Loose Change~ Montgomery De La Cruz / Zach Dempsey/Scott Reed

Part 4 Chapter 4b

tw: mentions of sexual assault

a/n: this chapter may seem particularly sad for Ophelia but I promise things get better in the next chapters :( the worst is almost over

"Jessica, can I pull you away for a moment?"

It was now Friday morning. Ani approached Jessica in the HO room. Three other girls were there as well, all focused on painting posters for an upcoming fundraiser.

Jessica set down the paintbrush she had been using, wiping excess paint off her hands with a damp paper towel.

"Sure, what's up?" Jessica asked, stepping aside with her.

Ani directed her to the farthest corner of the room, and then looked to make sure no one was in hearing range. Then she asked, "How well do we really know Scott Reed?"

"Scott?" Jessica thought about it. "I don't know. He was an athlete. Actually, he still is. He was Bryce's buddy until all that shit about the Clubhouse came out. And then he was Montgomery's best friend for a while. Like Alex said yesterday, he has a think for Ophelia."

Ani soaked in all the information. She started her questions with, "So he and Montgomery were best friends? Even at the end?"

Jessica said. "Well, from what I've heard, Scott's the one who kept Montgomery in anger management. He didn't drop out until Scott went to college. They were close."

"And Scott thinks Montgomery was innocent?"

"Again, it's just what I've heard," Jessica said. "I'm not sure. But as far as I know, yeah. None of his friends think he could have killed Bryce. Which is bullshit seeing as he probably could have if he got angry enough at him at one point."

Ani just nodded. "I'd believe it."

"Why are you asking me all this?" Jessica questioned her. "I thought we went over this. Scott isn't the vandal. He works here, he wouldn't risk it."

"It's just a hunch I have," Ani said. "I'll talk to you more later, alright?"

Jessica just said, "Yeah, sure."

Ani readjusted the strap of her backpack. She hurried up from the basement, and into the hallway. She found her next target quickly.

Charlie St. George jumped when Ani came up besides him.

"Charlie," Ani greeted with a smile. "You're close with all the Liberty athletes."

He said, nervously, "Well, I am co-captain of the football team."

"Popular man," Ani praised. "Tell me, who is your top suspect for the vandalism?"

He hesitated. "Oh, I don't know about that. I don't see any of the guys on my team being that stupid. I mean, they wouldn't want to risk being suspended from playing, you know?"

"So who do you think has the least to lose?" Ani pressed.

Charlie admitted, "Honestly, I have no idea. Isn't it best we just ignore it? We don't know anything. If we start questioning the guys, they'll just start getting suspicious."

"You're a smart man, Charlie," Ani praised him. "But we're not gonna questions those boys. We're gonna get them to rat on themselves."

He frowned. They stopped walking for a moment, now just standing in the hallway. "How?"

Ani got a confident sort of smile on her face. "Boys admit the most when they're angry, haven't you noticed?"

Charlie hesitated, unsure of what she was saying. "...I guess...why?"