Betrayal

“People are so hung up on their titles,” Bria

“About Olivia,” A

“She was cool. I liked her accent. She came to my party, and someone killed her. That’s all I know.”

“Fine,” A

Bria

A

“Colton James, Beth Lee, and those genetic copies, Hayley and Taylor Ryan.”

“Was she not getting along with them?”

“She told me Beth was miffed that she wouldn’t wait for her little clique. They had a big fight.”

“All right. Do you know if Olivia had any enemies?”

“She wasn’t here long enough. Look, she was pretty. She was smart.

All the boys thought she was a supermodel in the making, and the girls wanted to talk fashion with her. She actually had an Alexander McQueen purse. That’s the Holy Grail. Harder to get than a Birkin, you know.”

A

“She was nice. I liked her. We were best friends. Well, I was her best friend anyway. She was so new, you know?”

“Kids at the party were using drugs and drinking, right?” A

Bria

“This isn’t about your party and what snacks you served, Bria

Bria

“Yeah, I get that,” Bria

A

“At some point in the evening,” A

“She said she was feeling sick. I don’t know why. She wasn’t that drunk. My dad’s wife, Shelley, is a total boozer. I know what wasted looks like. Are we done now?”

A

“Look, I can give you some names but not all of them. We had some crashers. People always want to come to my parties, and when they show up uninvited, I sometimes let them in. It’s my way of giving back. You know, inspiring kids who don’t know what to aspire to.”

A

Bria

“What happened to your hand?” A

“Oh, that? That’s nothing. Paper cut,” Bria

The two sized each other up for a long minute before A

“That’s all for now, Bria

“How am I supposed to get home?”

“You can’t go home right now. Your house is a crime scene.”

Bria

“Can you stay with a friend? Drew’s folks?”

Bria

“I’m sure you will. Let me know if I can help.”

A

@ police dept. Totally sux having a murder committed at your party! Please RT. #partyruinedbymurder

After she finished, Bria

“Crap,” she said loud enough for anyone to hear. “This whole thing has really upset me. I’m completely out of it.”

A

AT LEAST ON THE SURFACE OF THINGS, Andrew Marcello was one of those kids others couldn’t help but envy. He had his own car, a traditional family, a nice house, and, probably most important, a hot girlfriend. His mother, Marsha, was an administrator for the North Kitsap School District and his father, Chase, was a three-term Kitsap County Superior Court judge. Although Drew spent most of his childhood in the Kingston area, there was a period of two years in which he lived in California with an aunt. He called it his “So Cal sabbatical from Kidnap County.” Although he was eighteen, Drew told everyone that he was a year younger. He didn’t want the other kids to know that he’d been held back and had to repeat the second grade.

Drew was attractive, but the bleary, fluorescent overhead lighting in the interrogation room didn’t do him any justice. He had dark hair, dark eyes, and a pug nose almost too small for his face. Over his right pec was a tattoo of a fleur-de-lis, a gift to himself in honor of his Italian heritage. His parents didn’t have the heart to tell their less-than-brilliant son that the design he’d had inked permanently on his body was French, not Italian. No one in the Marcello household liked to push or prod Drew. When he was calm, he was much easier to deal with.

“Yes, Chief,” he said to A

A

“All right, Drew,” she said. “Let’s talk about what happened tonight.”

Drew shrugged and pulled on the zipper on his hoodie, revealing a Kingston High Buccaneers red and gold T-shirt. “Fine, but, if you don’t mind, my dad says that kids don’t have to talk without their parents being here. My dad’s Chase Marcello, the judge. Maybe you’ve heard of him?”

“I’ve heard of your father. You’re not a minor, Drew,” A

“My dad says it’s never good to talk to the police without a lawyer.”

A

Drew glowered a little. “Nah. Not really.”

A