Page 85 of The Facade

“Dang it,” I said to Cambrielle. “Carter’s waiting for me to head out first.”

“What?” She made a rustling sound like she was poking her head up to see what I was seeing.

“I think he’s planning to follow me out.” I waved to Carter and smiled, hoping he hadn’t noticed I was talking to someone in a vehicle I was supposed to be alone in.

“But my car is here. I can’t go home without my car,” Cambrielle said. “Someone will notice.”

“It’s fine.” I put my Land Cruiser in reverse and started pulling out of my parking spot. “I’ll just pull off to get gas or something, and then I’ll bring you back.”

So I headed out of the parking lot and down the tree-shrouded drive that led to the school’s gates. Once out, I turned onto the road and headed toward the opposite end of town where we lived, with Carter’s truck following close behind.

“This must be what it feels like to be a criminal,” Cambrielle said.

I chuckled. “If you get this excited about being a stowaway, I can’t wait to see how excited you get when we actually do something illegal.”

“You’re planning to have a life of crime then?” Cambrielle asked.

“I don’t know. Maybe.” I glanced over my shoulder. “I’ve already snuck into the home of a billionaire multiple times to sleep in his daughter’s room. And I’m currently kidnapping said daughter. Maybe a life of crime should be my extra backup plan if the NBA or the kissing tutor thing don’t work out.”

“I’ve always wanted to secretly date a bad boy,” Cambrielle’s voice drifted over the seats, a hint of a smile in her voice.

“And here I thought you were this innocent little creature.” I chuckled. “If I’d known about your dark side, I totally would have tried corrupting you sooner.”

“I’m sure it would have been fun.”

A minute later, the “Welcome to Eden Falls” sign came into view through the trees, and soon we were driving past the various businesses and shops on Main Street. I spotted the gas station I usually went to, turned into the parking lot, and pulled up to a pump.

I planned to idle there for a few seconds, just to wait for Carter’s truck to pass on his way to his house. But instead of continuing down Main Street like I expected, he turned into the gas station parking lot behind us.

“Is he actually following us?” I wondered aloud.

“What?” Cambrielle popped her head up again to see what I was talking about, only to immediately duck back down.

“Don’t you guys have someone who fills all your vehicles up with gas when he details them?” I looked back to Cambrielle with a confused expression.

“Yeah. Vaughn tops them off every few days.” She frowned as she peeked her head up again to look through the window at Carter’s truck that was passing the gas pumps and pulling into a parking spot. “Maybe he’s getting something from inside? I think Ava has an addiction to the mixed sodas they started serving here, and so they stop here a lot.”

“Looks like I’ll be filling up with gas then.” I looked at my gas gauge. “With, like, half a gallon of gas since I just filled up on my way to school this morning.”

I climbed out, opened my gas tank, and started filling it up. It stopped itself after about ten seconds since I really didn’t need any gas. But I needed to make it look like I actually needed this stop on my way home, so I just leaned against my Land Cruiser and scrolled through my phone to pass the time like I normally did when I filled up.

After a minute or so, I put the gas nozzle back where it belonged, hit the button saying I didn’t need a receipt, and then headed inside the gas station.

Carter and Ava came out of the doors right before I reached them, a big Styrofoam soda cup in Ava’s hand and a bag of Starbursts under Carter’s arm.

“Hey.” I nodded to them when we met.

“Hey.” Carter nodded back and Ava just smiled and waved.

I continued into the building and texted Cambrielle.

Want anything while I’m in here? I’m going to wait until Carter and Ava are actually gone this time so they can’t follow us anymore.

Her text came through a few seconds later.

Cambrielle:I’d love a diet Dr. Pepper with raspberry puree and coconut creamer.

Me:So you’re a fan of the drinks too?

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