UNSTEADY 🅰️ LUCAS GOTTESMAN [book one]

CRASH & BURN, GIRL

...

AFTER her mother's arrest, Haley had filled in her sister and friends what she'd learned through Melissa and Jenna and they were as relieved as she was that she wasn't a murderer. But the tension was still there, for Spencer admitted that Toby was the one who'd given up the RV to A but she wouldn't tell them why.

And to make matters worse, Emily had gotten the recording of Darren being run over off Hanna and given it  to the police, but A had tampered with it and all was left of it was Red Coat in an Ali mask holding up a guilty sign in front of the Rosewood population wall.

Haley processed Emily's words as the group stood around the Marin kitchen before she finally looked between the Fields girl and her sister "You tried to give the police a tape of mom running over a cop?"

"I know it looks bad but he gets up." Hanna argued "Shana and Jenna help him, that's two more suspects in the pool."

"You tried to give the cops the tape of mom running over a cop after he brags about having sex with me?" Haley continued and the girls finally realised just what they could've done "About getting me pregnant? You want motive? There it is!"

Emily stammered as the Marin girl yelled "We didn't think."

"Clearly." She spat before storming upstairs to her room.

Aria reached over to place a hand on an upset Hanna's arm "Look, they didn't see it. That's the most important thing here."

"Yeah, but why?" Spencer questioned "Why would A stop that from happening?"

"To protect Shana and Jenna?" Emily suggested.

Hanna finally tore her eyes away from her sisters retreating back with a shaky sigh "Or was A protecting Haley?"
...

THINGS between the twins were still tense but for the sake of their mother, they'd put on their best fake smiles as they sat across from in the visitation room. Ashley looked between them "So your father decided to stay at the house with you?"

Haley's fist clenched under the metal table, nails digging into her palm until Hanna reached across and unfurled them. How could they tell their mom that their father didn't even stick around for one last meal? That he'd gone home to be with his other family, his new one, leaving Hanna to do her best forgery on the cheques to help pay the bills.

"Yeah." Hanna began the lie "It'll just be easier that way."

"He wants to drive us to school and we'll just stay at his place on the weekends." Haley murmured as Hanna squeezed her hand.