by Ruby Vincent
“That’s a good idea. We’ll do it tonight.”
Eventually, I let him go and we dumped our things for homeroom. I began the walk to the classroom without a problem, but as I neared the door, I got slower. I was lagging a foot behind Ryder when Roundtree’s room came into view.
He peered at me over his shoulder. “You up for this? We could skip class again.”
I shook my head. “Putting it off won’t make it easier. Besides, it’s not me who should hide.” Saying that infused my spine with steel. I picked up the pace and grabbed the knob before he could reach it.
I threw open the door and walked into a class that was already quiet, but the silence became absolute as everyone turned to me. I moved into the middle of the room and paused, meeting their eyes. No one spoke as I traveled up and down the rows of faces looking for what I expected to see.
I frowned. Wait—
Natalie moved her backpack out of her lap and got to her feet. I braced myself for the vileness that was going to pour out of her mouth. “Professor Roundtree. Can you give us ten minutes?” There was no expression on her face to give her away. “Knight business.”
I heard a sigh from behind me. “I know how this works. You’ve got ten minutes and no more.” Roundtree crossed in front of my vision and walked out, leaving me alone with my class.
Isabella, Airi, and Darren got to their feet with Natalie. They faced me down while the class held so still, they might have been frozen.
My friends and the other boys had made it to class before me. They were all seated apart from Ryder who came to my side.
I swept over the four of them. “Well? Say something, Knights.”
Isabella opened her mouth.
“Is it true?”
I twisted my head around as one of the guys shot out of his seat. Eric Eden looked back at me. The artificial lights shone on the sweat collected on his brow and the button he missed when getting dressed. I could see from where I stood that his balled fists shook.
“Is it true, Val? About Professor LeBlanc. About why you were marked? Was what you said really why this happened?”
I looked at the guy whose friendship I had gained and lost twice with the appearance of a card. “Yes.”
A hush spread through the space.
Penelope shot to her feet. “But that can’t be true!”
That broke the spell.
“How can you say it’s not true?!” Genesis Smith yelled at her. “Why would she lie?”
Penelope snapped back and then the whole class was off—yelling back and forth in an unintelligible mess that I couldn’t make out. I didn’t know who believed me and who didn’t. The noise reached dangerous levels until I got fed up.
“Stop it!” I bellowed. “All of you! Be quiet!”
This was the one time the new Knights and I were on the same page because they were shouting the same.
“It’s different now,” Eric’s voice could be heard when the room started to settle down. “Valentina was innocent. She didn’t do anything that would deserve her getting thrown out of Evergreen.”
Juliet Cochran, Darren’s co-host, pushed herself up on legs that wobbled. “My older sister was s-sexually assaulted. I don’t care what they do. I’m done listening to the Spades.”
Penelope leveled her finger at me. “We only have her side of the story. She’s probably lying to get the mark lifted again. She’d do anything.”
“She wouldn’t lie about that!” The person who spoke in my defense was none other than Lola, Penelope’s best friend. “You heard her! She found out that woman was a pedophile and LeBlanc marked her.”
“We didn’t hear anything.” Isabella’s tone was measured as she moved from her desk and put a hand on Penelope. She pushed her back into her seat. “We don’t know the full story, so tell us, Valentina. We’re listening.”
I glanced at Ryder. She sounded sincere. I figured I would have to tell my story many times. I would share it now if it would bring this to an end.
“Okay.” I shifted to face the class. “It started the night of the freshman masquerade dance...”
No one interrupted or so much as coughed while I told them what I said to Evergreen. When I finished, I got the opposite of silence. I was pelted with questions.
“Who is the student?”
“Do you have proof?”
“What is Evergreen going to do? He let a fucking pedophile teach us. What if she assaulted other students?”
“What about the mark? You can’t just mark people because they find out you’re a twisted sicko.” This came from one of Darren’s crew. “Juliet is right. I’m not following that mark.”
“Do the Spades know?”
“The Spades?” A sickly pallor was cast on Claire’s face. She looked like she would throw up. “Is this what the Spades are really about? Are they a group of horrible people like Scarlett and the ones they’ve marked over the years were those that found out the truth about them?”
“Hold on.” Ciara grasped Claire’s forearm. “We don’t know that. I’m sure that’s not—”
“You’re sure?!” She ripped her arm away. “How?! It’s not like they haven’t hurt innocent people before. They killed Walter McMillian and he did nothing wrong. Everyone knows he did nothing wrong! This is what the Spades really are and I-I hurt one of my friends to protect a pedophile!” Then she clapped her hand over her mouth. Claire raced to the front of the room and heaved into a wastebasket. Her boyfriend ran to her side, bending over her as he rubbed her back.
It was at that moment that Roundtree came back inside. He surveyed the chaos and said, “Damn. Whatever has been going on, it’s time to give it a rest.”
There was no continuing after that. Roundtree made us take our seats and pull out our homework. I tried to read my psychology textbook but the words swam on the page. It was hard to concentrate with Claire sobbing a few desks down.
What would happen now?
