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''You did step on Pope's head, Kiara. Stop blaming everyone else and actually look at what you're doing.''

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THE RAIN HADN'T let up for hours. We were soaked to the bone, all of us crouched low with our eyes glued to the dark, empty lot ahead. Gavin had chosen a miserable night to meet Ward Cameron, but maybe that was the point—fewer witnesses, more cover.

I huddled with the others under what little shelter the tree cover provided, watching Pope fiddle with the clunky camera he'd dragged along.

JJ peered at him, arching an eyebrow. ''Nice camera. Where'd you dig up that relic? Why don't you just use your phone?''

Pope shot him a look, unfazed. ''First of all, I like my antique electronics. Second of all, this is a telephoto lens. It lets me get a close image from far away.''

''Lord of the dorks,'' Kie muttered, shaking her head with an exasperated sigh.

Pope didn't even respond, too focused on getting the right angle. ''There he is,'' he whispered sharply. We all ducked lower as we spotted Ward.

''Get down,'' JJ mumbled, tugging me a bit closer to the ground.

My heart pounded as Pope whispered, ''And there's Gavin.'' We could just make out Gavin's figure moving toward Ward in a way that made him look desperate—like he was bargaining for his life.

Pope hissed, ''No, no, no. I'm losing him.'' He adjusted the camera, frustrated.

JJ scanned the area, his eyes brightening as he pointed up. ''Yo! I found something, come here.''

I followed him to the building he'd found. A rooftop. Perfect. We scrambled up the creaky fire escape ladder, with the wind pushing against us, freezing cold as the rain pelted down harder. By the time we reached the top, we had a full view of Gavin and Ward below, and Pope wasted no time setting up his camera again.

''You rolling, Pope?'' JJ asked, his voice just a whisper.

Pope nodded, adjusting the focus. ''Yeah, I see them. Ward just handed Gavin something. I think it's a duffel bag.''

''Guys, I think this is a payoff,'' JJ muttered, his gaze narrowed as he observed them.

Gavin looked furious, his hands clenched as he spoke. ''Gavin doesn't look happy about something,'' Pope narrated, his voice almost shaking. ''Looks like he's yelling at Ward.''

Kie leaned in closer, peering over Pope's shoulder. ''Why?''

''I don't know, but he sure looks mad,'' Pope replied, gripping the camera tighter.

They started shoving each other, and my eyes widened, unable to look away as the argument turned violent. 

''Shit,'' Pope whispered under his breath, his voice shaking.

''Whoa, whoa, whoa,'' JJ mumbled, his hand gripping my shoulder, anchoring both of us as we stared at the scene below.

''What's going on?'' Kie asked, her voice barely audible.

''I don't know, they're fighting over something,'' Pope replied, squinting as he zoomed in. ''They're really going at it. Ward's... Ward's kicking the crap out of Gavin.''

''He's gonna kill him,'' Kie said, her voice rising slightly.

''Why are they fighting?'' JJ wondered aloud, almost to himself.

''I don't know, I'm trying to see... Holy shit, Ward's got a gun.''

Kie sucked in a sharp breath, her eyes widening. ''I bet that's the murder weapon.''

Suddenly, a shot rang out, echoing across the empty lot. I flinched, my heart pounding as we all ducked instinctively. 

JJ's voice was a harsh whisper. ''What the hell?''

''No, no, no, no,'' Kie whispered, her face pale as she stared down at the scene below. ''That did not just happen.''

We all looked to Pope, who was still holding the camera with white-knuckled hands. JJ glanced at him. ''Tell me you got that.''

Pope nodded. ''Enough to put this asshole away for life.'' He shook his head. ''This is freaking insane.''

We all sat there, frozen. Gavin was dead, and Ward had done it, right in front of us.

''I think we should go right now,'' JJ murmured, already glancing over his shoulder.

''Yeah,'' Pope agreed, eyes still fixed on the scene below. ''Hold on, he's coming out.''

''There he goes,'' Pope added. ''I think he's looking for the gun.''

