“Twisted Pine did it? But it’d be free for them. They just put his name on a plaque and hang it on the door.”
“Exactly. It didn’t cost them anything, but by doing it they got away with whatever happened. I’m thinking they paid his parents to keep quiet and threw in naming a room after him as part of the deal.”
“Got away withwhat? You’re saying the school killed Jason?”
“I don’t think the school was directly involved but I think they covered up whatever happened.”
“So youdon’tbelieve the heart condition story?”
“I want to, but I can’t. They put everyone through a complete physical before the season starts, including heart tests. If there was something wrong with his heart, they would’ve known.”
“Do his parents know this?”
“They only know what Twisted Pine told them, and what the team doctor told them, which is that he had an undiagnosed heart condition. Rumor, I don’t want to talk about this. Let’s go inside.”
I follow him to the door. “What about Braden? Do you think he was involved?”
“He had motive, but I don’t know if he was involved.”
Jackson unlocks the door, and we go inside.
“By motive, you mean Braden wanted Jason’s position? To be quarterback?”
“Wait.” Jackson puts his hand up, blocking me from moving, and lifts his head like he’s listening for something.
“What’s going on?” I whisper.
A noise comes from the hall that leads to his bedroom. The sound of footsteps, and then a thud, like something dropped on the wood floor.
Jackson turns to me, grabbing my shoulders. “Go wait outside. Don’t make a sound.”
“What? I’m not leaving you.”
“Rumor, I mean it. Wait outside.” He slowly walks over to the end table by the couch.
I hear the footsteps again. Someone’s definitely in the house. Jackson opens the narrow drawer of the table.
And pulls out a gun.
Chapter 8
“Rumor, get outside!” Jackson says in a hushed voice as he takes small, careful steps toward the hallway.
“Should I call the police?” I whisper.
He shakes his head no.
What the hell? Why wouldn’t I call the police? There’s a burglar in his house!
I watch as he approaches the hallway, the gun aimed and ready to shoot.
Jackson has a gun. I’m not sure how I feel about that. Dating someone who has a gun in his house? Someone who people think killed a girl? I don’t think he did it, but so many people do that it makes me question myself. Am I not seeing him clearly because I have feelings for him? Because I want him to be innocent?
“Shit,” he says with a sigh, lowering the gun as he looks down the hall. “I almost shot you. What the fuck are you doing here?”
Kristen appears from the hallway wearing black lace panties and a tight black tank top, her long blonde hair tied up in a messy bun with wavy strands falling around her face. She looks annoyingly beautiful, like a model who just woke up from bed.
“I didn’t know where else to go,” she says, walking up to Jackson.
