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Such as?
I cocked an eyebrow. Have you sent anyone else in?
I waited a moment for his response, and then the letters flashed in green. No.
You’re sure?
I don’t lie to you, he said.
I exhaled, relaxing my shoulders. Okay, then. It wasn’t my people.
Either Michael, Kai, and Damon were working on their own, or someone else was behind this. I still knew nothing, but at least I’d ruled out anyone on my end.
More text came in. How many and when? he asked.
At least four, I typed.
But then I noticed Taylor outside, leaning against the glass solarium door, peering in at something.
What was he doing?
Quickly, I typed the rest, finishing my sentence. Maybe five, I told him. Hold until you hear from me.
Through the glass roof, I spotted two figures moving. I thinned my eyes, trying to make it out.
Aydin.
He was holding Emory.
I reared back, my gaze sharpening.
Are you safe? Came the next question.
But I was gone.
Closing the computer and storing it, I pulled on some sweat pants and buttoned them up before jogging down the stairs. I yanked the steel bar away and threw open my bedroom door.
Emory
Nine Years Ago
I walked into the school, the hallways dim and the music pounding from the gym. Prom was always held in Meridian City, at an expensive banquet hall or hotel.
Homecoming stayed at home.
The frilly pink, strapless dress I’d found in The Carfax Room brushed against my knees, cool air caressing my bare shoulders and back. My long brown hair, parted in the middle, draped around me and in my face, and I left the natural kink wild and shiny. I’d found some theater makeup in the room and used the mascara and eyeliner. Lipstick tinted my mouth.
Nothing covered the dried blood that had spilled down my temple, the blue and purple bruising around my eye, or the cut on my lip. My bare arms wore his handprints, no longer aching so much with the ibuprofen I’d taken.
I could hide in plain sight tonight because it was almost Halloween, the one time of year everyone could bring what was inside outside.
Opening the door to the gymnasium, I stepped inside, the hair on my arms instantly rising. Music blared, blue and pink lights swirling around the darkened room as decorations and balloons adorned every table.
A few dozen couples moved on the dance floor, and I could feel my heart thumping in my chest as I gazed around the room.
Was he here?
The dance had begun a while ago, the ticket takers and photographers having already abandoned their posts near the door, but I spotted a few sets of eyes turn toward me as I entered the room. Most people wore costumes, while others wore simple masks with their cocktail dresses and suits.
