by Ruby Vincent
She put out her hands. “Okay, Aiden had him kidnapped. Why?”
“I don’t know.”
“How did he fool the police with a call from his parents and Sawyer himself?”
A growl ripped from my throat. “I don’t know. Obviously, he’s working with someone. They took him and they faked out the cops.”
“Again, I must ask why.” She stood and faced me down. “If you do not have a why, you do not have a story.”
“I’m trying to get a why but Mike freaked on me and— Hold up.” I walked away. “Why did Mike lose his shit? He called me up going on about what I got him into, then he brought up my age and experience when that never mattered to him before.”
My eyes narrowed. “He found something, didn’t he? Something he or you are trying to protect me from.” An awful thought flashed through my mind. “Or maybe they got to him too.”
She threw up her hands. “Ezra, listen to yourself! I will not fit you with a tinfoil hat, sweetie. It would clash horribly with your eyes.”
Heat flooded my cheeks. “I’m not a conspiracy theorist.”
“They got to him too?” she repeated. “That sounds remarkably like what a conspiracy theorist would rant.”
“Aiden is behind this. I won’t stop until I prove it.”
Mom bore down on me. “I’m telling you to stop.”
“No.”
“For fu— Ezra, I am your mother. You will do as I say.”
I held her glittering, angry gaze unflinchingly. “I said no.”
Holding my stance, I braced myself for a fight.
Mother straightened to her full height, turned her back on me, and walked out.
A silence so heavy it crushed me, filled the room.
“Well.”
I jumped.
“That could have gone better.”
“Don’t start, Brian,” I growled. “I’m not in the mood.”
“You would be if you let this go. You don’t have any proof.”
“I have what I saw and heard.”
“And the police have a statement from the guy you’re trying so hard to rescue. Mom is right. You’re twisting everything to fit what you saw and heard because you don’t want to accept you have it wrong.”
His words were a cheese grater on my nerves. “Why are you even here?” I snapped. “Don’t you have a wife and kids somewhere? It’s been over a month. Go. Home.”
“Don’t be like that,” Brian said, softening his tone. “You’re my little brother. I’m trying to look out for you.”
“You’re about nineteen years too late.”
He flinched. “Okay. Fair enough. But if you don’t hear anything else we say, hear this: If Aiden Connelly is what you think he is, he’s very dangerous. The way you’re coming at him—painting yourself as the obsessed nutcase and him as the innocent being harassed—is not smart.”
“I—”
“—speak to him. Maybe he’ll listen to you.” Mom stormed into the living room and shoved her phone at me. “It’s your father.”
“Ezra? Hello, Ezra?” My father’s heavily accented voice poured from the speaker. “Are you there?”
I put the phone to my ear. “I’m here.”
“What is all of this fuss?” Hakim was groggy like he’d just woken up. He most likely did. It was four a.m. in his part of the world. “Why aren’t you listening to your mother?”
“You don’t understand, Dad. I’m pledging this fraternity and...” I filled him in on the whole story, beginning with the conversation in the basement and ending by replaying Aiden’s and my chat over the cooler.
“Why would his parents say he was fine if it was not true?”
“I don’t know,” I burst out. “People keep asking me the questions like I’m the one who kidnapped him.”
“From what I am hearing, there is no proof of kidnapping.”
“I was there. I saw them take him.”
“You can’t be certain of what you saw,” he argued. “Did he scream, call for help, or try to run away?”
“He— I— No, but the street was so loud. I couldn’t hear him call for help.”
“If he did.”
“He did. He must have. Something happened to him that night and I’m going to prove it.”
“Nothing happened, Ezra.”
My already frayed nerves unraveled. “What would you know, Hakim? You’re seven thousand miles away.”
“Do not call me Hakim. I am your father.”
“You’re not my father. You’re a stranger on the other side of the phone who is calling me a liar.”
“Ezra!” Mom cried.
I flung the phone away. Rage licked at my heels and spurred me out of the room, the house, and off the property.
My phone went off. I took it out, dropped it on the street, and didn’t look back.
VALENTINA
“You’re going to have to talk to them at some point,” I said softly.
“At some point, but not today.”
Ezra lifted me and placed me on the bed. I let him rest his head on my lap.
Anger radiated off of him that his two-mile walk hadn’t cooled. He came back and roused me out of bed with Adam.
“I’m sorry your family ganged up on you.” I gently massaged his temples, willing his muscles to relax.
“You believe me, don’t you?”
“You know I do.”
He caught my hand and pressed a kiss to my palm. “Brian was right about one thing,” he whispered. “I have to play this smart. That chief of police tipping off Aiden was a setback. He won’t let his guard down around me knowing I still suspect him.”
“What do we do now?”
“I... don’t know. Mike won’t help me. Mom won’t help me. And I have no clue where to start?”
My mind cast about for an idea. “Michelangelo. What was he doing that we can’t do ourselves? Maverick is a hacker. We can track down his...”
I trailed off as he shook his head.
“I went to Michelangelo because I didn’t think I was at the point I needed a hacker. I know all the players. I just wanted Mike to track down Sawyer’s parents, Aiden’s family, and Teagan to talk to them. Human interaction like reporters do. Instead, Mike’s acting strange and he ratted me out to Mom. I think he found something and it scared him. I don’t want Maverick to find the same thing.”
