Page 93 of For Fox Sake

There must be a renter in my old place, because there isn’t any parking on the cul-de-sac.

I drive to the end and flip around. I’ll have to park somewhere on the cross street. I stop by Ari and roll down the window. “Hey, there superhero.”

“Jake, you’re here!” She’s hopping up and down with excitement, chalk all over her clothes, her hair in wild disarray.

Lightness fills me, a sense of buoyancy chasing out the gloom of the past week.

“I’ve got to find a place to park the car. I’ll be right back, okay?”

She nods, still jumping around.

Chuckling, I drive forward and halt at the stop sign, waiting for a few cars to pass, before pulling out onto the street and spotting a space halfway down the block.

I’m grabbing my overnight bag and Shirley from the trunk when Ari’s voice reaches me over the hum of traffic.

I glance in her direction. She’s on her scooter, racing down the sidewalk.

Frowning, I shut the trunk. What is she doing?

She hops the curb, riding into the road without looking.

Alarm shoots through me. I check the street, my blood turning into ice. A car is barreling toward her, a small black sedan.

Do they see her?

Fear clutches me in a tight grip, the air whooshing out of my lungs. No. They aren’t slowing down.

“Ari!” I drop my bag and sprint.

Time is the enemy. It kicks into overdrive. My ears ring. I can’t force my legs hard enough or fast enough. She’s so close, but too far away. With barely a second to spare, I shove her out of the way.

Did I push too hard? Is she okay?

A flash of white-hot pain collides with my ribs, the blunt force ricocheting through my whole body, followed by pitch black.

Chapter Twenty-Four

Jake

“Come on Jake, we have to go.”

“We don’t have to do anything.”

Aria flips onto her side to face me. “I heard Taylor talking to Tiffany and she said anyone and everyone will be there. That means we have to be there.”

My stomach churns with dread. “We can’t go.”

Aria pokes me in the side. “Jake.”

“No.”

She pokes me again. “Jaaaaake,” she sing-songs.

“It’s a bad idea.”

“Uh, actually it’s the best idea we’ve had.”

“You’ve had.”

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