Page 35 of Dead Girls Can't Tell Secrets

A rock wall encrusted with neon moss towers over the forest on one side of the clearing. White water froths and gushes down the rocks, its beginnings hidden up in the treetops. On either side of the falls, twisted vines cascade and shrubs spring from the cracks in the granite. Where the water crashes down in a churn of foam, a brilliant pool collects within the rocks. The sunlight streams through the fanning trees to bounce off the surface of the swimming hole, making it a mirror of everything around us.

The edge of the pool is shallow enough to stand in, but my gaze travels to the dark area near the cliff. The part that’s deep and uncertain.

Some members of the group stop to take photos, while others begin to descend the slope leading to the cool waters below. Mr. Davis sits on a fallen log, unwrapping a granola bar. A few yards away, Noah makes vain attempts to get my attention.

Grant and I find a shady spot to remove our packs. I take a few sips from my water bottle and turn to him. “What are we supposed to be doing, exactly?” My voice is half drowned by the crash and gurgle of the falls.

“Whatever we want.” He points down the gorge to where Sam is already seated on a rock, fiddling with a stick and some ropelike material. “We could see what he’s making.”

“Lumberjack? Who cares what he’s making?” But Grant’s already headed down, serenaded by Abby, whose singing echoes through the gorge. “This club is so weird,” I grumble, carefully finding my footing on the steep hillside where the rocks begin. Grant continues to lead the way, skirting slippery boulders until he reaches the bank.

“Fishing?” He nods at Sam’s pocketknife with admiration. Apparently, when Grant is in this club, he transforms into an overgrown Boy Scout.

Sam doesn’t look up, only wipes the blade on his tan pants, leaving a trail of green. “This cordage isn’t the best. You got anything better?”

Grant grins. “In my pack.”

He races back up the ravine, leaving me alone with Lumberjack, who calls out, “And try to scrounge up some bait.”

Sam still hasn’t acknowledged me, so I tiptoe backward, trying not to fall.

“Gonna try your hand at fishing?” comes a low voice behind me.

My pulse accelerates. “I told you to stay away from me,” I answer without looking.

Sam glances up at us for a beat, then returns to twisting and tying.

I spin around, trying to push past Noah, but he sidesteps in front of me. “Come on, Savannah. You don’t really think I did that to your tent. It wasn’t even funny. In all the years we’ve known each other, have I ever performed a prank that bad?”

“Get out of my way, Noah.”

“Is everything all right?” Sam is on his feet now, eyes narrowed.

“No, everything is not all right,” I say. “Can I borrow your knife, please?”

“Uh.” Sam glances from me to Noah, brows furrowed.

“Just talk to me,” Noah pleads. “Preferably somewhere he’s not standing beside us with a knife. Also,” he says to Sam, “I thought Mr. Davis told you last time not to bring that.”

Sam only glares, so Noah turns back to me. “Savannah. We need to talk. There are…things you need to know. About Piper.”

My heart whirs in my chest. Here it comes, and part of me suddenly isn’t ready to hear it.

“Please?”

I inhale slowly, and then turn on my heel. “Fine.” I trudge back up the slope to where the rocks collide with the undergrowth of the forest, and the leaves rustle as Noah follows. I press on, ducking under a branch and pushing into the trees. When we’re completely out of hearing range of everyone down at the river, I stop at a black, fuzzy log.

Noah is quiet as he lowers himself onto it, but I remain standing, arms crossed. The air is brittle and tense until Noah’s voice shatters it. “Savannah, I did not write that message on your tent last night.”

“I thought you were here to tell me something new, not to repeat your denials.”

A lock of dust-brown hair falls over his glasses, and he lets it hang there. “I am.”

“I want to know,” I say, even though I don’t. Not if Noah had something to do with what happened to my sister.

“I hurt Piper.”

My breath catches. Everything starts to spin.

---