I dropped a kiss on his temple. “Maverick is smart, my love, and that’s what you said we need to be. If there’s something to find, he’ll find it without attracting attention or turning on you. That’s what we need.”
“You’re right, but—”
“No buts. Just relax, cool off, and then we’ll talk to Maverick.”
“Okay.” At last, he let go. “That’s what we’ll do.”
CONVINCING EZRA TO sit back and wait for Maverick to find something turned out to be the easy part. The hard part fell on Maverick. The weeks marched toward finals and every day Maverick had to tell us he found nothing.
“Nothing?” Sofia said. “How can there be nothing?”
Our textbooks sat abandoned on her coffee table in favor of steaming tea mugs and fancy cookies she pilfered from her parents’ house.
“Maverick found a number and address for Sawyer’s parents,” I said. “We called the number and it rang... and rang... and rang. The number is old and so is the address.”
“And Aiden?”
“Oh, him. We found plenty on Aiden Connelly,” I said with a trace of bitterness. “He’s the football star, high school valedictorian, and the best guy you could ever meet. At least that’s what is kicking around social media and in his old school records. We were hoping for a buried high school therapist report on Aiden being a latent sociopath, but no such luck.”
“Are you serious?”
“Yep. He doesn’t have a record. He grew up in the nice part of town, and in high school he only got detention once for being tardy. He’s clean.”
Sofia poked me with her pin
k toes. “Except, he’s not.”
“Except that.”
“What about Teagan? Your text said Maverick found something on her.”
“Teagan is where it gets interesting.” I lowered my voice even though we were alone in the room. “The official story is that she dropped out to be with her mom, right?”
“Yes,” she said slowly.
I shook my head. “The mother of Elizabeth Teagan Kainer passed away over a year ago. Maverick found her obituary.”
“What?” she hissed. She hurriedly put her tea on the table. “Is he sure?”
“They ran the news in the town’s paper. It’s legit. On top of that, Teagan did not have any other family. We don’t know who to ask about where she is.”
“Her mom is gone,” she said again. I wasn’t sure if she heard the rest. “But the Sallys told us...”
I looked away. “I know. Either Teagan lied to them or they lied to us. We have no way of knowing which.”
“Pledging is almost over, Val. They’re going to choose the six girls to become sisters this week. If they pick us, what do we do? All of this stuff is freaking me out and I wanted normal.”
“You want to be a sister, Sof. I admit it, I do too. You asked me to wait for proof and I still don’t have it. If they don’t pick us, it won’t matter.” I put my hand over hers. “If they do, we’ll go with our gut.”
She flopped on the couch like a puppet whose strings were cut. “I hate this. I want that on record.”
“It’s on there.”
“Good. Pass me my tea, please.”
I handed her the mug. “I love that we’re munching on tea and cookies when we’re about to meet Blair and the girls for brunch.”
She laughed. It was a welcome sound. “We had to get rid of the evidence quickly. Mom can sniff out when I steal her cookies.”
We finished eating our contraband and headed out. Our brunch place was close to campus. Blair picked it out and we had to give her points for the cute, old-timey teahouse theme and delicious food. I showed up every week just for their muffins.
“Hello, girls.” Yvette scurried out from behind the register. “Your table is all set up. I’ve got your muffins under the warmer, Val, and a pot of oolong tea brewing for you, Sofia.”
Yvette was a short, round woman who gave the best hugs and wore a different colored wig every week. We quickly became her favorite regulars. Twelve girls eating almost everything on the menu and tipping heavily. Her face lit up whenever we came through the door.
Blair, Mai, Keily, and Palmer were seated and nibbling on their rolls.
“The other girls are running late,” said Mai. “They got held up at the stand.”
“The stand,” Sofia said. “I’m still bitter about us losing the obstacle course race. We were so close.”
“Lost by three points,” I said. “One thing’s for sure, we can hold our own with the Sams.”
“But now we have to stand outside in the middle of November selling hot cocoa and brownies,” Blair added. “I can’t wait until pledging is over. It’s not fair we have to do all the grunt shifts.”
“Speaking of which, Patricia has me down for eight to ten tonight,” said Sofia. “Want to keep me company, Val?”
“I’ll come after I put Adam to bed.”
“How bad is it working at night?” Keily asked. “You must be freezing.”
“It’s not so bad,” Sofia replied. “I bundle up nice and tight. Plus, at that time I get a lot of couples. They’re sweet strolling around arm in arm and snuggling up in the cold. I make a decent amount from them.”
“We’ve raised almost nine hundred dollars so far,” Mai threw in. “At this rate, we’ll hit our goal by the end of January.”
My phone chimed. I dug it out of my purse.
Reagan: You forgot your English notebook at the house.
Me: I’ve been looking all over for that! And in a house like mine it takes days.
Reagan: LOL. It’s safe and sound. Pick it up tonight.
Me: Thanks.
“Does the couple-ogling mean you’re ready to date?” Keily waggled her eyebrows at Sofia. “Or at least take a few guys out for a ride.”
