Inevitable (11 page)

“Serial killer, huh?” Troy arched a bleached blond eyebrow. “I hadn’t heard of one.” A few more touches, and he handed me the phone. “Yep, you’re right. Here’s an article.”

I read the date and my heart started to pound. This morning. Something must’ve happened for them to be writing about him again.

A 21-year old woman was found last night in Barnegat Bay. Police suspect she is another victim to the Lacey Township Serial Killer. Forensics determined the death to be approximately 24 hours before the body was discovered by Deputy Sheriff Clyde Williams.

Twenty-four hours. My mind did the math. It could’ve been Hannah. But wasn’t I supposed to save her? I handed the phone back, my hands shaking. I had to find out who the victim was.

“You good?” Troy whispered, and I snapped back to the present.

“Yeah.” I steadied myself with a deep breath. “I’m good.” I reached into my backpack and pulled out my lists. Goosebumps popped up on my arms. The article hadn’t disclosed the name of the victim. What if it was Hannah? What did that mean for my mission to declare? My fingers trembled as I added her information to the list, searching for a common denominator.

Name: Hannah

Age: 21

Occupation: ?

Hair color: brown

Eyes: brown

Neighborhood: Barnegat Bay

Another town too close for comfort. In fact, the hit towns seemed to circle Forked River.

I had to put my concern for Hannah aside in math. Dana bugged me about Aaron. I staved off most of her questions by asking my own  about calculus. This class was too hard for me, but Dana had convinced me to take it with her. She was a math whiz, taking both calculus and statistics in one school year.

“Come on, Jayne,” she said, pursing her lips and erasing my figures. “You can do this.”

“You talked me into this,” I reminded her, glad that I’d distracted her from Aaron. “You promised to help.”

“Yes, but you’re not even trying.” She launched into a simplified version of how to solve the equation, and I smiled to myself. She was too annoyed with me to care about my love life at the moment.

The bell rang, and I got up, stuffing the books into my bag. “I have to go to my locker. I’m going to skip lunch today and study for our physics test sixth hour. See you  there?”

“Yes.” She blinked her light blue eyes up at me. “Meet at my locker after school.”

“Thanks.” I smiled and hurried away.

I managed to avoid Aaron during English class by squishing in between Derek Mills and Kyle Larson, two guys who were too smart to still be in high school. They always sat in the back, spewing out cosmic ideas that were way beyond my mental capacity. They looked at me funny but otherwise ignored me.

Aaron sat in front of me to the left, his body twisted slightly to see the whiteboard. I spent the entire class staring at the board or my notebook, doing a great job of not studying his profile or admiring that square jaw. Mostly. Pity that now that I could look at him without Seeing any crazy visions, there was no reason to. I shot out of the room as soon as class was over, not giving him the chance to catch up to me.

My half an hour cram session at lunch didn’t help my physics test any. I was in a foul mood by the time class let out. My forehead felt permanently creased in a scowl. Dana shot me a questioning glance and I shook my head.

She waited by my desk after class, watching as I put my stuff in my backpack. “Didn’t go so well, huh?”

“Not so great.” What a crummy day. My head throbbed with exhaustion, the effort of avoiding Aaron, too much school, and the serial killer. We paused at my locker. I stuffed my books inside and slammed it shut. “I’ll see you at the game tonight.”

She followed me out the double doors to the front of the building. “Is it just the physics test? You seem a little off.”

“Yeah, I am.” I rubbed my eyebrow. “I have to go to work.”

“Bye, then.” Dana turned around and walked back into the school, and I knew I’d snubbed her. I felt a twinge of guilt. Keeping such a big secret from her weighed on me. But I couldn’t tell her about the serial killer.

I could tell the police, however. I made up my mind to do so as soon as I could.



I looked forward to the mindlessness that accompanied working in a fast-food joint. I parked at JT’s and hauled myself out of the car.

Memories of Aaron assaulted me as I walked through the glass doors: our  first meeting, his subsequent return visit, our “break-up.” Panic seized me. Why did I think I would be safe here? This was where we always bumped into each other!

For a brief moment, I froze. The impulse to turn and run enticed me.

