by Kai Juniper
"What if people ask about tonight?" I say. "What are we supposed to tell them? Do I say I was with you guys? Because my dad's going to wonder why you guys were on that road when you found me. Maybe I should just tell him I got a ride with someone else."
"You can't." Briggs turns back to me. "The cop already saw you with us. If something happened and we ended up being questioned by the police, our stories wouldn't match up. They'd talk to your dad and know you were lying. And then they'd think we lied about other shit."
"So what do I tell my dad about why you guys were out there tonight?"
"Tell him I was getting weed," Finn says. "It's not like I'm going to get in trouble for it. My dad knows I go there to buy from that guy. He's even had me buy some for him."
"Just tell your dad we were out for a drive," Briggs says to me. "He doesn't need all the details." He looks at Finn and Parker. "If anyone else asks where we were tonight, keep it vague. Just say we went for a drive. You don't need to tell them where, and nobody needs to know we picked up Ella. The less we say, the better. If people ask why we didn't show up at the party tonight, just say we decided to do our own thing."
"What about Scarlett and Aubrey?" Parker asks. "Scarlett's been texting me, asking why I'm not there."
"Tell her what I just said. That we decided we didn't want to go."
Briggs' phone rings and he checks it.
"It's Aubrey," he says, "Listen and learn." He answers the call. "Hey, babe." He pauses and I hear her yelling through the phone. "Aubrey, stop. I'm not going to listen to this. You either stop or I'm hanging up." He waits a moment and I hear her quiet down. "I get that you're pissed but you just have to deal with it. It took forever to get the weed and then we decided to stop at Finn's house and hang out. Just stay at the party and have a good time. I'll call you tomorrow."
I hear her say something in a whiny voice before Briggs ends the call.
"I'm so fucking tired of her," he mutters. He turns to Parker. "She knew we went out there to get weed. Did you tell her that?"
"No, but I told Scarlett we might drive out there."
"That's fucking great. So now people know we were on that road."
Parker's phone rings.
"That's Scarlett," Briggs says. "You need to tell her what I just told Aubrey."
When Parker answers the call, I hear a girl yelling, "Where the fuck are you? I've been waiting all night!"
"I'm at Finn's house," Parker says, looking at Briggs. "Babe, I can't talk now. Just have fun at the party and I'll see you tomorrow."
She's still yelling when he pushes 'end' on the phone.
"I'm going to pay for that tomorrow," he says with a sigh.
"This is why I don't have a girlfriend," Finn says. "They think they fucking own you."
"Can we go now?" I ask, wanting to get home. I'm nervous about what I'm going to tell my dad but I'd rather be home dealing with his questions than stuck here with these three.
Briggs turns to face us. "Everyone clear on what we're doing?"
"Who's gonna clean this thing?" Finn asks.
"Make Ella do it," Parker says. "She's the one who puked."
"Just have the maid do it," Briggs says. "Pay her extra. You're not taking it in to be cleaned. It's staying in the garage until all this is over."
"No fucking way!" Finn yells. "I'm not waiting weeks to drive this thing!"
"You want to go to prison?" Briggs asks.
Finn mutters something, shaking his head.
"Yeah, I didn't think so." Briggs glances at each of us. "We'll meet tomorrow and figure out what to do next. Our heads will be clearer and we'll be able to think, and maybe by then we'll know something about the guy we hit."
"I have shit to do tomorrow," Finn says. "I can't meet."
"You will if I fucking tell you to," Briggs says, glaring at him.
"Who made you the boss?"
"I did, and it's going to stay that way because you and Parker always fuck shit up."
"I don't fuck shit up!" Parker says, getting angry.
Briggs' eyes shoot over to Parker. "Emily Stanfield?"
Parker looks away. "Yeah? So? You didn't like her that much anyway."
"And when you told Coach I wasn't really sick when I missed practice?"
"He caught me off guard. I wasn't prepared."
