"Mon-fucking-tana?" Veronica stormed out of the back of the bus, throwing her hands over her head as she paced the aisle. The dozens of rainbow beaded bracelets around her wrists jingled as she raked her hands through her violet hair. "Reggie! You know I hate Montana!"

"Why Montana?" I asked for the hundredth time. "What's in Montana?"

"There's just a place there that might be able to help us," Liz replied.

I rolled my eyes. She'd been avoiding my questions and giving half answers for the past five minutes, and I was at the end of my rope. What was in Montana that was so important? Why wouldn't anyone give me any more information?

"Stupid Montana," Veronica whined. She glared at Reggie. "You promised we wouldn't have to go back there for another twelve years."

"Babe, I know." Reggie pulled her into a hug and kissed her on the top of her head. "I'm sorry. I promise we won't be there long."

"Better not be," she said. "There's no cell service up there, and no one's fixed the Wi-Fi on the bus! It's been broke for like, a year now!"

"If it really bothers you, you could try to fix it yourself," Liz muttered under her breath.

Veronica rolled her eyes.

Even though Liz said there was a place in Montana that would help me, the fact that no one would give me more details and the sudden change of plans were unsettling. The idea of being trapped on this bus with a pack of werewolves I wasn't sure I could trust and having no way of contacting anyone freaked me out.

I glanced at my phone, hoping we hadn't already dropped off the grid. Three little bars lit up in the top corner of the screen. I breathed a sigh of relief. We still had service.

The notification of two missed calls from Derek and another three and a voicemail from a number I didn't recognize caught my attention. I furrowed my brow. Who could have been calling?

Mindlessly, my fingers unlocked the phone, but instead of dialing back the unknown number or listening to the voicemail, I opened the text messages I'd exchanged with Derek. My heart froze up when I read the most recent ones—mostly him asking me if I was okay. Asking where I was when I missed band practice or didn't respond to messages.

To most of them, I'd replied with the bare minimum: "I'm fine," or, "sorry, reschedule?" And then worse—lies I'd told for no reason: "Just misplaced my phone. Didn't mean to ignore you."

When had I become so cold and distant? Had I always been this way? I scrolled back further. A few weeks ago. A few months.

A smile tugged at my lips when I saw the cute dog pictures Derek had sent when I had the flu. I read through the messages where I'd teased him about some pirate themed board game he'd forced me and Sam to play. I'd never admit I enjoyed it.

Then, I reached the messages from when we'd first been invited on this tour. Derek and I raved to each other about how excited we were and how we were absolutely going to kill it.

My thumb hovered over the call button next to his name. Hearing his voice was all I wanted right now. I knew I'd risk giving away information, but I couldn't help myself.

I glanced around the bus. Jake and Alex were still up in the front, and Reggie and Veronica had gone to the back room together. Liz sat on the bench on the far side of the bus reading a book.

Without giving myself time to second guess, I placed the call. The quiet sound of ringing filled the bus as I put the phone up to my ear.

Immediately, Liz's eyes shot up to meet mine. "What are you doing?"

"Just calling Derek," I said.

"Hang up the phone."

I narrowed my eyes, but before I could do anything, Derek picked up on the other end.

"Allison." He sounded like he was out of breath. "Fuck, what's going on? Why have none of you been answering your phones?"

Liz shook her head, her eyes wide with urgency. "Hang up the phone," she mouthed the words.

"No," I mouthed back before turning to the window. "I just fell asleep, sorry," I said into the receiver. I bit my tongue when I realized how easily the lie slipped out. "What's wrong?"

"We're still in Minneapolis," Derek replied. "The cops suggested we don't leave."

"What?" I gasped. "What are you talking about?"

"You remember how there were those footprints around where they found Blake?" Derek's breathing was heavy in the background.

I nodded, forgetting that he couldn't see me. "Yeah, you mentioned that."

"Well, apparently they think there might be more to what happened. They found more footprints going into the woods from the parking lot. Apparently, some things were suspicious about the injuries, too. They were saying they don't know what kind of animal in this area could've done that."

"Oh wow," I said. "Then what could it have been?"

"I don't know. Sam suggested maybe they think it's some sort of cover up."

"Like someone tried to make it look like an animal did it?" My heart raced.

"I don't know," Derek said. "If anything, it's got to be some crazy fan or something, but they haven't said too much other than they would appreciate our cooperation and that we should stay in the area."

There was a long pause. My pulse raced, blood pounding against my wrists and neck.

"They also said you and Make Them Scream need to come back here to testify."

"Testify?" My legs shook like crazy, and my feet rattled against the floor of the bus.

"They asked us for your phone numbers."

"What?"

"I think they'll be calling soon. Just make sure you answer." Muffled voices crackled on the other end of the line, and Derek's voice cut out.

