Chapter 6: Old Friends, New Threats

I looked up and caught Derek’s eyes in the rearview mirror. He was watching me, just quietly staring, and I realized I had no idea how long he’d been doing it.

A chill slid down my back, ice-cold and sudden.

I forced a smile, hoping it looked casual in the flickering streetlights.

"You’re awake?"

He grunted, somewhere between acknowledgment and accusation. Gone was the drunken mess—he looked stone-cold sober, eyes sharp, face unreadable.

A bad feeling crawled up my spine.

But because of our history, I played comforter, voice as warm as I could manage:

"Don’t feel too bad, man. Tomorrow, I’ll go with you to the cops. We have to catch the bastard who killed Rachel."

At Rachel’s name, Derek’s face softened, some old pain flickering in his eyes.

He said quietly, "All these years, I’ve never once dreamed of Rachel. Do you think she hates me?"

"Don’t talk like that," I said quickly. "You know what folks say: If you don’t dream of the dead, it means they’re at peace."

I turned the steering wheel, trying to sound offhand, like this was just small talk:

"By the way, did you actually see the person’s face back then?"

He didn’t answer. The car filled with silence so thick I could hear the wind whipping past the windows and the faint rattle of a loose air freshener.

Sweat gathered on my palm where I gripped the wheel, knuckles white. I had no clue what the silence meant.

Just as I was about to change the subject, Derek finally spoke, voice quiet but heavy:

"Caleb, I’ll be honest. I didn’t actually see anyone push Rachel off the building that year."

The reversal stunned me. I gripped the wheel tighter.

Derek continued:

"But someone did see it. He told me what happened that night—he even told me the names of the two people who killed Rachel."

Two people?

My throat tightened, the taste of panic sour on my tongue.

Someone really saw us?

Who could it be?

Why is Derek telling me this now?

My heart hammered, but I forced myself to sound calm:

"So, do you know who that person is?"

Derek suddenly leaned forward, his big hand clamping down on my shoulder, making me flinch:

"Caleb, are you really going to keep pretending with me?"