15 Minutes: A YA Time Travel Thriller (Rewind Series) by Jill Cooper

most guys, I
guess.”
    Dad
nods. “Good for you. School right now is most important. Keep at it.”
    “I
will. How are you?”
    Dad
shakes his head with a bitter sigh. He leans back in his chair and crosses his
arms. The distance between us multiplies, and I sense his reluctance to share
with me. “Tonight is mac and cheese night, and I am starting a new book from
the library, so I guess everything’s swell.”
    Swell.
Have I ever heard Dad say that before? Though mac and cheese was his favorite
meal, especially Kraft instant dinner.
    “I
read about what happened, with the parole and the stabbing. I’m sorry.” I take
a deep breath and swallow, but my throat is as dry as sandpaper.
    His
face flashes surprise.
      “I use the computer at the library. They try
to protect me from everything, but I don’t let them.”
    Dad
shifts in his seat as if he’s going to erupt with the question on his lips.
“Lara.” He leans forward with his elbow on the counter between us. “Why are you
here?”
    “I
need you to tell me what happened. Fill in the blanks,” I whisper, glancing
over my shoulder to make sure the guards aren’t loitering around too closely.
“Someone shot at Mom, but I know you didn’t send them. So what happened after
that?”
    Dad’s
eyes flash with anger. “Why would you believe in me after all these years?”
    “Dad.”
My eyes soften and grow wet as anger and spite fills his face. “There isn’t
time to explain. I need to know. I deserve the truth, don’t I? You’re my
father, and I want to know why you’re in here.”
    “Who
sent you? Who put you up to this?”
    “No.
One.” I meet his eyes, imploring him to believe in me, but as he pushes back
his chair, I sense he’s further away than ever. He thinks I’m a traitor? I am a
stranger, even if his blood does run in my veins.
    “I
can’t talk about this. Not with you. Sorry.” Dad tilts his head back. “Guard!”
    “No,”
I hiss and lean forward. “Daddy, what was Mom doing at the time agency before
she died?”
    I
blurt it out without thinking and want to fade away and die. Dad holds up his
arm to the guard to give him more time. Great job, I’ve managed to spill my
secret to two people now. I may as well take a bulletin out in the paper. I
feel nothing but self-loathing for what I’ve done to Dad, Mom, and the world.
    “Lara,”
he says softly, “why did you say died ?”
    “I
slipped,” I say as I lift my tear-ridden face off the table. “I meant … shot at.”
    “No.
No, you didn’t.” Dad shakes his head slowly. “When they brought you to see me
on your seventh birthday, what did I say to you?”
    My
mouth falls open at the test. My eyes flitter about as I try to force a memory
I don’t have. I blink and take a deep breath, allowing my chest to rise. I see
dancing flames across a layer of icing, but I have no idea what year the image
is from, and I see no faces. At this important time, I can’t draw a memory to
save my life.
    I
have to try, but I have nothing. I decide to throw out my best guess and hope
it is the right answer. “That we’d be together one day.”
    His
shoulders relax, and he uncrosses his arms. “And how’d you react?”
    Thinking
back, a trail of blood oozes from my nose. I grab a tissue from my bag and use it
to pinch my nose.
    My
mind transports me back to being a scared little girl, crying into my pillow,
begging for my dad. I can’t sleep. No one can because of my night terrors. Jax is sitting beside me to calm me down, but I thrash,
scratching him with my fingernails as deep as I can, wishing he’d go away.
    “I
cried.” My voice is hollow. “I had tantrums. Mom decided …” Tears stream down
my face. “… seeing you was too traumatic for me. That’s when they cut you out.”
    Dad
nods, his lips blubbering. “Guess there isn’t much to say, is there?”
    “Except
for what Mom was working on. I need to know.”
    “Why?”
he asks, wearing the question on his