by Ruby Vincent
Those words hung in the air between us as we dressed and got ready for breakfast. We would eat first and then the placement test began at nine o’clock on the dot in the multipurpose room. Big enough to hold us all while the faculty stood watch.
The cafeteria was packed when we stepped inside, but this time there was no shouting, laughter, or banter back and forth. Students sat huddled up at their tables with a fork in one hand and a textbook in the other.
Adam and I loaded our trays with pancakes and hash browns and then took them to a table in the back. “You think we’re ready for the test?”
“As ready as we’ll ever be,” Adam replied. “I just want to get it over with.”
“Me too,” I said. “Let’s talk about something else. What are you going to do when you go home?”
“We’re going to the water park. What about you?”
“My mom will be working on her book, but my cousin is going to introduce me to her friends. We’re going to spend the rest of the summer being normal teenagers before Breakbattle claims me.”
He chuckled. “There won’t be anything normal about our lives then.”
“Tell me about it.” I cut a slice of pancake and popped it into my mouth. The doughy, syrupy goodness was helping to lift my mood. “I still wonder how they came up with all of this. Why they chose those five sports and the system they use to determine placement and the winner of battles. I’ve been looking it up, but when they’re quoted, the staff just give standard answers.”
Shaking his head, Adam gave me a strange smile.
“What? What did I say?”
“I see why you’re so good at math. You never stop until you find the answer.”
“I think that’s a compliment.”
“Don’t worry. It is.”
We laughed, enjoying a light moment, until I spotted something over Adam’s shoulder.
Santiago came into the cafeteria and marched directly up to Landon’s table. My grip tightened on my fork while I watched them talk. I couldn’t look at him without picturing him holding Cameron back as he fought to make good on his many terrible threats.
Santi straightened and looked right at me. He headed for us while Landon stood up and went over to Cole and Michael’s table. “You need to come with me.”
“Why?” Adam asked.
“Now. It’s important.” Santiago didn’t look bored or annoyed at that moment. He just looked serious. “Get up.”
He moved off toward Zachary’s table, clearly expecting us to follow.
Adam and I shared a look. “What do we do?”
“We won’t hear the end of it if we don’t go,” he said. “Let’s just find out what he wants so we can finish our food.”
We pushed back from the table and made for the doors. Cole, Landon, Michael, Zachary, and Santiago met us just outside the cafeteria.
Santiago didn’t stop. “Let’s go.”
“Wait,” I called. “Derek’s not here.”
“Come on!”
Not knowing what else to do, we followed him through the halls and out onto the quad. The other boys tried asking him questions, but Santiago refused to speak. He stared straight ahead as he led us past the gyms and in the direction of the woods.
“Seriously?” Adam piped when we realized where we were going. “We don’t have time for another ‘club meeting.’ The test is in less than an hour.”
Santiago did not acknowledge that he heard him. There was a tense silence hanging over the boys while we headed deeper. As though everyone was recalling what we went through the last time we were here.
What if this is about the other night? He could be dragging us out here so they can tell us Derek is out of the Network.
I gazed at the back of Santiago’s head. It’s not like he would tell me, so I just have to wait and find out.
The older boy took us down a path that was becoming familiar to me. When we stepped over a gnarled root, I knew we were close to the boulder.
Santiago was first to enter the clearing and I heard a voice.
“There you are. Are they here?”
“They’re all here.”
Adam pulled out ahead of me. “What is going on?” He burst through the trees. “Why did you—” Adam stopped so abruptly I ran into his back. “Oh no, Cameron... what did you do?”
“What?” I moved around him. “What’s wrong...”
I trailed off as I took in the scene. It was as though a bucket of ice water had been tipped over my head. I stood frozen. My legs couldn’t move to run. My lips too numb to release my scream.
Cameron staggered toward us. He wasn’t the perfectly put-together picture of beauty and charm any more. His hair hung in messy, sweaty lanks. The sleeve of his shirt dangled off of his wrist and a streak of dirt was being washed from his face by tears. But it wasn’t him I was staring at.