My breath caught as I watched Ward, his eyes darting wildly. ''I think the gun just went down the drain!'' Pope whispered.

Kie suddenly stood up, her eyes blazing. ''Murderer!'' she shouted, her voice cutting through the rain.

I reached for her arm, trying to pull her back down. ''Kie, are you out of your mind?'' I hissed.

Pope yanked her back down beside him, glaring. ''Kiara, are you crazy?''

''I don't care if he hears me,'' she said defiantly. ''He's a murderer!''

''Guys, he sees us,'' Pope muttered, panic flashing in his eyes.

JJ stared at her, exasperated. ''Are you serious?''

Pope didn't wait for an answer. ''Come on, we gotta go. He's coming!'' We scrambled for the ladder, everyone moving in a blur of fear and adrenaline.

We clambered down, slipping on the rungs as we tried to move quickly. Kie's foot caught on Pope's head, sending him tumbling down. He crashed into JJ, both of them landing in a heap at the bottom.

''No, no, no, no, no!'' Pope exclaimed, scrambling up and grabbing his camera. ''You're kidding me. You fumbled it?''

''You kicked me in the face!'' he snapped at Kie, his eyes wide with frustration.

''I was trying to hurry!'' Kie shot back, brushing herself off.

I glared at her, unable to keep the frustration out of my voice. ''Why did you even start screaming in the first place?''

Kie just shook her head. ''I'm not letting him get away with it.''

''He's coming,'' Pope said, cutting off any further arguments.

We bolted, finally reaching the car, piling in just as Ward rounded the corner. ''Can someone please fill me in on what the frick just happened?'' JJ shook his head. ''Wait, what were they even fighting over?''

''It was the gun. The one Rafe used,'' Pope explained, still breathless. ''He must've kept it.''

''Of course. The murder weapon.''

Kie grabbed her phone, frantically dialing. ''Pick up, pick up!''

''Who are you calling?'' Pope asked, frowning.

''Who do you think?'' Kie snapped, barely glancing at him. ''Who else am I supposed to call?''

I reached over, trying to grab the phone from her. ''You think they're going to believe us with no evidence? They framed John B. already!'' I said. Kie hesitated, her eyes flicking back to me.

"Hello? Hi, somebody's been shot..." Kiara starts to explain over the phone. "....at the... at the Grand Street construction site! You guys need to hurry because he's dying. I don't know if he's already dead or not! You need to hurry!"

Soon enough, the police arrived, and Shoupe stepped out, unimpressed and irritated.

''Look, it was right here,'' Kie started explaining. ''This is where that maniac claimed his next victim.''

Shoupe raised an eyebrow, barely concealing his disbelief. ''His next victim?''

''Yeah,'' Kie replied, nodding earnestly.

''And how long ago was this?'' Shoupe asked.

''Forty-five minutes ago, Shoupe,'' JJ replied.

Shoupe gave us all a long, unimpressed look. ''So Ward Cameron just... popped one off and shot him? Execution style? And then cleaned it all up in forty-five minutes?''

''Obviously,'' Pope replied, nodding.

''Not to mention, it's pouring rain, easier to cover up.'' I added.

Kie crossed her arms, frowning at Shoupe. ''We filmed the entire thing.''

''You filmed it?'' Shoupe asked, looking mildly more interested.

''Yes, but we can't show it to you because I stepped on Pope's head, and he dropped the camera, and it broke,'' Kie explained, her words stumbling over each other.

Shoupe rolled his eyes. ''So the dog ate your homework?''

Pope looked desperate, trying to reason with him. ''No, Shoupe, I know it sounds—''

''I don't know what you kids expect me to do with this. You drag me out here in the middle of the night for a whole lot of nothing." Shoupe said annoyed.

"No, it's not nothing!" JJ's fists clenched at his sides, veins popping along his neck as he tried to hold back his frustration.

''Yeah, except for some crazy stories about how Ward Cameron's out on a random killing spree!''

