“Where did you go?”
“Home.”
“Where is that?”
He looked at me, narrowing his eyes. “What’s with all the questions?”
“I just realized I don’t know anything about you.”
Turning to face the road again, he said, “You don’t need to. I told you I don’t date.”
Those words crushed me. After our time together yesterday and last night, I thought he was warming up toward me. Apparently I was wrong. I stopped asking questions and watched the houses zooming by. My mood had suddenly darkened.
After he parked in the full lot, he walked me to my locker without speaking. I tried not to notice all the attention we were attracting. I could feel the stares of our schoolmates as we made our way into the building and down the crowded halls.
When he walked away, Lauren appeared in front of me. I hadn’t even noticed her. “Hi Megan, was that Nate I just saw with you?”
I frowned at her, suddenly suspicious. Why was she so interested in my being with Nate? The obvious reason could only be a crush, like most other girls that had thoughts about the elusive Nate Green, myself included. “Yes. Why?”
“Oh, I was just wondering. Are you two dating?”
Again I wondered why she cared. Her expression held no jealousy, just genuine curiosity. I wasn’t sure if I should, but I decided I needed to talk to someone about him. And I no longer had any friends. “No, I thought we might. He said he would protect me. I’m in a bit of a situation since the fire. Do you know what’s going on?” I asked and she nodded. “Well, yesterday the people behind the fire slashed my tires. He took me home and stayed for a while. We had fun together. He even defended me against my irritating mother, but then he disappeared. One minute he was there, the next he was gone. This morning he was his old distant self. He left me at my locker without walking me to my class like he said he would. I get mixed messages with him.” My voice took on my frustration and I heard the slight whine in it.
Her eyebrows creased with concern. “I say, you don’t let him back off. If he tries to push you away, push back harder. What’s the worst that can happen?”
“He could reject me.”
She looked thoughtful, a small smile on her face. “He could. But he might feel the same way. Maybe he’s just scared.”
Nate Green scared? I found that hard to believe, but I was thankful to be able to talk this through with someone. “Thank you, Lauren. It’s nice to have a friend to talk to. I’m in a bit of a situation with mine.” I knew I was being cryptic, but she didn’t seem curious at all.
“Anytime, Megan. And if you need someone to sit with at lunch, you can join me and my friends.”
“Thanks. I may take you up on that sometime.”
She walked away as I headed to my first class. I was about to step through the door when Brandon grabbed my arm. I lifted my other arm as if to punch him.
He let go of me, holding his hands up in front of him. “Don’t worry, I just want to talk.”
I backed away from him, looking around for his loser friends.
“I’m alone and I’m sorry about yesterday.” His eyes looked sincere, but after yesterday, I couldn’t trust him.
“What do you want?”
“I’m worried about you. Are you dating Nate Green?”
“That’s none of your business.”
“He’s dangerous, Megan. You should stay away from him.”
I rolled my eyes. “Please, he’s the one protecting me from you guys.”
“I’m sorry, but I get a weird vibe from him. Be careful.” He gazed at me with genuine concern before turning away and disappearing in the crowded hallway.
I went into class confused about everything that was going on. My life had turned upside down almost overnight.
At lunchtime I decided to take Lauren’s advice. Nate and I sat across from each other. He ignored me while he ate his burger.
“I know how much you like to eat, so I brought you a piece of pizza.” I tossed the slice on his tray. I had actually bought my lunch today. When I was waiting in line with Nate, I decided to buy him something as a thank-you for helping me yesterday.
He smiled slightly, but didn’t look up. “Thanks. I’m sorry if I gave you the wrong idea last night, but you shouldn’t be hanging out with me. I’m not good for you.”
“That’s the second time I’ve heard that today.”
He looked up surprised. “Who else said it?”
“Brandon told me I shouldn’t hang out with you and that you were dangerous. Isn’t that funny coming from him?”
He stared coldly at me. “He’s right.”
“No, he’s not.” I took a bite of my sandwich.
“Did he hurt you?” he asked, avoiding my eyes.
“No. He apologized, warned me about you and then left.”
“And yet you’re here.”
“I’m not going to listen to him. Don’t you remember what he did yesterday? I do. And besides, you told me to eat with you.” I held my sandwich out in front of me, pulling some of the crust off and dropping it onto my napkin.
“I know, but it doesn’t have to be me. Just as long as you’re with someone, you’ll be fine. Did Lauren talk to you today?”
“Yes, why?”
“I saw the two of you. What did she say?”
“She just said hi.”
It was obvious he didn’t believe me, but he stayed silent. When the bell rang, I stood up and stared at him, waiting. I thought he was going to walk me to class. Apparently, he changed his mind. He didn’t look at me as he crumpled his burger wrapper and stuffed it inside his fry container. He seemed to be avoiding eye contact on purpose.
“Well, this has been fun. Are you still going to drive me to pick up my car, or should I ask someone else?”
“Who would you ask?”
My mind went blank. I was actually bluffing when I offered to find a ride with someone else. Only one person came to mind. “Lauren. She’s the only person who talks to me other than you.”
“Maybe you should ask her.”
