by Kai Juniper
"Grab his jacket by the shoulders," Briggs instructs. "I'll take his legs." We lower down and take hold of the guy. "Ready?"
"Yeah."
"Count of three. One, two, three." We lift the guy off the road and Briggs slowly backs up toward the trees. "Okay, set him down. Slowly."
The guy is heavy, making it hard not to drop him. My arms are shaking as I lower him to the ground.
"Okay, let's go." Briggs balls up his shirt in his hand and walks back to the SUV.
I quickly put my shirt on and hurry behind him.
"What'd you do?" Parker asks Briggs as we get in the back seat.
"Moved him off the road."
"What happened to your shirt?"
"I didn't want to touch him with my hands." Briggs points to my shirt. "Get rid of that when we get back." He looks up front. "Finn, get going. Hurry up."
"Hold on." Finn's looking at his phone.
"Why are you letting him drive?" I whisper to Briggs.
"Shit, you're right." Briggs jumps out and goes around to Finn's door, yanking it open. "Get out."
"What the fuck? I'm not letting you drive."
"It's not a fucking choice." Briggs yanks Finn out of the SUV and gets in, shutting the door and locking it.
"What the hell?" Finn throws his hands up.
"Back seat." Briggs points to it.
"Fucking prick," Finn mutters as he gets in next to me.
Briggs takes off, going fast but at least he's not drunk. He slows down a little at a curve, then speeds up again.
"How far is the gas station?" I ask.
"Just up ahead," Briggs answers.
Parker is quiet. So is Finn. He's on his phone, texting someone, which means we have a signal again.
"Give me my phone," I say to Parker, reaching up to get it.
"You'll get it when I'm ready."
"Parker, don't be an ass. Just give it to me. I need to call my dad."
"And tell him what? That we hit a guy? Yeah, I don't think so. I wouldn't do well in prison."
"You're not going to prison," I say. "It was an accident."
"With a drunk guy at the wheel. That's not an accident. That's prison time."
Finn shoves the back of Parker's seat. "Shut the fuck up. I'm not going to prison."
"Drunk driving? Manslaughter? Yeah, I'm sure the cops will be okay with that."
"I didn't fucking kill him. And nobody knows I was drinking except you three." Finn shoves me. "You better keep your mouth shut."
"Okay, everyone just shut up," Briggs says, speeding up. The lights of the city are in the distance. We're getting close.
"I need to call my dad," I say. "Parker, just give me the phone. I'm not going to tell him what happened. I'll just tell him the truck broke down."
"Like I'm gonna believe you? No fucking way. You'll call the cops and turn us all in."
"I won't. I promise."
Parker turns back to look at me. "You hate us and want to get back at us. This is your chance, and there's no way in hell I'm letting it happen."
"What would I tell the cops?" I say. "You didn't do anything. You weren't the one driving."
"Yeah, so what are you saying? You're going to turn in Finn?"
Finn grabs my arm. "You do and I'll fucking kill you."
"She's not going to tell," Briggs says.
"She sure as hell will," Parker says, turning back to the front. "She's Ms. Perfect. She loves getting people in trouble, especially us."
"I don't get people in trouble," I say. "What are you talking about?"
"She won't tell because she's part of this," Briggs says.
We all get quiet, waiting for him to continue.
"We just did a hit-and-run," Briggs says. "A guy could be dying right now and we left him. All four of us left him, which means we're all at fault. If the cops find out, we'll all be charged."
Oh my God, what if he's right? What if I just committed a crime?
"That's not true," I say, hearing the panic in my voice. "Finn's the one who took off, not us."
"But we're with him," Briggs says. "We could've stayed behind but we didn't. We left."
"Shit," Parker mutters.
"So we keep our mouths shut," Finn says. "As long as none of us tells, we're good."
"That'd work if it were just the three of us." Parker looks back at me. "But Ella's gonna tell. She'll run to the cops as soon as we drop her off."
