The Good Girls (5 page)

The cop closed the car door on Alex, then made his way around to the front. The lights were already blaring, and as he opened his door, the reporters descended on him. “Officer!” they cried. “What's the nature of that boy's arrest? Can you tell us?”

Ava leaned forward, heart pounding.

The cop touched the walkie-talkie on his belt, then
looked into the camera. “All I can tell you is what I know,” he said gruffly, his hand on the top of the door. “Which is that as of now, Alex Cohen is under arrest for the murder of Lucas Granger.”

JULIE PULLED INTO THE JUDY'S DINER
parking lot on Tuesday night. It was pouring down rain, but the lights of the diner were warm, and the people inside looked happy and relaxed. Suddenly, a flash of auburn hair inside the diner caught her eye, and her heart seized in her chest. Was that
Ashley
? Julie hadn't seen her enemy since before the email went out, and she was still dreading the inevitable showdown.

But then she looked again. It was just another girl with similar-colored hair. She spooned what looked like rice pudding into her mouth and smiled at the guy she was sitting with. Julie breathed out. She so wasn't ready to see Ashley yet.

Someone tapped on her window, and she looked up with a start. It was Parker—the reason Julie had come
to the diner—and she was soaked. Julie hit
UNLOCK
, and Parker threw herself into the passenger seat. “Didn't you see me waving?” she asked, sounding annoyed. “You could have pulled closer to the curb.”

“Sorry,” Julie said. “I thought I saw someone inside.”

“Ashley?”

That was the thing about Parker—she knew Julie far too well. “Maybe,” Julie muttered.

Parker gritted her teeth. “I hate that girl. Like, really,
really
hate her.”

“I know. I do, too.”

“Yeah, but you're just rolling over and taking the abuse. Then again . . .” Parker homed in on Julie, staring at her pink blouse, dark-wash skinny jeans, and high ponytail. “You have actual clothes on. You don't even seem that upset.”

Julie wanted to tell Parker that it was because of Carson—he'd called her that day to check in, and they'd talked for almost two hours. But sometimes it was hard to tell Parker happy things, considering Parker's own troubled life. So she just shrugged. “I'm trying to cope.”

“I think we should do something to Ashley in retaliation,” Parker growled.

“Like what?” Julie asked as she pulled out of the lot. “Let air out of her tires? Post some mean stuff on Facebook? It'll just look like we're stupid high school girls trying to get revenge.”

Parker slumped down in the seat and muttered something Julie couldn't hear. Julie stared at her friend for a moment. Parker was pale, and she looked exhausted and upset, probably for something more serious than Ashley.

The windshield wipers swished noisily. “So . . . where have you been anyway?” Julie had no idea where Parker had been sleeping. Before she'd received Parker's call this evening saying she was at the diner and needed a ride, Julie had almost been ready to report her to Missing Persons. Sure, Parker had disappeared before, but never for this long, and never without telling Julie where she was going.

Then again, they hadn't ever been wanted for murder before.

Parker shrugged. “Around.”

Julie paused at a stop sign. “Just . . . around?” She wondered if that meant Parker didn't remember. A shot of fear spiked through her chest. “Do you want to talk about it?” she asked tentatively.

“Not really.”

Julie shut her eyes. She
wished
Parker would talk about it—about anything. It seemed like her friend was retreating more and more into herself, especially after Nolan's death. If only the therapist she'd found for her had worked out. Instead, whenever Julie even thought of Elliot Fielder and what he'd done to Parker, she was seized with such crushing guilt she could barely breathe. She had made a
lot of mistakes with Parker, horrible mistakes she couldn't undo. She would have to be very, very careful to take care of her from now on, she promised herself.

“So where are we going again?” Parker asked languidly, staring out the window at the passing redwood trees.

“Ava's,” Julie answered. “She called a little while ago. Her boyfriend was arrested for Granger's murder.”

Parker raised an eyebrow. “Wait. Ava's boyfriend, the guy who turned us in?”

“Yeah. Weird, huh?”

“Definitely weird,” Parker said quietly as they turned onto Ava's street. Then she cleared her throat. “Wanna know something else that's weird? I found out this morning that someone killed my dad.”

Julie unwittingly slammed on the brakes in the middle of the street. “
What?
”

“Yup. He died in the prison yard. They cremated him already. Good riddance, right?”

