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crooked grin starting on her face.
    “I didn’t get the job… yet,” she pretended to pout, still smiling.
    “You got the internship… your foot’s in the door.” I smiled, knowing how happy she’d been. She’d worked for months on an audition story for the local news station’s full-time intern opening. Her piece on pressure for teenagers to have sex had beat out five other local hopefuls. She’d start right after school got out in another month. I’d be leaving for basic at the same time and hoped she’d be distracted by her new job  not to worry too much.
     
     
    ***
     
     
    It was the week before Christmas and the drama club was putting on their end of the year play. Libby had gotten the lead role and couldn’t hide her excitement. Both of her parents had even come for opening night and were sitting next to mine in the front row. I could tell that Jackson wasn’t enjoying being there. Every few minutes he’d take a sip of whiskey from the flask sitting in his shirt pocket. But when the curtain pulled back, I forgot all about Jackson as Libby stepped onto the stage.
    The entire audience sat in stunned silence as Libby mesmerized us. We could feel every tear, every hope and every ray of happiness as she poured her soul into the role of Cinderella. I glanced down the row at Jack son, who seemed to be oblivious to the fact that his daughter was a very talented actor. Sitting three seats down, I could smell the stench of whiskey and I shivered. A sober Jackson was never a good thing… a drunk Jackson made me nervous.
    The last scene unfolded as the prince finally found the mysterious owner of the missing slipper. As the two characters reached towards each other for the play-ending kiss, the entire audience erupted in loud applause. I glanced over t o her parents and saw Carol Ann busily wiping tears from her eyes. But Jackson was glaring at Libby with murder in his eyes. I knew how Jackson felt about anyone getting physically close to his daughter… I’d seen that same look a few years before when he had assumed too much with me. But he hadn’t seen what I had when Libby was on stage. To the audience, the kiss had been the most romantic they’d ever seen, but they had missed seeing Libby turn her face just before the boy’s lips touched hers so all he kissed was her cheek.
    I searched for Libby backstage as the crowds of families and students started leaving the auditorium. The stage was already dark and there weren’t any more cast members hanging around. I stepped through the tangle of props, looking for the dressing room, when I heard a loud noise from behind the plywood castle. I followed the sound, dodging fake walls until I spotted a dark form leaning against the far wall. I stepped closer and saw that it was Jackson, his hands splayed against the wall in front of him. He had someone pinned against the wall.
    The red welt was already rising on her cheek when I realized it was Libby cowering before him. Her face was pale as she shrunk away from her pa’s angry face.
    “You bitch!” I heard him growl, spittle flying from his mouth as he spoke. “You’ll never be anything but a low-down, backwoods whore!” Libby flinched at his words. “I saw how you kissed that boy, you little slut!”
    “It wasn’t real, Pa!” She cried, frantically trying to calm him down. “It was just a play!” His face froze in a sick smile as his hands crept towards her throat.
    “Just a play?” He hissed, his fingers tightening on her throat. “You’re nothing but a whore, just like her.”
    Before I realized what I was doing, I had grabbed his shoulder and spun him around. His eyes didn’t show surprise, but challenge as he sneered at me. The next second, he was sprawled on the floor, my outstretched fist splattered with his blood. Jackson slowly wiped his arm under his nose as I stared him down.
    “You’re lucky I don’t get Sheriff Gellars in here to haul your ass to jail, you son of a bitch,” I