Page 59 of Soul So Dark

“Batman and Superman…”

Then Mason. “Uh-huh, uh-huh!”

“NO ONE CAN HIT IT LIKE EVIE CAN!”we all shout in unison.

Every single one of us knows this cheer. I think every girl on every softball team in America has screamed it countless times. It repeats—Aiden, me, Mason, Josh, Rory—louder each time like a storm rolling in. And by the end, an eerie hush falls over the park and there’s no doubt about why we’re here. And, the entire time, Bowen stares right back at us with those dead-ass eyes.

Everyone in that park knows who Evie is and, more importantly, they know she’s not alive anymore.

“Fuck you, Colson!” Hildy spits from across the bowl, breaking the silence.

“I’ll pass,” Colson replies loud enough for everyone to hear, not breaking eye contact with Bowen. “I wouldn’t want to end up raped, murdered, and stuffed into a pipe.”

“Why are you even here?” she snarls back.

“Isn’t this the place to be? And look—” he nods to the brown-haired girl sitting next to Hannah, “you already got a replacement. What’s your name, sweetheart?”

The brown-haired girl looks down and refuses to make eye contact with anyone after that. I’d feel bad for her, but you’d have to be living under a rock not to connect the dots with what happened to Evie and why your ass is suddenly sitting in all the spots where she should be.

“This you?” Mason asks, studying a social media page on his phone screen. Then he turns it and lifts it in the air to show them. “Valerie?”

The girl still doesn’t answer, trying desperately to melt into the concrete.

“If you don’t leave, I’m calling the cops,” Hildy shouts.

“Do it,” Aiden deadpans, swiveling his head in Jay’s direction. “Call thosepigsout here. Won’t do much good, though.” He turns back to Hildy, giving her a once-over. “It looks like someone already made a whole lot of fun out ofyou.”

Hildy’s jaw tightens and her chest caves ever so slightly. Her hand twitches, but she stops herself from reaching up and touching her hair, now almost a foot shorter than it used to be. She still looks as hateful as ever, but now her chin trembles every few seconds, threatening to betray her tough persona. But she’s not crying out of sadness or shallow angst over her impromptu makeover. There’s something else, something much more insidious behind Hildy’s dark eyes. Something she wants to keep hidden.

Bowen’s had enough of us for tonight. So, when he shoots a look in Jay’s direction, they both glide across the concrete and make for the exit, the girls scurrying along right behind. We follow suit, slowly dismounting the brick wall and following at a safe distance.

They veer off to the right side of the parking lot, and as soon as they make it halfway, they all take off at a dead sprint to a dark SUV parked under an oak. Josh lets out a whoop that echoes through the night and we rush to jump in our vehicles and tear out of the parking lot behind them.

Aiden skids out of the lot behind Colson’s Civic, speeding after the SUV. It doesn’t take long to catch up to it and follow it out of town. They think they can drive faster out on the county roads, but there are also fewer people, and fewer witnesses. Colson shoots out ahead of the SUV and pulls in front of it as Aiden crosses the center line to pull up alongside it.

Jay is driving, but it’s not his vehicle. Then it dawns on me, as soon as I see Hildy in the passenger seat, that it’s probably hers. He glances in the rearview mirror at Mason, who’s matching his speed right behind them. We have him boxed in, and there’s nowhere to go. And, now, the only lights out here belong to our four vehicles racing through the cornfields.

Colson starts brake checking Jay, and each time, Mason flashes his lights and flutters his horn just to add to the chaos. Aiden and I howl with laughter, shouting obscenities out my window as the dark silhouettes of the girls jerk and thrash around in panic. I’m sure Bowen is just sitting in the backseat, looking like a psycho while he sulks about us ruining his evening.

As torqued up as everyone is, we don’t run them off the road. Wecouldbecause this time, nobody cares about whether or not a Canaan police SUV is waiting in the shadows to hit their lights. And, miraculously, we don’t pass a single one. Tuesday night also guarantees almost no traffic, so Aiden’s able to keep them trapped between the Civic and Avalanche for a few miles. Suddenly, Colson reduces his speed, forcing everyone else to do the same.

“What the hell’s he doing?” I mumble as Aiden pumps his brakes.

Aiden doesn’t answer, only keeps his eyes on Jay and the SUV, a smile playing on his lips the more we slow down. Soon, the cars come to a grinding halt and we all just sit there on the deserted road, a sprawling field on the left side of the Lexus and a line of honeysuckle on the right side of the SUV.

Suddenly, there’s a thud and the SUV lurches forward. Aiden and I snicker to one another, looking out the back window at Mason, who just tapped their bumper with his truck. The brake lights flash on and off and the SUV lurches back and forth with indecision. Finally, the tires squeal as it makes a sharp rightoffthe road. It bottoms out when it hits the ditch off the shoulder and jostles into the brush as they try to turn around.

Aiden and I watch with intrigue as the SUV plows a hole through the honeysuckle, catching vines and scraping along saplings in a desperate attempt to escape us. Everyone is so entertained by Jay’s split-decision to go off road that we just sit and watch him wreck Hildy’s vehicle. The engine roars as the SUV rocks precariously over the terrain, pushing the suspension to the breaking point. Finally, Jay runs the SUV back up the side of the ditch and onto pavement, where they speed off, back the way they came.

A cacophony of hoots and hollers echo through the air as I settle back into my seat with a satisfied laugh. When I look over at Aiden, he’s still staring into the rearview mirror, but he looks miles away.

Then he shifts his gaze and meets my eyes. “First Rhinehardt, then Hildy. That new girl better decide which side she’s on before she sees what happens to the rest of them.” He jerks the gear shift and hops between the Civic and Avalanche. “Because by then, it’ll be too late.”

???

The Raffertys’ house is quiet until the four of us come bursting through the front door, laughter echoing off the crown molding and through the corridors. Rory and Josh leave soon after we return, but I can’t help but notice that Rory’s glued to his phone. It could be anything, but part of me wonders if I’m witnessing Dallas scam him in real-time. I’ll have to ask her later. But right now, we’re still riding the high of chasing Bowen and his friends across the county.

“Next time, I’m pushing themintothat ditch,” Mason calls over his shoulder as he swaggers across the marble foyer.