It was Derek Grayson, lying still at the foot of the boulder. His expression so serene he could have been sleeping if not for the dark, growing pool beneath his head.
“No,” I whispered. It was all I could get out before air deserted me.
“Fuck, Cameron!” Cole shrieked. “What did you do?!”
“It was an accident! I swear!” Cameron ran at him, but Cole reeled back, tripping over his feet. Cameron turned on the others, eyes huge and pleading, but they all backed away from him. Except me. I couldn’t move, couldn’t breathe, couldn’t think for the roaring in my ears.
“I brought him out here t-to talk to him.” Cameron’s voice reached me from far away. “To get him to take back the stuff he said about my father. It was him who took the first swing! I pushed him off and— and— he fell.” A keening wail tried to pierce my fog. “It wasn’t my fault! It was self-defense. He just fell and hit his head.”
“Why did you bring us here?!” Michael cried.
“Because he’s— he’s dead.”
That one word struck me with the force of a blow and something shattered. “Derek,” I rasped. Before I knew what was happening, I was running. “Derek! Derek, no!”
I threw myself down next to him. Seizing his body, I pulled him to me. “Don’t be dead. Please, d-don’t be dead.” Sobs ripped from my chest, forced through a throat so tight I choked on them, but I couldn’t stop. “Der—”
Rough hands grabbed me and hauled me off.
“No, stop!”
I fought viciously in Santiago’s hold, but his arms were steel bands. He crushed me to his chest. “Stop it! Calm down!”
“Calm down?” Landon repeated. “How are we supposed to calm down? Cameron killed Derek!”
“I didn’t kill him! It was an accident.”
Adam’s face was starkly pale. “We need to call the police.” He scrambled for his phone. “Or an ambulance. Maybe it’s not too late. He could be—”
“No!” In a blink, Cameron launched himself at Adam and wrestled the phone away.
“What are you doing?!”
“You can’t call anyone. You weren’t here, okay. None of us were here.”
“What does that mean?” Landon looked hard at Cameron. “Tell us why you brought us here. Now.”
“People... saw us at the party.” Cameron glanced back at us and Derek’s body. “They saw me and him get into it and then you guys watched him provoke me afterward. You heard the things I said. If they question the students, it’s all going to lead back to me, but I didn’t mean for any of this to happen. The police might not believe it was self-defense if you tell them I threatened him. That’s why you can’t say anything.”
I stopped struggling, stunned. What was he saying?
“Not only that, but you have to say that I was with you before breakfast and we were— were studying or something. Alright?” Cameron whipped around, gazing wide-eyed into each shocked face. “Alright?!”
“I can’t—” Cole inched back. “I can’t do this.”
“You have to! We’re brothers now, Cole. You have my back, and I promise, I’ll have yours. Whatever you n
eed. Whatever you want!”
“You swear it was self-defense.” All eyes flew to Zachary. He broke his silence for the first time since walking into the clearing.
Cameron nodded frantically. “I swear. He came at me. He started the fight.”
“Then... okay.”
“Okay?!” Adam shouted. “What’s okay?!”
“We all know how Derek is.” Zach stepped out of the trees. “You saw how he was the other night. He pushes people’s buttons for fun. He loves pissing everyone off and he’s been nothing but an asshole since middle school. I believe he started the fight, and if he did... there’s no reason Cam should get in trouble for defending himself.”
“No,” Michael cut in. “We’re not doing this. Call the police, tell them the truth, and it will be fine.”
“You can’t call the police!” Cameron shouted. “You’re in the Network. We have to stick together.”
“We didn’t sign up for this,” Cole shot back. “Not murder!”
“I didn’t kill him!” Cameron’s chest heaved with rapid pants. The wild fear hadn’t left his eyes, but I could see something else creeping in. “Fine. If you won’t say I was with you... then I’ll say you were with me.”
