14 Ways to Die by Vincent Ralph

Author:Vincent Ralph
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Sourcebooks
Published: 2021-03-09T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 74

Danny finds out about Bernie five minutes after we walk up to the school entrance.

“Mr. Humphries has been fired,” Emily says dramatically.

Hanna says, “Suspended. He has been suspended.”

But surely, eventually, it will be the same thing.

I’m not sure if we should be talking about this on-camera, but Danny doesn’t stop us.

Emily has already filled Hanna in on everything, but Hanna still makes a face when Ali, Pav, and Jennifer join us in the yard and start talking like we’ve been doing this for years.

“Has anyone heard if Bernie’s okay?” Pav asks, and we all shrug.

I guess Bernie didn’t tell anyone about our disagreement before she did it. If she had, they’d be blaming me, and I feel guilty.

We look for Eloise, because if anyone knows what’s going on, she does, but there’s no sign of her.

“It feels weird being back,” Jennifer says.

Emily sighs. “I bet the other classes that went to Mayfield Lodge felt better, though.”

In past years, students came back from Mayfield with happy thoughts and epiphanies. We came back with a horror story.

While everyone else talks, I watch them, looking for the slightest slip of the masks they wear, trying to figure out who put the article in my suitcase.

I was so close to quitting. This close to admitting, live, that I was giving up the search. But Sonia staged a coup. How can I give up after that?

Plus, Michael wasn’t at Mayfield Lodge. He isn’t the one giving me the articles. My list of suspects is limited, and I know them all.

I think of Jennifer’s transformation from sex-obsessed to best-friend material, Pav’s stint as a kangaroo, and Eloise’s friendship with Bernie, and how any of them could have done it.

I think of Yinka, Sam, Austin, and Harrison, the only four boys in a class dominated by girls, and wonder if they are hiding in plain sight.

What if Maya planted it before offering a ton of alcohol as the perfect cover?

It could be any of them, but for once, my drama has been swallowed by someone else’s. Bernie is today’s headline, and if one of them is taunting me, they have the perfect story to hide behind.

When it’s just the three of us, Hanna turns to Emily and says, “Since when are you friends with Jennifer Erswell?”

Emily shrugs. “Since now. She’s all right.”

“All she talks about is sex.”

Emily and I laugh, and I can tell Hanna’s annoyed. She hates private jokes when she doesn’t know the punchline. But it feels good to laugh and mean it.

“She’s actually really nice,” I say. “Em was right. She makes up all the stuff about sex. But when you get to know her, she kind of admits that.”

Hanna sighs and shakes her head. “I knew that place would make you weird, but I didn’t think this would happen.”

“What?” Emily asks. “You didn’t think we’d make friends with people?”

“Other people,” Hanna says. “It’s always just the three of us.”

This could turn into an argument, but it’s kind of cute how jealous she is.

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