Ouch, that hurt. I wasn’t sure how many more times I could take rejection from him. And right at that moment I made a vow to forget about Nate Green. He was so weird. One minute, he was telling me to basically get lost; the next he was overly protective and hanging out at my house having dinner. Then he was acting like it never happened and blowing me off again. I wasn’t sure how much more of his confusing behavior I could take. I decided I was done. No more. I was so over Nate Green. I wouldn’t give him the time of day even if he begged.
“Fine, I’ll do that.” I grabbed my bag off of the table, leaving my barely touched lunch for him to dispose of and stormed out of the cafeteria.
When the last bell of the day rang, I rushed to my locker, not wanting to keep Lauren waiting. I stuffed my English, geography and calculus books into my bag before rushing out the east door to the parking lot. Lauren and I had agreed to meet there when I asked her for a ride after lunch.
As I slipped out of the school, I noticed a tall man wearing a suit and dark sunglasses. He was leaning against the building talking to a woman with long brown hair. They were speaking quietly while scanning the kids who rushed to their cars, eager for the end of the school day. When the door slammed shut behind me, the woman looked over and I knew who they were waiting for—me. Detective Carver gestured to Alberts, who glanced my way.
“What do you want?” I said, stopping in front of them. “Don’t worry I’m going to community service.”
“That’s not why we’re here, Megan. We heard that you had an incident with your car. Would you like to press charges?”
“No.”
They shared a look and then Carver continued. “Do you know who did it?”
“No.”
“Seems to me that by slashing your tires someone is trying to scare you into keeping your mouth shut about the fire,” Detective Alberts said. He rested his hand on his belt buckle, expo
sing his badge. This was not good. All I needed was for any of my old friends to see me with the police.
“I have nothing to say,” I called out, rushing away from them, making my way to Lauren’s car.
“Thanks so much for doing this, Lauren,” I said as I slid into her blue compact car.
She was sitting in the driver’s side tapping the steering wheel. “No problem. Hey, who was that you were talking to?”
“The police. Somehow they heard about my tires yesterday. Nate must have told them. What a jerk. I really thought I could trust him.”
“You don’t know it was him. A lot of people saw your tires. The teachers could have reported it,” she offered. She was defending Nate, which was strange, since she had told me once she didn’t know him. “So where to?” she asked, sliding her large brown sunglasses on and turning the key in the ignition.
I gave her the address to the body shop and she pulled out of the lot. Her tires squealed on the pavement behind us.
I tried not to scan the cars for a black convertible. But it didn’t matter anyway, it wasn’t there. He had already left, probably in a hurry to get away from me.
“What are you doing tonight?” Lauren asked me, stopping at a red light. Serena Beranger pulled up behind us with a group of other cheerleaders. I could hear my name drift from their car, but it didn’t bother me. I hadn’t really gotten close to any of them. Lauren must have heard as well, because she twisted her face, making a gagging sound. I laughed as we pulled away, forgetting all about the girls’ gossip.
“I have community service. Why?”
“Ally and Lily are coming over tonight, just to hang out and listen to music, maybe watch a movie. I thought you might want to come.”
I had never really talked to Allison or Lily. My other friends always felt that we were too good for them. They came from middle-class families and didn’t live in mansions. I had always secretly envied Lauren for hanging out with anyone she wanted. She didn’t care what others thought about her. I suddenly wanted to be like her.
“You know what, I will come. I’ve been at the shelter almost every day this week. I think I need a break.”
She turned her head and smiled widely. “Great. Everyone’s showing up around eight.”
I returned her grin, feeling excited. I hadn’t had friends to talk to in over a week.
Once she pulled into the garage, I climbed out, giving her a quick wave as she took off. The body shop was full of empty cars and the lot was empty of people. Just as I started to take a step toward the building, I heard the sound of a motor rev from a side street. I looked over, but all I could see was a black hood hidden behind a very large truck. I started to make my way around a big blue car to investigate when I heard my name.
“Are you Megan?” I turned around to see a small skinny man with black greasy hair. He was wearing a ball cap that read Lou’s Auto. He stood in the doorway of the auto shop, holding the door for me.
“Yes.”
His smile revealed extremely white teeth. “Well, come on in, I have your keys.”
Forgetting about the black vehicle, I followed him in to retrieve my keys. Louis confirmed what Nate had planned. He had sent the bills to the parties responsible and would let me know what happened. But for now I was free to take my car and head home before going to Lauren’s.
Chapter Eight
Followed
At seven thirty, I slipped out the door and headed to my car. It was just getting dark, so I turned on my headlights before I pulled out.
Lauren’s house was on the other side of the city. Most of the upper-class houses were located in the same subdivision as mine, but hers was in the older part of town. It was one of the original structures in Creekford.
I pulled out of my driveway onto Pine, turning up the radio. An indie band floated out of the speakers. I reached down to turn it up. The song was about fighting against authority and it was exactly how I felt tonight. I was ditching community service and I felt like a rebel. I wished I could see the look on Nate’s face when I didn’t show up. I wanted him to know that I was sick of the hot and cold way he treated me. I just wished I didn’t feel the tug of guilt by not going to see Natalie and the other kids.