"If she does," Briggs says, "we make her the one who was driving."
"Wait—what?" I lean up to Briggs. "You'd seriously do that?"
"We're in this together," Briggs says. "If one of us tells, the rest of us will turn on whoever did it. It's three against one."
"And you're most likely to tell," Parker says to me. "So if you want to avoid jail, I suggest you keep your mouth shut."
Finn laughs as he looks at his phone.
"This isn't funny!" I yell at him.
"I'm just thinking of you trying to make it in prison." He laughs again.
"Who's making the call?" Briggs asks as he pulls into a gas station. It looks really old and run-down, like it's not even in service anymore. The pay phone is outside by the building.
"Is this place even open?" I ask.
"It's closed for the night," Briggs says. "I'm just hoping the phone still works." He opens his door and gets out. "I'll do it."
"What are you going to say?" Parker asks but Briggs closed the door before he heard him.
I jump out and meet up with Briggs at the pay phone.
"Get out of here," he says, picking up the receiver.
"I want to know what you're going to say."
"Ella, I'm serious, get back in the car."
"No. If I'm part of this, I need to know what you're going to tell them."
He shakes his head. "You really fucking piss me off." He takes a breath, then dials the number. "Yeah, I have an emergency. I think I saw a guy passed out on the road but it was dark and I couldn't really tell if it was a guy or an animal. I didn't stop because I wasn't sure if it was safe. Anyway, I just wanted to make sure if it is a guy, that he gets help."
Wow, he's good. He doesn't even sound nervous. I wonder if he just came up with that story or if he was thinking about it while we were driving here. He gives the person on the phone directions but isn't too specific, making it seem like he just saw something by the road as he was driving and can't really remember the exact spot. But he knows where it is, and so do I. All four of us do. That part of the road will be burned in our memories forever.
"Yeah, like I said, I don't know exactly where on the road it was," Briggs says. "It was too dark to tell. It's maybe ten miles outside of town. There's a sharp curve right next to where I saw it." He nods. "Yeah, okay. Thanks." He hangs up. "Let's go."
"What'd they say?" I ask as we walk back.
"They'll go check it out." Briggs gets in the driver's side while I walk around to the door behind Parker, knowing Finn won't move over for me.
"What happened?" Parker asks Briggs as he drives off.
"Nothing. I just told them to go check it out."
"So we're good," Finn says, swiping through his phone. "Get rid of Ella so we can go to the party."
I look at Finn. "You're going to the party? After what just happened?"
"Why wouldn't I?"
"We're not going," Briggs says. "We need to go home and figure this shit out."
"What's there to figure out?" Finn says. "You already called for an ambulance. What the hell else do we need to do?"
"Figure out a plan if the cops trace this back to us," Briggs says.
"How would they do that?" Parker asks Briggs. "Nobody saw what happened."
"There could be evidence left at the scene," I say, remembering some of the cop shows I've watched with my dad.
"Like what?" Parker asks.
"Paint from the car," Briggs says. "If even a small particle of it got on the guy's clothes, the forensics people would find it."
"A lot of cars have this paint," Finn says.
"Yeah, but they'll match it up to service records. If you bring this thing to a body shop and the cops have an alert out looking for someone getting that type of paint put on their car, they could trace it back to us." Briggs looks at Finn in the mirror. "Did you check for any damages?"
"No. I couldn't see. It was too dark."
"We'll check when we get to your house."
"Wait, what about me?" I say. "You need to drop me off."
"We need to get rid of this thing first," Briggs says. "We can't be driving it around. We'll drop it off at Finn's house. Parker's car is there. He'll drive us back."
"Then give me my phone so I can at least text my dad so he knows I'm okay. I can't worry him like this. After losing my mom he's always thinking he's going to lose me next. He's probably already called the cops and all the hospitals. Please, just let me text him."
"You'll be home in twenty minutes," Parker says. "He can wait."
