They Know Me

WHO ARE YOU?

The next morning I walked downstairs and opened the front door, expecting Rhys to be there. He wasn't. I went out and, after locking the door behind me, I walked across the adjoining lawns to his house, and knocked on his front door. It opened, and his dad was there, smiling warmly at me. He turned and called out, "Rhys – Ashe is here!"

He headed toward the kitchen as I heard the familiar squeak of the top stair. Carrying his backpack, and dressed in his usual polo shirt and jeans, Rhys came downstairs. He walked over to where I was waiting at the front door. "When I said to be ready, I didn't mean to be so early. Why didn't you come in? We still have twenty minutes."

"Let's walk. If we leave for school now, we'll be there in time."

"Fine, but not through the cemetery." He hollered a quick good bye to his parents as he stepped out and closed the door behind him. "So, about last night ... where did you go, and why?"

"I went for a walk – to nowhere in particular."

"Fine. Don't tell me. I'm not really interested, anyway. I somehow get the feeling that the less I know, the better off I'll be, especially if it has anything to do with either Cemetery Raven or the bridge. Just tell me this – did Amber see you again?"

"Nope. Your reputation of being seen with me remains untarnished."

He dropped his interrogation. We headed down our street and crossed the road to walk along the dirt path in front of the cemetery on our way downtown. I gazed in. The daylight had washed away its beauty to show the brutal truth of its age instead. Broken headstones, tall weeds, and desolate ... no one seemed to care, as if it was just there as part of the scenery, but ignored. Briefly, I wondered if the graveyard had been anywhere else in Mannix, if it would've been forgotten altogether. As we neared the entrance, I looked at the ground. My footprints, and those of the French guy, were still there. He was weird, but my curiosity of him had been piqued.

By the time Rhys and I reached the high school, the parking lot was filled with students and faculty. As he and I entered through the double doors, someone called out to him. Rhys stopped and the guy came over to ask if they could go over some notes for an upcoming test, together. With a promise to me to meet for lunch, Rhys left with the guy in the direction of his homeroom.

I took my time walking to class, and for the first time, I actively looked around the corridor. Despite Rhys saying none of the other students had a French accent, I still hoped for a chance run-in with the French guy. If he wasn't there, I'd have to ask around about him – but I didn't know most of the students, and I didn't know his name. Both could pose a problem for me in finding out who he was.

Lost in my thoughts, I started to enter my homeroom and bumped into a tall girl with long, straight, honey-colored hair, who seemed to be distracted herself. She smiled and apologized, while I only offered the apology. I waited for her to go in first, but she stayed there, looking at me with sly curiosity. "Hi. I'm Katrina. You're new here, right?"