The rage doubled its force then. Adam had thought to confront Bram immediately. But before he did, the first inkling of the plan crawled its way into his brain. If he could be patient, everything would work out. For him and for Mariana.
Now, Mariana looked anything but pleased. “I think I can guess who it was,” she said as tears streamed down those perfect soft cheeks, dripping onto her rosy lips. Adam wanted to ask who, but as the tears continued to mar her lovely face, he reached out to wipe them. And when he offered her a hug, to his surprise and delight, she fell into his embrace. “I don’t know what to do,” she sobbed into his chest.
“I’m sorry,” he said, stroking her back. He allowed his fingers to move up into her curls the way he’d daydreamed. “It’s an impossible decision. But it’s the only decision, really. Deep down, you know that.”
“You mean break up with him?”
“Of course.” Adam frowned. “He’s my brother, Mariana. I love him with everything in me, but I can’t stand by and watch him mistreat you. He isn’t valuing you the way you deserve.”
Mariana was close enough that he could hear the sound of herswallow. “You’re right.”
“I wish I weren’t.” He held his breath now, waiting for her to say it, allowing his hopes to rise.
“I’m going up to the house,” she said, glancing behind her at the path. “I’m going to break up with him.”
“I am all in a sea of wonders. I doubt; I fear; I think strange things, which I dare not confess to my own soul.”
—Draculaby Bram Stoker
16
Bram’s voice calls after me through the gardens, but I don’t stop. Instead, I follow Adam over the path and inside the house, through the laughing and dancing student council members in the living room. He stops in the kitchen, where to my shock, Emma the freshman is perched on the counter, sipping from a red cup. My relief is tempered by a hot wave of embarrassment. I can’t believe I ever worried Adam would hurt her. That I let my imagination—no,Lydia’simagination—get the best of me.
“Adam, can we please talk?”
His back is to me, and he’s helping himself to a drink. “Go ahead, talk.”
“Somewhere more private, please.”
“Oh, you don’t want to talk about what you were doing out there in front of”—his finger does a turn of the room, brushing over Emma, zigzagging past a couple of girls over at the kitchen nook, and finally landing on the doorway—“him?”
My heart plummets. Henry stands there, brows angled in confusion.
“What’s going on?” he asks, crossing the kitchen and parking himself between Adam and me. “What’s he saying to you?” He peers down at me with concern, like I’m a lost kitten in need of protection.
“Yeah, Hayden,” Adam taunts. “What am I saying to you?”
“Nothing. Just—I need to talk to Adam. Somewhere else.”
“Aw,” Emma complains. “Adam was going to fix the lights, so we could do the maze.”
“He can fix the lights in a minute,” I say. “Please, Adam.”
“Fine,” he says, topping off his drink with vodka. “Let’s go talk.” He plods out of the kitchen.
I offer Henry an apologetic look. “I’ll be right back. It’s about…you know.” I tilt my head in Emma’s direction, as if to imply that Adam and I need to discuss our murder investigation, away from others. Henry nods, looking torn about letting me go. As I follow his brother out the door, I realize with a sick twist in my stomach that I’ve just lied to the boy I love.
Out in the living room, I catch Bram in my peripheral vision. He’s leaning with an elbow on the grand piano, watching us.
Upstairs, Adam closes the door to his room behind us and gestures to the desk chair with a great swoop of his hand. “Have a seat.”
“Okay, I just want to—”
“No, you’re going to listen,” he says. “Because it’s the only way to save yourself.”
I bristle and want to ask what he means bysave yourself. But I consent, noting the fist-sized hole in the wall above the chair before sitting down.
Adam knocks back his entire drink in front of me, then plops onto the edge of his unmade bed. “I guess the story starts back in sophomore year,” he says thoughtfully. “I met a girl named Mariana Sanchez, and she and I started hanging out. I’d never met anyone like her before. I was even planning on asking her to the fall dance.And then, two weeks before the dance, Bram asked her out. She said yes and then acted like I never existed.” His words are starting to slur. Before tonight, I’ve never seen one of the triplets drink alcohol, and now Adam’s suffering the effects of that moronic bad boy display he just put on for me. He starts to crush the plastic cup in his grip, as if blamingitfor his current state.
