I grabbed his arm again and pulled him around the corner, away from the prying eyes of the

crowd. "What are they saying about me now?"

Gage scoffed, his head tipping back as he did so. "What aren't they saying? Rumor has it that you

were the one who got dragged in for questioning before break. Apparently you are suspect

numero uno in Cheyenne's murder."

"What?" I breathed.

"Good surprise face, kid. I like a girl who can act," Gage said, amused.

"I'm not acting, idiot," I replied. "Yeah, Hauer questioned me, but that was before they even knew

for sure she was murdered. And I am not a suspect."

"That's not what everyone's saying. They're saying you offed Cheyenne so that Noelle could get

back into Billings," Gage reported bluntly. He reached up to smooth his short, brown hair forward,

rolling his eyes skyward as if he could see what he was doing.

"That again?" I said, throwing up my hands and letting them slap down at my sides. "Noelle

quashed that one a couple weeks ago."

48

"Yeah, well, it's back. Only no one thinks Noelle was involved anymore," Gage informed me.

Apparently satisfied with his coif now, he shoved his ungloved hands under his arms to keep them

warm. "They're saying you couldn't stand not having Noelle down the hall from you because you

worship her so hard-core, so you forced Cheyenne to take those pills and forged the suicide note.

They're also saying that having Noelle in Billings wasn't enough. You wanted to be Noelle, and

that's why you got all horizontal with her boyfriend."

My brain couldn't process this information. It was bad enough being looked upon as a

backstabbing slut. Now everyone thought I was a murderer, too? I glanced around at the few

people walking along the path to the library and once again, every last one of them quickly looked

away.

"Was it because you didn't get enough love out there in East Bumblefart, Pennsylvania?" Gage

asked, his voice dripping with false sympathy. "Is that why you do the things you do, Brennan?"

"I didn't do anything," I said through my teeth, my fingers clenching into fists. "Cheyenne was

leaving anyway--she was expelled."

"Yeah. You just keep telling yourself that," Gage said. "You know, if the world isn't giving you

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