Page 32 of Revenge

“You’ve been spending most of your free time with us,” said Blake. “He’s unwanted baggage that needs ditching.”

My lips quirked into a tiny smile. They were jealous. “I plan on cooling it off with him at the party.”

Edward peered at me over the top of his novel. “On Valentine’s day? That will be fun.”

“We should go shopping for your costume,” said Henry. “Something red for heartbreak would be apt.”

Blake’s hands wandered up my ankles and into my skinny jeans. I closed my eyes and sighed. Since that afternoon I’d told them to kiss my feet, I had been wearing jeans or pants whenever I visited Edward’s study. Henry and Blake seemed to want to rush intimacy, whereas I couldn’t afford to fall prey to my passion. Blake’s thumb rubbed the swell of my ankle, making me groan and pull my feet off his lap.

“I’ve already hired a costume.” A lazy grin crossed my face. Jackie had picked it out for me and said the boys would never be able to undo it in front of the cameras. No matter how much I begged.

Chapter 11

Valentine’s day fell on a Saturday this year. I left for London immediately after morning classes and caught the train to meet Jackie and her crew at Waterloo Towers, a high-rise building overlooking the River Thames. As soon as I walked through the door of the apartment, Jackie rushed at me with a box, not giving me time to marvel at the huge, open-plan room or its period furniture. “Your costume.”

I lifted the Marie Antoinette gown complete with a corset and pannier petticoat and bit my lip. “How do I put this on?”

“You can change in the bathroom.” Jackie ushered me and her new intern toward another door. “Hurry, as we have a lot to do before the party starts.”

“This way.” The intern, a tall, black girl with chin-length braids, gave me an apologetic smile and opened the door, revealing a white, marble bathroom the size of the space I shared with Rita at the academy. “Tom needs to get away to double-check the sounds of all the cameras, but he wants to show you their locations before he leaves.”

She helped me into the underthings first, then the dress, then fastened up the bodice and secured it with a few stitches. Jackie must have told her about the boys and their roving hands.

“One more thing!” she rushed out of the room and returned with another box, containing a white wig and a lace mask. “Jackie wants you to wear these.”

Afterward, Tom walked me through the apartment, starting with the main room, which had a grand piano in the middle and could hold two-hundred guests. He pointed out the location of all the cameras there before showing me a passage away from the main room, where a bookshelf formed a hidden door into a boudoir with a four-poster bed.

Jackie leaned against a tall, wooden cabinet. “You must get that information about International House. Based on what people are posting on the Mercia-Net, some of the characters are unsavory and not suitable to be allowed anywhere near children.”

“Has anything happened?” I sat on the bed.

“Just a few thugs violently objecting to having their photos taken. The third year girls report that one creepy bastard keeps trying to strike up conversations. They’re traveling in packs, now.”

An unpleasant shudder ran down my spine. “What are the parents saying?”

“It’s hard to tell.” She coughed into her hand. “Everyone’s tip-toeing around the subject, including Edward Mercia.”

I nodded. “Yes, I noticed that too, but he just tells me to keep my distance and clams up whenever I bring up International House.”

She stepped away from the cabinet and opened the door, revealing a refrigerator filled with ice and champagne. “Get them in here and get them talking. Use the drinks to loosen their tongues. This room’s quiet, and we’ve fitted recording devices in the balcony in case you need to get Edward alone.”

I breathed out a long breath, eyes scanning the splendor of the room. “I’ll do my best.”

Jackie clamped a hand on my shoulder and stared up at me, eyes laden with menace. “This is the groundbreaking story we’ve been waiting for. There’s more to International House than a few noisy louts. You must make Edward Mercia spill everything.”

“Right.” I gulped. She’d left unsaid the threat of Rudolph sending me to military school if I failed, but I was well aware of the consequences. Forcing a smile, I said, “Results or ruin.”

Jackie’s lined face split into a grin. “That’s the spirit. We’ve set up half our journalists to act as servers, and we’re expecting big things.”

My throat went dry. This was a lot of responsibility. “What if nobody comes?”

“We distributed fifty tickets to people from your school and a little over sixty to people who claim to be alumni. Each is likely to bring one or more guests. There’s also a few undercover agents we like to use for events like this. Focus on your boys, and we’ll take care of the rest.”

By the time the first few arrivals trickled in, the undercover reporters were already in place. Some were clad in black and white as servers, while the others wore fancy dress. Sergei arrived a couple of hours after the start with his full complement of bodyguards. When we hugged hello, I warned him to be careful with Andreo, because there were cameras everywhere. He kissed me on the cheek and thanked me for the heads up.

Sergei played popular tunes to get the party going. I stood by the piano, nursing a glass of tonic water that had been made to look like it contained gin. Strangely, for a bunch of people who wrangled their invitations by claiming to know me, very few approached to say hello.

Andreo stood by my side. “Sergei tells me you are hurting those boys who betrayed you. Are you tempted to forgive them?”