“Yeah, and I’ve seen that look before—the dreamy dream girl look—on Tripp.” I sigh. “But this is all assuming the hit-and-run was premeditated. First the person would have to steal Jay’s car—which I suppose Cade could do pretty easily since they were roommates. He would just have to swipe his keys. But if that’s the case, so could most of the brothers. But still—they’d have to know Jay would be by the student learning center around ten A.M., that he would step out into the intersection at just that moment. If anything—if it was intentional—it was a crime of passion. The guy wasn’t planning it, but saw Jay, and then, bam—thought, Here’s an opportunity. So maybe Samantha planted the seed, and Cade saw him, and remembered Jay and the whole thing with Sam and Katie Coleman, but, yeah,” I shift in my seat, “I’m not convinced.”

Every year, there are around two thousand hit-and-run fatalities in the US, and most perpetrators—if they’re caught—get soft sentences or plea bargains. It wasn’t my fault. I didn’t mean to. I wasn’t paying attention—never mind that there’s a dad lying dead in the street who’ll never see his kids again. A girl who’ll never hug her parents. But if we can prove intent? Then maybe, just maybe, there’ll be justice.

I chew on my fingernail, thinking of Samantha and Cade, Jay and Katie. “What do you think of all this secret girlfriend business? I mean fall semester started, when? Two months ago?”

“Two and a half.”

“Right, so Jay meets Katie and what? He’s in love? Suddenly talking about changing his own rules, and then willing to betray the brotherhood, if he buys into his own nonsense.”

Teddy rubs his face. “I don’t know. When you’re that age—two months can seem like a lifetime.”

“They’re in college,” I say, “not middle school.”

He frowns. “Remember when Josie was dating that idiot skateboarder? What was the kid’s name? Chad or Chaz, something only a half-baked moron would call himself.”

I roll my eyes at my reflection in the car window. His name was Charlie, but Teddy always insisted on getting it wrong. Behind the glare, a handful of students wait at the bus stop, earbuds in, staring at their phones. Teddy’s overprotectiveness of his sisters is mostly endearing but occasionally insufferable. I hear Josie’s voice: I can take care of myself, thank you.

“I remember.” We caught them making out behind his mother’s back porch once.