"That can't happen with this. You have to be ready with a story and it has to be the same one we all use. We need to figure out what that is, but for now the story is we were taking a drive, then went to Finn's house. We don't need to mention the weed. That's getting into too much detail. We need to stick to the basics."
"I don't think we should leave out the Ella part," Parker says. "Like you said, the cop saw her with us. If they interview people we know, they'll get a different story and know we lied."
Briggs sighs. "Fine, but you only tell this story if you're forced to. You don't offer it up."
"And what's the story?" Finn asks.
"We went for a drive, found Ella on the road, and gave her a ride back. Then we hung out at Finn's house."
"With Ella?" Finn asks.
"Not with Ella," Briggs says, sounding frustrated. "Why the fuck would we hang out with Ella?"
"We wouldn't, but you didn't make it clear."
Briggs sighs again. "You, Parker, and me came back here to hang out after we dropped Ella off at her house."
"The timeline won't match up," Parker says. "Ella's dad knows she's not home yet and we told Scarlett and Aubrey we're here. They could find out Ella's here with us."
"They're not going to find out," Briggs says. "Ella's dad isn't going to be talking to our girlfriends and Scarlett and Aubrey are too drunk to even know what time it is."
"Can we go now?" I say. "My dad's going to think something happened to me. I'm sure he's sitting outside right now, waiting for me to get home."
"He'd seriously sit outside and wait?" Briggs asks.
"He worries about me, and I'm sure he's freaking out right now because I didn't answer his call and I'm still not home."
"Just to be clear," Briggs says. "Nobody says anything to anyone unless they have to, which shouldn't happen because there's no reason anyone would ask, other than Aubrey and Scarlett, who we've already talked to. Any questions?" When none of us respond, Briggs says, "Okay, let's go."
Briggs gets out of the SUV and the rest of us follow. I don't like taking orders from Briggs, and I usually don't, but right now he's the most level-headed of all of us. I don't know how he's remaining so calm and how he's able to think and take charge like this. It's kind of impressive, not that I'd ever tell him that. I still hate him, although tonight he hasn't been that bad to me.
Parker and Briggs get in the front seat of the Porsche while I get in the back.
"You better not puke in here," Parker says as he drives away from the house.
"Just roll her window down," Briggs says. "She'll feel better with fresh air."
I roll it down myself, the cool night air hitting my face and making me feel a little less queasy.
"Is it something you ate or are you just nervous?" Briggs asks me.
"Nervous. I've never been in trouble like this. I've never committed a crime."
"You're not in trouble," Briggs says. "None of us are. And we didn't commit a crime. You can't think that way. Innocent until proven guilty. As far as we know, nothing happened tonight. You have to believe that or people will know you're lying."
"Are you saying this from experience?" I ask.
"I've told a few lies," Briggs says. "Nothing like this, but a lie's a lie."
"We're not really lying," Parker says as he speeds down the road. "We're just choosing not to tell people."
"You think that guy's going to be okay?" I feel sick again as an image of him sprawled out on the road flashes in my head.
"He'll be fine," Briggs says.
Parker blows out a breath. "I don't know. Finn hit him straight on, and he was going fast."
"Oh God,
" I say, my hand going over my mouth. "What if he's dead? What if we killed him?"
"Did you really have to fucking say that?" Briggs says to Parker.
"What? We were all there. We all saw what happened."
"She had her eyes closed," Briggs says, but I don't know how he knows that.
"Did you see what happened?" I ask Briggs.
"No, I wasn't looking. I just heard the sound when we hit him."
It's a sound I'll never forget, a loud thud as the body slammed into the front of the car.
"Why do you think he was out there?" Parker asks Briggs.
"I don't know. He's probably a drifter, hoping to catch a ride with someone."
"At night?" Parker says. "Standing in the middle of the road?"
"He was standing there?" Briggs asks, sounding surprised. "I thought he was crossing the road."
"He might've been, but he saw the headlights and probably froze." Parker shrugs. "I don't know. Maybe he wasn't standing there. It's hard to remember. It all happened so fast."