"Let her text him," Briggs says. "She's not gonna call the cops. She knows we'd turn on her if she did." He glances back at me. "She's not going to risk her future like that."
Parker reluctantly gives me my phone. I text my dad, letting him know I'm fine and that I'll explain what happened when I get home.
"You done?" Parker asks, reaching back for my phone.
"She can keep it," Briggs says. "She's not going to do anything."
Parker sits back in his seat. "You trust her more than I do."
My dad calls me but I send it to voicemail. He's going to be angry I didn't pick up but I don't want to talk to him with the guys listening in.
"How'd she die?" Finn says as his thumbs move over his phone.
"Are you talking to me?" I ask.
"Yeah. How'd your mom die?"
"She had a heart attack."
Parker turns back to me. "How old was she?"
"Thirty-one. The doctor said it's rare at her age but it can still happen."
"That sucks," Briggs mutters.
I look out the window and see we're back in the city, surrounded by cars. None of them know what we did. We might've killed a guy tonight and nobody knows.
Only the four of us will ever know what really happened tonight, assuming the police don't figure it out. That can't happen. I can't get arrested for this. I have my whole future ahead of me. It can't just end because of this, something I didn't mean to do. Why didn't I call for help before Parker took my phone? Why did I leave the scene? I could've stayed behind. At least then I wouldn't have looked guilty. Now if the cops find out, they'll assume I was in on it—that I was trying to cover up a crime.
"No fucking way," Briggs says, looking in his mirror.
"What?" Parker says.
"Look behind us."
We all look and see the flashing lights.
"Oh my God, they know." I try to breathe but can't.
The cops know. Why else would they be pulling us over? Briggs wasn't speeding, and he stopped at every light.
This is it. The end of my future. It's barely started and now it's over. I can't believe this is happening!
Chapter Fourteen
Ella
Briggs slows down and signals that he's pulling over. "Everyone shut up. I'll do the talking."
I bend forward, clutching my stomach. "I think I'm gonna be sick."
Finn turns to me. "Do NOT throw up in my car!"
Right as he says it, I throw up. It hits the back of the leather seat and slides down to the floor.
"Fuck!" Finn yells. "Why didn't you open the door?"
"Shut up!" Briggs says. "He's coming over." Briggs rolls down his window. "Hello, officer. Is something wrong?"
The officer leans down to the car, looking in the window at the four of us. "Did you know you have a broken headlight?"
"No. I didn't," Briggs calmly says. "I'll be sure to get it fixed."
"It's the front right," the officer says. "Do you think it happened recently?"
"Probably not. I'm guessing it's been that way for awhile but nobody noticed."
"Any idea how it happened?"
"No. Like I said, I didn't even know it was damaged."
How does Briggs remain so calm? I'd be so nervous I wouldn't be able to talk.
"Is this your vehicle?" the officer asks.
"It's a friend's. I'm just borrowing it."
"Can I see the registration?"
"Sure." Briggs reaches over to the glove compartment.
"Center," Finn mutters.
"I forgot he keeps it here," Briggs says, opening the center console. He pulls it out and hands it to the officer.
"Kingsley. Is that the tech guy?”
"Yeah," Briggs says. "I'm friends with his son. We go to school together."
"Can I ask why you're driving his car?"
Briggs laughs a little. "Check it out. Wouldn't you want to drive it?"
He nods. "It's a nice vehicle." He holds his hand out. "Can I get your license?"
"Is this really necessary? I can just tell my friend's dad to get it fixed."
"License, please." The officer keeps his hand out.
Briggs gives him the license.
"Briggs Chadwick." He hands him the license back. "My brother has some money invested with your father's firm."
Briggs doesn't respond as he puts his license away.
"What's that smell?" the officer asks, sniffing the air and making a face. He must smell the puke.
"I don't smell it," Briggs says.
The officer hands back the registration. "I'm going to let you go but your friend needs to get that headlight fixed. If he keeps driving it around like this and I catch him, I'll be writing a ticket."
