“Ridiculous! Sawyer wouldn’t steal!” Martha Benson declared. She slammed down a spoonful of mashed potatoes she was serving onto Jeremy’s plate. “We said the same, but this Pickiner guy won’t listen.” Jeremy wiped a glob of potato off his shirt. “Why go through that for a fancy rock? He thinks that wedding rings are an ...

An hour later, all five people were at the police station, talking over one another. “He is a thief!” the thin man exclaimed. “I swear on my life, I’m not!” Sawyer yelled. “Sawyer’s an honest guy; he’d never steal!” Jeremy said. “The evidence says otherwise,” the tall person said. “A gemstone falling out of a ...

The gray morning sky clouds hovered over Nantucket. Howard Benson, a local fishmonger, drove down the street to his family’s shop, Howard and Son. Jeremy was already waiting for him. He and his father caught local fish for the store with help from Sawyer, a family friend who owned a boat. On Tuesdays, it was ...

I spend the rest of my Greek vacation relaxing at the spa and on the beach with my escort. We indulge in massages, hot tubs, saunas, bocce ball, and playing in the ocean’s waves. I feel a tremendous sense of relief. No more bothering thoughts of Miss Jessica, Fizz, or the island. In the end, ...

Andre stands at the dock as we arrive and greets us. “Here are your groceries, Miss Galton. Did you and Tamara have a good time together?” Jessica grins, “Oh, we did! Tamara’s a sweetheart. Fizz likes her too!” Fizz honks in apparent agreement at her side. I smile and remain silent. “Nice meeting you, Tamara. ...

One morning, I looked out my apartment window and saw the wounded flamingo needed my help. The left wing looked injured, and regardless of why, caring for the bird felt like a necessary act of atonement for my past mistakes. For months I read books and articles on how to care for flamingoes and nursed ...

Per my instructions, Carlos dug up as much dirt as possible on Mackenzie Billings, which became plentiful. It took two weeks to uncover sufficient evidence to destroy her reputation. We leaked it to rival news outlets. Everyone blamed her for the unethical activities and toxic workplace she created and thrived in. But even that wasn’t ...

My thoughts swirled inside me as I walked back to the hotel. Miss Billings had lied to me all along about Louis! She manipulated me! But I was the one who chose to betray Louis and Miss Martha, this is my fault too. How could you’ve have been so stupid, Jessica? These thoughts continued until ...

On Friday morning, the story about the flamingos finally broke in L.A. County. Miss Martha’s house was shown on television swarmed with reporters, wildlife control, police officers, and animal rights protestors. Trained handlers led the flamingoes to the Los Angeles Zoo. Press and protestors called Miss Martha terrible names like abuser, crazy flamingo lady, etc. ...

Two days passed as I remained at home, eagerly anticipating the publication of the article at the week’s end. In my free time, I threw Louis’ gifts away and watched television. On Thursday, to my surprise, Louis called. The urge to confront him about the incident at the nail salon and Bouncing Boba grew. With ...