We're almost at my house now and I lean up to Parker. "Look for the mailbox or you'll miss it. It's a green metal box."
"Yeah, I know," he says. "Everyone knows where you live. There's only one trailer around here and we all know who it belongs to."
"It's not a trailer," I say, rolling my eyes. "I don't know why everyone calls it that. It's a house, and it looks like all the other houses around here used to look until all the millionaires moved in and ruined the neighborhood."
Parker pulls into the driveway. "Looks like a trailer to me."
I open my door to get out.
"Hey!" Briggs turns back to me. "You good?"
"No, but there's nothing I can do about it."
"I'll call you tomorrow and check in. Don't go anywhere in case we decide to meet."
"I won't be home. I have to work for my dad."
"This isn't an option. We're dealing with something bigger than whatever other shit you've got going on. We play this right, we stay out of jail. We don't? You can say goodbye to your future."
I feel that queasiness coming back. "I have to go."
Racing out of the car, I shut the door and run to the house, stopping when I see my dad sitting in a lawn chair under the carport next to his truck.
"Nice ride," he says, nodding toward the Porsche as it drives off. He gets up and walks over to me. "You could've just told me you were meeting a boy."
"What? Dad, no! I wasn't on a date. The truck broke down. I needed a ride."
"I just had that truck serviced a couple weeks ago when I brought it in for an oil change. It wouldn't have broken down this fast."
"Well, it did. I couldn't get it started."
I'm shocked he's accusing me of lying about this. And he thinks I'm doing it because of a guy? He knows I'd never do that.
"So where is it?" he asks, folding his arms over his chest.
"It's somewhere along that road but I don't know where exactly. It was dark and I didn't see any signs. We'll have to go out there tomorrow and I'll show you. You can see for yourself that it won't start."
"You're telling me it broke down while you were driving?"
"No. I pulled over because it started raining so hard I couldn't see. I should've just left it running but I didn't and then it wouldn't start."
"I didn't see any rain. Didn't even see a rain cloud."
"Dad, are you seriously accusing me of lying about this? Why would I do that?"
"Boys can be very convincing. They can talk girls into doing a lot of things they wouldn't normally do."
I walk away from him, furious he's reacting like this. I thought I'd get home and he'd race to give me a hug and ask if I'm okay. But instead, I'm getting accused of lying.
"I went to get your part." I turn back to him. "I was doing you a favor. And this is how you thank me? By accusing me of lying? Why would you even think that?"
"I didn't until you didn't show up after sending me that text. And then you wouldn't answer my call. That's not like you, Ella. There's something you're not telling me. Why'd it take you so long to get home after you sent me that text? And why were you with those boys? Who were they, anyway? Was that the Chadwick kid in the Porsche?"
"Yes, and his friend Parker was driving. They go to my school."
"I thought you didn't like those boys."
"I don't, but they were driving by and I flagged them down for help. I didn't know it was them until they stopped."
"You're telling me those two just happened to be out driving on that road on a Saturday night?" He huffs. "C'mon, Ella. You know I'm smarter than that. There's almost nobody on that road except for the people who live out there, and you're telling me some rich kids just decided to go drive out to the middle of nowhere instead of going to a party on Saturday night?"
I need to explain or he'll keep asking questions. I'll tell him part of the truth, the part the guys seemed okay with people knowing.
"They were driving out there to get weed. Well, Finn was. He was with us but we dropped him off. That's why it took me longer to get home."
"Finn. Do I know this kid?"
"I don't think so. He hangs out with Briggs and Parker. Anyway, there's this guy that apparently has good weed and Finn drove out there to get it. Briggs and Parker were just along for the ride."
"Did you try it?" my dad asks.
"No! Dad, you know I don't do drugs. What is going on with you? Why are you acting like this?"
"I was talking to..." He shakes his head. "Never mind. I just find it suspicious that you show up here with two boys after being gone all night."
