Chapter 2

The scream rang through the canyon, turning the heads of tourists taking photos in the distance.

Looking at Althea Chavez sprawled on the ground, all I could see in my mind was my mother's face as she lay in the ER.

In my last life, it was these people who drove my mother to that end.

My heart clenched so tight I couldn't breathe.

I quickly stepped back twice.

"Everyone, take a good look. From start to finish, I never touched so much as the hem of her clothes."

I explained to the tourists crowding in.

"She's the one who climbed over the railing and tried to attack me, and she tripped on her own."

"That's bull!"

One of the relatives with Althea shouted at me.

"There are plenty of eyes on you here. You clearly shoved her, and you still have the nerve to argue."

Rushing footsteps came from the edge of the crowd.

"Make way, make way. What's going on here?"

A man pushed through.

It was Wyatt Lambert.

General manager of the park's operations department, and Althea Chavez's son.

"Mom! What happened to you?"

The instant he saw Althea's mouth full of blood, Wyatt's face changed.

He hurried to help her up off the ground.

"Wyatt! Finally, you're here."

Althea's finger jabbed toward me.

"It's this tour guide. All I wanted was a photo. Fine if she wouldn't let me, but she shoved me to the ground! What did I ever do to deserve this?"

"Son, you're the manager here. Is this how you keep your people in line?"

Wyatt's dark, vicious glare fixed on me.

"Willow Swanson, feeling brave, are you? You've got the nerve to hit my mother!"

There was pure menace in his voice.

"As a park employee, your job is to serve the tourists, not beat them."

"Manager Lambert, I didn't hit anyone."

I stated the facts in a calm, even tone.

"She broke the rules, climbed over the railing, trampled the rock formations, and even carved graffiti into the cliff. I spoke up to stop her, she tried to hit me, and she fell by accident."

"You still dare to talk back!"

Wyatt cut me off, refusing to hear a word.

"That rotten attitude of yours is dragging our park's name through the mud!"

He put on a show of righteous indignation, when really he was just protecting his mother.

"Now, bow and apologize to this lady this instant, and cover every cent of her medical bills and emotional damages!"

"Otherwise, you'll be gone tomorrow, as far away as you can get. Don't come back to work here!"

Misled by Wyatt's speech, the onlookers around me shot me looks of condemnation one after another.

"This guide really went too far. How could she put her hands on an old woman?"

"Exactly. Young people these days have no manners at all."

"Geez, her mouth's bleeding. What kind of person is this? Someone like that's fit to be a tour guide?"

"Right, and slandering the poor lady on top of it. Absolutely shameless!"

Listening to the muttering around her, Althea smiled, pleased with herself.

Her moaning and groaning grew louder and more theatrical.

"Why would I apologize?"

I didn't take their bait; I turned the question back on them.

"If the manager is the one in charge of this park, shouldn't he go take a look at that stretch of rock formation with the graffiti carved into it first?"

"Under the scenic-area regulations, damaging a core landmark carries fines when the case is serious, and there's no cap on the amount."

"I can go and file a report right now, under my own name, that someone here has been carving and scrawling on the rock."

Wyatt's face froze instantly.

Clearly he hadn't expected me to throw the law in his face.

He jabbed a furious finger at me.

"Willow Swanson, don't push your luck. My mother is far too respectable to go carving and scrawling on anything!"

"You not only hit my mother, you spread lies and slander her! You think I won't call the police right now and have them haul you away?"

I answered coolly. "Go ahead. Once the police get here, we can check the footage and see whose problem it really is, and who ends up getting hauled away."

That broke a cold sweat on Wyatt, and he cursed at me under his breath.

"You just wait. Don't think I'll let this go. Compensation for my mother and for the damage to the site. You won't get out of a single bit of it!"

With that, he took hold of Althea and left with the whole group of relatives.