Frost Read Online Free Page B

them.
Okay, breathe. Just breathe.
Amy studied my face, and her eyes widened. "You saw it too."
"I..." What could I say? Lie about it? "I don't know if it was the same car, but...it was parked outside Charlotte's house last night."
She whirled on the rest of her group. "See! Megan saw it too. Someone is watching us."
Becca shrugged.
Stacey crossed her arms and rolled her eyes. "So you're both paranoid. Congrats."
"There are lots of black cars. Maybe you guys just saw one that looked similar," Margaret said.
"Yeah. Charlotte didn't think it was the same one either." Feeling a little out of breath, I leaned against the locker. Whether I was paranoid or not, it seemed like too much of a coincidence.
Charlotte darted in, elbowing her way past Amy to grab my arm. "Come on. Class is starting. Sit by me." I let her lead me down the hall without protesting, but I could feel Amy's eyes on my back as I walked away.
 
~ * ~
 
They dragged me into another Barbie meeting when the lunch bell rang. Seemed Amy was all gung ho to talk about the mysterious car.
This time, Charlotte was there, and she rolled her eyes the same way Stacey had. "Not you too. The paranoia is contagious."
Margaret jerked her locker open and shoved her books in. "I dunno, you guys. It does seem a bit coincidental. I mean, it's not like Amy told Megan she saw it until now. It wasn't the power of suggestion." She looked at me over the tops of her glasses. "Right?"
"No," I said hastily. "Amy and I haven't talked since the coffee shop."
"It's not like we're BFFs," Amy said, and there was a definite undertone of sarcasm. "We don't talk on the phone every night. And I certainly didn't call to tell her about the car."
Silence followed. Even Charlotte looked lost in thought, though she'd been laughing me off just seconds before. I wasn't sure whether to be annoyed or relieved. It seemed Margaret voicing her doubts had given them pause. The librarian effect, I guessed.
Amy slumped against her locker, her expression relieved. Maybe she thought she was going crazy.
Welcome to the club.
"Was he smoking?" I asked.
She bolted upright. "Yes! A cigar?"
"Yeah." My mouth went dry. "Yeah, he was. Could you see it the second time you saw the car?"
"No...not really. But I thought I saw the flame inside...like he was sitting there smoking in the dark." She shuddered. "Creepy."
A chill dropped down my back, and I hunched my shoulders, my fingers twisting in the fabric of my T-shirt. There was no way she could have guessed exactly what I’d seen. "Yeah, that's what I saw."
"This is proof!"
"Proof of what exactly?"
"That I'm right about us. There's some kind of conspiracy. Maybe it's government related."
Stacey groaned. "Or maybe it was just two cars with two smoking guys. Lots of people around here smoke."
"Do they?" Amy shot her a poisonous look. "Do lots of people sit in their cars and smoke cigars?"
Stacey leaned back against her locker, her face sullen.
This was insane. There was no way I was getting sucked into some kind of X-Files episode. "It's probably not a conspiracy. It's...something else. Anyways, I left my sweater in the classroom." I turned to leave, but Amy caught my shoulder.
"Wait. You can’t just—”
“Don’t.” I yanked myself out of her grip again, irritation making my voice sharp.
Amy frowned, her head tilted, blue eyes searching my face. “Holy crap, Megan. Your skin is freezing.”
I should have kept my sweater on all day, but I’d been overheated that morning. My fingers curled into fists, and I stepped back. She opened her mouth, about to ask questions, to make accusations.
Someone walked past me, knocking into my shoulder—a couple of guys with long, shaggy hair and chains decorating every available pocket. They stared at us as they went by, and one snickered.
"Clones."
I looked up abruptly, glancing around at the other girls. A shiver went through me, a horrible, crawling feeling. I was a part of something I didn't want to be involved in. Something I'd