Read Online Between These Lines (A Young Adult Novel) by Jennifer Murgia - Free Book Online Page B

in me. “She met you at the library last night and then I found you
together in a dark, unlit driveway.”
    “Her
face was fine when I left.”
    His
accusation didn’t quite seem to fit his body language. It hit me then—how
relaxed Shane was, how calculated his words sounded.
    “Thank
goodness you didn’t get as far as stepping into her house. Who knows what you
would have done to her?”
    A
sick feeling pelted the pit of my stomach as I took in what he was really
saying, and curled my fists at my sides. The late bell rang overhead. It echoed
loudly, leaving behind a residual hum. A shuffle came from outside the door.
Jake, and perhaps Alex and Max, had moved on to their homerooms, leaving me
alone with Shane and his false accusations.
    “What
did you do to her?” I reeled toward him.
    “Watch
it there, Chase. I heard she walked into a wall, and if you knew her like I do,
you’d know she’s a klutzy girl sometimes. Besides, no one really knows you .
You hide from everyone.
    You
don’t talk. Face it, Mitman, you’re a nobody around here. If you weren’t the
one to hit my girlfriend, who would believe you?” His lips turned up at one
corner as if he considered thinking twice about the smirk lurking behind them.
“There’s a little favor I need you to do for me.”
    “I’m
not doing anything for you.” I reached down for my pack and turned. This
unreasonable conversation was over.
    “I
wouldn’t do that if I were you,” his voice demanded behind me. “You see, you
could be in a lot of trouble here. You could be expelled for beating up on a
girl.”
    “I
didn’t . . .” but his hand shot up and stopped my words midstream.
    Shane
hopped up to sit on the counter of the sink, making himself comfortable.
    “You
see, I just found out you know something about me. Something that could go
very, very wrong if I don’t take care of it.”
    I
wracked my brain. His words sounded ludicrous and then, it hit me. Ty
Dunhammer. The library. The paper. The drugs.
    My
silence and creased forehead gave him a green light, and he chuckled. “I
thought you’d see it my way. You see, it’s easy to erase a name on a paper and
replace it with another. It’s easy to place that paper into the hands of
someone who could do a whole lot more with it if they found that paper was paid for. Are you beginning to understand me, now?”
    “What
do you want, Shane?”
    “What
do I want?” He took his time and played with the water from the faucet, let it
run, then turned it off. “I want you to make the delivery for me.”
    “Call
Pizza Hut.”
    He
looked at me and frowned. “Funny. I’m counting on Ty doing a first rate job on
that term paper. If he does, I can move on to the next project I have lined up
for him.”
    “Next
project? Are you cheating your way through the whole year, Shane?”
    “Why,
yes, yes, I am,” this seemed to amuse him. “See my work needs to be consistent.
There’s no margin for error, especially when it comes to more important things
like Yale, Harvard, Cornell . . .”
    “Ty’s
writing your college applications for you?”
    “There’s
a lot expected of me, Chase, and I don’t like to disappoint. I can’t be in two
places at once—hosting a party while making an exchange. But you can.”
    “You
want me to make a deal for you while you’re at Jake’s party?”
    “Uh,
uh, uh. My party, and you’re catching on finally.” he waved his finger
at me. “Who do you think supplies these parties? And let’s rephrase your
thought. You’re making a delivery. The deal’s already been made.”
    Shane
really believed he could boss anyone around this school, including me, but he
wasn’t going to get me to do his dirty work for him. I watched as he hopped off
the counter and took two long strides until he stood right in front of me. He
was just as tall, yet he always appeared to tower over everyone when you
combined his height with his ego.
    “I’m
all about loyalty. I want to see how far Evie