“I—”
“You don’t have to say anything.” He gave me another half-grin. “I’m sure you’ll just shoot me down anyway, but I enjoy a good challenge.” He handed me the pen he’d been fiddling with—now missing its cap—and slipped outside.
I closed the door behind him, then rested my back against it.
Even though Riley had proven tomethat I wasn’t guilty, that wouldn’t mean anything to the police. I needed to clear my name before my family was caught up inthe gossip that would travel through town faster than a spilled potion. One way or another, I’d find the killer and prove my innocence.
Chapter 5
“DoyouthinkKittyhad anything to do with it?” a guy a few desks over whispered to his lab partner in class the next afternoon.
“I dunno, but haven’t they been dating on and off the last year?” The patter of rain on the window didn’t quite cover the girl’s reply.
I hesitated, pen suspended over the assignment. I’d known news of Graham’s passing would spread around Austen Heights, but I’d underestimated how quickly. And with everything that had happened lately, it was only natural for the other students to suspect me. Hex, if Rileyhadn’t proven my innocence last night, I’d suspect myself too.
“Yeah, but I’m pretty sure Graham broke up with her a month or two ago.”
Should I say something to them, or would that just make it worse? A glance at the clock showed I still had half an hour left of class. Maybe I shouldn’t have come in today, but I’d thought hiding might make me look guiltier.
Gritting my teeth at the gossip I didn’t know how to deal with, I put down my pen and finished the last step of my chem lab. With it being two days before Halloween, the professor had us make pumpkin spice caramel bites. I popped a piece into my mouth, letting the cinnamon and nutmeg flavor distract me from my classmates while I recorded my notes about thermochemistry, reaction stages, and the difference between Maillard browning versus caramelization.
Once I finished, I pulled out a fresh slip of paper and scribbled a rough timeline of yesterday.
-2:15 p.m. Gave Graham the truth potion cookie at the bookshop
-4-5 p.m. Graham got off work?
-6:15 p.m. Graham texted about the cookie & we made plans to meet the next day
-8:00 p.m. Graham’s mom gets the call from the police while at book club
-8:30 p.m. Mary told me about Graham’s death
-9:00 p.m. Talked to Riley & he ate cookie and did not die
“She’s already finished,” the same girl whispered again.
“Figures she’s good at this kind of thing,” the guy said. “Bet she could whip up a poison without breaking a sweat.”
I bit my lip, refusing to make eye contact with them, although I couldn’t help glancing longingly at the clock again. I’d hoped the fact that Graham had been killed by poison would’ve stayed secret longer.
My phone buzzed in my pocket, so I checked it and found a text from Riley.
Meet me at Bewitching Blossoms. I need to see you.
My heart skipped a beat, but I shook my head. That was definitely the potion speaking. But Riley’s text gave me the perfect excuse to slip out of class early and get away from all the gossip. Or at the very least, it would hopefully get us one step closer to finding the truth.
Okay
I shoved my stuff in my bag and carried my worksheet over to the professor. Used to me finishing early, he accepted it without a word, and I stalked out the door. The fresh fall air was a welcome reprieve after the overly sweet air in the lab, and I inhaled deeply, then wrapped my scarf around my neck. The rain had temporarily paused, but heavy clouds hung overhead like a soggy sponge cake.
I put in a pair of headphones so no one would talk to me, though I didn’t turn on my music. Instead of heading to the campus library where I usually met Elaine to do homework, I took the cobblestone path that wound behind the administration building to cut across campus.
A cluster of students huddled on the lawn to my right, bundled up in scarves and sweaters to combat the fall chill.
“That’s Graham’s ex,” a guy said to his friend, clearly assuming I couldn’t hear.
My fingers clenched around my backpack strap. Was there nowhere I could go to escape the gossip? I sighed and tilted my head back to admire the mix of amber and scarlet leaves that clung to the trees overhead.
