Chapter 2

The coffee shop was cool and smelled of roasted beans and old books.

I found a booth in the back, plugged in my laptop, and ordered a large coffee.

For two days, June 7th and June 8th, I lived there.

I read, I pretended to study, I made sure the staff saw me, nodding to the barista, exchanging a few words with the tired-looking woman who cleaned the tables.

I bought coffee, muffins, sandwiches, keeping the receipts.

My phone stayed off mostly, a dark, silent brick in my bag. I couldn't risk Brittany or Kyle tracking me, or worse, my parents worrying if I didn't show up for the test.

The anxiety was a constant knot in my stomach, but every hour that passed without a police car pulling up felt like a small victory.

Maybe, just maybe, I had sidestepped the disaster.

It was the afternoon of June 9th, the third day. The SATs would be long over.

I was sipping a lukewarm latte, scrolling through a news site, trying to look like any other student.

Then a headline popped up, a local news alert.

"SAT Cheating Scandal Uncovered in [My Town]; Suspect Fled Test Center, Now Apprehended."

My blood ran cold.

Fled test center? Apprehended?

That wasn't me. I was here.

A split second later, the lights in the coffee shop flickered violently, then died.

The hum of the air conditioning, the whir of the coffee grinder, everything went silent.

Emergency lights, dim and red, blinked on.

Outside, sirens wailed, growing louder, closer.

My heart hammered against my ribs. This couldn't be happening. Not again.

The cafe door burst open.

Police officers, uniforms dark against the sudden gloom, fanned out, their faces grim.

One of them pointed directly at me.

"Ashley Carter?"

Two detectives, plainclothes, pushed past the uniformed officers.

"Ashley Carter, you need to come with us."

I stood up, legs shaking. "What? Why? I've been here for three days, I wasn't at any test center."

The door opened again.

Brittany and Kyle rushed in, their faces masks of shock and concern.

"Ashley! Oh my god, what's going on?" Brittany cried, her voice laced with fake panic.

Kyle moved to my side, placing a hand on my arm, "protectively."

"We heard there was trouble, we were so worried," he said, his eyes wide with false innocence.

The lead detective, a man with tired eyes and a stern mouth, ignored them.

"We have reports you were involved in a cheating operation at the SATs and then fled the scene."

"That's impossible!" I said, my voice rising. "I wasn't there, I've been right here!"

My perfect alibi, crumbling before my eyes.

The net, it seemed, was inescapable.