A Bounty of Pictures

Chapter 8

Josie leans against her locker. "You realize everyone thinks more went on at Peyton's."

"He let me sleep until eight when his dad got home." I say trying to shake off the topic.

Josie raises a perfectly waxed eyebrow. "I hope Parker knows that."

"Parker and I are just really close friends."
Parker walks by to go to his fourth period class. I wave and he wraps an arm around my shoulder.

"Wow, you two are very close friends." Josie winks then walks away.

"See you at my car after school." He smiles and goes to trig. I toss my hair over the shoulder Parker touched and a senior boy stares at me with a smirk. I glare at him and his smirk disappears.

                                  •••

The air in Harlow's office makes me shiver. Parker had to go somewhere he wouldn't tell me, leaving me alone.

The door opening makes the room colder. Harlow shook my hand and I open the file. "It checks out that the pictures were taken that night."

"I knew it would." I say hiding back a smile.

"But there's no more evidence. Are there any witnesses other than you and Parker?"

"Kind of. Peyton Devor." Harlow looks at me with the pen hovering over the paper.

"Peyton Devor?"

"Um, yes. He lives down the road from his mom's field and heard the gunshot."

Harlow hesitates to write this down. "I'm afraid he wouldn't be a reliable source."

"Why?" I ask confused.

"For private reasons he does not want anyone to know." Harlow puts down the pen, ending the topic.

"Well, we did some investigating at the field yesterday and found some evidence." I pull out my phone and open the photo album of the evidence. Harlow scrolls through.

"And you did this without my permission?"

"Yes." I take my phone back. "The dried up wheat was a perfect location to hide anything because whoever was there came back and covered up the evidence with dried hay."

Harlow tries to hold back a smile, "and did you keep the evidence?"

"Of course, Peyton Devor and Josephine Wilhelm have the evidence. In ziplocks."
Harlow's smile finally comes out.

"I'll contact them. Thank you. I'll call your parents. See you soon."

I stand up and Peyton waits for me in his car.
"Everything good?" He asks.

"I guess." I shrug. "He wouldn't believe that you were a witness."

Peyton looks at me weird, almost like he was let down, "that doesn't surprise me." He rubs his neck.

"Why? Harlow wants more witnesses but when he gets one he won't accept it."

"Because I'm not a 'reliable' person anymore." He scratches his neck again in the same spot. His hand goes back on the steering wheel and I notice a scar I never saw before. It's so light you would never see unless he scratched it.

"Not meaning to pry. But why is there a scar on your neck?" I feel guilty after asking.

"I don't think it's any of your business, Chloe." My stomach flips at the way he pronounces my name.  Maybe the first time I've been frightened of my name.

"Why are saying you're not 'reliable', Peyton! Harlow is going to think I'm crazy!"

Peyton's head snaps towards me when I say crazy. "You're not crazy! You don't even know what crazy really is!" Peyton's hands shake. Luckily he turns on the road that connects to my neighborhood.

"What are you even saying? What's wrong with you?" I yell. Peyton grips the steering wheel tighter now, face growing redder by the second. As he jerks the car around the turn, I fly against the door attempting for hold onto the door handle.

"I think I'll walk from here." I stutter unlocking the door and he pulls over for me to get out. I back away from his green car in time to see tears streaming down his face. "Peyton, are you okay?"

Why am I doing this?  He could have killed me.

"I'm fine. See you tomorrow." He reaches across to close the door and drives away with a tiny scream. I stand on the sidewalk watching his car go towards an unknown destination.

The doorbell rings throughout Parker's house. By now I would have already taken his key out but his sister lost the house key and every lock was changed.

"Hey." Parker says as he opens the door.

"We need to talk. Peyton is crazy." I sit at Parker's kitchen table and tell him everything that happened starting from the police station.

"Chloe, don't you remember what happened when his mom died?" Parker asks. Before I can answer, Seth calls me.

"Chloe! Where are you?" Seth screams.

"I'm at Parker's. why?" I put him on speaker.

"The police found Peyton!"

"What do you mean? I told Harlow he has some of the evidence."

"No! Chloe, they found Peyton dead!"

Parker and I look at each other for a minute.

"What? Where?"

"Kingsley Street. Hurry!"

I hang up and run to the car with Parker. Parker calls his neighbor to watch his siblings while the group text goes on a rampage.

Parker slows down as emergency vehicles block our path.  I jump out the car and fight with a firefighter to let me go past the yellow tape. Seth finally tells the firefighters I'm Peyton's friend and we are let under the yellow tape.
The street smells of burnt metal and plastic. Smoke lightly filters up to clouds.

We run towards more fire trucks and I stop in my tracks to see Peyton's green car burnt to nothing.

Parker wraps his arm around me. Rachel and Josie join us when Harlow and another officer walks over. A tear slips down Josie's mascara stained face.

"I think you kids need to leave the scene. But I would like to talk to you in an hour so stay nearby." Harlow says.

I catch mom sitting on the back of the ambulance with her head in her hands.

"It's my fault." I blurt out. Everyone looks at me strange. "I made him upset or mad or something a half hour ago."

"What do you mean? Did you drive the car into the electric pole?" The officer asks taking out a notepad.

"No. But he was nearly out of control when he took me home. I made him mad and I didn't mean to." I say in one breath. Josie holds my hand.

"Miss Jansen, you did not cause him to crash. He was mentally unstable." Harlow states, "he committed suicide."

Oh no!! What?! That's crazy! No! Tears are falling!! No, literally, I cried after writing this. Peyton was one my favorite characters to create. Vote and comment!
-Angela