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“I lost you in the crowd, I’m sorry.” She knows that seeing Ayden and Vicky affected me, so she asks, “Everything okay?”
I nod. “Yeah, all good.”
Charles puts a hand on my shoulder. “Then I’ll continue mingling. These parties are an excellent opportunity to catch up with old acquaintances. Say hello to your mother from me. Maybe I’ll take her up on her offer and visit her again.”
I don’t know what he’s talking about, but then again, I didn’t hear every word that passed between them. I wave goodbye and sit down at the table with Kate – not a moment too soon, because another speaker is stepping up to the podium.
Chapter 9
Idon’t believe this,” Max growls. “You went to the fundraiser and didn’t tell me?! You know the most important key carrying clans go to those, right? It’s the perfect chance to rub shoulders with them.”
Kate and I exchange a glance.
“I’m really sorry,” I mutter. “I honestly had no idea. And Kate’s mom was already unimpressed about her taking me.”
Max glares at me again. Then she takes a deep breath and dismisses it with a wave of her hand. “Never mind. I’m sure you guys would have asked if you thought there was any chance I could come. But it still sucks. So now you gotta to tell me everything. Who was there? What was the food like? What were people wearing? Oh, and did you meet any hunters?”
Lucia’s also waiting on tenterhooks to hear what we have to say. I don’t know what to tell them.
“Yeah, some of the hunters were there,” I reply. “And the school principal and some Council members. Mr. Cunningham gave a short speech later on and made a generous donation.”
“Did your mom introduce you to anyone? It must be great to have a mother who organizes these kinds of parties,” Maxenthuses.
“I guess,” Kate replies. “But yeah, we got talking to a few of the guests.”
“Oh, come on, this is like pulling teeth!” Lucia grumbled. “Who did you meet? Was there music? Did you dance?”
“We mostly kept to ourselves and ate, and we wandered around the room a bit,” I explain. “We didn’t talk much with anyone else, except Mr. Cunningham briefly.”
Their jaws drop, and they stare at us.
“Albert Cunningham? The patriarch of the Cunningham family?” Lucia probes.
“Uh, yeah,” I say.
“Oh my God! That must have been amazing,” says Max.
“Uh, sure,” I reply with a shrug. “I mean, yeah, he was nice. And he seemed really down-to-earth.”
Neither of them looks satisfied with my account. Max rolls her eyes, but then something behind me grabs her attention.
“There’s Ayden,” she says, nodding in his direction.
He’s standing near the walkway to the hunter wing, carrying a cardboard box.
“I’ll come back for the rest and take it to my room. See you soon,” he says to another young man. It’s Ethan, the restaurant owner who treated me, Ty, and Kate to an amazing meal a few weeks back. What’s he doing here? He’s holding a box too, but it’s much smaller than Ayden’s.
Max immediately takes off and calls out to Ayden, who turns around.
I just sigh to myself and wonder why I have to keep running into him. An image immediately pops into my head: he and Vicky intertwined in a passionate kiss. I clench my fists and try to ignore the tightness in my chest.
“Ayden,” Max says with a puzzled glance at the box in his arms. “Are you moving into a new room or something?”
“No,” he replies. “This is Ty’s stuff.”
“Oh.” She puts a consoling hand on his arm. “This must be really hard on you. If you need someone to talk to, I’m here for you.”
Ayden just nods. I can tell he finds her words insincere. It’s obvious from the cool look he gives her and the way his lips narrow slightly. I’m reminded of the way Max responded when I talked to her about Ty’s death. She was singing a different tune back then. I guess she’s trying not to make the same mistake with Ayden that she made with me.
