They All Had A Reason: A rumor. A secret. A lie. A murder. (They All Had A Reason, #1)

by Michele Leathers

And if I am being completely honest, there is also a small matter of revenge that is long overdue.

Oh i love this

It’s Damion Johnson, otherwise known as Ace. He’s definitely cute, some girls call him hot. He has the face of an angel, but nothing else about him is remotely angelic.

If he isnt the love interest.

A few are sophomores like me.

No youre younger than me????

I find my good friend, Bridger Silverfield. He’s the twin brother of the narcissist, Bellany.

Oh!

I wonder if Bridger realizes how lucky he is to have me for a friend.

And yes, this basement does look exactly like the one in the movie. Only she didn’t need to point that out.

I envision a ghostly demon from the underworld about to attack me from behind. I spin around, almost losing my balance, ready to scream, fight, whatever. Only it’s not a demon coming to get me. But it’s close. It’s Bellany.

At first, I thought she was talking to her boyfriend, Quentin. But she called this person “big G,” which is not her pet name for Quentin.

OMG CHEATER

She’s making fun of the burn scars I have on my stomach.

GUYS????

To my relief, Quentin forgave me. But I doubt Bellany will ever get over it, because Mr. Silverfield has forbidden her from seeing Quentin.

the straight nose, high cheekbones, sculpted eyebrows -- freezes in place as she processes what I have just told her.

It’s destroyed, gone forever. Just like Bellany.

I can’t be sad! Not now. Not ever! I’m afraid if I continue to let myself feel these emotions, I might go insane!

I cant take this seriously

“I thought maybe you were in there with someone,”

You are 15 years old

“You know Bridger’s never going to like you as anything more than a friend. He tells me that all the time. He said you’re too plain vanilla looking and you don’t have any curves. He’s not attracted to you--at all. Nobody is.”

Awe thats why you are dead! :/

That secret, about Bellany cheating on him, doesn’t mean anything now. It only mattered if Bellany was still around so he could break up with her. But he’s never going to see her again. And I’m never going to tell him she cheated. If I did, he would think I’m some kind of a heartless monster. The last thing I want to do is give him a reason to hate me.

“What would she be doing out walking in the woods? In the dark? It’s like super spooky out there.” I shake my head. “I bet she’s out front, where everybody’s coming and going. She probably went out there to meet someone. Or maybe she’s on her way back from going somewhere. Like the store. If she is, then you’ll find her out front, where all the cars are.”

She makes me mad she is so dumb

My heart melts a little. He would worry about me?

GIRL. We have someone DEAD.

The front pocket of Ace’s shirt, the one he had his phone stuffed in earlier is ripped and hanging by a few threads. I wonder if maybe he caught it on the fence when he was ditching the cops.

There are some scratches on his cheek. Did he get those from climbing the fence, too?

I hope he never finds out the truth; that I knew all along what happened to her.

Girl

As soon as the door closes, I flip my phone over. There’s a message from Vivy. QUEEN B IS DEAD!!!!!!!!! The next one is from Gemma. Someone MURDERED Bellany!

Girl omg

And I really wish I could forget what it looked like. The image haunts me, especially at night when I try to sleep.

Since when do boys willingly share secrets, I want to say, but I don’t.

Based on what I saw, which was a lot of blood, I think she was beaten to death.

“That has got to be a fake tan. And button up your shirt, chica. This is a funeral not a stripclub.”

I hate her

There’s no mother present. Wow. She didn’t even come to her own daughter’s funeral.

I wouldnt either

Still, there’s that little bit of doubt lingering in my mind -- maybe she was barely hanging on to life.

“Drama queen,” Gemma whispers. “She needs to stop.”

Omg i do not like her

Bellany wanted me to think he was a bad person so I would stay away from him.

“What’s your number?”

GIRL AT A FUNERAL????

“Remember when my dad dated your mom and how I called you my sister? I still think of you that way. You are my family.”

Um no

I wish I could always remember her looking just like that -- healthy, whole, without any . . . blood.

“I don’t know what kind of Houdini game her family is playing, but Bellany’s body was not in there. That casket was empty.”

WHAT

or she’s delusional.

Me

“Somebody signed in as Bellany Silverfield. I wonder who did this? This is hilarious!”

Um

For some reason Bridger is getting into his car instead of the limo with the rest of his family.

????

This wasn’t the only time Gemma threatened to kill Bellany.

...

Gemma didn’t tell me about the special basketball practice Quentin had the night of Bellany’s party, which made him late. She didn’t tell me about the special birthday celebration Quentin had with Bellany the night before her party, either. I guess there’s no reason I should feel guilty about keeping my encounter with Bellany’s bloody body a secret from her. We obviously aren’t as close as I thought we were.

Just get on with it people! Say your goodbyes already and go!

Girl like what

If she’s not in her casket, and her body is not with the coroner or at the morgue, then where is it? If she’s still alive, there must be some monumental reason for her to fake her death. What could that be?

I thought maybe you were into some kind of kinky, weird stuff since this is a cemetary.”

GIRL?????

“I think I can take him.”

Goodbye

“The casket was empty.”

I can’t believe it. Vivy was telling the truth. Bellany has done it again. She’s played us all.

Why did she fake her death? Who helped her? Was all that blood on her really fake? Why was she lying there as if she was dead? Who was she trying to trick? Me? Someone else?

Gemma would talk about how nice it would be if Bellany wasn’t around to interfere with her and Bridger anymore.

....

Aren’t you relieved? I know I am. Life is so much better with Bellany not around.”

GIRL???

“No you didn’t. I was third in line to find out. Bridger and Quentin knew before I did.” What does she want, an apology? I didn’t do anything wrong.

I hate them both

“Come with me, and bring your coat and purse. I’ll tell you what’s going on after we get in the car.”

Um