my eyes fl

med through my

lock read 6:00

exam

m. It was a memory. A horrible, vivid memory of a l

as

second

ng of betrayal, the crushing weight

as something else too:

not win.

ought was E

ind. And crucially, he cou

wrist, almost invisible unless you knew

oo on her right ankle, a souvenir from a r

me clothes, m

to Ethan be

ng lot, leaning against his exp

id, my voice

eading across his face. "Sarah

to talk to yo

he fear, the desperation. His

about the rebirth, he

l on the SATs. They... they' ve done things before to take what' s mine." My voice trembled, but I

blatant favoritism. He' d seen Mom

serious. "Your mom and Je

but I will. I just... I need someone to believe me. Someone who can see the difference bet

k at my face, his eyes thoughtf

lowly. "I believe you. W

ees. "Just... be aware. And if things get bad, I might n

e solid. "I'll keep an eye out. And S

ence was a

moved through them with a calm I hadn't possessed i

I didn' t go h

library, my mind

eeded irrefut

quented. Ethan, with his connections, could help get photos, videos. Und

I needed proof of their meetings, maybe financial trails. Rick was married. His

arguments, Rick' s car speeding away that night, Mom scrubbing something frantically from the kitchen floor

t walking it alone. And I wasn't walking it in despa