“What are you talking about?” asked Adam.
“I’ll tell the police we were all here, a fight broke out, and Derek died. People have seen us together. Parker and Jose know you’ve been recruited. I’ll say a hazing went horribly wrong and we were all responsible.”
My hair stood on end as he spoke.
“They might believe you if you say I’m making it up,” Cameron continued. “Or they’ll think you’re trying to save your own skin. You won’t have to risk it if you agree to say we were together studying.”
Landon stared at him, mouth hanging open. “You wouldn’t.”
“Don’t make me.”
No one spoke, but as the boys turned to each other, I could see the looks on their faces. I saw them giving in.
“No!” I reared back and dug my elbow in Santi’s gut. He let out a sharp grunt and his hold loosened. Falling to the ground, I scrambled away. “I won’t let you get away with this! You killed him and I’m telling the police the truth!”
I leveled a shaky finger at him. “It was you who started all of this! You provoked him! You forced us to do that sick test and then you attacked and threatened him when it was turned on you! Accident or not, I won’t help you hide from what you’ve done!”
I yanked my phone from my pocket.
“No!” Cameron surged forward, bursting into a run. “Give me the phone!”
9-1—
Cameron seized my wrist in a grip that made me cry out. “Let me go!”
“Help me!” He fought to wrestle the phone from my grip. “Hold him down!”
Zachary rushed to his side. I opened my mouth to tell him off when he reared back. Zach’s fist connected and snapped my head around. Pain exploded in my jaw and I dropped like a stone, releasing my grip.
“Hey!”
Black spots danced in my vision as my head struck the ground.
“You take care of him, Moon,” Cameron said. “We have to get out of here. Remember, we were all together.”
I heard the sound of retreating footsteps as two hands took me under the arms and lifted me up. The last thing I saw before Adam threw me over his shoulder were the boys slipping through the trees, leaving us alone with Derek’s body.
“YOU C-CAN’T DO THIS.”
Adam carried me through the woods. My tears dripped down my nose and stained his back.
“This isn’t you, Adam. We have to call the police. We have to tell them the truth.”
“Of course we’re telling the truth.”
“We—” The plea lodged in my throat. “What?”
“We’re going to get help. Cameron took my phone too, but we’ll find my mom and she’ll take care of everything. She’d never believe any story Cameron or the others made up about me. We’ll do the right thing by Derek.”
My tears slowed to a stop. “But— but— Why didn’t you say anything back there?”
“They were scared, desperate, and not thinking straight—especially Cameron. There was no reasoning with them. I let them go so they wouldn’t try to stop us. By the way, are you okay? Zach hit you pretty hard.”
“I’m okay,” I said softly. I don’t know why it continued to surprise me how good of a person Adam was, but it had been the worst morning imaginable. I couldn’t believe anything that was happening. “You can put me down.”
Adam stopped and set me on my feet. For a second, we just looked at each other. “Thank you,” I whispered.
“I’m sorry. I can see his death affected you.”
I turned away. “We should go. We have to find your mom.”
Adam led the way, quickening his pace when we spotted the school through the trees. “She’ll be in her office. Come on.”
We raced across the quad and ran into the school. We passed a group of boys as we darted through the hall and one broke off. “Hey, Adam? Zeke?” called Justin. “Where are you going? The multipurpose room is this way.”
“We’ll catch up,” Adam said.
Together we hurried past the cafeteria and turned into the faculty hallway. Adam burst into a run at the sight of his mom’s door. He tugged on the handle, but it didn’t budge.
“She’s not here.”
I bounced on my heels. “Where could she be? Are you sure she’s at work?”
“She’s here. She must be in the bathroom or in the faculty dining room.”
“Then, you check the dining room, and I’ll look in the bathroom.”
“Wait, Zeke—”
I took off down the hall. I wouldn’t wait. I needed to find her.
