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“Oh,” she gasped. “I-I didn’t know you were coming.”
“I wasn’t planning on it,” he said. “I’m only here for a moment.”
There was a shadowed figure behind him. She wore a strapless white gown, a brand-new Swarovski crystal bracelet, and satin Prada peep-toes. When she stepped into the light, Hanna’s heart sank. Kate.
Hanna bit down hard on the inside of her cheek. Of course Kate would run to Stepdaddy and tell him everything. She should’ve seen this coming.
Mr. Marin’s eyes blazed. “Did you or did you not tell your friends that Kate has…herpes?” He mumbled the last word.
Hanna shrank back. “I did, but—”
“What on earth is wrong with you?” Mr. Marin demanded.
“She was about to do the same thing to me!” Hanna protested.
“No, I wasn’t!” Kate squealed passionately. A bit of her French twist had come undone, and a few tendrils spilled over her shoulders.
Hanna’s mouth dropped open. “I heard you on the phone on Friday! ‘It’s almost time. It’ll work. I can’t wait.’ And then you…cackled! I know what you meant, so don’t even pretend like you’re all perfect and innocent.”
A helpless squeak escaped from Kate’s throat. “I don’t know what she’s talking about, Tom.”
Hanna stood up and faced her father. “She wants to destroy me. Just like Mona did. They were working together.”
“Are you cracked? What are you talking about?” Kate threw up her hands in despair.
Mr. Marin raised a bushy eyebrow. Hanna crossed her arms over her chest, glancing once more at the photo of Ali. Ali seemed to be staring right out at Hanna, smirking and rolling her eyes. Hanna wished she could turn it upside down—or even better, tear it to shreds.
Kate made a loud gasp. “Wait a minute, Hanna. When you heard me yesterday, was I in my bedroom? Were there long pauses between things I was saying?”
Hanna sniffed. “Uh, yeah. That’s what happens when you’re on the phone.”
“I wasn’t on the phone,” Kate said coolly. “I was practicing lines for the school play. I got a part—if you would’ve talked to me, I would have told you that!” She shook her head, amazed. “I was waiting for you to come home so we could hang out. Why would I be plotting to get you? I thought we were friends!”
Down the long hall, the jazz band stopped playing, and everyone applauded. A strong scent of blue cheese wafted from the kitchen, making Hanna’s stomach turn. Kate had been practicing lines?
Mr. Marin’s eyes grew blacker and darker than Hanna had ever seen them. “So let me get this straight, Hanna. You ruined Kate’s reputation because of something you heard through a door. You didn’t even bother to ask Kate what she meant or what she was doing, you just went ahead and told everyone a blatant lie about her.”
“I thought…,” Hanna stuttered, but then trailed off. Was that what she’d done?
“You’ve gone too far this time.” Mr. Marin shook his head sadly. “I’ve tried to be lenient with you, especially after everything that happened this fall. I’ve tried to give you the benefit of the doubt. But you can’t get away with this, Hanna. I don’t know what it was like, living with your mother, but I don’t allow this kind of stuff in my house. You’re grounded.”
From this angle, Hanna could see every new little wrinkle by her dad’s eyes and all the new flecks of gray in his hair. Before her dad had moved out, he’d never punished her once. Whenever she messed up, he simply talked to her about it until she understood why it was wrong. But it looked like those days were gone.
An enormous lump formed in Hanna’s throat. She wanted to ask her father if he remembered all their talks. Or how much fun the two of them used to have. For that matter, Hanna wanted to ask why he’d called her a little piggy in Annapolis all those years ago. It wasn’t remotely funny—her dad must have known that. But maybe he didn’t care. As long as it amused Kate, he was happy. He’d taken Kate’s side ever since she and Isabel came into his life.
“From now on, you’ll associate with Kate and only Kate,” Mr. Marin said, straightening his sweater. He began listing things on his fingers. “No boys. No friends over. No Lucas.”
Hanna gaped. “What?”
Mr. Marin gave Hanna his don’t talk until I’m finished look. “No sitting with other people at lunch,” he went on. “No loitering with other girls before or after school. If you want to go to the mall, Kate has to go with you. If you want to go to the gym, Kate has to go with you. Or I start taking more things away. First your car. Then your handbags and clothes. Until you actually understand that you can’t treat people like this.”
The roof of Hanna’s mouth began to itch. She was pretty sure she was about to faint. “You can’t do that!” she whispered.
“I can.” Mr. Marin’s eyes narrowed. “And I am. And you know how I’ll know if you’re breaking the rules?” He paused and looked at Kate, who nodded. They’d probably discussed all this beforehand. Kate had probably suggested it.
Hanna gripped the arm of the couch, stunned. Everyone at school was skeeved out about Kate now—all because of what Hanna had told them. If Hanna came into school all BFFs with Kate and only Kate, people would…talk. They might even think Hanna had herpes too! She could already imagine the names everyone would call them: The Valtrex Vixens. The Blister Sisters.
