The call came just as Emmaline got off the bus.
At first, she was confused that Ethan was calling her.
They had only talked on the chat groups they were in or tagged each other on social media.
But his voice was worried and breathless, as if he was brisk walking while talking.
By the first sentence, Emmaline had started running.
She held her bagpack close to her, hoped the fruits would survive some jostling and sprinted as much as her legs would allow.
Her heart was pounding and her mind was a garbled mix of panic and horror.
I had more time than this, she was thinking, her brain scrambling to remember the dates, wondering what plan of the many that she and Camilla had concocted would work.
And at the back of her mind, she hated Aaron, hated that he was making her choose between her mom and Ashton, hated that she couldn't have just a moment of peace.
