Wild Girl (Slateview High 2)

“Of course not. But we have business, and the little lady will have to wait out here.” He gave me a nod, then gestured behind me. In the area just outside the room, there was a small sitting area. “You can make yourself comfortable.”

He shifted his focus to the boys again and gave a slight jerk of his head, summoning them into the large room behind him. Before they followed, Kace squeezed my hand, his fingers rough and calloused against mine.

“Be good, Princess. Yeah?”

I nodded, and Misael and Bish both gave me lingering looks before the three of them disappeared into the room. I bit my lip as I watched them go, and the moment they were inside, the door snapped closed behind them.

When I turned around, the man who’d led us upstairs gestured to the small sitting area. “Miss.”

It was part invitation and part command, and I didn’t waste a second in complying. I sat down on a small ottoman, legs crossed at the ankles. He regarded me for a second, as if trying to ascertain whether I’d stay put, then he nodded politely and turned to disappear down the hallway we’d come from.

Silence fell around me. I could hear voices from the other side of the door, but not exactly what they were saying.

Nerves rolled through me, making it hard to stay still. I had at least seen Nathaniel’s face, but it hadn’t given me quite the reassurance I had hoped for. I wanted to know more, to understand what the Lost Boys were doing for him, I knew that trying to discretely listen at the door would end up getting me into more trouble than I could afford.

But I couldn’t stay still.

After several long minutes, I rose to my feet and began to pace restlessly. I peered down the corridor we’d entered from and saw a large arched doorway leading to another room—I had thought it looked like a library when we’d passed by earlier. Shooting one last glance at Nathaniel’s office door, I crept down the hallway and into the library. It was large and bright, with shelves lining the walls, filled with leather-bound books. One wall was taken up by an enormous bay window.

“Oh, wow…”

I walked in, glancing around. There had been a more lavish library room in my family’s mansion, but I still found myself stunned by what I was seeing. It was just so different from my expectations. Where were the shady hideaways? The men walking around with weapons drawn, smoking cigarettes and cursing? Every preconception I’d had about Nathaniel was whisked away as I browsed the shelves and eyed some titles that I had read before.

Just as I reached out to brush my fingers over the spines of the books, a soft, feminine voice spoke behind me.

“Enjoying yourself?”

Ten

I jumped at the sudden voice, whirling on my heel as my hand flew to my chest.

At the door stood a woman, tall and elegant in the way she carried herself. Her thick, dark hair was French-braided back, the length of the braid falling over trim shoulders. The plum-colored dress she wore fit the curves of her body perfectly. She had a regal bearing and was probably close to my mother’s age, but I wouldn’t have guessed that at first glance. I could see the age in her eyes but not anywhere else.

She walked in, stepping smoothly. She moved like a cat, with all the grace of a predator, and yet for some reason, I didn’t feel scared of her. Something about her was captivating.

She stopped in front of me and smiled, tilting her head to one side. “I hope I didn’t scare you?”

I cleared my throat, shaking my head.

“Sorry. Um. No. I was just… looking around.”

I didn’t know who this woman was, but my instincts told me she was important. The only people I had seen walking around were men who very clearly didn’t live here. She looked like she fit into this place like a well-made glove fit to a hand.

Immediately, my curious poking around felt like an intrusion. She clearly felt comfortable here. Her presence filled the room entirely.

Still, she smiled, her head cocked to the side as though she were amused.

“You don’t have to be frightened. I saw you come in with the boys. You’re a friend of theirs?”

I flushed. “Yes. We’re all… friends. I go to school with them. We were all out together when they got called in.”

“And they brought you with them?” Her eyebrows rose slightly, and her gaze became a bit more assessing. “You must be someone special.”

“Oh, not really.”

The woman chuckled and walked past me, sitting down on the plush window seat in the bay window. She patted the space beside her, and I followed, only hesitating for a moment before taking a seat next to her.

“I’ve known those boys for a few years now,” she said, a note of affection in her voice. “They never bring girls around here. I’m Josephine, by the way. Nathaniel’s wife.”