Emma That is Dead (FREE!)

Chapter Twenty-Six

"Morning, Hayes," Coach calls when I park at the edge of the field. Morning mist still creeps along the sod.

A flock of geese squawk in unison as they fly through low-lying clouds overhead. Fall clouds, fat and gray, weighed down with precipitation. Not everyone is here yet, but a few girls from the team are gathered in the dewy grass, stretching their muscles over personal narratives of last night's football game.

Coach cringes as I make my way closer. "You look like crap. Didn't you get any sleep?"

Leave it to Coach to tell it like it is. "Is it that obvious?" I say, downing the last of my caffeine. My eyes scour the area for Jordan's Jeep.

"I just hope you're ready for Cedar Falls. They've got a strong team this year. We need to give it our all."

"We've got a strong team, too. And we play to win." I stuff the empty can into my bag and pull out my shin guards and shoes, the sense of fearlessness I get whenever I'm on the field already taking over.

A grin stretches across her face as I kick off my sandals and slide into my cleats. "Now that's what I like to hear!"

As we begin our pre-game warm-ups, spectaculars spill from their cars and caravans, and set up folding chairs along the field. All the while I keep one eye on the parking lot. It's getting late. Even when I do see her, we won't be able to talk. What I need to know can't be discussed in these last few minutes before we start.

A voice interrupts my concentration. "Hello? Did you hear me? I asked how Emma's doing." Alyssa Allen stands next to me with a deep crease in her forehead, the brown hair framing her face rustling in the breeze. A soccer ball is pinched between her arm and hip as she watches me with curious eyes.

"Oh, sorry," I say. "She's doing okay, I guess."

"Well, I've left several messages on her cell—so have a few other people—but she never calls us back."

She stares at me like I'm responsible. Like I have something to do with Emma not returning their calls. I shrug. "Maybe she's not ready to talk to anyone yet?"

Alyssa shifts her weight, juts out her bottom lip. "But you've spoken to her, right? I mean, you are her best friend."

"Well, yeah." I wrap my arms around my middle to ward off the morning chill and try to come up with an excuse. "But I've been trying to give her some space, you know? Let her get used to being home."

She gazes across the field, bounces the ball off her knee and into her hands. "It must be weird for her, being back after what she went through. She's got to be fucked up in the head." She turns back to me, her blue eyes wide. "Does she seem like she is to you?"

"What? Fucked up?" I bite back the truth. "She just seems like she's trying to find a new normal. I'm sure she'll return your calls as soon as she's feeling up to it."

I hope this is enough to appease her, but Alyssa's not finished yet. "I heard a group of satanic mountain men took her and used her in their rituals."

"Where did you hear that?" I ask, trying not to snort.

She shrugs nonchalantly. "Just around. Has she told you anything about what happened?"

What little I do know, I'm not sharing. Telling Alyssa would be as good as announcing it to the entire student body through a megaphone. "The police are keeping things quiet. They don't want information leaking out to the public and jeopardizing their investigation. At least, that's what her parents said." I peer over her shoulder and into the parking lot, but there's still no sign of Jordan's Jeep. The game will be starting any minute.