Sweat prickled the back of my neck when I remembered the three missed calls and voicemail from the unknown number. Had that been the cops? I'd missed the call three times. What must that have looked like? Or, more terrifying, what if I'd answered and had to talk to them? What if I gave something away?

Before my mind could run off on a tangent any further, Derek came back on. "Allison, can you put Jake or Alex on real quick? Trev wants to talk to them."

Suddenly, my phone was snatched away from my face. Liz held out her other hand, blocking me from taking it back as she held it up to her ear.

"Hey!" I snapped.

"Derek, it's Liz," she said into the receiver, ignoring me. "Put Trev on." She put her hand over the phone as she made her way up to the front of the bus. "Stay," she mouthed the word, and then she slammed the door.

I clenched my hands in fists as anger bubbled in my gut. Did she not trust me enough to let me know what was going on? No one even explained to me why we were going to Montana. There was someplace there that could help me. What did that mean? What place? And help me how?

I was completely out of the loop on the entire plan.

Part of me wanted to storm up to the front of the bus and demand answers, but what if Trev overhead something he shouldn't? What if they got a call from the cops, and I interrupted?

Liz and Alex were trying to help me, right? They were my family—my parents. Why was it so hard for me to trust them?

Maybe because you shouldn't trust them. A small voice tickled at the back of my head, itching like an insect crawling through my mind. I tried to shake the thought away, but it latched on like a disease, leaving all of my nerves on high alert.

I needed something to take the edge off—get rid of this horrible, anxious feeling churning in my gut. My gaze wandered to the mini fridge in the corner. Surely they had alcohol on this bus. A drink would help. Just one beer was all I needed.

Before I could stop myself, I went over and swung the fridge door open. I examined the selection as cool air wafted over me—cans of PBR and bottles of Corona. But would one beer really be enough? That wouldn't even get me buzzed.

Instead, I searched the cabinets until I found a half empty bottle of vodka stashed behind a bag of hotdog buns. I snatched it and poured a healthy helping into a red plastic cup. The liquid sloshed in the bottle as I screwed the cap back on. I shook it lightly, watching the surface of the liquid settle. It was still nearly half full. No one would even notice the difference.

What does it matter if they do?

A small grin slid across my face as I poured myself another shot's worth and returned the bottle to its place.

After shutting the cabinet and slouching back down on the bench, I sipped at my drink. The burn of warm alcohol stung my throat, but as the buzz raced up my spine, I shuddered with relief. I could already feel the overwhelming need to control everything slipping away to oblivion.

Was this really who I was now? A girl who got drunk by herself on a tour bus in the middle of the day?

I snorted. What was so wrong with that? I was a rockstar, right? This was the way things went. But, despite my attempt to keep my resolve strong, my thoughts drifted towards Derek—the cold messages we'd exchanged over the past few weeks, and the tense call we'd just had.

What happened to our friendship?

My eyes watered as I took another sip of my drink. The hum of the bus's engine and gentle curves in the road rocked me towards sleep, and my mind slipped to the past—to a memory from years ago—a time when I was younger. Back when everything was simple, and it felt like I had the world at my fingertips.

The speakers we'd dragged up to Carolyn's attic blasted music, making the dust on the floorboards shake. I chugged the last of my beer and raised the bottle to my mouth, holding it upside down like it was a microphone as I sung along to Steppenwolf's "Born to Be Wild."

"Turn it up!" I screamed to Carolyn as I leapt around the room, dancing like a drunk stripper who forgot they were supposed to take off their clothes. "This is my song!"

"They're all your song, Allison!" Carolyn cackled and rolled onto her back, laughing along with me. She did as requested and pumped up the volume another few decibels.

"Sing with me!" I howled when we got to the chorus. I pulled her up to her feet, and we danced as she shouted the lyrics back. She whipped her short brown hair around as we spun in circles.

When we reached the end of the song, I threw my fist into the air. "Thank you all! Goodnight!" I bowed and blew a kiss to our audience, comprised of my boyfriend, Carter, Carter's friend, Jay, and Carolyn's friend, Derek.

Derek smiled at me coyly, spinning his nearly empty bottle of beer between his fingers. Carter took a sip of his drink and winked at me. I winked back.

"Anyone need another drink?" Carolyn asked as the lead in to the next track came on, a Guns 'N Roses song. She twirled as she skipped over to the cooler of beer and liquor we'd lugged up to the attic.

We were all only seventeen, but Carolyn's friend Derek was nineteen, and he had a fake I.D. I was pretty sure that was the only reason she'd invited him. He was quiet, and he seemed like he probably spent most of his time playing Dungeons and Dragons with his friends in a basement or something.

"We should do another round of shots!" I exclaimed. "Pass me the rum, Care Bear!" I held out my hand, beckoning for it.

"On it, Ally Cat!"

I only let Carolyn call me that name. I hated cats. Carolyn had started using it as a joke right around the time I'd started calling her Care Bear. We were nine, and the nicknames stuck.

