THE SHADOWED ONYX: A DIAMOND ESTATES NOVEL Read Online Free PDF Page B

of the stream of students, and ducked into the locker room. Thankfully, Mr. Cavanaugh never took attendance. If Joy skipped class and arrived at practice early, she could be dressed and on the court stretching before everyone showed up.
    She spun the dial on her combination, settling on the familiar numbers she used for every pin number, password, and lock combination: Melanie’s birthday. Which was coming up. What would Joy do on that day? The two of them had never spent a birthday apart since … well, for as long as Joy could remember.
    She slipped on her spandex shorts and pulled her once-beloved black Indians hoodie over her head. It no longer seemed a badge of honor to wear her school colors. Now it was a sentence of doom that meant she was tied to that place for almost two more years.
    Joy exhaled and slammed her locker door. The sharp crash reverberated off the empty shower walls.
    Time to get sweaty and out of breath before anyone else showed up with the prying looks and chatty questions. Joy jogged out to the court and started right in on jumping jacks to warm up her body before stretching.
    Would Joy’s efforts really keep her teammates from hounding her for info and staring into her eyes to see if she was losing it? Of course not. But it was something, at least. Way better than walking in past them all as they fired question missiles at her. Joy shuddered. No thanks.
    How are you doing?
How do you think?
    What was it like?
Death.
    Do you have to catch up on all your homework?
Was that a serious question?
    What did the note say?
Joy had to bite her tongue when someone asked her that. If she answered what she’d like to have answered … well … she’d have regretted it.
    Heather appeared in the doorway, flashing her Zoom-whitened, glow-in-the-dark teeth for the world to see. Not that they could miss them. “Joy. Joy.” Heather squealed and bounced across the room like a wet-nosed puppy. Except puppies were genuine in their affection.
    “Hi, Heather.” Joy panted. More than she needed to. Anything to prolong the arrival of the private moment they were about to have. Joy could feel it coming.
    “So, Joy. I’m glad we have a minute or two alone before everyone else shows up.” Heather bit on the white tip of her acrylic nail.
    Oh boy. Me, too
.
    Heather grasped Joy’s forearm. “Can you just tell me … How are you? Really?”
    Sigh. People were clueless. “I’m fine, thanks.” What did she want to hear? Did she want Joy to admit she was falling apart? That she feared life as she knew it was over? That she was terrified of who she was becoming inside? Angry. Bitter. Sad.
    “Well, I hope you’re not just being brave. I sure don’t want to arrive to the same scene in the locker room that you found at Mel’s house that day.”
    Gravity defied Joy’s chin. Had Heather really just said that? One thing Joy had learned in the past weeks is that some people had no class. And it was so much worse than she could have ever expected. She’d been so naive to think people cared about her, had her best interests at heart. She’d lived with that assumption for far too long. It was time for her to wake up and face reality.
    Heather bent down, yanked up her kneesocks, and wriggled a kneepad into place. She bounced a few times then pulled on the other one. “What was it like, anyway?” Heather’s eager eyes searched Joy’s for info.
    “What was
what
like?” Please don’t be referring to finding Melanie dead. Please.
    She glanced at Joy and raised her eyebrows.
    Joy clamped her mouth shut and swallowed hard. “Heather. I don’t know how to answer you.” She spoke through gritted teeth. “Think about what you’re asking.”
    “You’re right. That was pretty rude. I’m sorry.” She tucked a stray wisp behind her ears and did a perfect spike approach to the net, her feet squeaking on the polished gymnasium floor when she landed.
    Yeah. She sure seemed sorry. But at least Heather was gone. For now. How