Page 85 of Jack

“Casey was trying to make you jealous, why the fuck do you think we were always making out around you. I didn’t realize that was what was going on at the time, but I figured it out yesterday.”

“Why would I be jealous of who Casey is dating? I’m not interested in her.”

Mike shook his head. “Who the fuck knows? Casey is kind of fucked up. I think her parents always leaving her alone in this house has scrambled her brains, you know what I mean?” Crenshaw said insensitively, if accurately.

“Why do you think it was about me, though?”

Crenshaw scratched his jaw and sighed. “She broke up with me again yesterday, in fact it was right before we saw you guys in the cafeteria, and I was pissed. I mean, she did it again – dumped me before I got the chance to dump her. I asked what the problem was, although I wasn’t really that upset. She said wanted to date someone else, that he was available, and she didn’t want him to think she was taken.”

That must have been because Addison started spreading the rumor that I broke up with Ava.

Crenshaw continued, “I showed up here yesterday to ask her who the other guy was, because it was fucking bugging me. She didn’t answer the door, but I knew her alarm code, so I went up to her bedroom to talk to her, and I find her on the bed holding a picture of you and she’s fucking talking to it. Like, having a conversation with it, with you, like you were there. Talking about how you’re finally going to be together.”

I stood there absolutely speechless. I looked at Donovan and Nikolai and their looks mirrored mine. Total shock.

I opened my mouth to ask…something. I don’t even know what, when Hannah barreled into the room holding her phone, pointing to it and trying to catch her breath.

“What the fuck, Hannah?” Nikolai growled, pulling her into his arms and looking behind her to see if she was being chased.

“Ava, it’s Ava, on the phone,” Hannah sputtered. “She called me and at first I thought it was a pocket dial and almost hung up, but then I heard talking and…oh, god, Casey is totally nuts!”

“Yeah, we just figured that out,” I said gesturing to Crenshaw. “What does this have to do with Ava?” I asked with rising urgency.

“Casey is holding a gun on her…somewhere. I don’t know where they are, but Ava just asked if Casey was going to kill her!”

“What the fuck!” I roared. I turned to Mike and grabbed him by the front of his shirt. “Did you know Casey had a gun?”

He nodded his head. “It’s in her room, in one of her drawers. She’s scared being in this house alone.”

“Where the fuck is her room?” I pulled him out of the chair and pushed him ahead of me. “Show us!”

For once, Mike didn’t act like an arrogant dick. He looked genuinely freaked out and scared on Ava’s behalf. “This way.”

His fear didn’t make me feel better, it only heightened the terror that was already coiling in my gut, making my mouth dry and my palms sweat.

I couldn’t lose her.

****

Chapter 45

Ava

“What?” I gasped. “Kill myself? How?”

“Well, I’m going to bring you to the roof of the house, it’s quite high, you know? Anyway, I’m going to take you up there, and you’re going to jump,” she said and shrugged, as if her plan was so simple.

“Okay, but why would I decide to kill myself?”

Casey frowned at me. “Who cares why? You’re just going to do it! Then Jack will be sad and turn to me to comfort him,” she finished, smiling at how she imagined all of this playing out.

Jesus, my time was running out. I finally looked down and saw that I had called Hannah. Thank god! I knew she’d been on the phone with her sister, so she’d obviously seen the call.

“What are you looking at? Did you text someone?” she asked in outrage. As if trying to save my own life was another betrayal.

“No, I was just checking the time,” I lied.

“Ugh, who cares, let’s go. We’re headed to the roof,” Casey said, using the gun to gesture me toward the door.

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