The Dead and the Dark(51)

“Jesus,” Fran huffed. “Why didn’t you tell us?”

“I don’t know.”

Fran sat up. “You told a stranger.”

Ashley covered her face.

Bug was quiet—even quieter than usual. After a moment, she said, “Do you think it’s really him?”

“Obviously not,” Fran cut in. She flipped honey-brown curls over her shoulder. “Logan’s whole thing is this ghost stuff. She’s trying to make you think you’re crazy, seeing ghosts and all that. It’s disgusting.”

Ashley narrowed her eyes. “I know what I saw.”

“Being sad about Tristan doesn’t make him a ghost.”

“I saw him.”

“Yeah, and if you told me that, I would’ve told you to see someone,” Fran said. “That’s what a good friend would do.”

“If I didn’t investigate it with Logan, I never would’ve seen all that other stuff.” Ashley sat up and put her sandwich down on the blanket. Suddenly, she didn’t have an appetite. “If Logan didn’t believe me, we never would’ve found Nick.”

“Finding a dead body isn’t a good thing,” Fran said. “None of this stuff is good. Do you know how messed up that is? You found a dead body. Of a person we knew. That’s, like, a serious problem.”

“Yeah. I found proof that someone is killing people,” Ashley hissed. “I knew both people that went missing. It could be one of us next. I can’t just … not do something.”

“Police catch killers,” Fran said.

“Paris gave up on Tristan. Everyone did.”

“Are you serious?” Fran snapped. “We spent hours out there every morning looking for him. Paris, too. No one gave up on him.”

“Yeah, but you didn’t think we’d find him.” Ashley swallowed the tears that barreled up her throat. She thought of the graffiti at the Bates. For months, everyone had assumed Tristan was dead. “What was I supposed to do?”

Fran’s eyes widened. Ashley had never seen her angry like this before. Her fists clenched at her sides, jaw tight with rage. “Ash, Tristan is gone.”

“No, he isn’t.”

“Guys—” Bug tried.

“You know what, I’m not hungry.” Fran stood and stormed over to her horse. “You guys have fun. I’ll take the horse back. Just … whatever.”

She ran the horse down the hillside toward Barton Ranch, leaving Bug and Ashley in silence. The warm wind blew between them, painfully quiet. Ashley lay back and waited for Bug to get up and leave her, too. She waited to be alone again.

But Bug stayed. She reached across the blanket and took Ashley’s hand gently. “That was … intense.”

“Yeah,” Ashley croaked. “I shouldn’t have said anything.”

“I’m glad you did, though.” Bug lay on the blanket next to Ashley and laced their fingers together. “I was really scared for you. Fran’s just mad because she loves you a lot. We both do. You really think it’s Tristan?”

“I do. I can’t explain it. But it’s him.”

“I believe you.”

The three words were heavier than she expected. Ashley closed her eyes to keep from crying. They lay there in the quiet and Ashley slowly remembered how to breathe. “Thank you.”

“I can help you look, too,” Bug said. “Have you done any of your investigating at the motel?”

Ashley turned to face her. “Why?”

“Not trying to be mean,” Bug said, “but Logan’s dads are clearly part of this. Somehow. I don’t know, they’re…”

“… suspicious,” Ashley finished. “I know. But I promised Logan I would let her talk to them first.”

“She doesn’t think they’ll just lie?” Bug asked.

“I don’t know.”

“I think Logan seems cool, but maybe she can’t really see the obvious,” Bug said. “I’m just saying it’s worth a look.”

“We’ll see,” Ashley said.

Maybe Bug was right. Either way, if she wanted her old life back, she needed to end this. She needed to find Tristan, find the killer, and find the old Ashley who didn’t spend every day afraid of the dark. She wanted the old Snakebite back one way or another.

No more ghosts; she wanted this to end.





21


The Jukebox Knows Your Name


ALEJO: Something wrong?

[Alejo taps at his phone, pulling up the Scripto8G screen. He watches Brandon carefully. Something is clearly wrong.]

BRANDON: I just don’t like it in here. It feels off.

ALEJO: Yeah, it’s haunted.

[Brandon does not laugh. Alejo moves toward the stairs but stops when his phone screen lights up. He opens the message, moving his shoulder to shield it from Brandon’s view. The camera zooms in to show that the Scripto8G reads ALREADY HERE.]

ALEJO: Already here?

[The cameraman gives a muffled response.]

BRANDON: Let me see that.

[Alejo hesitates. His hands tremble.]

ALEJO: It just says already here. Any ideas?

[The phone flashes again. This time, it reads HERE ALL ALONG.]