She and the other girls jogged up the marble steps as Josh and I kissed hello. He opened his coat and wrapped it around me along with his arms, nestling us together in a warm Josh and Reed cocoon. As I cuddled against him and deepened the kiss, I wondered how I ever could have imagined leaving here—leaving him. Next year, Josh would be off to college and we’d hardly ever see each other.
“We need to do something. Go somewhere,” Josh said quietly, pulling back. He lifted one hand and gently brushed his fingertips across my cheek. “How long has it been since we’ve gone on a date?”
I narrowed my eyes, pretending to think. “Since forever?”
“All right, then. With your permission, I’ll make a plan,” he said, touching his forehead to mine. “ASAP.”
“ASAP sounds good,” I replied.
“What the hell is she doing here?” Josh said suddenly.
My eyes popped open and I turned around. Headmaster Hathaway strode toward us from the direction of Hull Hall with Demetria Rosewell in tow. My first thought was, Double H is going to miss morning services. But I realized in the next second that this was not the pertinent fact here. Nor was Demetria the “she” to whom Josh had referred. Striding along behind them was Paige Ryan—the daughter of the person who had recently tried to murder me multiple times in St. Barths. Josh shot her a scowl as she walked by, but all she did was grin. A few steps past the chapel, she paused and looked behind her.
“Missy! Are you coming or not?” she asked.
Missy Thurber, my worst nemesis at Easton, jumped away from Constance Talbot and London Simmons and scurried after her cousin Paige. She also gave me a grin as she hurried by, but hers held a lot more meaning. It said, I know something you don’t know.
My heart sank inside my chest, and I looked back at Constance and London. The two of them turned and hustled inside, avoiding my eyes.
“What was that all about?” Josh asked, entwining his fingers with mine.
“I don’t know,” I replied. “And I don’t think I want to know.”
“I love the idea of a party to honor the seniors,” I told Amberly that night as we kicked back on the floor of the Billings Chapel. “Do you want to put a committee together?”
“Yes! I’d love a committee!” Amberly said, clapping her hands.
I could see a few of the girls wince at the idea of being roped in by Amberly and toiling under her direction, but it was her idea, so they’d just have to deal. We’d just been finishing up our meeting when Amberly had very formally presented a “piece of new business” as if we were at a board meeting, rather than sprawled out on silk pillows, chenille blankets, and fur throws in a deserted chapel. Rose had provided the refreshments tonight—gourmet cupcakes shipped in from New York City—and there were crumbs, sprinkles, and coconut shreds everywhere. Vienna Clark groaned, her hand across her flat stomach, a bit of chocolate stuck to the corner of her mouth.
“Okay, if there are no other new points of business,” I said, “then I’d say we’re adjourned!”
The convivial chatter started up as soon as the words were out of my mouth, and my friends began to gather up their things. Noelle clasped Vienna’s hands and hoisted her off the floor, while Amberly practically jumped Lorna Gross and Astrid, asking them to join her committee.
“You ready?” Ivy asked, lifting her long black hair out of her red coat and letting it fall down her back.
“Actually, I think I’m going to hang back for a little while,” I said, gesturing over my shoulder in what I hoped was a casual way. I had a plan for the evening, and it did not involve going back to campus.
Noelle paused near the door and cocked an eyebrow. I glanced away nervously. Maybe my gesture hadn’t hit the mark. “I don’t want to leave all these crumbs. We could attract mice.”
“Oh. Then I’ll help,” Ivy said.
She started to put her bag down again and I panicked. “No!” I blurted.
Both Ivy and Noelle were staring at me now with matching expressions of concern and confusion. Which was interesting, considering how much they hated each other. Noelle crossed her arms over her chest.
“It’s just … I kind of want to be alone,” I said. “I’ve got a lot to think about and I … I guess I’ve never told you guys this, but I like to clean while I think. It helps me relax.”
Ivy’s brow crease deepened, and for a moment I thought she would put up a fight, but then Noelle turned, gently knocking Ivy with her shoulder. “Come on. Let’s leave the freak to her cleaning therapy.”
If anyone knew I really did have a lot to think about, it was Noelle. Apparently she was taking pity on me. Which kind of made me feel guilty about all the lying. Bad Reed.
“Okay,” Ivy said slowly. “But I don’t love the idea of you being out here alone.”
“I’ll be fine,” I promised her. “I’ve got my phone if I need anything.”
The two of them finally capitulated and followed after the others outside, everyone waving and shouting their good-byes as they slipped out into the night. When their voices had finally died away on the wind, I took a deep breath and looked around. Except for the few flickering candles, the chapel was dark. Some of the stained glass windows had been broken long ago, leaving behind jagged, incomplete mosaics, the stars winking outside their busted panes. The pews were polished and buffed—thanks to the members of my secret society—and the wood floors were swept clean, but high in the rafters there were still some heavy cobwebs and a stray bird’s nest.
Quickly blowing out all but one candle, I slipped my arms into Noelle’s white coat to guard against the chill of the basement, grabbed my messenger bag and the last candle, and walked to the office at the back of the building.