“Praise and a purchase are always great ways to win an artist’s heart,” Paula said with a laugh, then sobered. “I’m afraid what I have to say is a touchy business.”
Laura listened with increasing dismay as the older woman filled her in on what had been going on between Annabelle Litchfield and Misty Dawson. When Paula handed her a computer printout of some of the vicious posts, as well as the nearly naked photos purporting to be Misty, she actually gasped. It was far worse than anything she’d imagined.
“I had no idea,” she said. “No wonder Misty wouldn’t show her face in my class. I’m surprised she’s come to school at all.” She sighed. “Of course, she hasn’t been there for a couple of days now, and she actually tried to get out of coming at all.”
“How did she intend to make that work?” Paula asked.
“She went to J. C. Fullerton and begged him to write her a medical excuse so she could stay home. He refused, but neither of us had any idea why she was so determined to stay out of school. She wouldn’t speak up. It’s only been in the past couple of weeks that I’ve had a real inkling about what was going on. This is exactly the proof I’ve needed to take this to the next level and get it stopped.”
“Thankfully someone brought it to my attention,” Paula said. “To say I was shocked would be an understatement.”
“So am I,” Laura admitted.
Paula nodded. “I thought you would be. Now, what are we going to do about it? It obviously needs to be handled delicately, but there’s no room at the high school for this kind of tormenting of a student, especially one as bright and sensitive as Misty.”
“I couldn’t agree with you more,” Laura said.
They both fell silent for several minutes, pondering the next course of action.
Laura eventually gave Mrs. Vreeland a direct look. “I’ve dealt with all of the parents at one time or another. Mariah Litchfield isn’t going to handle this well, is she? I know Betty Donovan was anticipating a full-fledged explosion, even without knowing how bad things really are.”
Paula responded with a rueful smile. “Frankly, I fully expect all hell to break loose.”
Laura sighed. “I was afraid you’d say that. Then I assume we need to get all of our factual ducks in a nice row before she and Annabelle are confronted.”
“Definitely a wise decision,” Paula agreed. “If you don’t mind, I’d like to stay out of this publicly unless it becomes necessary. Anyone could go online and find this evidence, so I doubt it’s necessary that my name be involved.”
“I can understand that you want to protect your source,” Laura said. “It wouldn’t take long for anyone to guess who that source might be.” Though Katie Townsend had refused to talk to Cal, she must have gone to her grandmother. Bless her for finding a way to involve an adult without violating Misty’s trust.
“But I will come forward if you need me at any point,” Paula assured her. “This kind of behavior can’t be tolerated. Other than trying to protect my source, I’m perfectly comfortable taking a public stand against it.” She smiled briefly. “And there’s very little that Mariah Litchfield can possibly do to me. I have no concerns for my reputation, just for my source.”
“Understood,” Laura said. “I don’t think we’ll have any problem finding people to stand firm against this once the facts come out.” She had a feeling J.C. would be leading the pack, and she intended to involve him at the very first opportunity.
Paula regarded her with approval. “Katie told me you’d jump all over this. She’s a great admirer of yours. I can see why.”
“Thank you,” Laura said, genuinely pleased, not so much by Paula Vreeland’s approval, but by Katie’s faith in her. “I won’t let either of these girls down.”
She weighed asking Mrs. Vreeland’s advice. “May I ask your opinion about something?”
“Of course.”
“You obviously understand how sensitive this situation is, especially with such awful pictures being posted online. I’ve been hearing talk that Misty’s parents are having problems. Normally I’d go straight to them with this, but I don’t want to make that situation worse.”
“I can appreciate your concern,” Paula said, “but do you really have a choice? Once you’ve taken this information to Betty and she’s taken action against Annabelle—suspension, I assume, if not expulsion—the whole town will be talking about it, asking questions and, sad to say, looking online for the evidence. Diana and Les Dawson deserve to be prepared for that. They need to know what’s been happening to their daughter before it all goes public, or should I say more public than it is already. Whatever their own problems, I’m sure they’ll want to be there for their daughter.”
Laura sighed. “My thought, too,” she agreed reluctantly.
And unfortunately there was no time to waste. The Dawsons had to be her priority. She’d find J.C. later and fill him in. It was far less important for her to have her own support system in place than it was for Misty to have hers.
“Could we meet here again?” Paula suggested. “I’d like an update on what’s happening, if you wouldn’t mind. I’m not going to rest well until I know that has been handled and that Misty’s safe once more. And I’ll want you to let me know if there’s any way at all you think I can help.”
“Absolutely,” Laura said. “And I can’t tell you how much it means to me that you and Katie trusted me with this information. I will do my best not to let you down.”
“I’m confident of that,” Paula said. “Serenity’s lucky to have you here. Not every teacher would be willing to go up against Mariah Litchfield.”
Laura couldn’t believe that. “Surely not.”
“Mariah’s the original town bully,” Paula confirmed. “Where do you think Annabelle learned her vicious ways? That sweet-as-pie exterior Mariah shows the world to get her way covers up a whole lot of mean. Once upon a time, she had her own dreams of superstardom, but getting pregnant put an end to those ambitions. Not only is she living vicariously through her daughter, but she’s filled with anger and