Parker's voice was robotic and toneless, and for a moment, Julie thought she was joking. But there was pain behind her eyes. And Parker wouldn't joke about that.

Julie clutched Parker's hand hard. “Oh my god,” she whispered. “I'm sorry. But maybe we should be happy?”

Parker pulled her hoodie tighter around her face. “I know.” She looked Julie square in the eye, something she rarely did anymore, considering her scars. “I mean, I was
always talking about how I wanted him dead—and now he
is.
It's like my wish came true.”

“My wish, too,” Julie said faintly. But strangely, Markus Duvall's death didn't give her much satisfaction. It couldn't undo what he'd done to Parker.

Julie shut off the car as they pulled up in front of Ava's house and glanced worriedly at her friend. “Are you sure you want to go in there right now? We can skip it.”

Parker nodded. “I'm fine. Really.”

Julie gave her hand a reassuring squeeze. “Well, if you get uncomfortable, we can leave, okay? And it's movie night in my room tonight. Your choice. Even something with Ben Affleck.”

They got out of the car and started up the walk. Just before they could ring the bell, the door swung open. Ava's stepmother, Leslie, stood in the foyer. Her eyes were cold, the corners of her mouth turned down, and she swayed back and forth. When the wind shifted, Julie could smell white wine on her breath.

“
More
of you,” she said bitterly, looking at Julie and Parker with disdain. “Everyone's in her bedroom. Please try not to trash the place, okay?”

Julie just nodded, but Parker glared at the woman, puffing up her chest. “Actually, I was planning on setting fire to the house, thanks. And maybe doing heroin in your bathroom. That cool?”

“
Parker!
” Julie said, elbowing her. Parker was never great with authority figures. Her dad used to prey on that.

Ava's stepmother looked from girl to girl, clearly irritated. “
Who
are you again?” she asked, her words slightly slurred.

“Come on,” Julie said, grabbing Parker's arm and dragging her upstairs. No wonder Ava bitched about that woman. She had the demeanor of a snake ready to strike.

Upstairs, Ava's door was ajar. Ava sat on her bed, while Caitlin and Mac were sprawled on the floor. Everyone looked stricken, but Ava's beautiful face was a teary mess.

Julie gave her a tight hug. “Are you okay?”

Ava shrugged, grabbing a Kleenex. “Not really. What about
you
? I haven't seen you in school since that horrible email.” She looked Julie over, then smiled and flicked Julie's chandelier earrings. “Those are pretty.”

Julie ducked her head. “Thanks. And I'm . . . getting there,” she said quietly. “I might even go back to school soon.” That was thanks to Carson, of course. He'd bolstered her so much she actually thought she could face the onslaught.

“You should totally come back,” Caitlin said gently. “Don't let 'em see you sweat. And we'll support you.”

“That's right,” Mac echoed. “We'll be with you every step of the way.”

Julie wanted to hug all of them. In the terrible pain of
her secret getting out, this knowledge—that she had new friends, girls she had barely known just weeks ago, who wouldn't judge her—felt like a gift. Whatever happened, they had one another's backs. They were in this together.

Ava shut her bedroom door firmly behind them, and they all stared at one another for a moment. Then Caitlin took a deep breath. “So.
Alex
.”

“I can't believe it.” Julie looked at Ava. “You were really there when he was arrested?”

Ava nodded, looking tormented. “They dragged him out of the house and shoved him into the car. It was brutal.”

“So do you think he . . .
did
it?” Julie asked Ava cautiously.

Ava pulled her bottom lip into her mouth. “No way. He wouldn't stab anyone.”

Mac cleared her throat. “But what about this?” She pulled up a website on her phone. A newscaster from the local station appeared on the screen. “
The newest suspect in the Granger murder case, Alex Cohen, has a history of violence,
” the reporter said in a grave voice. “
We spoke to Lewis Petrovsky, a student who knew Alex at his old school in Monterey, California.
”

A guy with wild curly hair and freckles popped up. “We all know about Alex here,” he said. “He had this ex-girlfriend, Cleo, that he just couldn't get over. Practically stalked her. And one night he hurt Cleo's new boyfriend, Brett, really badly. Brett was hospitalized for a month.” His
mouth wobbled. “Brett's my best friend. I was so worried about him.”

