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Was he right?
I hadn’t really made Vin suffer or given him the cold shoulder. Just as I never really questioned Scarlett about why she’d decided that I was better off going it alone. I guess I just had bigger things to worry about. Kendall. The constant lying to my parents. Keeping this thing with Evan from everyone. All while trying to be someone I wasn’t. Or was this who I was now?
My cell vibrated in my pocket, and I slid it out onto my lap. My heart stopped as I opened up the message. The grainy image on the screen stared back at me, and I felt sucker punched right in the stomach.
“Everything okay?” Lilly asked. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost?”
“W-what?” I blinked over at her, covering the screen with my hand. “Fine. I’m fine.”
“Who was that?”
“Oh, just my mom. She’s not feeling so well.”
Concern flashed across her face. “You want one of us to take you home?”
“No, no, I’m fine.”
Everything was not fine.
The photo was of me outside Montecito Prep last year. It was Winter Formal. I’d attended with Liam Deveroe, and he had spent more time making me pose for photos than dancing with me. But Mom liked him. Thought he was a good guy with solid aspirations.Where had it come from?
I looked at the cell number again. It was unknown. It had to be Kendall, even though the number didn’t match the one she’d texted from the night she pretended to be Lilly. But how did she get the photo? It was possible she had stalked my social media— but I’d deactivated all my accounts when I’d gotten ‘sick.’ Still, those things left a digital imprint, didn’t they?All someone had to do was Google a name and they could find any number of things.But Dad would have checked that.
It vibrated again, startling me.
What do you think your friends would think if they knew who you really were?
My body tingled with nerves.Everyone knew I didn’t fit in at Credence High, but I’d been careful not to reveal just how different my life had been. People didn’t need to know. It wasn’t who I was anymore.So why is she doing this?
“Becca?”
“Mom is really sick. Maybe I should head home.”
“Oh no, is she okay?” Lilly asked.
“Yeah, yeah, just the stomach flu, but my dad’s out of town for work.”
She nodded. “Of course. Malachi, can you take Becca home?”
“Sure.” He climbed out of the car and motioned for me to follow.
“Are you sure?” I asked.
Being alone with Malachi was always intense. He didn’t speak much, but he knew about Evan and me. And he’d been close to Ami, and I got the impression he knew more than he was letting on. About Evan. Ami. Even Kendall.
“Yeah, it’s no problem. Come on.” He set off, and I gave a small wave to the others before following after him.
“Sorry about this,” I said.
Jamming his hands in his skinny jeans pockets, he shrugged. “It’s no bother. I can double back after I drop you home.”
“Okay.”
We walked the rest of the way in silence. I didn’t want to go home, not really. But I couldn’t stay and pretend. Lilly knew I was lying. I saw it in her eyes. But they were already so protective, I didn’t want to make a fuss by telling them about the notes and the messages. Besides Scarlett had said it herself—Kendall wasn’t dangerous; she was just hell-bent on making my life miserable. I just had to stand tall in the face of her attempts to unnerve me.
Malachi didn’t say much on the ride to my house. I wanted to ask about Ami, about Evan, but every time I opened my mouth, the words evaporated.
The second we turned onto my street, he finally broke the deafening silence. “So you and Porter, huh?”
