Darkest Dawn by Katlyn Duncan Read Free Book Online

assured me that my dad hadn’t called her house yet.
    My shoulders slumped. Dad knew I wasn’t supposed to be on my phone during school hours. That didn’t mean I wouldn’t hear from him later. I’d have to connect with Amber and coordinate our stories.
    I carefully took the letter from my pocket and reread it, trying to figure out if or where I’d gone wrong. My mind wandered to the other two confrontations I’d had since I arrived. They weren’t from the mysterious letter writer but they had something equally strange in common. How had they mistaken me for someone else? And if Jake liked this “Bri” girl so much, why would he think I was her? Unless we looked alike?
    My hands froze around the phone. A silly idea popped in my head and before I could dismiss it, my fingers were already moving across the screen. I opened the browser on my phone and went to Google, typing in a few search items. “Bri” and “Willows Lake”. I knew it was a long shot, and after reading the first few pages of results I knew I had been correct. I contemplated other search terms when I found an article from the previous year. The blurb highlighted a girl named Brianna Taylor from Willows Lake taking first place in a swim meet. The girl in the bathroom mentioned something about swim practice. I clicked on the article.
    I didn’t know what to expect. Maybe a picture of Bri or some clue why two people thought I was her. Instead there was only an image of a swimming pool. I scrolled through the article. No photo. At least I had a full name. I went back and typed the keywords “Brianna Taylor” and “Willows Lake”. Articles from the town’s small press came up about Brianna. With each one I held my breath, expecting to see a picture. It only took a few articles to find one.
    My breath caught in my throat as I zoomed in on the photo. It was grainy but unmistakable.
    “No frickin’ way.” I didn’t care if anyone heard me. I could always pretend to be the girl who others had mistaken me for.
    It would be easy.
    She looked
exactly
like me. From my slightly long nose ending at a point to my oval-shaped face. I couldn’t tell the most unique factor from the picture. If she had two different-colored eyes, it would seal the deal. I brought the screen closer to my face, bringing the impossible to light.
    A loud voice boomed across the room and I gasped, dropping my phone on the table. The voice on the intercom made announcements about an upcoming school dance, and a delayed meeting time for the chess club. My blood ran cold as the man read off stats from the most recent swimming meet, giving me the second craziest idea since I’d made the decision to come to Willows Lake.
    I’d never believed in fate, especially after the accident, but I couldn’t think of another word for it. Had the person who summoned me to Willows Lake known about Bri? Had she been the one to find out more answers about the accident? If there was a scandal, she would probably try to keep her identity from me. I knew I wouldn’t have believed it if I hadn’t seen her face for myself.
    At the front of library, the kids were shuffling around. I hesitated, going back and forth on my decision. I could go back to the motel and hope that someone would make contact. Or I could take initiative. What harm could a detour do? If it wasn’t her then the person could wait a little while, since he or she had sent me on a wild chase. Maybe Bri would have some answers. It seemed to be the best option at the moment.
    When I reached the hallway, I lifted the hood of my sweatshirt over my head to keep my identity hidden. I didn’t need another one of Bri’s friends to mistake me for her. Or for that other guy to find me. I was on a new mission now and like hell would anyone stop me. I asked a younger student waiting outside a classroom where the pool was. He was a little too eager to reply. I assumed he didn’t have much contact with girls. I followed his instructions,