Sophie managed to keep her distance from both Keith and Zack as the next week rolled in. Keith was someone she rarely saw anyway, but avoiding Zack took more effort. It was not until she went down to breakfast Monday morning that she heard news about Keith.
"Keith is missing," her dad stated as he plopped the newspaper down on the table beside his cup of coffee.
Sophie paused for a minute and regained her composure from the mention of his name.
"Missing? He's probably just drunk somewhere," Sophie took a bite of her toast and brushed the leftover crumbs from her lips as she eased into her chair.
"Yeah, I don't know," her dad murmured.
"I think he's the least of your worries now," Sophie stared down at the newspaper article with the picture of Jerry Martin's car.
"We found his truck. It was parked out by the motel. I think there's something fishy about that woman…Norma Bates and her son," her dad continued.
"Well maybe Keith finally got what he freakin deserves," Sophie grumbled.
Romero squinted his eyes at his daughter. "Something I need to know about?"
"Like what?" she took another bite of her toast.
"I don't know," he took a sip of his coffee.
Sophie took a gulp of milk and focused on her piece of toast.
"Do you ever see Norman at school?" Her dad questioned.
"I've seen him around. I've seen him hanging around Bradley and also Emma Decody, you know the girl with CF? I guess he's a bit of a lady's man," she murmured jokingly.
"You really think they had something to do with Keith disappearing?" she questioned after a moment of silence.
"I don't know," he murmured.
Sophie plopped her last bite of toast into her mouth as she thought. Maybe Zack made him leave town, she wondered.
"You sure you don't want any toast?" She asked as she got up with her plate.
"Yeah I'm sure. Zack text me and said he was bringing doughnuts over. We have some things to discuss."
Sophie rolled her eyes as she turned her back from her father. "Well, I'll be going then."
"He said he was bringing them for the both of us. He's bring the ones with the chocolate icing that you like," her dad continued.
"I don't want any," she grumbled. She washed the crumbs off of her plate and sat it in the sink.
"You can ride into town with us? We'll drop you off at school."
"No, Christina is gonna give me a ride," she lied. "Thanks anyway."
She turned back to the table to grab her backpack.
Sophie ignored her dad's lingering glare.
"I'll see you after school," she said quickly. She started towards the door.
"Hey,"
Sophie turned back to face her father. "Yeah?"
"Be careful," her father's face looked tired.
Sophie smiled. "Always. Love you."
"I'm serious," he called after her.
As she shut the front door back behind her, she frowned to herself. What in the world would her father have done if she'd come home that night and told him that Keith Summers had grabbed her along the dock and attempted to pull her to his boat. Sure he had been incredibly drunk and she probably would've been able to get away…
But what would he have said if she told him that Deputy Zack Shelby had been there too, laughing and watching as she struggled to get away, not coming to her aid until she screamed his name, causing him to realize that she wasn't just some random drunk girl. She was the sheriff's daughter.
Sophie pulled her phone from her back pocket and frowned at it. Still no message from Todd. He actually listened to her and stopped trying to apologize. She wasn't sure if she was actually happy about it or not.
She readjusted her blue backpack straps on her back and began walking toward school. She was now in the middle of senior year with no real idea of what she was going to do next. She hated to leave her dad alone. He acted like the toughest and strongest person in the world, but she knew he was still hurting. He buried himself in work, but she was always there for him when he needed to decompress and talk about his day or just go out for a cheeseburger and a milkshake. She'd gotten a lot closer with her dad since her mom's death.
Sophie walked hurriedly so that she wouldn't run into Zack and her dad. She didn't want him to know she'd skipped out on their ride just to walk alone.
As she neared the front gates of school, she saw someone she didn't recognize standing alone. He looked her way and then to the ground. She surveyed his slightly disheveled dirty blond hair and light red flannel shirt beneath a brown jacket.
"Hey," she said nonchalantly as she approached him.
He stopped staring and looked down again, fumbling with the zipper on his jacket.
"You new around here?"
He nodded. "Well not here at high school."
She forced a laugh. "I usually recognize pretty much everyone around here."
He nodded as he looked back to the ground.
"But anyway it's nice to meet you. I'm Sophie. And late for class," she said quickly. Almost regretting that she stopped to make conversation with the quiet stranger who wasn't actually a student..
He stared at her for a moment and she raised her eyebrows.
"Alright," she responded when he didn't answer. She turned on her heels and began through the gate when she heard his response.
"I'm Dylan."
She turned back and smiled at him before she headed onto campus.
During lunch, Sophie left school and headed into town with Christina. Her curly black haired friend gossiped the entire way, but Sophie found herself zoning out. She couldn't help but stare out the window, searching for Zack Shelby.
"Hey," Christina popped open her glove box, "Light one for me, will ya?"
Sophie took a quick glance inside and shoved it back with her foot. "Fuck no. You can't smoke it with me in here. If my dad smells weed on me, I'm dead."
Christina laughed a little. "You know your dad doesn't care."
"He does care," Sophie muttered as they neared a red light.
Sophie froze. There he was. He was standing on the sidewalk beside a blonde woman. White Pine Bay was so small, she wasn't surprised that she spotted him on this outing.
"Norma Bates?" she murmured beneath her breath. "What's he doing with her?" she questioned aloud.
They looked as if they were laughing and actually enjoying each other's company. And not as if he was questioning her about Keith Summer's disappearance.
"Huh?" Christina asked. "Norma Bates? That's the woman who reopened that crapshoot of a motel."
"Yeah," Sophie murmured.
"She must have the hots for Deputy hot stuff, huh?" Christina laughed.
"Maybe so," Sophie muttered.
She hadn't told Christina about what happened the night of the party. She hadn't told anyone.
"I can't believe you get to spend time with him all the time," Christina said sadly.
Sophie shook her head and sighed aloud. "He isn't everything you think he is."
"I'd like to get to know him."
"Yeah, whatever, we better get back to school. We're gonna be late for third," Sophie finally murmured.
