Accidentally On Purpose (ONC Entry)

Chapter Nine

       She did not box that night. Instead, she spent her free time tending to the bruise on her wrist, attempting to hide it. Lukas was the only one who knew where it came from, and she silently prayed that he would keep quiet about the whole situation until she thought Casey wouldn't lose his mind.

By morning, heavy bags had formed under her eyes. Though she tried to sleep, she couldn't. Her mind raced with questions and worries from the night before: Would Brady tell anyone? How would they solve this murder without any proof of who did it? What would Danny do once he found out who they really were?

Dev rolled onto her side and glanced at her clock. 7:45. She slid out of bed and tied her hair back, wandering into the kitchen without so much as one glance in her mirror. The house was dead at this time of morning, especially in the winter. Once bedtime hit, all heating systems in the house automatically were bumped down to serve only the lowest level of comfort. The only warmth in the house was the plethora of electric blankets hidden away in the linen closet.

She pulled her robe tighter around her body, quickly made a cup of tea, and stared out the window. The yard was laden with snow, the tree branches dusted in white. It was beautiful, something she would do anything to see everyday.

Dev was pulled from her reverie as a knock sounded on the front door. Her brow furrowed and her stomach twisted. She couldn't think of anyone who would want to be out of bed this early in the morning, let alone come to her house.

Slowly, she pressed herself against the wall of the kitchen and peaked her head around the corner. As her eyes fell on the glass panels surrounding the front door, she realized it was Danny Garber standing on her porch. Her heart leapt into her throat.

She took a deep breath and headed toward him. He didn't smile when she opened the door.

"Hi, Danny," Dev said hesitantly, hiding her robed figure behind the door. "How did you get my address?"

"Hi. Dev, right?" He asked, completely ignoring her question. His expression revealed nothing, but his eyes flashed with something unrecognizable. "Can I come in?"

"Uh . . . Sure," she opened the door and observed him as he stepped inside. "Do you mind if I ask you why you're here?"

He sighed, gaze boring into hers as if it was obvious. She shook her head cluelessly and he continued on. "I know why you were at the party last night."

Her heart leapt again, but she didn't so much as flinch. "Am I that bad of an actress?"

"No, but it's really hard to pretend to like Brady. Even I have trouble with it sometimes."

Dev let out a relieved breath she didn't even know she was holding and laughed. "You didn't come all this way to tell me that, did you?"

He shook his head. "No. You're smart. You could've figured that out. What I wanted to do was help you. I understand why you did what you did and I want to give you proof that me and my friends are innocent, as terrible as we may be."

"You're not all that bad," she countered with a smile. "Well, not yet, anyway."

His expression turned grim as he pulled his phone from his pocket. "I need to show you something."

She stood next to him, eyes fixed on the screen, and watched as he pressed play.

Danny, Brady, Lissa, and Gianna appeared. A campfire cast golden light upon their faces as they all laughed together. Their smiles were genuine.

She glanced down at the time stamp. It was set for four days ago, when Gianna went missing.

Suddenly, Gianna stood from her seat on the log and stomped off into the forest. Danny turned up the volume and rewound the video by a few seconds, then hit play.

"Don't get all defensive just because you're dating a loser!" Brady snapped. "Maybe you just aren't cut out to be one of us."

She saw Gianna flinch. Lissa looked apprehensively at her boyfriend and she heard Danny quietly gasp behind the camera.

"Brady . . . " She said, shaking her head.

"What?!" He smiled as if he had done nothing wrong and raised his arms questioningly. "Was it something I said?"

That's when Gianna stalked off, like she had several moments before, and disappeared into the shadows of the trees. Brady stood and took off after her. "Wait! What's wrong?"

Danny paused the video and met her unsettled gaze.

"What just happened?" She asked him.

"Brady was being a jerk, like usual, and overstepped his bounds. When Gianna left, that was the last I ever saw of her," he sighed, expression heavy with sorrow. "I brought the camera because I thought it would be fun. We could make a little movie and watch it whenever we wanted to relive the memories. I didn't think it would be something I'd never want to see again."

Dev bit her lower lip, eyes falling to the ground. The room grew silent. "Just one question," she began. "Why were you camping in the middle of the winter?"

He laughed. "It's this stupid thing that my family and I do every year. They went out of town this Christmas and left my sister and I at home. My friends were just trying to cheer me up, that's all."

Dev felt a heavy weight pressing against her chest. She understood what it was like to be left by your parents on one of the most important times of the year.

"Anyway, I should probably get going now," he gave her a sad smile and held the camera out in front of him. "It'd probably be best if you watched the rest of the tape. None of us leave the campsite for the entire time. Once the coroner's report comes out, you'll be able to prove it wasn't us."

"How do I know one of you didn't hire anybody to kill her?" She asked him jokingly.

He shrugged. "You don't. You just have to trust me."

"I barely know you," she countered with a sideways glance. Even as she said this, she knew it was a lie. She didn't know him, that much was true, but she could also tell that his feelings were genuine. In her eyes, he was innocent. "You realize this makes you look suspicious, right?"

"I do. And for that reason, I'm letting you keep the camera. Flip through anything you want. There are more videos from the camping trip than what I showed you."

"Really?" She asked him, voice raised in surprise. "You'd let me keep your camera?"

He nodded. "After all, it sounds like you'll be needing it, anyway."