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“Jeff’s not here. He’s been at the library all morning.” Nikki slid on her winter jacket and collected her books. “He’s got some special project he’s doing for Professor Deveaux.”
Chelsea dropped the scarf she was wrapping around her neck. “Huh?” she asked in alarm. “What kind of special project?”
“I don’t know. He’s been as secretive as you lately. What do you care?” Nikki sidled up to her with speculative eyes. “Hmm, you actually look…anxious. What’s wrong, did you discover a latent passion for poor, unfucked Jeff? Maybe now that Professor Deveaux is sleeping with him, he looks a little better to you?”
Chelsea slowly picked up her scarf, busying herself with it to avoid her roommate’s eyes. Her skin was crawling with a horrid suspicion, yet it couldn’t be true. Probably Jeff was just doing some kind of extra credit project. His grades in the class weren’t exactly spectacular. “What? That’s crazy. Where’d you hear that?”
“Everyone’s saying it. He’s been seen sneaking in and out of her office at weird hours and hasn’t been sleeping in his room. Someone even saw him leaving her house at four in the morning last week.”
The idea was preposterous. “Professor Deveaux would never touch him.”
“Don’t be so sure. I have it on good authority that she’s not as untouchable as she seems.”
Chelsea swallowed nervously. All this time she had been sure that the Society was a well-kept secret on campus. Professor Deveaux’s impeccable reputation was proof of that. But if there were rumors about her, that would mean there was gossip about the Society—gossip that could wind up implicating Chelsea someday, if she wasn’t careful. “Why? What have you have heard?”
“That she usually picks out a favorite each year, if you know what I mean.” Nikki glanced at her watch. “Come on, it’s getting late. We’d better go.”
Chelsea’s heart was beating hard. “Who told you that?”
“One of the guys from Sigma house. He told me—and you have to swear to secrecy on this, Chelsea—that one of the other brothers had this really kinky affair with her. Supposedly she belongs to some sex club and he went to parties with her and everything.”
Chelsea’s head swam with panic. No, this couldn’t be possible. Professor Deveaux had made the Society sound so elegant and sophisticated. It wasn’t a cheap sex club. “I don’t believe it,” she managed to say. “Professor Deveaux would never jeopardize her job like that.”
“Oh, Chelsea, you’re so naïve. Half the professors on campus have had affairs with students. Now come on, let’s go.”
The winter afternoon was brilliant with sunlight reflecting on snow. Chelsea shielded her eyes as they made their way across campus, panic coursing through her veins like a toxic drug. She tried to think of an innocent way to probe for more information. “Even if that is true, I doubt she would take an interest in Jeff,” she said finally.
“Yeah, that’s what I thought until I saw the scratches all over his chest,” Nikki said casually. “Someone put those there and it wasn’t any of the girls we know.”
Chelsea felt as if she were going to be sick. Professor Deveaux was refined and worldly. She could choose her lovers from anyone in the Society. So why would she pick out an awkward college boy for her lover? No, it couldn’t be true. Even if she had seduced Jeff, surely she wouldn’t induct him into the Society. He wasn’t even a good writer…
“See you,” Nikki said cheerfully and headed off to the science building.
Chelsea made her way into the liberal arts building. The silence of the stairs and hallways told her she was five minutes late for class. As she rounded the landing to the second floor, muffled voices reached her ears.
“Just don’t worry about it, I haven’t told anyone…”
That was Jeff’s voice.
“You shouldn’t even be speaking to me in public!” The hissed whisper came from Professor Deveaux. “Now go to class. I will wait and enter a minute later.”
“Okay, okay. I just wanted to know if I got accepted or not. Valentine’s Day is this weekend…”
Chelsea wanted to retch. It was all true. Jeff was having an affair with Professor Deveaux and was being inducted into the Society just as she was. It was revolting, yet undeniable.
Now Chelsea was forced to rethink her view of the Society. Professor Deveaux had said the Society was only for sexual adventurers and talented erotica writers. But if that was true, how could Jeff become a member? He was an inexperienced boy and a mediocre writer at best. He had only taken the creative writing class because of his hopeless crush on Professor Deveaux.
Chelsea fought for composure as she listened to Professor slip into the women’s room while Jeff headed into class. She followed, anxious to take a seat before Professor entered the r
oom. As she did, Jeff gave her an odd look.
“Where’d you come from?”
“My sociology professor’s office,” she lied. She felt so disgusted with him that she couldn’t even meet his eyes.
Class passed with excruciating slowness. As Professor Deveaux offered her feedback on other students’ short stories, Chelsea tried to concentrate on one central fact. It was just three days until the Valentine’s Ball when she would at last meet Jonathan Danvers. That was really all that mattered anymore. Professor Deveaux could seduce every boy on campus, throw the doors of the Society wide open, as long as Chelsea could de-mask her Muse. Everything else was irrelevant.
At last class ended and she rose with the other students to leave.
