by Jessie Rosen
That was Friday night. Now, a full forty-eight hours later, the panic was almost unbearable. All Charlie could do to keep from pacing his bedroom was lift weights in the garage. It has to work, he kept repeating over and over again in his mind. But there were two sides to this situation, and he had been ignoring the second. He didn’t just have the police to worry about—Amanda and the rest of his friends would be livid when they found out what he’d just done behind their backs.
Sasha
For the past few weeks Sasha had been so consumed with all the clues pouring out of Charlie and Amanda, she forgot that two other people were also probably involved in every element of whatever happened to Sarah that night. Frankly, she probably wouldn’t have paid them much attention until the Sunday after the homecoming charade.
All the IP addresses Sasha was tracking in her system fed into a massive chart that specifically showed time spent online. It was an automatic feature of the system. Since Sasha was monitoring everything, there was a ledger of the time stamps on all that activity, but she rarely checked that tab. The main concern was searches around key words—at this point things like “Sarah,” “guilty,” “that night,” “Charlie,” “Amanda,” “Kit,” and “Miller.” But Sasha still went through the process of exporting the time data into an excel grid at the end of every week, mostly out of habit and her obsession for organization.
But today, something stood out among all the numbers. Someone had spent nine hours straight on the internet, actively searching. It wasn’t uncommon for a person to sign in to chat or email and not sign out for the day, but this account featured tons and tons of activity.
The moment Sasha clicked through to the user profile, she realized this extra data was a massive blessing in disguise. The IP address belonged to Kit.
It took Sasha only a few seconds to poke around and find out what Kit was searching for. The poor thing obviously didn’t know that search history is saved unless you clear it from your computer. Otherwise she probably wouldn’t have spent an entire day inputting the following terms into what was essentially an evidence collector: “voluntary confession,” “accessory to a crime,” “manslaughter jail time,” and “plea bargain.”
All the words made Sasha’s skin crawl, but the last search item peaked her interest most. Why would Kit be interested in how a plea bargain works unless she was considering turning someone in to the police?
This answered the question about Kit’s involvement: she was not the primary culprit in whatever happened between this group and Sarah, just like Sasha had suspected. But she obviously knew enough to save herself from some of the punishment. All along Sasha had thought of Kit and her boyfriend as side players in terms of her plan to take the whole group down. She thought the conversations in Kit’s basement were the only help they would provide, but this discovery proved her wrong. A person had to be pretty obsessed to spend nine full hours reading about a single topic, and an obsessed person could also be a fragile one—maybe fragile enough to give Sasha the rest of the information she needed.
Chapter 10
October 25
Laura
“The rules of this game are simple,” Laura said to Charlie. “We have thirty minutes to find a Halloween costume that costs no more than thirty dollars.”
“What if we don’t find one?”
“We have to. Those are the rules.”
“What if it’s totally dumb because we run out of time?”
“So be it.”
“And it has to go together, right? Like a couple’s costume?”
Laura smiled. She had purposefully left that out of her instructions to see if Charlie would ask.
Things had been rocky for Charlie since the homecoming dance. He was stressed most days and when he wasn’t, he was exhausted. Laura didn’t have the heart to tell him that she’d caught him nodding off in class for the second time that week. He obviously wasn’t sleeping well at night. Laura hoped it was because soccer playoffs were around the corner and coach Stanley was working them harder, but she knew it was because of the latest information from the police. They had new evidence from a source connected to Sarah and were starting to bring people in for questioning.
“I’ll be the first person they bring in,” Charlie whispered as they walked from English to second period.
“You don’t know that for sure,” Laura said.
“Yes, I do. I can’t stop thinking about what they’re going to ask.”
“Are you going to tell them about the messages you’re getting?” Laura asked. Charlie responded with a look that said he had absolutely no idea what he was going to do.
Laura didn’t have a response, and she hadn’t yet figured out a way to really talk to Becca about her suspicions. Laura had tried to bring up the topic of the homecoming-dance photo with Becca the week after it happened, but the issue was dismissed so quickly, Laura couldn’t come up with a comeback.
“Hey, I meant to ask you if we gave Chronicle photos to the team that did the homecoming slideshow?” she asked Becca.
“No. They have their own photos,” Becca fired back. Laura realized that she would have to argue that point or admit what she found on Becca’s laptop, and she definitely couldn’t flat-out ask Becca if she was the one pranking. Becca wouldn’t just confess if she was guilty and if she was innocent; she’d have a thousand follow-up questions. Laura didn’t want to be responsible for making yet another person suspicious of Charlie. But, truth be told, part of her was afraid to find out what Becca or anyone else might know about Charlie. The incident at homecoming brought them closer, and Charlie was finally starting to behave like the kind of boyfriend Laura had always dreamed of.
He still found time to spend with her despite his crazy soccer schedule. When he was too busy for a movie night or dinner date, he would text, call, or leave something sweet in her locker. They spent as much of the weekend together as possible with his soccer schedule and her newspaper assignments. And the other day, he left a giant bag of pumpkin-shaped candy corns on her desk in English. Laura didn’t even remember mentioning that they were her favorite.