“Oh, good, you’re here.” Matt came around the counter, his jeans clinging to his hips as if by magic. If I wore pants like that, they’d fall down to my ankles with the first step. He slapped a wet towel at me. “You’re so very lucky we saved a spot for you. Clock in and take register one.”

“Right.”
Get it together, Jayne.
Aaron wouldn’t come in today. Everything would be fine. I dumped my stuff in the back and started behind the register. I tried not to focus on the entrance, but I jumped every time the door opened.

“You okay?” Matt’s deep voice came from behind my ear, and again, I jumped.

“Huh? Oh, yeah. Fine.”

“Tom said you left sick yesterday. And today, you seem—jumpy.” His lip curled up like he’d said something incredibly witty, a toothpick dangling from the other side of his mouth.

“Ah, well...” I couldn’t really deny being sick. That wouldn’t be good for my career. “I’m a tad under the weather, if you know what I mean. But I’m not contagious. And I washed my hands.” I pointed to the plastic bottle of hand sanitizer on the counter.

“Maybe you need a break from all the people. Wanna work in the kitchen today?”

“The kitchen?” I echoed, thinking of how I hated messing with the food. Then my mind flashed back to Aaron. “Yeah. That sounds great.”

The kitchen was hot. Beads of sweat gathered on my forehead while I kneaded the bagel dough into elastic strands. I used a paper towel to wipe at my face, but that didn’t keep bits of cream cheese and bagel from sticking to me.

“Hey.” Gabby came in and tossed a peppermint at me, which I made a half-hearted attempt to catch in my dough-covered gloves. “Matt sent me to relieve you. Said you’re taking off?”

“Oh!” I pulled my hands out of the onion bagel dough, yanking off the plastic gloves. “I forgot I’m off early today!” I’d made it through my shift! If Aaron came in, I hadn’t even noticed. “Thanks, Gabby!”

Gabby tucked her blue-striped hair into a hair net. “No prob. Later, Chickadee.”

“See ya.” I threw my apron in my bag to wash at home and grabbed my purse. I barely had enough time to change. I hoped perfume could cover the smell of my bagel experiences.

I arrived at the game fifteen minutes before it started. A quick search of my car revealed that I’d forgotten my tape recorder, so I grabbed a notepad and pencil.

Even before the game started, the gym already smelled of sweat and dirty socks. I didn’t spot any friends on the bleachers, so I settled behind the score keepers, propping the pencil behind my ear and placing my camera in my lap.

This was where things got fun. I studied the players as they came out and warmed up, jotting quick notes about who did what and when. I made a guessing game of who seemed in top form tonight. I fancied myself pretty good at predicting the way the coach would play his team.

The bleacher wobbled, and I looked up to see Dana straddle the bench next to me, the usual Dum-Dum in her mouth. She popped it out. “So. What’s the news?”

I exhaled, a flood of warmth filling my chest. “You’re a gem, you know?” I reached forward and hugged her. “I know I was ornery today. Thanks for not being mad.”

“I
am
mad.” She popped the candy back in. “But I’ll get over it if you spill. What’s the news?” she repeated.

I had no clue what she was talking about. I twirled a curl around my finger and played dumb. “What news?”

“You know.” She inclined her head and widened her eyes, pointing without using her fingers. “With homeboy.”

My blood congealed in my veins. Surely Aaron wasn’t here. “Is he here?” I hissed. “He said he wasn’t coming!” I inched my head forward and peered around Dana.

He was here. Hanging on his arm was a tall, thin girl whose red hair cascaded down her back like a shiny sheet. The black stilettos she wore made her seem taller and older than she was.

Aaron’s head turned in my direction and I jerked back. “Let’s move.” I began to gather up my notebook and camera, shoving papers back into my backpack.

“Move where?” Dana crinkled her nose at me. “We’ve got the best spots for the game.”

The whistle blew and I groaned. I couldn’t leave now. The beginning and ending of the game were especially critical to capture. “Keep guard, will you?”

Dana chuckled. “What, you think he’s going to try and kidnap you?”

