“Well, you totally blend either way,” Brooklyn said. “Cameron’s a sophomore and you’re both the same height … freaking-tall-foot-five.”
“I suppose,” he said, unconvinced.
Brooklyn seemed to be getting annoyed with all the stares too. One girl in particular had taken quite a fancy to Riley High’s newest student. “Keep walking, freshman,” she said, like being a freshman was something to be ashamed of.
“Do you feel out of place?” I asked Jared.
He lowered his head. “I do, but not for the reasons you think.”
Cameron walked up then, his brows raised at Brooklyn. “That was rude. I’m impressed.”
“Don’t be.” She craned her neck back and forth, but the girl had already started down the hall. “Sorry ’bout that!” she yelled after her.
Cameron shook his head. “All my hopes, dashed in a blinding moment of regret.”
“Well, you were right,” she said. “That was rude.”
“You’re rude to me all the time,” Glitch said.
“You don’t count.”
He folded his arms over his chest. “I forgot I was pond scum. I’m like a minuscule one-celled organism in a multi-celled world.”
“What are the reasons I think?” I asked Jared.
He placed his fingers under my chin and raised my face to his. I froze. One corner of his mouth tipped up in a devilish way as he nailed me to the floor with one steady look. The world quieted, and I wondered if he had stopped the spin of the Earth again, if he had stopped time.
“Listen, amoeba boy—,” Brooklyn said behind me.
Nope.
“—it’s just that being rude to you is different from being rude to a complete stranger.” She placed her arm in Glitch’s. “It’s like that time you set your little brother’s shorts on fire … while he was still wearing them. I mean, would you ever do that to a complete stranger?”
“I guess not,” Glitch said.
“So, you feel better now?”
“No.”
“You think I’m sorry I’m here,” Jared said, his voice quiet and sure, “and that could not be further from the truth.”
Sometimes I could see through his dark eyes straight into his soul. So old. So knowledgeable. And yet he seemed like a kid, like us. Charm radiated from every inch of his body, an innocent charm, like he was completely unaware he had it. I thought I saw silver flakes in his dark eyes. They sparkled as always when he smiled.
“You, you, you, you, and you.”
I startled to attention as Mr. Davis barreled toward us.
“I need you five in my office now.”
Concern made my heart beat faster. “All five of us?” I asked.
Mr. Davis’s brows snapped together like he thought I was being smart. I wasn’t. I was simply in denial.
He turned without comment and headed back toward his office. I glanced up at Jared. His smile had vanished. He watched Mr. Davis walk away, his expression guarded.
When we walked to his office, Mr. Davis was standing outside, talking to Sheriff Villanueva. A jolt of fear raced through me. This was it. This was the end. We were in so much trouble. I just wasn’t completely sure why. I mean, what did we do wrong? Besides vandalize a car or two, shatter a few windows downtown.
Principal Davis turned toward us. “If you four will go in, the sheriff and I would like to talk to Lorelei alone.”
Jared’s hand was around my arm instantly while Cameron, Glitch, and Brooklyn shifted nervous eyes at one another.
“Sure, Mr. Davis,” Brooklyn said at last, adding a light bounce to her step. As she walked past, she took hold of Jared’s sleeve and dragged him, as nonchalantly as possible, inside.
Jared glanced over his shoulder, but I couldn’t read his expression. I didn’t think he was worried I would say anything. He seemed more concerned about me than himself.
“I guess you’ve made a new friend,” Mr. Davis said.
I turned toward him.
“Anything else you care to tell me about Jared Kovach?”
I took in the two men. Sheriff Villanueva wasn’t very tall, but I heard he’d been a Golden Gloves boxing champion. He had a strong presence, intense, though his kind features seemed to balance out his rough edges.
I shrugged. “I told you what I know.”
“But you two have been hanging out more,” he said. “Have you learned anything new?”
The sheriff’s focus never wavered off my face. He was reading every move I made, every reaction I had to Mr. Davis’s questions. I decided to cooperate fully. And a tad deceptively.
“Look,” I said in a conspiratorial voice, “Jared’s parents are having a really hard time right now. He’s staying with us for a while, and we’re doing everything in our power to keep him from becoming suicidal. I mean, he’s been really upset. His parents are on the verge of divorce. They’re about to lose their house in Santa Fe—”
“I thought he was from Los Angeles,” Mr. Davis said.
Oops. “Well, right,” I said, stuttering slightly, “I was getting to that. They lost their house in Los Angeles a while back, and now they’re about to lose their house in Santa Fe too.”
“They’re going to lose two houses?”
“Yes,” I said, praying that he believe me, “if his dad doesn’t get a new job soon.”
After a long pause, he said, “Okay, go on.”
“Well, so anyway, he’s staying with us until his parents decide what they’re going to do. That’s why he didn’t show up back to school. He was hoping to be back with them permanently before the week was up.”
The sheriff spoke up then. “Are you related?”
“No. Well, not exactly. His parents are very close to my grandparents.”
“I thought you had just met him,” Mr. Davis said.
“Yes. I did. But my grandfather has known his dad for years.” Why was I saying these things? I was trying to keep my grandparents out of this mess, but one phone call and I was busted.
I’d gone crazy. It was true. Somewhere in the midst of all the chaos, I had lost my marbles.
“Why didn’t you mention that the other day in my office?”
“Mr. Davis, I didn’t feel comfortable talking about Jared or his family without his consent. I hope you can understand that. Jared’s been really upset.”
“Yes, you said that.”
The sheriff passed a sideways glance to Mr. Davis before asking, “So, why don’t you tell me what you know about a fight on Main Street and a vandalized Buick.”
“A fight?”
“Yes, a fight. Between a tall dark-haired teenager and a tall blond one.”
“Really? When was this?”
“On Tuesday, supposedly right after you left the Java Loft.”
I gulped in air as I pretended to understand. “Wasn’t that an earthquake?” I looked from one man to the other, my eyes wide and curious. I should totally become an actor. “Well, whatever it was, I missed the whole thing. Glitch and Brooklyn told me about it later that night. You can ask them.”
“So, Jared Kovach could have been in a fight and you wouldn’t have known about it?”
“Sheriff Villanueva, Jared was with his parents in Santa Fe. Remember, Mr. Davis?” I squinted at him questioningly. “I told you in your office yesterday, he was upset and wanted to be with them. He just got back late last night. He couldn’t have had anything to do with a fight or an earthquake or whatever-the-heck else could’ve happened.”
The sheriff surveyed me suspiciously. “Ms. McAlister, I have some rather credible eyewitnesses. And to be totally honest, both Kovach and Lusk look a little beaten and bruised.”
