Page 90 of We’re All Going to Die Tonight!

He touches the edge of the knife.

“Caulder,” I say, keeping my voice even so that no one panics. “We should get the teachers—”

“No need for that,” Emerson says. “I knocked them both out. Used the same sleeping pill I used on Lucas. Told them it was just water, and they didn’t realize what I’d dissolved in it. By the time they wake up, we’ll have figured out our story just in time for the police.”

“Emerson, what the hell are you talking about?” Caulder asks. “Is losing all that blood messing with your brain or something?”

He’s looking from Emerson to Marlene. And I see the disbelief there. He doesn’t think she could’ve done this.

“Ask her,” Emerson says. “Ask her if I’m telling the truth.”

Everyone’s gazes swing to her. For a moment, she just looks at the floor. And then, at last, she speaks.

“I didn’t mean for him to die,” she says. “But—”

“You see?” Emerson says. “It’s her fault!”

“Mari? No way,” Lucas says, looking flabbergasted. “How could you…? You didn’t actually kill—”

“How could I?” Marlene snarls, anger clear in her voice. “Don’t you dare talk to me about ‘how could I’ after what you did. I thought I loved you, Lucas.”

His face falls, and he looks like a puppy who knows he’s gotten into something he’s not supposed to get into. Guilt and shame mix with horror.

“I told you, Mari,” he says softly. “I just…I just don’t feel that way. You’re like my—”

“I’m like your little sister,” Marlene says, tears shining in her eyes. “Yes, I remember. How could I forget? But don’t you dare bullshit me, Lucas. You loved that I fawned over you. Loved that I commented on every single one of your videos and wore your merch. You could’ve told me then, but no. You let me suffer.”

Lucas opens his mouth to speak, but Marlene cuts him off.

“And when I needed you the most, you betrayed me.”

Now her tears don’t just shimmer in her brown eyes. They tumble down her cheeks, and she shakes her head as her lip quivers.

“I told you I needed your help,” she says. “You were supposed to protect me from him. You were supposed to get it on film so we could stop him. But you didn’t come.”

Lucas looks almost as confused as I feel. What’s she talking about? Or, more importantly, who is she talking about?

Caulder gets it before I do. I watch his eyes widen as realization seizes him.

“Jay,” he says. “The note. You wrote that.”

Marlene glances at Caulder. “How’d you know that?”

But Caulder doesn’t answer her. I can practically see his mind whirring, fitting the pieces together. I know he is because I’m doing the same thing.

“Kaitlyn said Mr. Jay was a danger to us,” I say, remembering the accusations she leveled against Ms. Dorman. “And the guy I spoke to at the competition…He said he was known for going after young girls.”

You were supposed to get it on film so we could stop him.

I stare at Marlene, horror seizing me. “Oh my god, Marlene…”

“He started as soon as I joined the Debate Club,” Marlene says, voice colder than I’ve ever heard it. Than I even thought was possible. “He told me all the teachers had everyone’s numbers for Debate Club stuff, so I should give him mine. He would text me all the time, but it was always vaguely about debate stuff. Even though it seemed weird, I…I thought maybe this is what Coastal Canyon was like. Maybe teachers were just really involved and friendly. But then, right before the competition, he…cornered me after one of our meetings. He put his hand on my leg. I…”

“I found her crying,” Kaitlyn cuts in. “In the room, after he left. She told me what he did. Not that I was surprised. In fact, the only thing that really surprised me was that the school let him come back after what he did to Hadley.”

Kaitlyn rolls her head, cracking her neck.

“But that shouldn’t have surprised me, should it?” she says, and her gaze finds Caulder. “People like Jay, they never face consequences. No one ever gives a shit.”