I walk up to him. "I promise you, whatever you're thinking went on didn't happen. The truck broke down and those guys picked me up and drove me back to town. That's it. Ask them if you don't believe me. Nothing went on with any of them. I hate those guys, and they feel the same way about me. In fact, they couldn't wait to get rid of me, especially Finn, because I puked in his car."
"Why?" he asks, sounding concerned. "Are you sick?"
"No, I was just nervous you'd be mad that I left the truck out there. But I swear, Dad, it wouldn't start."
He eyes me, looking like he still doesn't believe me, but then holds his arms out. "Get over here." I step up to him and he brings me into a hug. "The important thing is that you're home safe." He kisses the top of my head. "You know you can tell me anything, right? Even if I may not like it, I want you to be honest with me."
"I know."
He lets me go. "Let's get inside. Are you hungry?"
"No. I just want to go to bed. It's been a long night."
When we're in the house, I go straight to my room. I take a quick shower and get into bed. As I go to turn off the light, I hear my phone ding. It's a text from Briggs.
How'd it go?
He accused me of being on a date and lying about it.
A date with who?
Either you or Parker. He didn't say which.
What'd you tell him?
The truth. I said the truck broke down and you guys picked me up.
Did he believe you?
Not at first but I think he does now.
Did you tell him anything else?
I told him about Finn getting his weed. I had to explain why you guys were out there.
And?
I think he believed me. I'll see how he is tomorrow. I think he was in a bad mood tonight.
How are you doing? Still sick?
I'm better now. I just need to sleep.
Let me know how tomorrow goes.
I will.
He doesn't text back so I put my phone down and try to sleep. I don't know how I can after this horrible night. I feel like it's not even real, like everything that happened between my truck breaking down and now was all just a nightmare. Even those texts just now didn't seem real. Briggs almost sounded like an actual person, one who cared enough to check on me rather than the monster I know from school.
Maybe I'll wake up tomor
row and find it really was all a dream. I hope so, because I really don't want this to be real.
Chapter Fifteen
Briggs
Parker almost got us in an accident driving me home tonight. Scarlett kept sending him drunk texts, threatening to break up with him if he didn't respond, so like an idiot, he did, and almost drove us off the damn road. He can usually text and drive just fine but not when he's angry, and nobody gets him more angry than Scarlett.
When I finally got home, I snuck in the back door and went straight up to my room. My dad's probably out drinking with his country club friends but I didn't want to risk running into him if he was home.
"What the hell do I do with this?" I ask myself, holding up the shirt I used to cover my hands when I dragged the guy off the road. I notice blood on it and drop it, racing to my bathroom to see if I have any garbage bags. I find some the maid left under the sink, grab one, and hurry back to the spot where I left the shirt. I pick it up and drop it in the bag.
I don't remember seeing blood on the guy but it was dark and I was trying really hard not to look at him. But I did see his face. He looked older, maybe in his fifties, and his face was scruffy like he hadn't shaved in awhile. If I had to guess, I'd say he was a homeless guy looking for a ride, although it doesn't make sense he'd be that far out of town. He'd have better luck getting a ride in the city, not on a deserted road.
Going over to my nightstand, I grab the TV remote and turn on the news. I doubt they'd do a story on some guy getting hit. People get hit by cars all the time and it doesn't make the news.
"Briggs!" my dad yells, followed by several loud knocks. "Are you in there?"
"Yeah, but I'm going to sleep!" I yell back, stuffing the garbage bag under the bed.
The door opens, reminding me I forgot to lock it.
My dad comes in my room, wearing dress pants and a dress shirt but no tie. "What are you doing home so early on a Saturday night?"
"I didn't feel like being out so I came home."
He walks over to me. "What about your girlfriend? She's not upset you're not taking her out?"
"We got in a fight. I don't want to talk about it."
He rubs his chin. "I've been thinking about you and her, and I think it's time you find someone else. Someone we can trust to behave appropriately at functions. Aubrey is a beautiful girl but she's not the type of girl you bring to a work event. We need to find you someone more refined. One of my clients has a daughter who—"
