Lies We Tell (Thistle Cove 3)

All of this is why I’ve never been so thankful for school to start back, even though I’m going to have to deal with the fallout with Alice.

It’s why I’m not surprised when Mr. Russell greets me outside AP Lit.

“Ms. Keene, I need you to come to my office.”

Ozzy, Finn, and Ezra watch me from in the classroom. So close, yet so far.

“Sure,” I say, clutching my backpack. I’d hoped getting sent home would be punishment enough, but I guess not.

“Follow me,” he says, directing me to the small conference room. I haven’t been in here since I’d been questioned by the police. Before I can walk in, a figure steps into the hall. Chief McMichael.

Worry twists at my stomach.

“Chief.”

“Kenley,” he says, grimacing. “We need to talk.”

“Okay.”

I’d been worried about this. Alice could press charges for the assault she claimed took place in our room. If she does, I’m telling everyone everything I know. I’m not letting her control this situation one second longer.

“I heard about what happened with Alice—”

Here we go.

“I didn’t do anything. She attacked me. She stalked me. I know I don’t have any evidence but ask Finn. Or Ozzy. Or Ezra. Ask Mr. Baxter, they can vouch for me.” The words rush out, the panic very real. Getting sent home is one thing, but arrested? I have college applications out. I have a future to worry about. My mind spins and I notice the chief talking. “What?”

“We know.”

“You know?”

“We know, Kenley.”

About what?

One word lingers in my mind.

“We?”

He gestures for me to go into the conference room. I look in and see two people. One woman in a charcoal gray suit, hair twisted in a bun and glasses perched on her nose. A tablet sits on the table in front of her. The other is a guy—around my age, maybe a little older—sitting next to

her at the table. He’s wearing a blue crew neck sweater that matches his eyes. He looks…well, the best way to put it is rich. An air of aristocracy clings to him like expensive cologne.

“Agent Cole,” Chief McMichael says, “This is Kenley Keene.”

The woman stands and gives me a tight smile, offering her hand for a bone-breaking handshake. “Nice to meet you, Ms. Keene. This is Luke Fenway, my associate.”

He nods in my direction.

I frown, feeling like I’ve heard his name before, but I can’t quite place it.

“Agent?” I ask, looking at McMichael.

“Agent Cole works for the FBI.”

A different sort of panic bubbles in my chest. “The FBI? Seriously, I didn’t touch her.”

“Kenley, take a seat,” Agent Cole says, her voice stern.