Danny stares at me. “Why not?”
“Because.” They might link it back to me, the real killer? “Because…then they’d know about him selling grades to students?” Oh shit, that actually makes sense. I launch fully into it. “He probably has like, incriminating stuff on his laptop, and you don’t want to ruin his reputation like that, do you?” Great, I’m actually gaslighting him. “The media will be all over this. Plus, I’m sure it was just some virus he accidentally downloaded when he was torrenting TV shows or whatever.”
Danny rubs his eyes. “You’re right. I don’t want everyone to know him as the shady teacher who sold grades to his students. But this is so—I feel like I’m losing it. There’s something else, but—I don’t know, you’ll think I’m crazy. I don’t know.”
“What is it? Tell me,” I plead. I need to know everything, even though my stomach is clenching and going, No, I don’t want to know.
Danny hesitates for another moment before he finally says, “The other day, when you got called to Henderson’s office and I came back to get my phone, I—uh. This is going to sound so crazy, but I saw something. A shadow moving under my door, like someone was in my room.”
Oh my god. Oh god, shit, oh shit. He saw her.
“But someone in the hall asked me something, and by the time I opened the door, there was no one there.”
My breath is coming in and out in little gasps. It’s a struggle to pretend like I’m totally calm. Did he see her or not?
As though he read my mind, he says, “I think it was Stacey.”
My heart explodes in my chest. I feel like I’m about to pass out. Before I can reply, he says, “It makes sense if she was the one who hacked into Uncle James’s computer. We all know she’s a computer geek. She does shit like this.”
No, I want to yell. She has nothing against him, it’s all me, all my fault, I shouldn’t have asked her to clean up the virus, she was right, Danny probably wouldn’t have found the virus in the first place, and now, because of me, it’s all blowing up and I’ve roped her into this mess.
“That’s just crazy,” I say and try for a laugh.
“No, it’s not!” His fist shoots out and slams down on the desk so hard that the wood cracks.
I squeak—an actual, frightened squeak that a small, furry animal might make a split second before some large predator descends upon it.
Danny looks down at his fist with wide eyes, as though surprised at his own outburst. But then he shakes his head and glares at me, anger radiating from him. “Stop fucking defending her. You’re only doing it because you guys are friends,” he growls.
My stomach turns to water. I’ve never seen Danny like this. Flashes of Mr. Werner stab through my mind. Mr. Werner chasing me in the woods. Mr. Werner on top of me, snarling—
No. Stop that. But now, I can see the relation between them, even though it’s not genetic. That same focused rage burning in their eyes. I recall too, how Danny had grabbed Henry’s wrist that night we all went clubbing. It had happened months ago, but now the memory comes to me with such clarity. I can remember every detail as though it happened yesterday—the look of pure terror on Henry’s face, how panicky Danny looked afterward, like he hadn’t meant to lose control like that. Without meaning to, I stagger back a step.
“Danny, please. I’m just pointing out to you that Stacey has nothing to do with your uncle. She’s not even in his class. I mean, she’s the type of person who’d put keyloggers on everyone’s computer for a laugh. I don’t think she had it out for Mr. Werner.”
Every muscle inside me is knotted painfully, ready to spring up and run like a frightened rabbit. Because, holy crap, Danny is scaring the shit out of me. So much so that my eyes are actually pricking with tears and my hands are shaking.
The silence stretches on for a painfully long time. Deep and suffocating. Would I have time to scream if he were to—
To what?
This is Danny I’m with. My sweet, perfect, loving boyfriend.
And as though he could hear my thoughts, Danny exhales, his shoulders sagging.
“You’re right,” he says quietly. The boiling anger dissipates, and the hunter’s mask falls away, leaving the old Danny behind.
The relief is so overwhelming, I nearly burst into tears.
“I’m so sorry,” he says. “Lia, god, I just—I’m sorry, I’m losing it, I know. I’ll get some help. Are you okay?” He reaches out and puts a gentle hand on my arm. I manage not to flinch.
“It’s okay,” I say. “You’re under so much pressure.” And so much of it is my fault.
“Yeah, well. How crazy is it to think someone was in my room, right?” He snorts. “The shoelaces are probably a bigger clue, anyway.”
“Shoelaces?” Why did I choose to say that out loud? It’s like a gavel, slamming down on everything, and the silence is painful.
“They found a pair of shoelaces in Uncle James’s car. Um. Everyone says it’s from someone on the track team.”
I think I laugh, though it doesn’t sound much like one. “How would anyone know that? People outside of the track team wears shoes with laces. It’s not like, an exclusive track thing.” Wow, stop babbling.
Danny makes a noncommittal sound. Still not looking at me. Whywhywh—
“So Mandy talked to me.”
That’s why. Apparently, I should’ve punched her even harder.
“She wanted to apologize for what she said to me about Uncle James.”
“As she should.” I can’t quite keep the quiet rage from my voice.
“She also said—um.” Danny looks up at the ceiling. Sighs. Turns away. “Never mind.”
“Tell me.”
He says it to his feet. “She said she’s seen you wearing those laces.”
My laughter is harsh, like a bark. “She’s lying.” And she is. I’ve never worn those laces, because they’re so old, I wasn’t sure I could wear them without them snapping in half. But Mandy, with her stupid, vindictive lies, is getting way too close to the truth, and to her, this is all just a game, and I could kill her, I really—shit, did I really just think that? I couldn’t. I couldn’t kill another person. But the rage inside me is boiling hot, and this is it. I keep turtling, keep running into dead ends and hoping things will be okay, but I can’t anymore. If I continue down this path I’m on, I’m going to end up depressed, out of my mind like Sophie was. I don’t want to end up like Sophie. I see her pale face again and I clench my fists. I am not going to end up like her. I was right before about needing a fall guy. I was wrong about wanting the fall guy to be the drug dealer. Now I know better. Mandy is going to be my fall guy.
Chapter 27