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Chapter Three Turning On Each Other
ABANDONMENT was something Jia had always been afraid of, and now she found herself in turn doing it to those she loved most. She didn't mean to, truly, but sometimes that was the worst kind of damage... the one you didn't know you were capable of doing until it was too late.
As soon as Amber's phone screen lit up, Jia's heart sunk to her stomach. She knew deep down something was wrong as soon as Amber opened her text messages. She knew they shouldn't have left the hospital at all. It was so dumb of them to go out and leave Tara. Again.
Sheriff Hicks had pulled a couple of them for questioning, especially after the altercation that Chad and Vince had at the bar, but Jia knew she was pretty useless in the investigation. She knew a couple of the other cops and deputies had a working theory that Jia could have lashed out at someone if she was under the influence of narcotics, but it didn't really go anywhere because everyone knew the skimmy and unreliable girl couldn't handle all the killing by herself unless she had an accomplice. Still, a few of them wanted to keep an eye on her.
Despite her various reports over the last two months about having seen Ghostface herself, and her solid alibi — having been caught on camera getting high with a couple of kids from her math class outside a drugstore just like she said she was during the night Tara was attacked.
After a little convincing on Jia's part, a reluctant Amber let Jia come with her as they went back to the hospital.
"I've got a body outside a bar on Main, and then you get attacked here. You said the call came from Amber's number?" Sheriff Hicks stood in front of the small group which consisted of Sam, her boyfriend, Tara, Amber, and a shaky Jia. Jia knew she wasn't looking too good, whether she was suspected of being the killer or not because the Sheriff was the mother of her best friend. And while Judy Hicks didn't allow Jia to linger around her home anymore, Jia definitely had come to know the blonde woman better than her own mother. She knew that Judy liked sushi, morning yoga, and being the Sheriff, but more than anything, she knew that Judy didn't think Jia was a good influence on her son anymore.
"So?" Amber asked. "We know he called on my phone before when he attacked Tara."
"Or, and I'm just spit-balling here..." Sam's boyfriend, Richie, spoke up from where he sat on the other side of Tara. "You're the killer."
"And where were you when all this happened?" the Sheriff in turn asked him.
"I was... watching Netflix," Richie admitted with a sigh.
"Ooh, yeah. Super-solid alibi, bro," Amber said, crossing her arms over her chest with a mocking tone in her voice. Jia shook her arms so her sleeves would settle and better cover her hands. She grabbed at the ends of her sleeves worriedly as she stood around listening to their back-and-forth sparing.