Kai repeated the question on my mind when homeroom ended. “People believe you, Val. You heard Claire, Lola, Brian, and Eric. Maybe the Spades believe you too.”
I looked toward the phone box while I threw the psych book in my bag. “All we have are maybes. We’ll see if anything really changes.”
THE REST OF THE FIRST week of school passed quickly, but not quietly. The new Knights kicked Roundtree out of class three more times and there were more shouting matches that went nowhere. I was hit with questions on all sides while my boys looked like they were barely restraining themselves from stepping in.
I knew it was killing them seeing what I was going through, but I didn’t want them being put through this inquisition. This wasn’t how someone who had dealt with assault and violence should be treated, but decency was thrown out of the window under the shadow of the Spades.
Who were they? What was this secret society truly about? Protecting the legacy of Evergreen Academy? Or hiding its dark shameful secrets? Lines were being drawn and I honestly did not know which way it would go. The entire school was breaking apart at the seams.
I stepped out of Evergreen’s office that Friday evening never more relieved that it was the weekend. The Shea family car was idling outside the gates and I was happy to hop inside and drive far away from this place. There was only one more thing I needed to do.
“Thank you for speaking with me, Valentina.” Officer Plymouth followed me out into reception and shook my hand. Evergreen had warned me the police were going to drop in and interview me so it wasn’t a surprise when I found him and Officer Plymouth waiting outside my final class of the day.
Officer Plymouth was kind and patient as I told my story. She listened without interrupting and only asked a few questions to clarify. I could sense she wanted to help me.
If only her suspect wasn’t lying at the bottom of a cliff.
“I appreciate how hard it must have been to come forward. I want you to know the search for Scarlett LeBlanc has already begun. We’ve put the word out to former emplo
yees. We’ve also contacted friends. Finding her is our top priority.”
I halted with my feet pointed toward the door. “What happens if you can’t find her?”
Plymouth’s phone trilled in her pants. She took it out and answered me with one eye on it. “Hmm. Oh. We will. I have no doubt she will be located and charged. Justice will be done.” Plymouth looked up from the screen. “I’m afraid I have to go, but you’ll be kept informed. Goodbye, Miss Moon.”
She blew out of the door before I could get another word in. I let her go. There was no point pressing her about it. As long as a certain video never surfaced, no one would find Scarlett LeBlanc.
Time to go, I thought as I grabbed my overnight bag off the chair. The list of Ace suspects was tucked away in my pocket where it had been since the five of us stayed up going through it. We had not been able to cross anyone off, but I had been keeping it with me and scribbling things in the margins.
Ryder honked when I stepped out of the gates. I slid into the passenger seat and tossed my bag in the back. “I’m glad we’re doing this. I needed a break.”
“My house will be chill. Mom’s been in a good mood and she’s excited we’re coming. She has the chef cooking us a feast every night and she’s brought out all her favorite old movies for us to watch together.”
“That sounds perfect.” My first smile of the day appeared on my lips. “So what will you and I do together?”
“I’ve got plans.” He left it there and wouldn’t say more even under my pestering.
The ride to Shea Manor was short. Twenty minutes later, we were pulling into his driveway. One of his staff came out to meet us and took the keys off his hands while he opened my door. His car sped off in a spray of gravel as Ryder led me inside.
“You and Mom are going to the bank tomorrow morning, but tonight, she thought we would start the movie marathon. She has the Maltese Falcon queued up in the theater.”
“Ooh. Maltese Falcon. Caroline has great taste.”
He laughed. Ryder was loosening up before my eyes. The stiffness to his jaw eased and the taut line of his shoulders went away. He had been looking forward to this too.
“Are you hungry? Chef can serve dinner whenever you’re ready.”
I shook my head. “I’m not hungry yet, but let’s eat before the movie so I won’t stuff myself on popcorn.”
“Cool.” He grabbed my hand. “Let me show you to your room.”
“My room?” I let Ryder tug me along after him. “I thought that we would—”
Ryder peered at me over his shoulder and raised his brow. “You thought we would be sleeping in the same bed?”
“Yes,” I replied, even though my cheeks were hot.
“I’m all for it, but my mom is right down the hall.” He winked. “Don’t worry. We’ll have time to ourselves. I told you I have something planned.”
“Okay. Guess I’ll have to trust you,” I teased.
Ryder gave me a mini-tour of my room. It was a few doors down from him and could fit my entire house inside. It was a gorgeous space with plush carpet that swallowed my toes and a massive bed that sadly wouldn’t have him in it. I didn’t come on this trip for that but I did want our relationship to move forward.
Ryder left me to clean up before dinner and I sunk into my bath with him running through my mind.
A relationship with Ryder was never going to be easy. There was too much history there. But I chose him. I need him to know that he’s worth that choice.
The soaker tub tried to claim me for its own, but eventually, I forced myself out. I changed into a comfy pair of jeans and a loose top and went in search of Ryder and Caroline. My feet remembered the way, and I found them in the dining room without a problem.
Caroline’s smile could have lit the space. “There you are, dear. How do you like your room? If it’s too small, we can move you.”
“It’s perfect.” I stopped at the head of the table and kissed her cheek. Ryder sat on her left and the staff held out the chair for me on her right. “Thank you for letting me stay.”
