I was set up and it sucked. If there’s something I hate the most, it’d be when I lose control of everything. Nate, Ricky, Chuck, Reed… Maybe even Sarah. They all tricked me. But there was no use—no time—to think about it right now. I was sure all these people in front of me thought I was such a flustered idiot. I had to do something, anything to save face.

Resignedly, I turned to my band mates. “Guys, we’ll do track number three. You know the drill.”

Ricky groaned. “Aww... I thought we’re going to do Insane. I just came up with a super awesome intro for it. Plus, it’s our carrier song.”

“Yeah, but this is different,” I explained. “This’ll be like our last song ass a band. Just… help me on this, will you?”

“Gotcha,” Chuck spun the drum sticks on his fingers, nodding back at me.

Ricky and Reed just answered me with a somewhat A-okay look. Seemed like they were all ready for this. Anticipating, almost. My stomach cringed as I let out shaky breath, facing the impatient crowd. It was like I’d forgotten everything I knew about performing. This crowd was different.

I might’ve bumped into some of them one time or another during my stay in Hopkinton. I recognized some of them from my school. The others were neighbors. They knew me in real life. It was as if I could already hear their boos through the nerve-racking silence.

I cleared my throat, swallowed and stepped uneasily behind the microphone.

“Hey, there. Uh… Behind the keyboards is Roderick Burns. On lead guitar, Reed Ferguson and on drums, Charles Ferguson.” From behind me, I heard disgruntled groans from Ricky and Chuck as they heard me mention their full names. “I’m Leon Walden and we’re 4 O’clock Deadline. This song is called, Boomerang.”

Rolling his droopy eyes, Ricky started with the intro. He was doing Freddy’s arrangement which was a bit of a rock mode than the one we’d recorded in Sonnet. It was a supposed to be a fun song. It should sound fun. Soon, Reed and Chuck joined him. They did a short pause, allowing me to start off with the lyrics.

“I would swear forever was in your eyes the first time I saw you smile

If you do the Math from A to Z, you’ll get that it should be you and me,

You said go, I say no,

Nothing can change this so…”

It was so silent I could’ve sworn out loud and walk out of the whole situation. But I focused on strumming my guitar and remembering my words. I tried to scan the crowd for Sarah but it was getting dark.

“Don’t drive me away, I’ll come back running

Push me off a cliff, I’ll come back flying

I’m no superman but I’ll keep tryin’

Lead me astray, no matter what you say

If this heart’s still beating, I am here to stay

It doesn’t matter how you throw me

I’ll bounce right back in no time, baby,”

Was she watching me? I’d feel better if she wasn’t. I’d written this song for her. And at the moment, it felt like every word was tearing a piece out of me. They’d mean nothing to her or to anyone else but me now.

A lump slowly surged in my throat I had to sing louder, force the words out so my voice won’t shake. But no matter how hard I tried to sound perfect, my voice eventually cracked. I sounded weak and my lines were barely a whisper. That was when I let go of my guitar and turned around so no one could see me this vulnerable.

The others stopped playing too, their gazes fixed on the floor. They knew I couldn’t do it. Not anymore. I pinched the bridge of my nose to push back my emotions, cussing at myself for acting so ridiculously dumb and weak.

Stop making a fool of yourself. Damn it.

The low rumble of the crowd made it harder to think. I just about decided to take off when I hear a familiar voice call my name.

“Leon,” she called again, this time clearer.

I turned to where the voice came from and then I could barely see her—Sarah making her way through the crowd. Becky was behind her, pushing her to the front. It took a few seconds before they made it through, Sarah’s face becoming more visible as the lights shone on her. There was a startled, almost embarrassed look about her. But when she met my gaze, her blue eyes were warm. A smile slowly lit up her face. Heartening, tender. And this time, I knew that smile was only for me.

“You can do it, Leon,” she said, not even having to raise her voice since the audience seemed so mute.

Beside her, Becky was laughing a bit. “Leon! Leon! Leon!” she chanted, gesturing the others to do the same.

It started off with a low murmur but soon, I could already hear my name echoing throughout the whole place. Familiar faces emerged from the crowd—Dad, Nate, Freddy, Drake, Larson, Leigh. Chuck and Reed’s many younger brothers and sisters. Ricky’s Gran. Moira was there too. Even my best friends—Chuck, Reed and Ricky—who’d always been with me through everything. They were all cheering for me.

No word could describe it. I was overjoyed yet something in me ached. These people were my crowd. My friends. Yet, I had to leave them.

I had to do it for them—for the people who believed in me. I inhaled deeply and nodded back to Sarah, feeling the frets of my guitar. Even without my cue, Reed started were we left off, plucking the strings of his guitar like there was no tomorrow. The rest of us joined him play.

“You once swore you didn’t need me but girl, I will make you see

So admit it, say you can feel it—that we were meant to be

I said I’ll stay, you said ‘go away’

Not a thing will change…”

As I sang, I tried to memorize their faces. I didn’t want to forget their smiles. Those were the best ones I’d seen. Because those smiles were real. At least to me.

