Read Shadow Bound (Wraith) for Free Online Page B

hooking up with a slut. Sometimes you gossip too much.”
    I didn’t stay to see the look on her face or wait for her to make excuses for her comments. I turned my back to them and walked away.
    My house wasn’t that far away. A mile or so and I didn’t mind walking. I knew I needed to cool off a little. Julia was wrong, but she touched a nerve. I trusted Connor, but I was no fool. People often fell into the same traps. It’s why alcoholics can’t drink and gamblers can’t bet. I worried about him. The fact he showed up stoned at my house the other day did nothing to refute what Julia just said. I hoped that as long as he took his medication, which helped keep the majority of the ghosts away from him, he would remain stable.
    As for Charlotte, I had no idea what to think. Julia’s accusations sounded pretty extreme as far as standard teenage problems go. But she wasn’t standard. She was in the same hospital as Connor. The idea made me sick to my stomach. I hoped she wasn’t caught up in anything like that and I really hoped he wasn’t involved.

“T hanks for the ride. I wish you had every morning off.”
    “Me, too,” Connor said. “Luckily, I have a good grade in Spanish and I could opt out of the test.”
    We’re sitting in Connor’s car, parked in the art studio lot. I’ve barely seen him this week. The last two times we spent time together, we fought. When he offered to take me to work today, I jumped at the chance to hang out with him.
    “I’ll see you later?” I asked, gathering my bag off the floor of the car. He hesitated and looked away.
    “Or not?”
    “I’ve got some stuff to do this afternoon.”
    “Stuff?”
    “Yeah.”
    “That’s descriptive,” I muttered.
    “What? You want an itinerary?” he barked back. “I’ve got some school work to do at the library, then my mom wants me to clean out the garage and…”
    “You don’t have to yell.”
    His jaw tightened and he took a deep breath. “I’m not yelling.”
    “You’re totally yelling!” Now I was yelling.
    “Jane, you’ve got to back off a little. I know you’re still pissed about the weed.”
    “I’m not pissed about that.”
    He leveled me a hard look. I was pissed. But not just about that. He’d been acting different lately. I don’t know if it was the drugs or Charlotte or what, but whatever was going on made him a mess. “Then what is it?”
    I shook my head, not wanting to escalate the fight.
    “Tell me.”
    I had one hand on the door handle just in case he got angry, and asked, “Are you taking your meds?”
    “Are you kidding me? You think we’re fighting because I’m off my meds? You know I’m only on those for one reason.”
    “Yeah, to keep the ghosts away, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t affect your moods and stuff.” He held a hand up, indicating he wasn’t going to talk about it anymore. “Whatever, Connor. Forget it. I’ll talk to you when you’re over being a jerk.”
    I got out of the car and slammed the door behind me, making the little car shake from the impact.
    Connor’s car shifted into reverse and he peeled out of the parking lot, swerving into traffic, forcing a car to honk at him. “Great!” I yelled. “Really mature!”
    The front door of the studio opened and Ava stuck her head out. “Who are you yelling at?”
    “Connor,” I said, pushing past her into the building.
    She looked out the door and into the parking lot. “Is he out there?”
    “Not anymore. He left.”
    “Oh, okay. Do you want to talk about it?”
    I reached behind the counter for my apron. “Nope. It’s nothing. Stupid stuff,” I told her. I opened up the folder where we kept the registration forms and class information. In a measured voice I said, “I see we have Andrew coming again today. Hope you’re ready.”
    Ava unlocked the doors and pulled the shade on the front window. “I’m always ready.”
    &
    Four weeks into camp, the days started to merge together. Doling out paint and glue,