Stopping at a stop sign almost to my destination, I thought I heard a loud thud. I was sure I felt something hit the back of my car. I turned down the radio and looked in my rearview mirror. All I could see were headlights so bright they almost blinded me. The vehicle behind me was huge and extremely close.
Seeing that there were no cars coming, I pulled out, glancing around the area for Cedarcrest, the street that Lauren lived on.
Thud. I knew for sure this time that something had hit me, slamming me into the steering wheel. I looked into the rearview mirror and saw a truck was coming at me, about to ram the back of my car again. I stepped on the gas, but so did the driver of the black vehicle and thump, it bumped me again. I couldn’t believe this was happening.
Just when I was about to stop and call nine-one-one with my cell, the truck pulled out around me, squealing its tires. That’s when I saw what kind of vehicle it was; a big black SUV. It sped past me and stopped abruptly at the end of the street, waiting. As it sat under the streetlight, I realized it was the same truck that I had seen at the body shop. The only person I knew that drove a vehicle like that was Shane. He must have seen me talking to the police after school and wanted to scare me. If that was the result he was after, it was working. My heart hammered in my chest and my hands shook on the steering wheel.
I pulled onto the side of the road, hoping to avoid a confrontation with him. I sat and waited to see what he was going to do. His truck didn’t move, just continued to sit at the end of the road. Its exhaust puffed up into the night sky. The shine of the street light above created an eerie glow around his vehicle, like a warning for me to stay away.
He was waiting for me to come to him. He thought I had nowhere to go. He was wrong about that.
I looked behind me and saw that the road was empty. I pulled out again and went the other way, driving faster than I ever had, constantly looking in my rearview mirror.
He spun around and started to follow me. I turned onto Maple and then Valley Road. I kept turning onto side streets until eventually I didn’t know where I was. But the enormous black SUV was always there behind me, making my heart race, its headlights shining like two angry eyes.
A street sign ahead of me gave me hope. It was Water Street, which backed up to Cedarcrest. I pulled onto it, driving fast, hoping to get to Lauren’s before Shane caught up to me. I made the turn onto Cedarcrest just as he sped up, coming at me fast. I stepped on the gas, not letting up until I came up to Lauren’s driveway. I turned onto it, my tires squealing and pulled up in front of her house behind an older station wagon.
I sat inside my car with the engine idling and peered out my open window. Shane’s SUV sat blocking Lauren’s driveway. He revved his motor, as if threatening me one last time.
The front door of Lauren’s house swung open and Lauren stood out on the step. She looked at me, then at the SUV that was now speeding away.
“Megan, are you all right?” she yelled, running down the steps and opening my door. I turned my car off and slipped the keys into my purse. “What was Shane’s SUV doing here?”
“He followed me,” I said, feeling shaken, slowly getting out of the car. She shut the door for me and led me into the house.
Once inside she pulled my bag from my arm and tossed it onto an antique wooden bench in the hallway. “Are you all right?” Lauren asked me, leading me up the long winding marble staircase and to the right, down a wide hallway. I nodded, not sure if I was.
The hall was lined with tempered glass sconces that created a low light. Even though it wasn’t very bright, I noticed that there weren’t many rooms. It looked like there were just two doors and a closet at the end of the hall. As soon as we walked into her room I could see why; it was huge. About double the size of mine and I th
ought that was big.
On the right side there was a king-size, dark wood, canopy bed with brass edgings. The curtains that were pulled back were red silk that matched the window coverings and pillows. The bed itself was on a platform with steps leading up to it. There was an end table on either side with a chair next to the bed. On the left was a sitting room with a big-screen TV, sofa and two overstuffed rose-colored armchairs. Lauren guided me over to her bed and I sat down on what felt like a cloud, her mattress was so soft.
Lily and Allison, who were huddled near a shelf beside the TV sifting through what looked like thousands of DVDs, rushed over. “What’s wrong?” Lily asked.
I suddenly felt guilty for the way I had treated her in the past. She held an expression of genuine concern, even though every time she had spoken to me in school, I only had a quick hello for her. I didn’t talk about her behind her back like Mandy and Jenny did. But I had never stopped them either, or made an effort to be her friend.
Lily was a very pretty girl, but tiny. She was short with a slim build and her cropped blond wispy hair made her seem even more fragile. Her green eyes were the color of emeralds.
Allison, on the other hand, was as tall as me with long black raven hair and the lightest blue eyes I had ever seen. Guys were friendlier to her because of her looks, but the ones from my crowd wouldn’t date her. They all thought they were better than she was because of their large homes and even larger bank accounts.
“Someone followed her,” Lauren explained to the two girls, who sat on the bed beside me. I glanced at her with my brow furrowed, surprised that she held Shane’s name back. She gave me a wink on her way back to shut the door.
“Who?” Allison asked.
I leaned back on the comfortable bed, laying my palms flat onto the silky blanket. “I’m not sure. It was a big black vehicle, that’s all I could see. But whoever it was bumped the back of my car a few times and then followed me until I pulled into Lauren’s driveway.”
“Do you think it has something to do with the fire? Maybe it was the people you’re protecting,” Allison guessed, looking from Lauren to Lily and back to me.
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