The Maple Murders

by Micol Ostow

  The feeling of competition was thick. But so was the sense of joy. Of promise. And we all were going to bask in it. We’d each of us spent more than our share of time in the darkness.

  Pop was right, we knew. And so was Mr. Andrews. The town deserved the truth, but our friends?

  They deserved this moment to shine.

  Reggie Mantle straightened the bow tie on his tuxedo. He smiled his heartthrob smile. Surveying the group of eager, assembled students, he clapped his hands. He exchanged a look with Cheryl, the eager Mistress of Ceremonies for the evening, received her nod of acknowledgement smoothly.

  “Places, everyone,” he called. “It’s about that time.”

  Micol Ostow has written over fifty works for readers of all ages, including projects based on properties like Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Charmed, and, most recently, Mean Girls: A Novel. As a child, she drew her own Archie Comics panels, and in her former life as an editor, she published the Betty & Veronica Mad Libs game. She lives in Brooklyn with her husband and two daughters, who are also way too pop culture–obsessed. Visit her online at micolostow.com.