speak without shouting, she said in a tone as every bit grim as her expression, “And I take responsibility for what I did. That’s why I came to you. That’s why I confessed.” Madison paused and took another breath. “But you want to know the reason behind it. Why I did what I did. Well it’s because I was so angry with you—angry that you fell back into the same pattern as soon as we got here. There was no reason to move. No reason to uproot my life and leave my friends just so we could go through the same routine.”

Her mother started to speak, but Madison held up a hand, determined to finish what she started. “I know it’s no excuse for stealing. I know it was childish and selfish of me to join FEC, but for one second I felt I had control of my life again. I felt like I was the one behind the wheel. Not you, not dad, not…fate, but me,” she thumped her chest, “Madison Chase. That’s why I did what I did.”

And Madison knew those brief moments of feeling in control weren’t worth the pain and suffering. At least, not the way she went about it. Over the past couple of hours as she watched her mom and dad frantically run about, she realized everyone felt that way at some point in their life. But it was how they acted, how they responded to those wild, uncontrollable moments that mattered. And understanding that now, realizing how wrong she was only shamed her further.

Madison crossed the floor, closing the gulf between mother and daughter. She looked her mother in the eye and said with conviction, “I’m sorry, Mom. I’m sorry for using you as an excuse. There were other ways I could have handled my emotions and instead I ended up hurting everyone around me. I’m so sorry.”

Her mother’s gaze broke away as she tilted her head back and blinked. She swallowed convulsively as she struggled to find her voice. “I’m sorry too, sweetie. When we moved here I promised myself things would change, but somehow….” She shook her head and huffed. “I think it’s partly because I’m afraid. You spent most of your childhood without me and I don’t know how to connect with you anymore.” Her expression gentled as she cupped Madison’s cheek. “Look at you. You’re growing up and becoming a young woman. I don’t know what to do about it.”

The unexpected confession put a lump in Madison’s throat. “I don’t think there’s much you can do.”

“I know. I wish I could roll back time. There are so many things I would have done differently.” She ran a hand down her cheek and then over her hair. “I’m sorry for using work as an excuse. I was so terrified of messing up as a mother that I did the very thing I didn’t want to do.”

“Who knew big, bad Detective Chase was such a scaredy-cat,” Madison teased.

Her mother’s eyes lit with laughter. “Trust me, teenagers are terrifying. Wait till you have your own kids.” She twisted a curl around her finger and then tugged gently. “How about we make a promise to each other?”

Madison tensed. The word “promise” still set her teeth on edge.  

Her mother felt the change and dropped her hand. “Okay, not a promise. How about a game plan? Each of us will take the time this week to think of one activity we want to do with the other. We’ll pick the dates and I’ll put in vacation time for those days so I won’t get called in to work.”

A small ember of hope sparked in Madison. “Really?”

“Really.”

“Just the two of us? Whatever I want to do?”

Her mother gave her a rueful smile. “Within reason of course.”

“What about surfing?” she asked. “I really want to take lessons.”

Her mother nodded. “We can do that. Sounds like fun.”

Madison jumped into her mom’s arms. “Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.”

She leaned back a little with a stern expression. “Don’t think this means you’re out of the clear yet. You still have a lot to answer for and your dad and I will be punishing you when we get home.”

That popped her bubble a little but she smiled anyway. Clearing the air with her mother lifted a hundred pounds off her back. She felt like she could float through the air.

A knock on the bathroom door brought reality crashing back down. An officer peeked her head in and said, “Sorry to interrupt, but I think you two should come out here.”

“What is it?” her mom asked, ushering them to the door.

The lady motioned to the front of the station. Madison’s eyes followed then widened in surprise. Standing behind Detective Marks was Avery and the rest of FEC.