The newscast cut to the reporter again. “Channel 11 tried to contact Cleo Hawkins and Brett Greene's parents for questioning, but they couldn't be reached at this time.”

Ava's mouth dropped open. She stared at Mac's phone. “How can this be true?”

Julie felt a pang. It was clear Ava hadn't heard this piece of the puzzle, not from her own lawyer, and certainly not from Alex. She looked like someone had just slapped her hard.

Mac winced. “I'm sorry you had to hear it like this.”

Ava said nothing. She pressed
PLAY
, and the video started over. “Alex isn't like that,” she said after it finished.

“It fits, though,” Parker piped up. “He sees you doing a striptease for Granger, and he snaps and kills him.”

Ava glared at her through tear-blurred eyes. “Alex isn't the type who
snaps
.”

Caitlin bounced her balled fists on her knees. “Actually, my attorney told me the same story about the kid from his old school. Apparently the cops found a text from Alex to Granger saying ‘Stay away from my girlfriend or I'll kill you.'”

Ava was growing paler and paler by the second. “
What?
”

“Alex sent it after you confessed that Granger hit on you,” Caitlin said in a small voice. She peeked at Ava. “Your lawyer didn't tell you any of this?”

Ava made a face. “I haven't even
heard
from my lawyer yet. And he's supposed to be the best.” She looked down. “Even with a verbal threat and a motive, and a
supposedly
violent history.” She said
supposedly
as if she didn't fully believe it. “It still doesn't seem like enough to arrest Alex.”

Caitlin coughed awkwardly. “Well, Alex's prints are all over Granger's doorknob, too.”

“Wow,” Mac exhaled.

“Why didn't I know any of this?” Ava exclaimed, her voice shaky.

“Maybe your lawyer or your parents were trying to protect you?” Julie volunteered.

Ava shook her head, looking shocked. “I just don't understand.”

Julie looked around at the others. “But this means that we're no longer suspects, right?”

“That's what my lawyer told me,” Caitlin said quietly.

Julie had to admit she felt relieved. If she never visited that police station again, it would be too soon. Still, Ava's face made the victory bittersweet. “So, if Alex killed Granger,” she began, working something out in her mind, “and if he did it for jealousy reasons, does that mean Granger
did
kill Nolan? And the two murders are unrelated?”

“Maybe.” Mac pulled her knees into her chest. “Maybe it's all cleared up after all.”

No one spoke for a moment. Julie looked away from
Ava. Then Parker cleared her throat. “Someone else was killed recently, too.”

Everyone looked at her. Suddenly, Parker couldn't speak. Julie took a breath, having a feeling she knew what Parker wanted to talk about. “Parker's dad was killed,” she said.

The others gasped. “Oh my god,” Ava said. “How?”

Parker cleared her throat, regaining her voice. “He was stabbed in the prison yard. They haven't figured out who did it yet, but obviously it was another inmate.”

“Wow.” Mac ran her fingers along the stitching on Ava's comforter. “There's a lot of death going around.”

Caitlin cocked her head. “You don't think that's an awfully weird coincidence?”

“How so?” Mac asked.

Caitlin looked at Julie. “Julie, you said you wanted him dead in that same film studies conversation about Nolan. And now . . . he
is.
”

Julie suddenly remembered what Caitlin was talking about. Before they'd plotted how to kill and then prank Nolan, they'd each gone around and named someone they would kill, and how they would do it. Julie's pick had been Parker's dad. And, come to think of it, hadn't she said,
he could be stabbed to death in the prison yard
?

“I don't want to be paranoid, but the timing of it is eerie,” Caitlin said quietly. “First Nolan dies exactly how we planned, and then Parker's dad does, too?”

“Guys get killed in prison all the time, though,” Mac said, looking around the room.

“Yeah,” Ava seconded. “They're probably not connected.”

“But let's play devil's advocate a minute,” Caitlin argued. “Let's say it
isn't
a coincidence. Say someone . . . I don't know,
heard
that conversation.” She looked at Julie again. “I wish we still had those notes Granger had written about our conversation. Do you remember what they said?”

Julie flinched. She'd found a yellow legal pad in Granger's office, which had notes that were clearly from their conversation that day. She looked at Parker to confirm.