I didn't blame him—this whole situation felt surreal. ''We're not making this up!'' JJ's voice was desperate as he glared at Shoupe, who looked back at us with that same unreadable look he always had.

Pope, usually the calm one, snapped, stepping forward with a fire I rarely saw in him. "Shoupe, listen. Gavin was Ward's pilot! Okay, he was paying him hush money because he was on the tarmac that day.''

Kiara joined in, pointing to Pope. "Gavin was blackmailing Ward because he had the gun that Rafe used to kill Peterkin."

JJ nodded, backing her up. "He called him here and tried to pay him off. But it wasn't enough, so he shot him with the murder weapon.'' He turned to look at me, rain running down his face. His shoulders sagged, like he was already anticipating the letdown.

Shoupe squinted at us, disbelief etched in every line of his face. ''How do you know that?''

Kiara pointed to Pope's pocket, trying to explain. "Pope did this thing with his phone. He, like, put it in his car and—"

Pope cut in, nodding quickly, as if that would help Shoupe believe us. "I heard their whole conversation!"

Shoupe's mouth tightened. ''You wiretapped him?''

Kiara's voice dropped to a quiet murmur, almost sheepish. ''Is that... bad?''

He shook his head, pinching the bridge of his nose. ''Literally everything about this is illegal! Haven't you heard about the right to privacy?'' His tone was exasperated, like he was trying to lecture a bunch of kids who wouldn't get it.

Shoupe rolled his eyes, brushing us off like he was swatting a fly. "I've had enough."

''What?'' JJ's voice rang out as he stepped forward. "Are you just gonna look the other way again?''

Shoupe's patience broke as he rounded on JJ. ''You ever heard about the boy who cried wolf?''

I felt my heart drop, and I watched Shoupe turn on his heel and start walking back to his car. Pope and Kiara both surged forward, shouting after him, but it was like yelling into the storm. I took a breath, the cold rain stinging my face, feeling helpless as he ignored us.

"Can you just do your job for, like, twenty minutes?''

Shoupe just waved us off. ''Hey, I... I know you're upset.'' He paused, glancing at me, a tired sympathy in his eyes. "And I know you think your friend was innocent."

My voice slipped out. ''He is innocent.''

Shoupe shook his head. ''But you weren't there. The only actual witnesses who are above ground say the exact opposite, all right? And both of them have a hell of a lot more credibility than any of you right now.''

He turned to Kiara, who was still glaring at him. ''I saw your little art project on Ward's wall,'' he scolded. ''Do not do that again.''

Kiara's jaw tightened, rolling her eyes. "Oh, come on!"

Shoupe just sighed. "Gonna make things a lot harder for both of us.'' He swung open the door to his cruiser and climbed in, looking at us one last time. ''Go home.''

I stepped forward. "At least... at least look for him! Someone died tonight!"

All we got was a dismissive wave as he pulled away. "Get on home to your parents now.''

We stood there, drenched and defeated, watching as the red taillights disappeared into the misty darkness. I shivered.

JJ scoffed, crossing his arms as he turned to face us. "I told you this would happen,'' he muttered, rolling his eyes as he kicked at a puddle. ''Like, you're the one that had to drop the camera.''

Pope was already walking away, his shoulders hunched, ignoring us as he headed back toward the car.

Kiara spun around, hands on her hips as she glared at JJ, her voice biting. ''It's not like I meant to step on his head, JJ! You think I wanted to mess this up?''

JJ threw his hands up, exasperated. ''Yeah? Well, maybe think before you start screaming 'murderer' like a lunatic, huh? We were supposed to be stealthy!''

I watched them both for a momen before I spoke. ''You did step on Pope's head, Kiara. Stop blaming everyone else and actually look at what you're doing.''

Kiara froze, staring at me, her face tightening with shock, like she hadn't expected me to call her out. Her mouth opened, but she didn't respond. I turned away from her, not wanting to meet her gaze, the sting of disappointment making it too hard.

''Hey!'' Pope's voice rang out and we all turned to look at him. ''We're not out of this yet! You hear me? We can still go get the gun.''

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