Where the Darkness Goes

Chapter 27

CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

TESSA — AGE 17

We pull up in front of Mark Summers’s house—Garrett, Will, Cory, Britney, and I—when the party is already in full swing. It’s just past ten, and the house is packed with people. Mark’s house is on a dead-end road on the outskirts of town, so it’s the perfect place for a party when his parents go away for work.

I don’t remember what they do, now that I’m thinking of it, but it’s something in finance or entertainment. Most importantly, it requires them to be away often.

The house is a two-story, brick colonial with black shutters. Light streams out from six of the eight identical windows, which give glimpses into the packed party inside.

Will steps from the driver’s side of the car, scanning the house. “I’ve gotta go find Cassidy. Catch you guys in a bit.”

He jogs ahead, slipping in the front door before we reach the steps. Once there, we all split up. Britney zips across the living room and leaps onto the back of the guy she’s currently seeing, a senior named Evan that I don’t know all that well.

Cory finds a group of guys, who welcome him with loud shouting of his name and several of those weird handshake-hug things that boys our age seem to do.

Garrett takes my hand and leads me to the table to get drinks. He gestures to the variety of options. “Are you drinking tonight, or no?”

He knows I’m not big on alcohol, but I’ve had it a few times. Still, the party tonight feels too overwhelming for me to be comfortable with anything that amplifies that. “No, thanks. Just soda, please.”

“Yep. Sure.” He grabs a root beer—my favorite—without having to ask and cracks it open for me before opening a Dr. Pepper for himself.

“You can drink, though, if you want.”

“I know.” He nods. “I’m okay. Your brother and Cassidy seem to be getting along well.”

“It’s weird, right?” I agree, wrinkling my nose as we move away from the table. “I’ve never seen him date anyone for this long. I’m not sure I’ve ever really seen him date at all.”

“Well, I think they started hanging out around my birthday, so yeah, it may as well be a decade for him.”

I laugh. “She’s fine, though. I mean, he could be with someone worse. I don’t mind her.”

He shrugs, taking another drink. “Hey, I wanted to talk to you about something. Can we go somewhere quieter?”

“Is this you trying to seduce me?” I tease, running my fingers up his shirt.

“Always.” Taking my hand, he pulls me toward the back of the house and out onto the porch, which is surprisingly quiet. Farther out in the yard, there’s a fire pit, though it’s already too warm this spring for it to be lit.

He leans against the porch railing. “So, I think my parents are considering leaving.”

His words catch me off guard. “Leaving? Like going out of town?”

“Yeah, but, um, permanently.”

“Wait, what? You’re moving?” Why does he sound so calm? How can he possibly say this to me with a straight face?

“No. Well, er, I’ll be going off to college after graduation, and I think they’re planning to wait until then so I don’t have to enroll in a new school for just a few months, but yeah. If they leave, it’ll mean I might not be around as much for holidays and stuff.”

The news is a devastating blow. “So what are you saying?”

Finally catching the look on my face, his unreadable expression morphs into one of sorrow. “Don’t be upset. I’m, this isn’t, I mean, I wasn’t trying to make this a big thing. It’s still not a done deal, but they’ve been talking about it more and more. I’ll still come visit as much as I can, and now that you have a car, you can come visit me too, but I just wanted you to hear it from me before Will mentioned it.”

“Will already knows?”

Guilt weighs on his features. “He’s my best friend. I’m telling you both.”

I want to point out that he told Will first, but it’s not fair. I don’t want this relationship to cause issues for any of us, but I’m just wondering when I’ll stop feeling like the third wheel. More and more, I’m forced to remember Will had him first. “So when will you know for sure?”

“I don’t know, really. But I’ll tell you as soon as I do. I just wanted to give you a heads-up because…it seems like they’re pretty serious about leaving.”

“Is it because of me? Do they not like us together?” My dry eyes burn with impending tears. “Have they said something about my mom?”

“What?” He balks. “No. No. They love you. And your mom. You know that. It has nothing to do with you guys. It’s just, well, all the deaths happening have them spooked. Especially as Jenny gets closer and closer to Emily and Amber’s age, and the police still haven’t caught whoever’s doing this.” He rolls his eyes. “I don’t know if there’s even a suspect right now. They just want to get away in case it is a serial killer, and I can’t say I blame them.” He turns his head to look at me. “Do you think your mom would ever consider the same?”

I think on it for a moment, but the answer is obvious. “I can’t imagine a world where she leaves this place. She grew up here. She has friends here. The church. Pastor Charles and Mrs. Mabel have really helped us out lately. Her whole world is here. You know how she is. She’s settled.”

“Yeah, I get all that, but I mean, come on. Someone is also murdering girls and their moms here,” he points out. “I hate the idea of leaving for college, and you having no one here to protect you. It’s the only reason I’d ever consider staying.” With another sip of his drink, he’s talking to himself more than me. “I could take a year off, and then we could apply to colleges together. If my parents do leave, I could ask your mom about staying in Will’s old room after he moves out. I’m sure he wouldn’t mind.”

“Wait, no. You can’t put off college for me. That would be so unfair. You’ve been looking forward to this for years. It’s why you joined so many clubs. You’ve already gotten scholarships lined up.”

“College will still be there. Maybe some of the scholarships, too.” He sounds angry, but I know he’s not. He hates that this is coming as much as I do, but right now I can’t be selfish. Even if I really, really want to be. “Nothing is as important as keeping you safe.”

“Have you met my mother?” I ask, forcing a laugh. “That woman is a pitbull. No one will mess with me as long as she’s around.” Pressing my fingers to his chest, I walk them up step by step with each new word. “Not. Even. You.”

He raises his brows with a challenge and wraps an arm around my back, tugging me against his body and pressing a kiss to my lips. “You’re not wrong,” he whispers, his hand tightening on my back in a way that warms me to my core.

“We’ll be okay,” I promise him. “We can talk on the phone every night. Text when we can. I’ll come visit you on the weekends, and we’ll figure out holidays. It’s just one year. With fall, spring, and summer break, it’ll feel like no time at all.” Tears prick my eyes. “And then we can go wherever we want. Do whatever we want.”

He kisses my lips again, heat sweeping through me as his tongue brushes mine. When he pulls back, it’s with a look of regret. “Will you at least ask her? Just talk to her about it?”

“Yeah, sure, I’ll ask, but I really don’t think it will matter. You know how Mom gets. Stubborn as can be.”

“Oh, I know.” He chuckles. “Where do you think you got it from?”

I swat his chest. “Watch it.”

He opens his mouth to respond but pulls me into a kiss instead. I close my eyes, lifting my hand to cup his face. He makes my heart race and my entire body flutter. My butterflies for him are everywhere.

“Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!”

Ice spikes through me. My thoughts fragment. A scream. That was a scream . It was coming from inside the house. Run. Help.

Garrett looks at me, and it’s clear we both understand. “That was Will.”