Last week, you voted to ignore the creepy drama teacher and resist the temptation to snoop around Kayla’s house in favor of sleuthing the hot new boy to see what he really knows: Follow Silas and try to find out what he’s heard. Let’s see how that works out for you!
Chapter 02: The Plot Thickens
“Wait, what?” you say out loud, to an empty hallway. Thankfully empty, since you’re talking to yourself. You slam your locker door shut and race down the hall after Silas, trying to shove your books into your backpack at the same time without wiping out. You skid around the corner, just in time to see Silas disappear into the boys’ bathroom. Without thinking, you barge right in after him.
“What the?” a guy you don’t know says, zipping quicky and running out the door without washing his hands. Eww. You cover your eyes with your hand, resisting the urge to peek, and say, “Hey! Silas! I know you’re in here.”
“Are you sure? You have your eyes covered,” that deep voice teases. You inch your fingers apart, and see him standing innocently by the sinks. You stomp over to him.
“Just what exactly did you mean back there? About Kayla? How do you know about it? WHAT do you know about it?”
Silas holds up his hands, his slightly rough, large hands. “Whoa, whoa,” he laughs. “Slow down! My dad’s the new reporter for the local rag and this is his story. I recognize you from the press conference photos And all I meant was, ‘I’m sorry.’ You know, I realize it must suck to have your best friend missing? Sympathy?”
You wince a little, then seize on what he just said about his father.
“You mean someone’s actually looking into her disappearance? After the press conference, the police didn’t seem to feel like there was anything more they needed to do.” In fact, it had been a nightmare just getting them to hold a press conference, especially since Kayla’s parents weren’t even in the country. They’d pushed you off as a dramatic teenager — much the way Dylan had talked about Kayla at lunch — and grudgingly budged for your parents, who were far from being dramatic teenagers.
“Well, it’s not like this town is hopping and popping otherwise,” Silas grinned.
Just then, the door opened and a scrawny freshman hurried in.
“Hey! We’re having a meeting here!” you shout, and he turns bright red and nearly pees himself right there in the doorway before running off. You look back at Silas. “So, you were saying?” He could be a useful ally — who knows what info he could get his hands on. A police officer’s son might be better, but then again, he’d probably have a harder time getting into files he wasn’t supposed to. “About your dad? What’s going on in the investigation?”
“I’m sure I don’t need to tell you there’s no official investigation, not really. All Dad’s been on about lately is why her parents are still in France. It makes it look like there’s not much to worry about.”
Before you can go off again about Kayla not being the drama queen everyone thinks she is, the warning bell rings. Dammit. You can’t be late on your first day — last year, you had a bit of an … issue with tardies, and had sworn to your parents you’d do better this year.
“Hey,” you turn and say to Silas from the door. He raises one black eyebrow, and you take a deep breath. Big mistake — you’d forgotten you were in the boys’ bathroom, but that just reminded you. After coughing a bit, you force yourself to say…
What do you say to Silas?
A. Here’s my phone number. You know, in case you hear anything else about Kayla.
B. Um, never mind. What class do you have next?
C. What are you doing after school? I want to check out Kayla’s house, and wondered if you’d want to come with?