I rounded the corner and threw open the door to the bathroom. I may have been dressed like a boy, but I was still a girl and this was an emergency. “Miss Val? Miss Val, are you here?”
No one answered my call. I ducked out and ran back to her office in time to see Adam appear at the end of the hall.
“She’s not in the dining room,” he said as he jogged over to me. “She’s here some—”
“Baby?”
We spun around. Miss Val stepped into view, carrying her purse and a lunch bag.
“I’m running late this morning. The twins are sick. Do you need me?”
We both went off at once.
“In the woods—”
“Derek Grayson—”
“You have to find Cameron—”
“They’re trying to cover it up—”
“Whoa.” Miss Val threw up her hands. “Slow down. Let’s go inside and then you can tell me one at a time what happened.”
She sidestepped us and unlocked her office. I didn’t waste time going inside and sitting down in front of her desk. Adam stayed on his mom’s heels, telling the whole story albeit in a calmer way. Miss Val froze over her chair when he said “dead.”
“Dead?” she repeated. “A student has died?”
“Derek Grayson. Cam says they got into a fight, he pushed him, and Derek hit his head. He wanted me and Zeke to give him a false alibi, but we got away and came to you. We have to call the police, Mom.”
“Of course we do!”
Miss Val snatched up her phone. I felt my tension finally begin to ease when she got on with the police. I couldn’t bring Derek back, but at least I could make sure Cameron didn’t get away with what he had done.
“We’ll meet you at the front of the school. Thank you.” She hung up and then turned to her son. “What’s this boy’s name?”
“Cameron Dupre. He’s a sophomore.”
She looked down at her watch. “Then he’ll be in the multipurpose room right now if he’s trying to pretend everything is fine. The test started two minutes ago and volunteers have to help.”
“The test started?” I asked.
“Yes, which means the vice principal is there now. We have to get her and tell her what�
�s happened.” Miss Val pulled Adam close and kissed his cheek. “I’m so glad you’re okay, baby. Don’t worry. He’s not getting away with anything.”
Adam spared a moment to give her a tight hug and then we took off. Miss Val marched through the halls so fast I ran to keep up, but all that mattered was that she believed us and was taking care of it.
“Stay here,” she said when we reached the double doors. “I’ll bring her out.”
I let out a breath after the door closed behind her. “You didn’t mention the others. I hope they take note of that and don’t let Cameron drag them into this after all.” I shook my head. “I can’t believe any of this happened.”
The doors opened again and I straightened.
“Valentina, what’s wrong?” Argyle kept her voice low. “Is this about Ad—” She caught sight of us. “I see. Val, I’m very sorry, but I can’t allow late admissions.”
“This isn’t about the test, but Adam was late for a reason. One of the students has been killed.”
She gasped. “What? Who?!”
“Derek Grayson got into a fight and was fatally injured.”
“Derek Grayson? What on earth are you talking about?”
Miss Val gestured at us. “Adam and Zeke heard the whole story from Cameron Dupre’s mouth. I have the police on the way.”
Argyle’s eyes bugged. “Police? Val, you need to call them back right away and tell them not to come. Derek Grayson has not been killed.”
I lurched forward. “I was there, Mrs. Argyle. I saw his body.”
She frowned at me. “I don’t know what you saw, but Mr. Grayson is alive and well. I checked him in for the test myself. He’s in the room right now.”
“But he can’t—!”
Miss Val put a hand on my arm, containing my outburst. “Are you sure?” she asked.
“Of course I’m sure. He’s sitting right there”—she pulled open the door—“front row.”
Miss Val made to step inside, but I shot past her. My bursting in was ignored by most of the room except for those in the front. He raised his head and looked me directly in the eyes.
Derek Grayson.
“N-no.” I staggered back, tripping over my heels, and my knees gave out. Hands caught me before I fell to the floor, but I barely noticed. The room was narrowing on a single point—a single face. Darkening around the edges as my mind fought to reconcile the limp body in the woods to this whole and perfect figure.