He wasn’t even supposed to be here. For the first ten minutes, I kept one eye out for Aaron. But by the second quarter, I was intent on the game, nodding along to Dana’s rambling while jotting down scores and plays.

“And anyway, here comes Aaron.”

I pulled my eyes away from the basketball court. “What?”

Dana laughed. “Just kidding. Just wanted to see if you were paying attention.”

I scowled at her. “Not funny.”

Dana lowered her voice. I had to lean closer to hear her. “Have you guys talked? Since, you know, he told you about his GF.”

I shook my head. “No. He hasn’t even tried to call me.” Which kind of annoyed me.  What part of me wasn’t living up to his expec
tations? I shook my head and laughed to myself. I didn’t want him in love with me, after all.

I didn’t.

Dana took a sharp breath only a second before stilettos and tennis shoes appeared in my right peripheral vision. I pressed my lips together and focused on the game.

“Hi, Aaron,” Dana said. I could picture her looking up at him. “Who’s your friend?”

“Oh, hi.” The sound of his melodic accent turned my spine to jelly, and my shoulders relaxed out of tense-mode. I found myself being persuaded to let go of my determination not to look at him. “You’re Jayne’s friend, right?”

“Dana,” she purred, amusement in her voice. “And this is...?”

I suppressed a smile. Dana would not, of course, be put off.

“This is Libby, from England. She’s my—”

“Girlfriend,” Libby interrupted before Aaron could finish, one foot tapping against the hardwood floor. Her deep, flawless voice matched Aaron’s accent, but on her it wasn’t so cute. I shot her a glance as she leaned closer to him, giving him an adoring smile. Her white, straight teeth could not be a product of nature. “At least, that’s what we call them in England.”

“Oh?” Dana widened her eyes and leaned back on the palms of her hands, looking up at Aaron. “For some reason I thought you were single. You just seemed rather available.” She smirked.

Libby swiveled her head toward Aaron, and he cleared his throat, one thumb rubbing his eyebrow. “Urm. I mentioned her to Jayne, and I wanted to introduce them.”

His eyes tracked toward me, and I saw a flash of blue before quickly averting my gaze. What on earth made him think I wanted to meet his girlfriend? So he could rub her in my face? I preferred to look at the enemy, so I met Libby’s large brown eyes instead. “Nice to meet you, Libby. I’m so glad Aaron mentioned you when he did. Thank goodness Aaron has someone like you to keep him happy.” I kept my voice thick with sugar, hoping she would interpret my words very differently than Aaron did. “I hope you’ll come to visit often. Don’t let Aaron forget he has a girlfriend.”

Aaron’s shoes shifted in the corner of my gaze, and I knew he was uncomfortable. Well, served him right. I didn’t ask him to come over and introduce her. I turned my head, fixing him with a cold stare. I bit my lip to keep from smiling at how he fidgeted.

“The pleasure is mine, Jayne.” Libby sidestepped closer to Aaron, her shoulder brushing his. She took several steps toward some other seats, though he didn’t budge. “Aaron?”

“I’ll talk to you in class on Monday, Jayne.” Aaron’s tone made it sound like a command.

I lifted a shoulder and snapped a few pictures of the game. “Sure. Have a fun weekend, you two.”

They walked away, and Dana burst out laughing. “Jayne! You were positively vicious!”

I looked at her and gave a sheepish grin. “Was I? Well, what’s he thinking? He played me! And he thinks I want to meet his girlfriend?”

“But you did hear, right? He didn’t call her his girlfriend. That’s the title she gave herself.”

Oh, I’d definitely caught that. I shrugged. “He didn’t correct her.”

Dana grabbed my arm. “Jayne, it’s because he hasn’t told her yet that’s she’s not. Trust me, I’m reading this guy right. He’s going to break up with her. He likes you.”

I stared at Dana. Over the drumming of my heart, I was vaguely aware of the coach yelling at the referee. I should be writing his words down, but my thoughts were all twisted up in Aaron. Why did I feel so mixed up about this? I wanted Dana to be right. Yet I couldn’t let that happen. I shook my head. “Forget it. I don’t even like him anymore.”