Sofia hid her smile behind her napkin. “Okay, so... there may be a guy.”
I bolted upright. “What? Who? What guy? Where?”
She leveled me a pointed look. “This is why I didn’t tell you. He’s just this guy that I’ve seen around. We’ve talked like three times and I don’t even have his number. It’s nothing to get excited about,” she added quickly, seeing the beaming smile stretch across my face.
“What’s his name?”
“Hudson.”
“Where did you meet him?”
Bright spots of pink colored her cheeks. “At the stand. He’s come by for hot cocoa a few times and we got to talking.”
“A hookup or boyfriend material?” Keily asked.
Sofia’s blush deepened. “Definitely boyfriend material.”
“I have to meet him,” I announced.
“You know you will. By introduction or stalking.”
She knows me well.
“Does this mean Logan is officially in the friend zone?” asked Palmer.
She lost her smile. “He kind of always was. He’s dropped hints a few times about taking me out to dinner or watching a movie in his room just the two of us, but I’ve said no. I’m sure he’s not expecting anything.”
I squeezed her hand under the table. “Don’t worry about him. Logan can date anyone he wants, but he can’t find a friend like Sofia Richards anywhere else. He should consider himself lucky.”
Sofia leaned on my shoulder, silently passing on her thoughts in our own language.
“More about Hudson,” Keily said. “What’s he look like?”
“Tall, but not too tall. I hate straining my neck to kiss a guy.” Sofia’s eyes glazed over. “He fills out a shirt, but he’s not too beefy and I swear his eyes sparkle when he grins.
“He’s also got arrogance dripping from his pores. We got into a whole argument about the upper class hoarding resources and forming monuments to excess like the town of Evergreen.”
“Did you tell him you were from Evergreen?”
“Yep, and he said that was obvious. It was written on my Prada sneakers and did I really think six-hundred-dollar trainers counted as dressing down? Oh and he’s British,” she cried. “So, he’s extra cocky with that stupid accent.”
Mai and Keily shared a look.
“Are you sure you like this guy?” Mai asked.
“Handcuffs and chivalry,” I said under my breath.
Sofia whacked me under the table.
Brunch continued in the same vein. We talked relationships, school, classes, and the one thing that brought us all together, the Sallys. Soon, the other six girls arrived and joined in. Color me less than impressed when Blair proposed these meetups for her own gain, but weeks back, my attitude changed. Dare I say it, I considered them my friends—Blair too.
And I want them to be my sisters. I don’t know what happened to Teagan or Sawyer and I desperately hope the Sallys don’t either.
EZRA
“Dude, you haven’t seen your mom yet, have you?”
Adam and I looked up from our work.
Adam’s homework was to match up the number of stars to the right digit. Mine was a ten-page essay on ethics in journalism.
Ryder came into the kitchen and pulled out a seat. “She’s calling me now. She wants to know how you’re doing and if you’re eating enough.”
“No,” I said. “I haven’t called her.”
“Have you talked to your dad?”
“Nope.”
I had a new phone and a new number. My mom got her hands on it within a week. It didn’t stop me from hitting ignore.
He shook his phone at me. “He’s also calling me. Nice guy. We had a chat about his trip to Greece.”
“Great. Is that all?”
Amusement colored hi
s features. “Are you going to be mad forever?”
“Not forever,” I said lightly. “Just until they admit they were wrong.”
“Parents don’t do that.”
“Then I’ll be mad forever.”
He snorted a laugh. “How about until tonight? Your mom wants you to come over. She’s having Cora make your favorite.”
“Can’t.”
“Because?”
“I’m going to the Sam house tonight. Aiden’s giving us a pop quiz to see if we’ve got that charter memorized.”
“That should take an hour. Maybe two.” Ryder stood and collected Adam. The little boy settled in his arms easily. “Deal with it, Ezra. Your mom cares about the truth more than anything. Make her see it.”
I jerked a chin at Adam. “You don’t have to take the kid. We were hanging out.”
“Mom requests his presence.” Ryder backed toward the door. “Think about what I said, man.”
I sat unmoving for a long time, staring at the chair he vacated.
My favorite song by Cosplay Meltdown pierced the silence. I knew before I looked that it was Hakim.
I turned off the ringer and returned to my paper.
VALENTINA
“Do you think Hudson will come tonight?”
I arranged the brownies and chocolate chip cookies near the front. The chocolate would reel them in and then cupcakes and steaming hot drinks would finish the job.
Our bake sale stand was simple and cutely decorated. One of the handier sisters knocked together a proper wooden booth with an overhead sign and a solid square bottom that didn’t let the wind pass through to our legs.
We scooted our chairs all the way in and wrapped comfortably in our blankets. The temperature wasn’t unbearable. A solid sixty degrees blanketed our sleepy university. It was the wind whipping our hair and seeking us through our layers that was the problem.
“I never know,” she said. “It depends on his shifts, but if he comes, we’ll see him.”
“His shifts?”
“He works for the school as a night janitor and maintenance man. He started a few weeks ago and doesn’t go to school here. He’s twenty and is finishing up his degree at the community college.” She twisted around. “That’s his shed.”
