Free What Lies in the Darkness (Shadow Cove Book 1) by Jessica Sorensen Page B

for that.”
    “Yeah, I know.” I distractedly click the camera lens on and off with my brows furrowed.
    Even if it is a rumor, there has to be a starting point that sparked it. What got the ball rolling, or rather, who?
    I rub my aching chest as reality sinks in. Bria is dead. The girl Sawyer once said he loved is dead. Just like him.
    Tears sting my eyes, and I hurriedly wind around Rylen. “I have to go. Embry’s waiting for me.”
    He opens his mouth to say something, but I quickly yank open the door to the recording room, slip inside, and shut myself in.
    While Rylen is a nice guy, he does hang out with the same crowd as Dixon, and the last thing I need is to break down in front of him.
    Taking a few measured breaths, I collect myself and focus on the task at hand. I cross the room to a locked glass shelf with all sorts of high-tech gadgets. When I spot a pair of walkie-talkies and an earpiece, I dig my student ID card out of my pocket and slip it between the lock and the frame around the case. With a slight wiggle, the lock glides open, and I easily slide open the glass.
    I quickly grab what I need, hide them in my bag, and then hightail my behind out of there with time to spare. After I’m finished with the plan, I’ll have to sneak in and return the items without being spotted. I’m not a thief, contrary to what this town believes.
    The second I step out of the recording room, Dixon and a couple of his friends walk by.
    Great. Please don’t let them spot me. Please don’t let them spot—
    “Hey, Mak,” he greets me with a chin nod and a sly smile.
    Dammit!
    “I heard your brother spread his craziness before he offed himself and convinced poor Bria to kill herself, too,” Dixon continues. When he passes by me, he spins around and walks backward. “Tell me, was he always such a crazy-ass motherfucker, or did he go off the deep end when everyone at school found out he was selling drugs?” When my fingers fold into fists, his smile broadens. “That Rewards Board can be such a bitch, can’t it? Anyone can put whatever they want up there, even false accusations about some loser selling drugs.”
    His friends snicker and slap high-fives with each other.
    “That was you?” I grit each word out, battling the urge to swing my fist at his face. “You were the one who put that up on the marquee?”
    “Now, why would I do something like that? Better yet, why would I be stupid enough to admit I did something like that?” He feigns dumb, but the stupid smirk on his face reveals the truth.
    All this time, Dixon was the reason this town thought my brother was a drug dealer.
    That asshole is going down!
    It takes every ounce of my willpower not to lunge at him and force a smile on my face, instead. “You know what, Dixon? You’re right. The Rewards Board can be a real bitch.”
    Without waiting for him to respond, I stride away. Then, before I walk back into class, I send a text to Embry, Kennedy, and Everleigh.
    Step one completed. Step two happens at lunchtime. Meet me at my car promptly at 12:00. We’re going to get ahold of that laptop no matter what.
    This is no longer just about the money, skating in the competition, or getting back at Dixon for picking on me. This is about getting revenge for my brother. And I’m going to search every single file on Dixon’s computer until I figure out the perfect way to do that.
     

LOCATION: MAK’S CAR
    TIME: 11:58 AM
    DATE: MONDAY, MARCH 22 ND
     
    “Mak, can you hear me?” Ev’s voice fills my ear. “Testing, testing, one, two, three.”
    I glance over at her sitting in the passenger seat with a walkie-talkie in front of her mouth and a laptop on her lap. “You know, for someone who was so nervous about this plan, you sure enjoy using the equipment.”
    She clicks the talk button a couple of times. “When I was younger, my mom bought me a set of walkie-talkies for Christmas. It was actually the Christmas right before she died, and we spent the entire day