She was touched by the fact that Charlie found comfort in their relationship during this difficult time. All she wanted was to help him be happy again.
Whatever she was doing seemed to be working. In her experience, most boys avoided couple’s costumes like the plague.
“Okay,” she said as they approached the front door to American Vintage. “On our marks…get set…go!”
They bounded through the doors and started racing around the store. Charlie grabbed a sombrero. “We could be the two amigos?” he yelled over at her. She wrinkled her nose, dismissing the idea. She rushed into the back section of the store where they kept the best 60s garb. She snagged two giant pairs of bell-bottoms and a hand-made vest covered in peace signs.
“What about Sonny and Cher?!” she called back into the main room.
“Veto. I don’t do bell-bottoms!”
They spent the next twenty-nine minutes racing around, trying on dozens of looks, and making each other laugh so hard that Laura ended up with tears in her eyes. In the end, the winning look was based on a pair of shiny, black, spandex pants that Laura found and a black leather motorcycle jacket that Charlie was obsessed with. They would piece together a few more items they each had at home and go as Danny and Sandy from Grease. Of course, that was Laura’s idea.
“What do you mean you’ve never seen Grease?!” she screamed when he met her Sandy-and-Danny suggestion with a confused look.
“No guys have seen that movie,” Charlie said. “No guys have seen any movie with that much singing.”
“Well, this guy is going to sit through it,” Laura said. “Ugh, though it would have been so much better if you saw it with me at the outdoor screening on the part of the LA river where they do the drag-racing scene. So cool.”
Charlie rolled his eyes. “Don’t make me even more jealous of your old life, Cali,” he said. “Especially wh
en it’s getting freezing on this coast.”
“Fine, but only if you promise to watch Grease with me tonight.”
“Do I get to order whatever I want for takeout?” Charlie asked.
“Deal,” said Laura, though she thought she was getting the better end of the bargain.
Laura noticed a sense of ease about Charlie as they watched the movie later that night with two giant tubs of fried chicken on the coffee table. He seemed genuinely happy for the first time in at least a week. Laura wasn’t sure if things had calmed down in his mind around all the Sarah Castro-Tanner rumors, or if he was just doing a better job hiding his feelings, but right now all she wanted to focus on was the positive. It scared her a little to admit it, but she was head over heels in love with Charlie Sanders, and she was pretty sure he felt the same.
* * *
October 31 fell on a Thursday, so everyone had to suffer through a day of school before they could walk around collecting candy from people still willing to give out fun-size Snickers to the high school crowd. Dressing up in school wasn’t allowed anymore because the administration couldn’t stop all the girls from parading around in their slutty kitty cat, waitress, or cowgirl looks, so instead everyone wasted the day watching horror movies in their classes and talking about where they were going to party that night. Once again, Jeff Haskell was hosting the most-official bash, but this time he invited Laura personally. “Looking forward to seeing your costume,” he said. “All the girls are saying you’re going to have the best.” Laura was pretty confident that things were going to be different for her second appearance at a major Englewood party.
Then at lunchtime, Laura received one more Halloween treat. The horror movie marathon Becca was planning for that night had her in good spirits and they were alone in the office. Now was the time to get more information out of Becca about Charlie.
“Hey,” Laura said. “Can I talk to you about something?”
“Yeah, Rivers. What?”
“I keep thinking about that last photo that popped up during the homecoming slideshow.”
“You do, or Charlie does?” Becca asked. That gave Laura her first critical piece of information: Becca was aware that the photo upset Charlie. That meant Becca knew something about his relationship with Sarah.
“Yes, Charlie. How did you know that? And why do you think he’s upset? He won’t talk about it with me,” Laura lied. She wasn’t about to tell Becca what she knew about Charlie’s relationship with Sarah, especially if Becca was somehow involved.
“I know because no one in this freaking school wants to be associated with Sarah. They’re all too cruel, heartless, and obsessed with their own reputations.”
So, Becca’s frustration isn’t about Charlie specifically, Laura gathered. That made Laura less suspicious, but there was always a chance that Becca was lying.
“Do you think we could figure out who put that shot in?” Laura asked. “The investigative journalist in me is dying to find out.”
“Then ask the social committee,” Becca said, “They put that whole thing together.”
“Yeah,” Laura said, “I’m thinking about that. I just figured you were curious, too.”
“Why?” Becca asked.
This was Laura’s moment. She could confess exactly what she saw on Becca’s computer—the empty file with a direct tie to that photo. Becca would have to answer, and if she lied, Laura might be able to tell from her body language. But what if Becca really did do this to Charlie, Laura wondered? What would Becca do if she knew that Laura suspected she was involved? Suddenly it all felt too risky to say more.
“I don’t know,” she said. “Maybe because you’re always interested in a good story.”
“True,” Becca said, “so let’s find one we can actually use.” Then she turned back to her computer, a clear signal that their talk was over.