“Words have been said, tears have been shed

Now it’s my turn to say, please don’t forget this day

When I’d be the one to turn around and walk away…”

The song ended with an applause that lasted for a minute. We played four more songs after the audience begged for more. After that, I knew it was really time to go.

It was difficult to get down the platform what with all the people trying to get to us. Dad and Freddy had to literally yank us down one by one. Together, we made a tight exit to the street while being pushed and pulled at every direction. Sarah was behind me, her fingers tightening the grip around mine.

By some miracle, we go through the crowd and found our way back in the parking lot. At last, we were alone again in the truck. As we headed home, I kept my eyes on the road, my heart still pounding with excitement until I’d remembered I’d soon be leaving.

“Y-you were great… back there,” she tried to smile, thoughtful.

I found it hard to pick the right words so I just murmured, “Thanks.”

Silence filled the next few minutes. Neither of us seemed to know what to say. But I drove slowly, just to prolong the agony. The suffocating tension only broke when my phone started to ring. Groaning, I picked it up when Moira’s name came out on the screen. She wasn’t one to call for chitchat.

“Yeah,” I said, trying to hide the impatience in my voice.

“We need to talk. Meet me at your house,” she said in her business-voice.

I rolled my eyes. “I’m leaving, Moira. Can’t you give me a few minutes more?”

“It’s important,” she urged, a hint of unease in her voice.

“How important? Look, I’m with Sarah right now—“

“Bring her with you,” she replied firmly. “It concerns her too.”

Sighing, I ended the call. Looked like I had no choice.

When we got home, Dad’s R8 and Freddy’s Toyota was already parked unevenly in the roadside. Seemed to me like they were in a hurry. I hurried out of the cab, opening the door for Sarah before taking her hand. She looked confused but thankfully didn’t say anything. I’d no idea what to tell her, just in case.

We headed straight to the living room. Moira, Dad and Freddy were already there. Nate was nowhere to be found but it was the least I’d worry about. I towed Sarah to the sofa and sat beside her. The TV was on, airing a re-run of last year’s American Idol but no one seemed to be watching.

“So, what’s this all about?” I squared my shoulders, leaning forward to lean my elbows on my thighs. “Make it quick.”

Freddy’s gaze settled on me, then to his daughter. He sighed looking tired as he waved Moira to speak.

“We found the culprit,” she said in an even voice, her dark eyes fixing on Sarah as she went on, “The driver… who hit Sarah.”

I cocked my head to the side. It got my head all mixed-up. It’d sure felt like so many things had happened I’d almost forgotten that night—the accident. No it wasn’t an accident. Someone had tried to kill Sarah.

“It doesn’t matter,” I shoved the words out of my throat. “Megan’s…” I shut my mouth before I could say dead to Moira’s face.

Real smooth, Leon.

“It’s not… Megan,” she answered, her face blank. “I hired new investigators after the burial when Arthur informed me that you had decided to give the case a rest. But I… couldn’t. I just couldn’t accept that Megan was actually able to do those horrible things.”

She placed a manila envelope on the table, pushing it to me. I picked it up, feeling its weight in my hands before fishing the contents. They were several pictures of a black car. One was a close-up of the plate. Another with the car’s front sporting a silver Benz logo. Then, one giving a closer look of the almost invisible scratch on the hood. And another dent on the left passenger door. Next was the broken tail light.

I dropped the pictures on the table and cursed under my breath. My hand caught Sarah’s as she was about to touch them. The memories of that night flashed wildly, incoherent like a really fast movie reel. Closing my eyes, I removed my glasses.

Moira picked up a picture from the thick collection. “Two-thousand and eight Mercedes-Benz,” she started. “CLK63 AMG Black Series. Just as you described, Leon. We found this in a small car service company in Boston, rented out by someone who signed herself as… Catherine Dempsey.”

Dad picked up the remote control from the coffee table and turned on the DVD. At first, it was static then it showed some kind of an office or a receiving area. Behind the service counter was a middle-aged man in a gray uniform. I realized that it was a surveillance video of some sort.

A customer came in and talked with the man. He seemed to be showing the customers a catalogue of the available cars. Dad fast-forwarded the video past two more clients who were both strangers to me. It was different with the third client.

“Can you freeze that?” I told Dad, my eyes still fixed on the lady in the video.

At first look, I could hardly recognize her. But behind that short black wig and the shades, there was no mistaking it. The white skin, high cheek-bones, and tall build was more than enough to know who it was. When I tried to imagine the woman with red flowing hair, it just confirmed my guess. It wasn’t a woman, actually, but a girl.

So that was why Nate wasn’t in this meeting. This’d totally drive him ballistic. How’d he react if he ever discovered that the sister he’d grown up with, the one he’d looked up to all his life was the one who tried to kill Sarah? That’d surely break him.

