Free Nine Lives by Erin Lee Page B

Tyler’s my world and that’s pretty much everything there is to know,” I finally say.
    “But what about friends? Do you have any other friends? People you like to hang out with? Girlfriends?”
    “I’m friends with Faith and Sadie, my sisters.”
    “What about people who aren’t in the family?”
    I wish I could throw Harley’s name at her, just to shut her up, but Harley hates me now. She’s the last person I should bring into this. She could ruin everything. We never should have told her we made it all up. I miss her, but Harley’s like a narc now.
    “I was homeschooled! Nelsons don’t do friends. I don’t need other friends. I’m fine,” I say, as I picture punching her in the nose. As Faith would say, the bitch needs to do some cult research. We weren’t allowed to make friends like normal people. I want to tell her to get her shit together before asking more stupid questions. She’s smart enough not to press me and changes the subject.
    We get through the next twenty minutes with small talk. Somewhere in there, she asks me about Dad. Again, I stick with the story. I’m no dummy. I find it comical that someone would believe that just because they have a lot of fancy degrees they can trick me. I warned her, I’m smart.
     
    ***
     
    By the time I leave, I’m exhausted. I text Tyler but don’t get a response. I tell myself he’s probably working but know that I’m being like my mother. I pretend he isn’t seeing another girl. I know he is, but I try to put it out of my mind. It’s not his fault I’m not able to see him. It’s not his fault he’s horny. It’s normal for a guy to need sex. If I wasn’t on lock down all the time, I’d be giving it to him and he wouldn’t need other girls. Those girls aren’t important to him. He only wants me. I know that, and I remind myself of it as I begin my walk home.
    It’s times like these when I miss Harley. She would know what to do about Tyler. Harley was always great for a shoulder to cry on. I try to talk to Faith, but Faith is so caught up in Hunter that she doesn’t really pay attention. I can’t blame her. It’s not like I listen to her about Hunter, and she’s living the same hell I am.
    I didn’t lie about that part. I don’t lie about everything. I don’t have friends. Harley is literally the only real friend—outside of family—that I’ve ever had. Mom and Dad were so busy sheltering us that they forgot to let us be normal kids. Even in the neighborhood, we weren’t allowed to play with other kids. “We have several acres, Laina, stay home and play with your sisters. Make a fort. Play light tag. But don’t go down the street. Those people aren’t in the faith, Laina.”
    I lucked out that Harley happened to be Catholic. It meant I had a chance at getting Mom’s approval. I met Harley when I started taking guitar lessons. I knew I liked her immediately when she told the guitar teacher he sucked and she wanted a refund. I like people who speak their mind. Mom didn’t totally approve of Harley. She was what they call a C and E Catholic. It’s the kind of Catholic I want to be—Christmas and Easter. It means you don’t go to church except for on major holidays, if even then. But we finally won Mom over when I explained that Harley’s grandparents are too old to take her to church every week. I lied and told her that the priest comes over to give them weekly communion. Harley went along with it.
    That’s the thing. Harley wasn’t some goodie-goodie. She didn’t care if I lied or stole or snuck out to see Tyler. She even worked as an alibi. I’d tell Mom I was sleeping over at her house and would instead get a motel room with Tyler. I guess I can kind of see why this lie was different. I mean, it triggered her. I get that. She really was abused by her father and her brother. So she had a problem with me using her story to fix the crap going on with me. But isn’t that what friends are for? I mean, it’s not like I