“Sure, she’s here. I’ll put it on speaker.” I heard the hesitation in his voice, but luckily he didn’t question me. If he knew whatI was about to ask of his wife, he might not have put her on the phone.
“Hi, Dylan!” An unexpected pang hit my chest at the familiarity in Jill’s cheerful greeting. She’d been Kayla’s friend in college, and we’d all spent a lot of time together back when things were easy.
“Hey, Jill! How are you? How’s life been these last few years?”
“Great! Things are really good. What’s going on?”
“Have you seen Kayla lately? I ran into her this morning, and I got a bad vibe from her.”
“Not really. I only saw her once a few months ago. Remember my roommate, Hailey? We were both at her baby shower, and she was... How do I describe her? Loud, inappropriate, jittery, like she was filled with nervous energy.”
“Yeah. Did she mention a boyfriend?”
“Leo. Is she still with that asshole?”
“Yep. What do you know about him?”
“She made a few comments about his opinions on her weight and the dress she was wearing—which was very short and tight—and she was nervous that he’d be angry if she didn’t go home right after the shower. He sounded controlling and manipulative.”
Shit. I knew what Ryan and I had seen, but I’d hoped that somehow Jill would have an explanation to prove us wrong.
“Oh,” she continued. “She also bragged about the jewelry he bought for her, but when someone asked what he did, she got mad at her for asking. Sounded very shady.”
“Dylan, what’s going on?” Evan asked.
“I’m not sure. Like I said, I ran into her today, just for a few minutes at the grocery store, but nothing Jill said is surprising. I don’t know anything for a fact, but I think she’s in over her head.”
“You think she’s using?”
“Yeah. Maybe. And I think Leo might be physical with her.”
“Damn, I hate that for her. What can I do?” Jill said.
“Nothing,” Evan said firmly. “Dylan, Jill isn’t putting her ass on the line for her.”
“I know, I would never ask that. But maybe just a phone call? Reach out and see if she needs anything?”
“Yeah, I can do that.”
“I don’t know,” Evan said.
“Ev, it’ll be fine,” Jill said. “A phone call can’t hurt anything. She was a really good friend for a long time.”
“I’d appreciate that, Jill.”
“You’re a good guy for still looking out for her.”
I didn’t feel like a good guy. I felt like an asshole. “I just hate to see her like this. She’s nothing like the woman I used to know. I know a phone call isn’t much, but it’s worth a shot. There’s no way she’d talk to me, but maybe she’ll listen to you. Sometimes planting a seed of hope, or giving support to someone who wants out but feels helpless, can be the push they need.”
“You know it’s not your fault, right?”
“Yeah. That’s what everyone tells me.” I smiled, a picture of Juliette popping into my head.
“It’s really not. She’s a big girl who makes her own decisions. I’ll call her, though, see if a little tough love from an old friend can get through to her.”
“That’s it, though. You’re not going to see her,” Evan said firmly. “If she’s on drugs, she could be unpredictable. And I don’t want you near this Leo character.”
“I know,” Jill reassured him.