Frayed Read Online Free Page B

without her diamond ring and with a very nasty cut over her right eye. Several trips to juvenile detention and many hours of community service later, the girls still hadn’t learned their lesson.
    “Right,” I said, wondering how to phrase the harsh accusations in my head. Did I believe them capable of murder? Stealing, assault, graffiti… That was at one level—but murder ? What could possibly motivate someone to take another’s life?
    “Why did you ask then?” Jackson said, hearing the skepticism in my voice.
    I turned my head toward him, watching his gaze focused on the road ahead, but his eyes narrowed slightly.
    “No reason,” I murmured, sinking farther into my seat.
    I didn’t have the guts to tell him my suspicions.
    The day rolled along fairly smoothly after that, right up until my second-to-last class of the day: chemistry. Because of strict regulations, the science labs were always closed until the teachers came and unlocked them. I don’t know what they thought we were going to do in there, considering the room was almost empty except for several rows of white desks, a whiteboard, and a few lab benches. Most of the scientific equipment was locked in the back room.
    This was my least favorite class—and not because of the subject or the teachers. It was because of the students.
    Chatter filled the science lab halls. The bell had rung a few moments ago, and people were gradually floating away to their classes. A golden-brown, curly head was bobbing through the quickly dispersing crowd, heading toward us. My heart clenched in my chest, and I turned away. I didn’t want to speak to Amanda Dawson. A cold animosity ran deep between us, and I didn’t know why.
    What had I ever done to her?
    Everyone avoided Amanda and her crew, KARMA, as though they were a deadly virus. Rafe’s reputation paled in comparison. Her voice was unnecessarily loud as she headed to the science lab. I gripped my books tightly, afraid she’d make an example of me in front of everyone.
    I wasn’t sure I had the courage to stand up for myself.
    Not in front of all these people who would be watching me with hungry eyes, perhaps waiting for a bitch fight to take place. That wasn’t going to happen. Not here, not now. Surely, Amanda wouldn’t dare speak to me after what had happened—
    “Hey, Ava. How about you move out of my way? You’re kinda blocking the classroom.” There was the jingle of what sounded like teacher’s keys from behind me. I stumbled out of the way but glanced up once I had my back pressed against the lockers beside the lab rooms.
    “Where did you get those keys?” I asked her, surprising myself.
    Amanda actually looked up, her golden curls bouncing as she moved. Her eyes were the color of deep, rich wood, but after the hours she’d spent in juvenile detention with her cronies, they had developed a colder edge, making them devoid of any warmth or friendliness. Her face used to be rounded and very pretty but now looked sharper and angular, the product of all the weight she had lost.
    “Where do you think, honey? I stole them,” she said, her voice like poison. I dropped my gaze to the badly carpeted floor and waited until she’d slid the key in the lock and then I dared to look back up at her. There was a click as she unlocked the door and then it swung open. The class shambled in after Amanda, but I remained outside the room for a few moments.
    “We’re not supposed to…” My voice weakened and trailed off at the disbelieving looks my classmates shot me.
    “Be more like Kesley, Ava,” said a voice from inside the classroom. Amanda. “Be fearless for once.” Her words shot right through me, painful and tight. But the way she’d spoken was as if she’d known Kesley. I pushed down the confusion, the uncertainty, and entered the room, shutting the door quietly behind me. I made my way to my seat beside my lab partner, whose name I couldn’t remember at the moment. Unbidden, my gaze found its way