John Doe by Tess Gerritsen Read Free Book Online Page B

took a breath and sprang. Felt the night air whoosh in her long hair as she soared through the darkness. She landed, graceful as a cat, and the branch shuddered under her weight. Piece of cake. She scrambled down to a lower branch, and was about to jump off when that black SUV returned. Again it glided past, engine purring. She watched it until it vanished around the corner, then she dropped down onto the wet grass.
    Glancing back at the house, she expected Bob to come storming out the front door, yelling at her: Get back inside now, young lady! But the porch light remained dark.
    Now the night could begin.
    She zipped up her hoodie and headed toward the Town Common, where the action was – if you could call it that. At this late hour, the street was quiet, most of the windows dark. It was a neighborhood of picture-perfect houses with gingerbread trim, a street populated by college professors and gluten-free vegan moms who all belonged to book groups. Ten square miles surrounded by reality was how Bob affectionately described the town, but he and Barbara belonged here.
    Claire did not know where she belonged.
    She strode across the street, scattering dead leaves with her scuffed boots. A block ahead, a trio of teens, two boys and a girl, stood smoking cigarettes beneath the pool of light cast by a street lamp.
    “Hey,” she called out to them.
    The taller boy waved. “Hey, Claire Bear. I heard you were grounded again.”
    “For about thirty seconds.” She took the lit cigarette he offered her, drew in a lung full of smoke, and exhaled with a happy sigh. “So what’s our plan tonight? What’re we doing?”
    “I hear there’s a party over at the falls. But we need to find a ride.”
    “What about your sister? She could take us.”
    “Naw, Dad took her car keys. Let’s just hang around here and see who else shows up.” The boy paused, frowning past Claire’s shoulder. “Uh oh. Look who just did.”
    She turned and groaned as a dark blue Saab pulled up at the curb beside her. The passenger window rolled down and Barbara Buckley said, “Claire, get in the car.”
    “I’m just hanging out with my friends.”
    “It’s nearly midnight and tomorrow’s a school day.”
    “It’s not like I’m doing anything illegal.”
    From the driver’s seat, Bob Buckley ordered, “Get in the car now, young lady!”
    “You’re not my parents!”
    “But we are responsible for you. It’s our job to raise you right, and that’s what we’re trying to do. If you don’t come home with us now, there’ll be – there’ll be, well, consequences!”
    Yeah, I’m so scared I’m shaking in my boots . She started to laugh, but suddenly noticed that Barbara was wearing a bathrobe and Bob’s hair was standing up on one side of his head. They’d been in such a hurry to chase after her that they hadn’t even gotten getdressed. They both looked older and wearier, a rumpled, middle-aged couple who’d been roused from bed and, because of her, would wake up exhausted tomorrow.
    Barbara gave a tired sigh. “I know we’re not your parents, Claire. I know you hate living with us, but we’re trying to do our best. So please, get in the car. It’s not safe for you out here.”
    Claire shot an exasperated glance at her friends, then climbed into the Saab’s back seat and swung the door shut. “Okay?” she said. “Satisfied?”
    Bob turned to look at her. “This isn’t about us. It’s about you. We swore to your parents that you’d always be looked after. If Isabel were alive, it would break her heart to see you now. Out of control, angry all the time. Claire, you were given a second chance, and that’s a gift. Please, don’t throw it away.” He sighed. “Now buckle up, okay?”
    If he’d been angry, if he’d yelled at her, she could have dealt with it. But the look he gave her was so mournful that she felt guilty. Guilty for being a jerk, for repaying their kindness with rebellion. It was not the Buckleys’ fault that