“You are welcome here anytime. I’m sure Ryder will be glad of your company too.” She gave him a knowing look that made my brows shoot up.
“Is that right, Ryder Shea? Do you want me around?”
“He most certainly does. He talks about you all the time. I heard your name all summer.”
Ryder looked between me and Caroline as I stifled a giggle. “I’m seeing now that this is going to be very bad for me.”
Caroline and I laughed out loud and soon Ryder joined in. My visit had just started and already I was enjoying myself. This was exactly what I wanted and more.
We kept up the playful teasing and chatter for the whole of dinner. A dinner that was equal parts delicious and surprising. I expected twelve courses and food I couldn’t pronounce, but instead the chef served up baked macaroni and lemon chicken. It reminded me of the simple meals I cooked at home for Adam while he watched me in his high chair.
“I hope you like classic movies, Valentina.” Caroline held Jacob’s hand as he escorted her to the theater. “I told my son there is nothing else worth watching.”
“And I told Mom that once she gives in to high-definition and special effects; she’ll leave those over-acted classics in the past.”
Caroline gasped. “Over-acted? How dare you. Those are the greatest entertainers in our history. I can assure you none of those exploding, car-chase headaches will be celebrated in film history classes.”
Their banter went on while I hung back and watched. Ryder slid into Jacob’s place halfway to the theater and he ended up escorting her. They were a cute pair. I felt lucky to see them both happy and relaxed.
“Valentina?” Caroline called. “Where did you go?”
“Coming.”
Their home theater wasn’t so much big as it was cozy. Eight leather recliner chairs took up one side of the room and before them was a screen that covered the whole front wall. Ryder sat between me and his mom while Jacob was a silent figure in the back row.
The staff wheeled in a tray with six flavors of popcorn and at random times during the movie Ryder would twist his head around with his mouth open so I could throw some in. Our chuckles made Caroline shush us but we were both having so much fun.
Caroline went to bed early after the movie finished, but Ryder and I stayed to watch some more. He dug out a few that had been made in this century and we snuggled in to watch. His hand on the armrest between us drew my eyes away from the screen every few minutes. Now that it was just the two of us, I could think about nothing but his fingers laced through mine.
“Val? Val?”
I snapped back to reality, dragging my eyes away from his hand. “Huh? What is it?”
“I asked if you wanted more popcorn.”
“Sure. Chocolate, please.”
He stood and filled our bowl with more goodies from the cart. When he reclaimed his seat, he set the bowl in his lap.
“It’s so good.” I reached for another handful. “I can’t get—”
I was stopped by Ryder. His fingers curled over mine and pulled them away from the chocolatey kernels.
“Let me,” he whispered.
I swallowed hard. My pulse quickened under his touch.
Ryder took one kernel and pressed it to my lips. I slowly parted them and let him place the popcorn on my tongue. My lips wrapped around his fingers as our eyes connected in the darkened room. He lingered as he pulled out, caressing my lips with his thumb.
My heart was thumping so loudly in my ears it drowned out the movie. Feeding me popcorn seemed tame, but this was one of the most intimate moments of my life.
My tongue darted out and licked the tip of his finger before he could pull back. A thrill surged through me when he sucked in a breath. “Are you sure about the separate rooms?” I asked.
“A lot less sure than I was an hour ago.”
Ryder twisted to face the screen. I would have been more disappointed if
he wasn’t still holding my hand.
We made it through one more flick before my eyes started to droop. After the movie, Ryder walked me up to my room and said good night at the door.
The next morning, I woke early but stayed in bed. My phone was in one hand, and in the other, was the list of suspects. I had taken to pulling it out and going over it in the mornings and this morning was no different.
The List
Penelope Madlow
Darren Rosewood
Lola McConnell
Emma Brinker
Eric Eden
Ciara O’Brien
Claire Montgomery
Cade Trevelyan
Axel Leon
Genesis Smith
Professor Markham
Professor Felton
Professor Coleman
I went through them all over again. The professors did not have to put their phones in the box, but these three had gone on the winter trip and I knew Ace was there. I had the ski-induced lump on my head to prove it. I didn’t want to think they were involved, but Scarlett had taught me not to rule anyone out.
My eyes moved to the top of the list and Penelope Madlow. Penelope was not my friend before I was marked, but after she was only too happy to take me down.
Not to mention she’s accusing me of lying about Scarlett and why I was marked. Why is she so determined not to believe me?
I wrote that down next to her name and underlined it.
Then there was Darren. A sleazy, shady dude if there ever was one. He wasn’t only awful to me when I was marked, but he kept it up after the mark was lifted. Darren did not like me and that most likely had to do with the Evergreen Gone Wild video.
Maybe he followed me into the woods to get revenge. I had a secret phone stashed away. He might have had one too for the purpose of getting something he could use.
I was quick to write that down. That made a lot of sense.
The next two names had nothing beside them. I didn’t know Lola and Emma well, except that they started the bullying about me having an eating disorder. All I knew for sure about them is that their phones were missing from the box when I got that text.
