Chapter 2

                                    

                                          
Evelyn, Natalia, and Kayleigh sat in the Cameron's living room, waiting for the boys to get back. Topper had wanted to talk to Evelyn about something, but it had to be private. Whatever it was, she had a feeling it was about Sarah.
"You know what we need?" Kayleigh asked. She didn't wait for the two girls to answer. "We need to get absolutely shit-faced. So shit-faced that we make dumb decisions."
Of course Kayleigh would be the one to propose that. She loved parties, but she loved drinking even more. She'd been working on cutting back, but she was right. They hadn't been shit-faced like that in a long time. 
"Oh, I don't know," Natalia said. "Don't you think that might be dangerous with all of the mess from the hurricane?"
"Nah, we've got enough common sense for that," Kayleigh countered.
Evelyn sighed and sat up. "For once, Kay, I think you are absolutely right about this. Getting shit-faced is a need right now."
The glass door opened, and in walked Topper, Rafe, and Kelce. They all had an air of overconfidence about them, but Topper was a sweetheart. The same couldn't be said about Kelce or Rafe. 
"What are we talking about?" Rafe asked as he sprawled out on the couch.
"Kay said we need to get shit-faced," Natalia answered.
"That's my girl," Kelce exclaimed. "Party time!"
Kayleigh laughed awkwardly. The two of them had history, but it was a history that Kayleigh didn't like to bring up. 
"Hey, Ev?" Topper asked quietly. "Can we talk?"
Evelyn nodded her head and stood up to walk to the kitchen. Topper's face looked devastated. Whatever it was that he needed to talk about was clearly upsetting him.
"What's up?" She asked.
"It's Sarah," he sighed. "Wheezie was telling me that she's flirting with John B, saw him stealing from her, and that she cheated on all of her other boyfriends, and that now I'm next in line. Do you know anything about this?"
Evelyn looked down at her hands on the counter. Of course this is what he needed to talk about. She was going to have to have a talk with Sarah about this later.
"Well, I was there when she saw him take the air tanks, so I can tell you she wasn't flirting with him then."
"No, Wheezie said it was when he brought them back."
"She saw him bring the tanks back?" Evelyn asked, trying to make sure she had heard him right.
"Um, yes?"
Evelyn groaned. "She was supposed to tell Ward if she saw him bring the tanks back."
Evelyn let her frustration simmer before realizing she had accidentally changed the topic. 
"Sorry, back to our conversation," she said. "I don't think that Sarah would be flirting with my brother because, well, he's my brother—"
"You hooked up with Rafe."
Evelyn was shocked. She should've known he was going to bring that up. She put up her hand, with her index finger pointing to the sky, and waved it back and forth.
"Tops, that's literally top secret, it happened and now it's in the drawer of cold case files," she laughed. "Also, not the same thing."
Topper raised his eyebrows but left it alone.
"Anyways, Sarah and my brother is a no-go," Evelyn continued. "Now to your other concern. Sarah has a pattern of finding someone new right after a breakup. In the past, it was a way to get over the breakup, but she has only cheated once."
"Why did she do it? Is she going to again?"
Evelyn leaned on the island in the kitchen. "Unfortunately Topper, I cannot tell you if she is going to do it again. I think she really likes you, so I don't see her wanting to hurt you. And the one time she did cheat, she was really drunk and about to break up with Trenton anyway."
Topper let his eyes fall to the floor. Evelyn couldn't tell if she helped him or if she just made it worse. She did feel bad for the guy, he was sweet, and he had managed to fall in love with the girl who could never make up her mind. 
"If it makes you feel any better if I get even an inkling of a thought that Sarah might cheat, I will tell you."
Topper finally made eye contact with her again. "Thanks, Ev, you're a great friend."
She smiled at him as he turned to walk back to the living room. Most likely, the group was going to discuss throwing a party. As Evelyn stood in the kitchen alone, her thoughts traveled back to her brother.
She had to admit, something was fishy about the compass. Her father didn't go anywhere without it. He would have it chained to him, so for it to appear in someone else's boat, with nothing else concerning her father, she wondered if maybe there really was something going on. Maybe her father really was in trouble.
It was something she couldn't admit to herself. She wouldn't put herself through any more pain regarding her father. It wasn't good for her. With that, she returned to the rest of the group.
"Come on, Top, you just gotta do it!" Rafe exclaimed.
"Do what?" Evelyn asked.
"Throw a party," Natalia sighed. "They've been trying to convince him."
Evelyn rolled her eyes. The three of them always fought over the parties. "Well, as long as I can get absolutely shit-faced, I don't care who throws it. It doesn't even have to be a party for all I care."
Evelyn motioned for Natalia and Kayleigh to follow her. She wanted to talk to them about something, but the boys couldn't know.
The sisters stood up to follow her, while the boys fought over the party still, hardly noticing the girls' absence. It was typical of them. They weren't observant at all.
"Is something wrong?" Natalia asked.
"No, not really," Evelyn replied, walking towards Sarah's pier. "I just wanted to run an idea by you guys, but you absolutely cannot tell anyone."
"Course not," Kayleigh smiled. As many problems as Kayleigh had with addiction, she truly was one of the sweetest people you could ever meet. 
"I was thinking about my brother," she sighed. "I'm worried. Do you think it's a terrible idea to go check up on him?"
They both made faces. Not a single one of Evelyn's friends were too keen on her brother. It made sense, as they had only ever seen the two fight.
"Ev, I love you, and you're so sweet and kind and thoughtful, but maybe you should stop worrying about your brother, and let all his bad decisions wreak havoc on his life," Natalia said, grabbing Evelyn's hands. "I don't want his karma to come onto you."
She nodded. Natalia was right, John's decisions never ended up well, and she had fallen to his consequences before.
"But," Kayleigh added. "I think that it's okay for you to check up on him. I think he's still hurting."
Evelyn took a deep breath before saying, "Okay. I'm just going to stop by the house then. Just for a few minutes. Make sure he's not gotten himself killed yet."
Kayleigh chuckled.
"Have fun and be careful."
It didn't take long for Evelyn to reach the Château. It looked the same, minus the mess Agatha left, but something was off.
There was a truck in the driveway that she didn't recognize, but most likely it was one of John's friends. The chicken coop was still standing, surprisingly, but the chickens were going crazy. A few tree limbs had fallen to the ground, but nothing that wasn't fixable.
Evelyn stood in front of the house for a minute, just to take in what she was seeing. It was weird being back after she had been avoiding it for so long.
That was when she heard a familiar-sounding click and a cold feeling on the back of her head. Her breath hitched. 
This could not be happening.