Page 41 of Christmas in the Shadows

“He hasn’t, has he?” Sofia admitted. “I’ve thought the same about him and some of his friends.”

“I’ve been a little concerned about the situation. Is something going on?” Chelsea held her breath as she waited to see if Sofia would talk.

Sofia twirled a strand of her hair as if contemplating how to respond. Then she glanced at Chelsea and seemed to sense she could trust her because she nodded and said, “Honestly, I do think something is going on.”

“But you don’t know what?” She tried not to sound overeager as she asked the question.

Sofia glanced around before stepping closer. “I wish I knew. But Alex won’t open up to me.”

“Do you have ideas? Any guesses even?”

Sofia frowned and glanced around again. “I shouldn’t be saying any of this. You’re a teacher, and I don’t want to get Alex or anyone else in trouble. But at what point is it more important to help someone rather than worrying about if you’ll get them in trouble?”

“If the person’s life is on the line, that definitely takes priority over getting in trouble.”

Sofia blew out a breath. “You want to know the truth?”

Chelsea’s lungs froze. Yes, that was exactly what she wanted to know. But she didn’t want to look too anxious either. “You know you can talk to me at any time, Sofia. I only want to help.”

She glanced around again. “I’ve got to wonder if the football team is doping.”

Chelsea blanched as if she were surprised.

The truth was, even though Chelsea had suspected something like this might be going on, hearing it out loud still felt shocking.

She swallowed hard before calmly asking, “Why do you think that?”

“I’ve overheard some of their conversations.”

“Well, if that’s what’s really going on, then who are they getting these drugs from?” Chelsea waited, anticipating that Sofia would say Gilbert.

But the girl nibbled on her lip. Then she said, “I’m pretty sure they’re getting them from Dr. Day.”

CHAPTER 14

Whatever Patrick had been about to share with Tex, the moment had passed.

After the interruption, Patrick had quickly finished his coffee and then stood. “Well, I’ve got to get back to work. I’m sorry to cut this short. But maybe if you have time while you’re in town we can get together again.”

Tex forced a smile, suspecting that wouldn’t happen. Despite that, he said, “That would be great.”

“I’ll text you.” Patrick gave him a nod. “And thanks for the coffee.”

Then, just as quickly as their meeting had started, it ended.

Tex downed the last sip of his own coffee and stood. At least he could get back to check on Chelsea now.

When he left the coffeehouse, surprise washed through him when he saw her car parked across the street.

She’d come downtown also? Where might she be?

The VW Bug was parked in front of a gift store. On a whim, Tex jogged across the street and peered in the window.

He spotted Chelsea near the register. She took a gift bag from a clerk and stepped back.

As she did, she glanced up as if she sensed someone looking at her. When Tex saw the fear cross her face, he instantly regretted it. He hadn’t meant to scare her.

A moment later, she met him outside, a look of confusion on her face. “Tex . . . I wasn’t expecting to see you here.”

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