Page 9 of The Ruse

“Or so he says,” Mr. Park said. “I think it’s that he was always more interested in testing out the chemistry he had with the female population at our school instead of the actual science.” He chuckled.

Did that mean Asher had been a player before he started dating Bailee?

I guess I could see it.

He certainly had the looks of someone who played the field. And though I was slightly terrified of him, I still found myself drawn to him on a level that didn’t make sense given what I knew about him.

Which meant I needed to be all the more careful around Asher. Sure, he’d said he didn’t know what happened to Bailee.

But that could all be a lie.

Miss Crawley said he was an amazing actor, so the less involvement I had with him, the safer I’d probably be.

3

ASHER

“You weren’table to get me a single room?” I asked Owen when we made it to my new room at the far end of the boys’ dorms. Eden Falls Academy, the school I’d gotten a scholarship to since my freshman year, was a few miles outside of the city limits and looked like it could fit in right next to the Hogwarts castle inHarry Potter.

I’d grown up in Eden Falls and always thought it would be cool to go to school in the castle outside of town. We’d had more money back then and Owen had been accepted and had bragged about how much better it was than the local public high school. But after my dad died and all the stuff went down with my mom, I knew there was little chance of actually getting to attend such an expensive school.

We ended up not being able to afford it—spoiler alert—but Owen had heard about a scholarship opportunity from his best friend, Ian Hastings, and so I’d applied. Amazingly enough, I won the scholarship.

It ended up being just the right timing, too, since right before school was supposed to start during my freshman year, my mom got sent to prison. The only thing that kept me out of the foster care system was the fact that Owen agreed to be my guardian while still a sophomore in college, and my school scholarship covered my room and board.

“Believe it or not, all the single rooms were taken back in September.” Owen patted my shoulder before setting the garment bag with all my school uniforms on top of the twin bed that would be mine for the next seven months. “You’re lucky Hunter didn’t mind getting a roommate almost three months into his senior year.”

“I guess.” I just hoped Hunter didn’t snore. I was a light sleeper and staying at my Aunt Vivian’s huge house the past few months had probably made me even more sensitive to sounds in the night, since I hadn’t had to share a room while I was there.

“You could always stay in the Hastings’ pool house with Ian and me if this is beneath you,” Owen said. “The couch is pretty comfy.”

Owen had moved in with his best friend Ian after they’d finished college and he’d gotten a position as the AP Biology and AP Chemistry teacher at my school. But as nice as their pool house was, I didn’t feel comfortable mooching off the Hastings’ generosity. I’d already secured my position on Nash’s bad side after winning the part of Jean Valjean in last year’s musical production ofLes Misérables. I really didn’t need him to think I was trying to take over his family’s estate, too.

“Naw, I’m sure this will be fine.” I set my suitcase on the floor and looked around at the various posters of NBA players Hunter had tacked on his side of the room. “Hunter’s pretty chill. I’m sure it’ll work out.”

While we’d never been buddies and he was actually close friends with Nash, Hunter had always been nice to me. He didn’t get involved in the drama that a lot of the kids at our school got into, so if I were to have a roommate, he was probably the best option.

Owen helped me bring up the second load of my things. Afterwards, he gave me a hug where I probably clung onto him a little too tight—signaling that I was more anxious about being back at school than I tried to let on. Then my brother took my shoulders in his hands, looked me in the eyes, and said, “It’s going to be fine, Asher.” He gave me a sympathetic smile. “I know last year was bad and that we still don’t have the answers we’d like about what happened to Bailee. But you didn’t do anything wrong.”

“I know.” I sighed and let out the breath I’d probably been holding ever since Elyse asked me if I’d killed my girlfriend. “I just wish Bailee was here, you know?”

Wished that even though I knew I was innocent, I’d done things differently.

“We all wish Bailee was here.” Owen sighed and ran a hand through his raven hair that was just slightly shorter than mine. “But it’s been seven months. And as much as we wish she’d walk through the school doors and tell everyone where she’s been, we can’t just stop living because she isn’t here. You have to try to move on, Asher.”

“I know.” I nodded, unable to meet his eyes because the thought of moving on while Bailee was who knows where just seemed wrong.

“It’s a different school year,” Owen said. “Just focus on school and the musical, and before you know it, you’ll be off to college and all of this will be a distant memory.”

He said it like it should be simple. Moving on and living a normal life when I’d just been suspected of murder a few months ago.

But what else could I do? I’d already searched for answers all summer and came up with nothing. Who knows how long it would be before the truth came out—if we ever did find out what happened that night on the twenty-fifth of April.

Owen watched me for a second, as if waiting for some sign that it was okay for him to leave and go back to his football game.

So I forced a smile on my face and said, “I’m sure once I get settled and through the first few days, I’ll get back to normal.”

I didn’t really believe my own words. I was pretty sure the rest of my senior year would be misery, but that was my problem to worry about. Owen already had enough on his shoulders.

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