It wasn’t my mother after all. But her protégé. Evil could totally be passed on.

“Claire,” I muttered through clenched teeth. My whole body tensed, my fingers tightening around Sarah’s delicate ones. She too, was clutching hard on me.

Looking more tired than ever, Dad nodded and caught his forehead. “Nathan shouldn’t know a thing about this, are we clear?”

“What on earth would she get by doing that? Tell me.” My voice was barely a whisper, my mind blank as a clean slate. I couldn’t remember anything I did that must’ve offended her. There was no score to settle. “How could she?! How could she do that to Sarah and expect to get away with it?!!” I finally exploded, my whole body shaking with pent up rage.

Claire was the one who’d caused all this. She ruined everything. Claire might’ve failed to kill Sarah but she did more than enough damage us.

Beside me, Sarah was shaking too. Her eyes were unfocused. With the terrified look on her face, I knew she was beginning to realize what this talk was all about. With a trembling hand, she reached out for ones of the pictures on the table. She stared at it for a short while and dropped it to the floor, her eyes fixing vacantly on the huge picture of Claire on the TV.

This time, she wasn’t able to hold back the tears. This was the face who took her memories. And in some ways, her life. If weren’t for Claire, Sarah won’t be having a hard time figuring what the hell happened in the last two years. If weren’t for her, everything should’ve been perfect. Sarah and I won’t have to go separate ways.

I forced back my anger and gently looped an arm around Sarah. She buried her face on my shoulder. I couldn’t imagine how she must be feeling but one of us had to stay strong. That was my part—the knight in shining armor who could never ever be her prince charming.

If I could, God knew I’d take all the pain from her. Seeing her so miserable was ripping me to pieces. The worst part was, I didn’t know how to make it better.

“I’ll kill her,” I murmured to myself.

Suddenly, Sarah lifted her head and faced me as if she heard the threat. “No…” she pleaded. “Don’t.”

“Okay… okay,” I hushed her, stroking her hair. “I won’t.” It was a lie. If I actually see Claire face-to-face, I could never promise I won’t lay a hand on her.

Moira shifted on her seat, eyeing at both Sarah and Freddy. “We’re one call away from getting Claire arrested. All I need is your decision.”

Freddy ran a hand on his hair. With a sigh, he straightened and met his daughter’s eyes. “This is why I didn’t bring Emma. Things are already too heavy for her to be hysterical.” His face was grim. All the trace of the funny big guy I knew was gone. “If it was just me, Sarah, I’d definitely want to have that girl arrested. I couldn’t care less if he’s Nate’s or some holy ass’ big sister. No offense, Leon,” he told me, palms up.

“I was thinking the same thing. You just said it first,” I agreed.

“Heck, your mom would probably petition for death penalty if she knew this…” Freddy went on, his gray eyes mellowing whenever he looked at his daughter. “But it’s your say, Sarah.”

There was no immediate answer. Sarah kept her silence, as if to think hard about it. All the while, she stared at the floor. The tears seemed to have run out for now. But the misery was still there in her eyes. How I wanted to erase that. How I wanted to see the glow in those eyes again. Even though I knew I wasn’t the one who could do it.

“Do we really need to choose?” I impatiently broke the silence. “Claire’s a criminal. Of course, she should get arrested. She should rot in jail. For all I care, she should go to hell. There’s no option and we all know that.”

“Agree,” said Moira, looking smug about her investigative work.

“If we don’t do something, she might try to hurt Sarah again,” I tried to convince the others. Not Sarah. Whatever her decision was, I knew I couldn’t change her mind even if I moved heaven and earth just to do it.

There was a regretful look on Sarah’s face when our eyes met. She looked decided. And she’d have Claire behind bars. I just knew it. Or more specifically, hoped. I just couldn’t tell what she was thinking all the time.

Her logic was more complicated and intertwined than mine. I knew exactly what I wanted and I do just that. But to her… it seemed like there were a thousand things she should consider, a lot of people adding to equation, a lot of feelings she’d have to avoid getting hurt that she’d be willing to set aside her safety. Her happiness.

“Tell me,” she whispered, peering up at me through her thick lashes. “And be honest, please. Nathan loves his sister, doesn't he?”

Every strand in my body urged me to say no. But I just couldn’t bring myself to lie to Sarah. Not anymore. Not with those trusting eyes that warmed my heart.

I nodded, wryly raising an eyebrow. “More like idolized.”

Dad and Moira threw disapproving glances at me. Yeah. I should’ve just said yes. Sarah didn’t need to know how much Nathan worshipped the evil cow. I just got… carried away.

Silently, Sarah nodded back to me, a decision becoming clearer to her. “That’s what I thought.”

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There's no song today that inspires me so no song intro. Hmm. Sarah's stupid. Yeah. We all know that already. Now, why is that? :) Any song suggestions? And... yeah. Thanks for reading the last chapters. So, vote, comment, fan. Do what you want.                ~shim