Laura stood up from her own desk and started to gather her things. There were only a few minutes before the first-period bell and she didn’t feel like being around Becca given the awkward tension in the air.
“Off to class,” she said. “See you later.”
“YOU’VE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME!” Becca screamed back.
“What? I just—” Laura started, but she quickly realized that Becca was talking to her computer screen.
“‘The Englewood Police Department is going to interview every single student in the school regarding their relationship with Sarah Castro-Tanner’! That is a complete and total invasion of privacy!”
Laura was now standing over Becca reading the headline from the Englewood Register’s website. “Wow,” she said. Laura knew that she should be watching Becca’s face closely for any clues about her feelings on the story, but right now all she could think about was Charlie. He was definitely going to be questioned—just like he suspected—and given his fragile state about the homecoming moment, Laura couldn’t imagine how he would react.
“We need to do some research into student rights around this, Rivers, immediately. It’s got to be illegal. And we need people to know how they can refuse.”
“But don’t you think they’re looking for important information?” Laura protested. Now she was focused on Becca’s response.
“No. Based on everything I’ve read, Sarah was a deeply depressed girl who didn’t think she had much to live for, and didn’t get any help from this dump to realize she was wrong. Maybe the ‘powers that be’ should start a change by supporting troubled students instead of wasting their time digging up old cases.”
Becca’s rant made Laura more suspicious; it seemed like she was trying to divert attention. Laura decided she had to take the conversation further.
“Are you nervous about what the cops are going to ask you if you get interviewed?” Laura asked.
That worked; Becca immediately turned from her computer to face Laura.
“Why are you asking me that?”
“Because I’m nervous, and I just wanted to talk about it with you,” Laura said. It wasn’t entirely a lie. She didn’t know if she would be questioned since she was a new student, but the idea of talking to any cops about anything was scary.
“You don’t have anything to be nervous about,” Becca said.
“And you do?” Laura shot back. She held her breath. If Becca was guilty of pranking Charlie, she would obviously never confess, but if Laura could get even the slightest indication that Becca was involved, she could help Charlie prank her back.
“Let it go, Rivers,” Becca said. Her tone was clear.
“No,” Laura said. “You’re clearly upset and I feel bad about that because I’m your friend, and I want to help you.”
“Well, you can’t,” Becca said. “This isn’t something anyone can help with, okay?” She stood angrily, bringing her face within inches of Laura’s. “I’m serious,” she said. And with that, she stormed out of the room.
October 31
Charlie
It had been over a week since Charlie sent the cops the emails from Sarah and he hadn’t heard a word from the EPD. The delay made him nervous—what could they dig up in that time?—but it had given him days to go over what he would say.
Then the call finally came on the night before Halloween. They wanted to interview him the next afternoon. Charlie couldn’t decide whether or not he was going to tell his mother, but the police took care of that, too. As a minor, they needed to speak to her before moving forward, not that he could have kept it a secret even if he was eighteen. On the morning of the thirty-first, news hit that they would be interviewing the entire school.
“Listen to me, Charlie. I want you to tell them every single thing you know, but if anything at all feels weird when you’re in that room, you just say you need to think about it, and then we’ll get a lawyer so you’re protected,” Charlie’s mom said as he was leaving the house.
“You know we can’t afford that, Mom,” he said. Miserable as it was to tell his mom about the emails he’d released to the cops, it would h
ave been worse for her to find out after the fact. Her first reaction when she heard about Charlie’s email relationship with Chelsea was shock. She blamed herself for being so busy, for working such long hours. Charlie assured her that it was an honest mistake and equally his fault for being so gullible. But now that the police were involved for real, she was terrified.
“Sharon from work knows a guy who will help us for next to nothing.”
“You told Sharon about this?”
“Yes, Charlie. She is my friend and one of my only support systems, and we need help. I need you to take this seriously.”
“Trust me, Mom, I am,” Charlie said as he walked out the door. The last thing he needed was someone making him feel more stressed than he already felt. He needed to stay strong and focused, and now it was time to go convince Amanda, Kit, and Miller to act the same.
* * *
“I can’t believe the police are bringing you in on Halloween, dude,” Miller said. “That’s so lame. Why can’t they wait until tomorrow?”
“Because a girl died, Sean, and Charlie lied about information he had,” Kit said. Her voice was so quiet, Charlie could barely hear her, but he understood what she was saying and, even more importantly, how she was feeling. Over the past few weeks, Kit had been looking and acting the way Charlie felt inside. He somehow found the ability to hide it during the school day, but Kit apparently didn’t have the strength or ability to fake it. She’d been missing school at least once a week on account of what Miller said were massive migraines, and her nails were bitten up and scabbed over. Right now, she was pulling at a lock of her hair so hard that he saw a few strands actually come loose. Charlie could barely look at her without being overcome with guilt. He was technically responsible for all of this, and it was ruining far more lives than just his.
“I think you should be less worried about Charlie and more worried about yourself, Kit,” Amanda chimed in. “Thanks to Charlie’s decision, we’re all going to be questioned.”