Carolyn picked up the two-thirds full handle of Kraken. She took a swig, the dark liquid sloshing around in the sea monster bottle as she drank. She hissed when she pulled it away from her mouth. "Fuck, that burns." After sticking her tongue out, she passed the bottle to me.

I quickly took a drink myself, enjoying the way the alcohol stung my throat and made me feel like I was on fire and numb, all at the same time. I felt invincible.

"Pass it over here, baby doll," Carter told me, holding out his hand to me.

After passing the bottle to him, I wiped the liquor from my lips with the back of my hand and headed over to the cooler to grab a beer. While I popped the top off with the bottle opener, I examined the shelf full of old books and games from when we were kids.

"Wait, Carolyn, you still have this?" I gasped, pulling the worn cardboard Ouija board box off the shelf. I blew a plume of light brown sawdust from the top.

"Oh my God!" Carolyn bounded over towards me. "I forgot I had that!"

"We have to play it!" I exclaimed. "Turn off the music, boyfriend!" I waved my hand at Carter as I rushed to the center of the room with the box.

"Are you serious, Allison?" Carter asked. He flipped the music off, and it cut out suddenly and harshly.

"We always used to play this when we were kids," Carolyn said. "It's our tradition!"

Carter rolled his eyes as I unpacked the box. I lay the board on the floor in front of the guys, placing the planchette at its center.

I flipped my iron-straight blonde hair behind my shoulders as I sat down cross-legged next to Carter, leaning up against him.

Jay laughed, taking a long drink of the rum before passing it to Derek. "Here man," he said, then he looked at me. "Maybe we should try contacting your dead parents, Allison."

My back stiffened, and I shot up where I was sitting. A sudden chill rushed through the entire room like someone had opened the window.

Everyone else sat frozen, like they'd seen a ghost.

"Jay! What the fuck is wrong with you?" Carolyn finally hissed at him. She leaned over and smacked the side of his arm. "That's a really mean thing to say! Don't joke about shit like that!"

I ground my teeth together, my hands clenching into fists as the alcohol swam through my mind, making me dizzy. I held back the tears burning behind my eyes. I was not going to look like some stupid, pathetic girl still crying over her parents dying when she was a kid, and I'd be damned if I let my eyeliner run!

"Maybe we should do something else," Derek suggested.

"No." I stopped him as he began to pick up the planchette and the board to put the game away. "I want to play it. I want to try to talk to them."

"Okay," Carolyn said hesitantly, nodding to Derek to put the board back onto the floor.

Once he had replaced the planchette at the center, we all rested our fingers on the smooth plastic oracle.

"Are there any spirits present tonight?" Carolyn asked the board in a hushed whisper. This was always the line we said when we started it. It was our tradition.

"Just rum, vodka, tequila—"

Jay shut up when Carolyn elbowed him in the side.

"Ow," he said.

"Idiot," she mumbled to herself.

"If the spirits of Allison's parents are present, make yourselves known," Carter cut in. "What messages do you have for your daughter from beyond the grave?" He made a stupid ghostly noise with his voice on the words "grave," like he was mocking us.

I tried to ignore him, focusing instead on the Ouija board. Beneath my fingertips, I felt the gentle movement of the planchette as it inched across the board.

"S," Carolyn whispered as it paused over the letter.

It continued traveling over the board, pausing again over the letter "I" and then finally resting when it reached the letter "N."

"Sin." Carter chuckled. "Charming. Guess your parents want you to have fun, Allison."

Jay laughed. "Or maybe it's just referring to what they did when they were alive. Weren't your parents never married? So they were just living in sin the whole time you were a kid."

"That's so fucking dated, Jay," Carolyn shot back at him. "Plenty of people don't get married these days, moron."

"I'm just saying." Jay shrugged as he pushed himself to his feet. "This is stupid anyway. Let's do something else." He went over to the cooler and opened it, retrieving another beer.

"We should play a drinking game," Carter suggested as he joined his friend. "Can we set up the beer pong table, Carolyn?"

"Jerks," Carolyn muttered under her breath as she pushed herself to her feet, heading over to help Carter and Jay get the folding table out from behind some old boxes.

Out of the corner of my eye, I watched as Derek moved the planchette across the board by himself. He shifted it from the letter "N" to the letter "G." Then, he stood and held out his hand to me.

I took it, and he pulled me to my feet.

"Why'd you move it?" I asked, looking back to the Ouija board.

He shrugged. "I like that answer better."

I smiled at him. "I like it, too."

"You're a great singer, by the way," he said.

"Thank you." I felt myself blushing just a little.

"You want to be my partner for beer pong?" he asked.

"I'd like that," I said.

A week later, Derek called me. Called, not texted. He must have gotten my phone number from Carolyn.

He said he and his friend Sam were starting a band, and that they needed someone to do vocals.

I asked him what kind of music they were planning on playing.

He said metal.

I said I was fucking down.