Read Online Sara by Greg Herren - Free Book Online Page B

trying not to start crying again.
    I couldn’t have heard that right. “ What? You’re not serious. Noah? Noah Greene ?” I felt goose bumps coming up on my arms and legs. My scalp was prickling.
    â€œUh huh.” She took a deep breath before continuing. “Noah Greene is dead, Tony. Last night, after the party—he rolled his truck after he dropped off Laney last night.”
    â€œOh my God.” I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. “Was he drunk?”
    â€œI don’t know if he was drunk, but he’d been drinking.” Her voice started quivering again, but somehow she managed to not start sobbing again. “Oh God, Tony, I can’t believe it. Laney just called me…”
    â€œOh God.” I closed my eyes. I hadn’t even managed to think that far yet. Poor Laney, his poor family—I couldn’t even imagine how they were feeling. I swallowed and wiped tears away. I’d just seen him Friday—the last time I’d talked to him had been after the game. I couldn’t even remember what I’d said, or what he’d said—it hadn’t been anything, just small talk in passing. We’d gone to school together since kindergarten. I hadn’t liked how nasty he’d been to Glenn since the summer, but this? I wouldn’t wish this on anyone. I pulled myself together enough to ask, “Do they know what happened?”
    â€œThey think he was driving too fast and lost control of his truck and it rolled, went off the road and rolled a couple of times. He was thrown out of the cab, and”—she took another breath, and continued, in a shaky little voice—“the truck rolled over on top of him. He was crushed.” She choked off another sob.
    I felt nauseous, and there were these weird shadows crowding in on the corner of my vision. I felt sick, like I was going to throw up. “Oh dear God,” I somehow whispered. It was horrible. What a horrible way to die.
    â€œIt’s so awful.” Candy started to cry again.
    â€œHow—how is Laney holding up?”
    â€œShe sounded numb, like she didn’t believe it.” She blew her nose. “I don’t think—I don’t think it’s really sunk in for her yet? I guess? I don’t know. Oh, Tony, it’s so awful. I can’t believe this happened, it’s just too horrible, poor poor Noah.” She sighed. “I’ve got to go. My mom wants us to go over to the Greenes’, see if there’s anything we can do to help. Although what that might be…” She stifled another sob.
    â€œI’ll call you later, okay?”
    â€œThanks, I’d like that. Bye.” She hung up.
    I put my phone down on the nightstand and stared out the window. It was bright daylight outside. I got up and walked over to the window, not really sure why. I opened it and stuck my head outside, feeling the sun’s warmth and taking a few deep breaths of fresh air. The dark shadows around my vision began to clear and go away. I could hear my heart beating. I closed my eyes and took some more deep breaths.
    No one I knew had ever died before. This was new. My grandparents were dead—but that had happened when I was too young to realize what was going on, and having never really known them, I didn’t miss them.
    But Noah Greene was my age, in my class.
    People our age just didn’t die. They weren’t supposed to.
    Noah and I had never been friends. We hadn’t been enemies, either, for that matter. I’d never really known him all that well. He’d gone steady with Laura Pryce for years until her parents died.
    But I hadn’t known Laura’s parents. I’d known her—and she’d stayed with the Nortons after her parents died, before she went to live in California. I’d liked Laura, had felt bad for her.
    First her parents, now Noah.
    But at least they’d broken up after she moved away.
    I walked