Page 9

They were one grade ahead of me and should have graduated by now.

“Why are they here?” I ask.

I’d get it if one of them flunked, but both to be held back? Jade loses color in her cheeks, and it’s Nigel who responds, staring at me straight in the eye. “Well,” he says flippantly, “if you really want the gossip… they killed someone, London.”

My jaw drops.

Jade elbows him. “Nigel, you don’t know that.”

He shoots a subtle look at the twins, with something dark behind his eyes. “I’m pretty certain of it, Jade.”

“Oh, always the astute journalist, Nigel. Not everything is a story.” Jade leans into me. “They were in a car accident, London. That’s all.”

My stomach twists. “Both of them? Were they together?”

Jade shakes her head and Nigel just rolls his eyes. “No one knows what happened for sure. Micah briefly went to jail because of it, but his dad got him out pretty quickly. The charges were dropped, but their parents sent them away to some rehab facility for the past year.”

“And their daddy got them back in school,” Nigel quips, sounding hostile, even though this has nothing to do with him.

Jade parts her lips and gives Nigel a side glance. “They came back this summer, and their dad got them back in this school so they can graduate and play hockey,” she says. “They basically run the school. Micah is the hockey team captain, but both of them are good, so I’m not surprised they were allowed back. Even after what happened.”

I swallow a pit in my throat. “Who did they supposedly kill?”

Nigel and Jade exchange another look.

“A girl from Douglas Cove,” Jade says. “Her name was Olivia, I think.”

“A girl no one here gave a shit about, apparently, if we can’t even remember her name,” Nigel adds, his voice laced with malice.

Not surprising. From what I recall, kids from Douglas Cove and New Ocean Prep were not friends, with little interaction other than a fierce competition over sports. Douglas Cove kids held up on the hockey rink from what I remember.

Jade pauses and takes a bite of her apple. “All we have are rumors, but I hear she was pretty messed up when it happened, like high on drugs or drunk. Micah shouldn’t have been with her; she was Maison’s girlfriend.”

“And Maison wasn’t even there,” Nigel interrupts in a singsong voice.

Jade just shakes her head. “People saw Maison with her in town earlier, so we don’t know why she was with Micah instead of Maison. The accident was Micah’s fault, though, and she flew right out of the windshield and died in his arms a few minutes later.”

Nigel stiffens. “I doubt Olivia even cared which one she fucked that night. Rumor has it they shared her.”

A prickle twinges the back of my neck as I turn to watch them. A tinge of pink hits Jades cheeks at the erotic turn of the conversation. Of course they shared girls. The poor girl was probably in love with them, and they just used her. I know the feeling; I fell blindly for someone once, too.

Jade runs her hand over my arm. “Just keep your distance, London, and you’ll be fine. They had a reputation with girls before this happened.”

I narrow my brows. “What was their reputation?” I shouldn’t care so much, but this story is beyond fascinating. It makes my shit look like child’s play.

She presses her lips together. “Maison is really nice, but I’m pretty sure he has slept with half the school at one point or another. It’s how he is with girls, though, and they just seem to flock to him. Micah is flat-out scary. He’s always had a bad temper, and he gets in lots of fights.”

From the sounds of it, Mr. No Emotion is quite emotional after all.

I lift a brow as I watch Micah’s arm slide around Naomi—the first sign of affection he’s given her. “What’s the story with him and Naomi?” I ask. “Are they together?”

Jade clamps her lips, showing there is a whole other juicy story to unpack there.

“Naomi’s always had a crush on Micah. Until this summer, she had an on-and-off relationship with Ezra for years. Naomi dumped Ezra before the school year because Micah was returning.”

“And they are cuddling right in front of him?” I ask.

Jesus, everything about this group of friends is toxic. No wonder Ezra hasn’t smiled at all. He’s almost as broody as Micah.