Curiosity was getting the best of me. “I didn’t check my email in class. What else did it say?”
“It said that the Yates family was spotted on campus meeting with the President and the other administrators yesterday. And that the PROs might actually be held accountable for something with new information coming to light.”
My eyes widened. “What new information?”
“It didn’t say.”
I thought about the notebook. “I don’t want to get my hopes up. But if Aiden or one of the cheerleaders opened up about the notebook, that might help someone get to the truth about what happened to Carter.”
“That would be great for everybody.”
“But I know we have to take the info in these emails with a grain of salt. We don’t know how they’re getting their information,” I reasoned.
“True,” he agreed. “You know what else I think is a good sign?”
“What?”
“When you were telling me about what happened at the meeting your coach called, when she asked if Dakota and Vivian were lying, you said that not everybody said no, right?”
The wheels in my head started turning. “Right.”
“Maybe now that they’re faced with being kicked out of school, they aren’t as loyal to the cause anymore.”
“But wouldn’t they have been motivated by jailtime?”
“Not if they didn’t actually do anything. If they didn’t actually light anything on fire or do anything to Carter, they probably never even considered they could’ve gone to jail. But with the threat of being expelled, they are realizing that they’re faced with consequences that directly affect them.”
I reached over and touched his arm. “That makes sense! Some of them hesitated, but some didn’t say anything at all. Even Coach Ainsley pointed out how Sonya was unusually quiet.”
“Sonya always has something to say.”
With narrowed eyes and pursed lips, I quipped, “I’m sure she does.”
He laughed and the sound made me smile. “Aw. Don’t be jealous.”
“I am not jealous,” I scoffed.
“You already know you don’t have any reason to be jealous.”
I swatted his arm playfully. “I’m not jealous!”
Chuckling, he grabbed my hand, intertwining our fingers. “Good. Because there’s no one but you.”
“Mm hmm.” I rolled my eyes, but I was grinning.
Bringing the back of my hand to his lips, he kissed it. “There’s never been anyone else but you.”
My stomach fluttered and my body heated. “Jay…” I swooned and then remembered what I had to discuss with him. “Oh, and about that…”
“What’s up?”
“Maybe we shouldn’t tell anyone we’re together right now. With you being Carter’s ex and Carter being my ex-best friend, it could look bad if we’re together now.”
“I didn’t think about it like that, but yeah… I see what you’re saying.”
“Let’s get through the funeral first and then…” I squeezed his hand.
“Okay, that’s cool.” He squeezed my hand back before letting it go.
We arrived at the funeral home for the wake. It was supposed to go until nine; however, Carter’s parents had already left. I’d only met Carter’s grandmother a few times during the first year of our friendship. The frail, yet stylish woman was the quintessential rich matriarch. Carter loved her but called her a snob on more than one occasion.
As she was barking commands at family and funeral workers alike, I didn’t want to, but I felt like I needed to say goodbye before I left.
“Hello, Mrs. Yates,” I greeted the white-haired woman in the formfitting black dress. “I’m Brooklyn Cage—”
“I remember who you are,” she interrupted, sizing me up. “You’re the one that took her to that dangerous neighborhood in one of the boroughs in the city.”
Ah. There it is.
My lips formed a hard line. “No. But Carter did visit my home in Prospect Heights a few years ago. I just wanted to pass along my condolences before we head back to campus.”
“We’re leaving soon as well. We’re preparing the estate for a gathering after the obligatory stuff at the church.” She stuck out her hand to shake mine. “Well, thank you for coming.”
I forced a smile. “Of course. I was hoping to see Mr. and Mrs. Yates before they left. Please give them my love.”
“They had important police business to take care of. If all goes well, this whole thing will be resolved very soon, and we can grieve properly.” Her thin lips twisted into a knowing grin. “Justice will be served.”
Before I could respond, her eyes flitted to the left. “And you must be James Williams. The basketball boyfriend.”
He reached out to shake her hand. “Yes ma’am. I’m James and I’m sorry for your loss.”
“Yes, thank you. I presume you two will be at the funeral tomorrow. If I’m not mistaken, Tom and Carrie have something for you. Or maybe they put it in the mail.” She waved it off. “I’m not sure.”
“Oh, okay,” I responded. “Thank you.”
She eyed us suspiciously. “Did you two come together?”
“Yes,” I answered nervously.
“Hm.” She caught a glimpse of something happening behind us and started snapping her fingers. “Find me tomorrow and I’ll let you know about the gathering. Now if you’ll excuse me,” she concluded, walking toward the person she’d just flagged down.
We could hear her cursing someone out as we left the funeral home. As soon as we got in the car, we exhaled. Between the occasion and the people, it was a lot.
“Why do you think they had the casket closed?” I wondered quietly as we pulled off.
“I don’t want to think of the reasons why,” he answered solemnly.
The drive home was long and contemplative. By the time we returned to Jay’s apartment, we ate, showered, and climbed in bed. We hadn’t been that somber since we’d learned
