"At least bring your books over there."
"I'm not going to use them, but sure. Bye!" I run into the house and straight to my room.
I text Jackson.Can I come over?
Yeah, we just finished.
Be over soon!
I'm bursting with excitement knowing I get to see him. I thought about him all day, counting the minutes until we could be together.
I change out of my uniform and go. I didn't bring my books. There's no way I'm studying with Jackson. Our time together could be limited. I'm not wasting it studying.
When I get to the house he's staying at, he opens the door and wraps me in his arms, lifting me off the ground.
"Did you miss me?" I say, laughing.
"How'd you know?" He sets me down and kisses me, then we go in the house. "I was just watching the news. Seeing if they had any updates on the case."
"You haven't heard anything?"
"Not from the lawyers. And the news has only said what I already know."
We go in the living room where the TV is on.
"Where's your dad?" I ask as we sit on the couch.
"He had to go to LA for his movie. It's still in casting but they wanted to meet with him about something. He'll probably be back in the morning."
"Speaking of that, Brock was—"
"Wait." He points to the TV. "They're talking about the case."
There's a photo of Kristen on the screen as the newswoman talks. "Police are releasing new details about the Kristen Reynolds case. As we reported last weekend, Reynolds' body was found early Saturday morning on the beach behind the house owned by Jackson Novak, son of Roman Novak, one of Hollywood's most acclaimed film directors."
A photo of Jackson and his dad appear behind her.
"Jackson was arrested at his home Saturday following the discovery of the body. Reynolds' stepfather, Steven Edwards, has accused Jackson of the crime, stating Novak had a tumultuous relationship with his daughter that often turned violent. We're still awaiting autopsy results to confirm cause of death but as of now, police believe she died of asphyxiation before her body was disposed of in the ocean. Police have so far only charged Jackson with the girl's murder but believe a second person may have been involved."
Jackson's arrest picture appears, along with a picture of me!
"Why am I—"
"Shh." Jackson points to the TV as the reporter continues.
"The marks on the body indicate Reynolds was held down while another person strangled her, although this is not yet confirmed. In his statement Saturday, Steven Edwards named Rumor Halliway, niece of actor Brock Halliway, as a possible accomplice, saying she became physically violent toward the victim after an argument at school. We've been told Ms. Halliway started dating Mr. Novak several weeks ago when he was still seeing Ms. Reynolds. Police have brought Halliway in for questioning but as of yet, she's not been charged. Novak had been out with Halliway the night Reynolds was killed. Novak claims he dropped Halliway off at her house around eleven. Reynolds was believed to have been killed between eleven and twelve. Police are investigating whether Halliway was indeed home at the time or if she was with Novak. Stay tuned as we continue to follow this case in the days ahead. Now on to weather."
Jackson turns the TV off. "Shit."
I jump up from the couch. "They think I did it! They think I helped you kill her!"
Jackson pulls me into his chest. "I'll fix this. I promise."
"You can't promise me that! It's too late. They think I did it! They're going to charge me with murder!"
Chapter Fourteen
"That's not going to happen," Jackson says, holding me. "All that stuff they said was just a theory and any evidence they have is circumstantial."
