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"Oh Okay Yeah, go" I stuff et too upset, but it kind of feels like he’s blowingof the aparto tell the landlord what’s up See you later, maybe?" I start to turn around, but he catches ers unfold frolide through the air "We have class, remember?" He smiles, but it’s fake

So fake

Like all the smiles I have ever known

"You don’t have to takerass See, this is what you get for being so open No one wants to hear your secrets, E dra you want"

"I want to drive you to class, Eaze "I swear I’ht now because of work"

"Okay" I try to shake off my insecurities the best I can "Sorry I just wasn’t sure if I was annoying you or sothe exact opposite" He stuffs the phone into his back pocket "See you in a bit" He steps back to leave, but then changes hisand le slips fro

"Sorry," he signs, co, he kisses me The kiss is way briefer than the others we’ve shared, just a caress of a butterfly wings onoff, flying toward the carport

He passes car after car, striding across the parking lot and out the entrance of the co to wonder if he takes the bus to hen he ht on the sidewalk and rushes up to a black BMW parked at the end of the street He pauses as he reaches the back of the car and begins to turn around

I quickly duck out if sight I’m not even sure why, other than I’m worried about Ryler and who is behind the wheel of that car I’m worried because that car looks exactly like my mother’s

What if Ryler is an Evie?

Evie was ot uy and outed that she had only been my friend because my parents had forced her to be I confrontedto Evie’s mother about it They had done it so Evie could report everything I did

What if Ryler is another Evie? What if my mother hired him to keep an eye on me while I try my new life in Laramie?

My sto to wonder if Ryler ht have more

Chapter 10

Thou Shall Break

Emery

After I report theto the landlord, I return to my apartment The on’t be fixed for a couple of days, so I rip off the top of a box and replace the plastic with it Then I vacuu in hts of Ryler possibly being soht,

when I snuck out of the house,

was nothing except wicked

But the wicked wasn’t the people living in the Shadows

The wicked was the people ford the rich have secrets

And the poor suffer because of thereatly in the streets and in their ho with therass and dirt crumbled

Collapsed

I had two choices

Fall blindly into the hole

Or run away froh I kneould be hard,

I chose to run

I knew I’d be tested,

knew I’d be chased

I knew I’d be broken

Kneould pay