"Got it," Briggs says. "I'll make sure to tell him."
"You boys stay out of trouble tonight." He looks back at me. "You too, young lady."
I nod, feeling like I'm going to throw up again.
The officer walks back to his car.
"Let's get out of here," Parker says.
Briggs slowly pulls back on the road. We look back, watching the officer's car until he turns down a different street.
We all sigh in relief.
"That was close," Parker says. "I thought he was going to arrest us, which is stupid since he has no idea what happened."
"He might now," Briggs says. "That broken headlight could make us a suspect."
"A lot of people have broken headlights," Parker says.
"Not around here. This is a rich area. People fix their cars, especially ones like this."
"I'm gonna be sick," I say.
"Puke out the fucking window!" Finn yells, reaching across me to push the button that rolls down the window.
Before it's down, I throw up, all over Finn's arm.
"What the fuck?" He yanks his arm back. "Fucking disgusting!"
Parker's laughing.
"I didn't do it on purpose," I say to Finn.
He's taking off his shirt. When he gets it off, he throws it out the window. "Now I smell like puke." He turns to me. "You're paying for that shirt."
"With what? I don't have money."
"I'll pay for it," Briggs says. "Just shut the hell up." He glances at Finn in the mirror. "And next time, hide your weed someplace other than where you put your registration. The cop almost saw it."
"Yeah? So? It's not illegal."
"It is when you're 17."
"Yeah, well, he didn't find it so we're good."
Accepting a ride with these guys was the worst thing I ever could've done. Illegal weed? Drunk driving? Hitting a man and leaving the scene? I would've been better off alone in my truck all night, but I couldn't do that to my dad. I need to get home and let him know I'm safe.
"Can you just drop me off first?" I say to Briggs. "I'm feeling really sick and I need to get home."
"No," Briggs says, glancing over his shoulder as he changes lanes. "Finn needs to get this thing home and hide it in the garage."
"Just fucking drop her off before she pukes again," Finn says.
"And risk getting pulled over again? Fuck no." Briggs turns down a side street that goes up a hill.
Finn leans forward to Briggs. "What am I going to do about the headlight?"
"I don't know yet. I'll figure it out. For now just don't drive it."
"Then how the fuck am I supposed to get to school?"
"One of us will pick you up." Briggs whips around a corner and continues at a fast speed though a neighborhood lined with fancy homes.
"What about tomorrow?" Finn says to Briggs. "I'm not sitting at home all day."
"Then take one of your dad's cars."
"I'm not allowed."
"Since when has that stopped you?"
He laughs a little. "True."
Briggs slows down as we approach a massive, two-story home with a garage that looks like it could hold at least five cars, maybe more. There's no gate around the house so Briggs pulls up to the front, stopping behind Parker's car.
"Hey!" Briggs yells as Finn gets out. "Get your ass back here."
"Why?" he says, getting back in his seat.
Briggs turns to face us. "We need to come up with a plan."
"For what?" Finn asks.
"For how to deal with the fact you might've just killed a guy," Briggs says, sounding angry with Finn.
Finn's either in denial or doesn't care. He doesn't seem the slightest bit stressed by what happened. Maybe he's still high on weed.
"I say we just lay low and see what happens," Parker says.
"No one says a word about this to anyone." Briggs' eyes dart to the three of us. "Understood?"
We all nod.
Briggs stares at me with those intense blue eyes. "That includes your dad."
"Yeah, got it," I say, looking away.
"Ella!" Briggs yells.
"What?" I look back at him.
"I'm serious. You don't tell him anything about what happened tonight, even if he asks."
"Yeah, I know. I won't say anything."
His eyes remain on mine a moment before he finally looks away and turns back to the front. "If anything happens, we tell each other. There's no fucking secrets, even if it's something you don't want one of us knowing."
"Like what?" Parker asks.
"Who the fuck knows? I just don't want secrets being kept. You do that shit and it puts us all at risk. We all need to know what's going on."
