Love's Cruel Redemption (The Ghost Bird Series)(25)

Danielle made her way to the kitchen area, and the first thing she did was glance toward Nathan’s dad’s bedroom and start walking toward it.

“Where are you going?” Nathan asked.

She tried the door handle and found it locked and looked back at him. “We can’t both sleep on the couch.”

“Don’t go in there,” he said. “My dad always knows when I’m in there now and we need to stay out.”

That changed the determined look on her face. “I guess you’ve got an air mattress somewhere?”

At least now she won’t dare try to sneak in. Silas would be safe in there tonight. “You can take my bed,” he said. “It’s big enough to fit two. I’ll take the couch.” He moved further into the kitchen. “Did you all eat dinner?”

“Order a pizza,” Danielle said.

“I’ve probably got a frozen one.”

“I like delivered ones better.”

Nathan turned his head so he could roll his eyes. He’d forgotten how bossy she could be. But instead of arguing the point, he picked up his cell phone and used an app to look at pizza options. He went to the kitchen island so he could put the phone on it and lean against it. While he scrolled through, he spoke. “What’s this all about? Why couldn’t you do this at your house, Danielle?”

Danielle crossed the kitchen, heading toward the hallway where Nathan’s bedroom was. “Let me put this down. Marie, you tell him.”

Marie’s lips twisted and her face turned red. She’d barely moved since she came in the door, with her arms still crossed. Instead of saying anything, she waited and stared where Danielle had disappeared.

Was she afraid of Nathan? She spoke to him before. Plenty of times.

When Danielle returned, she went over to Nathan and peered over his shoulder. “Get something with chicken and olives,” she said.

“Just tell me what’s going on,” Nathan said as he ordered.

“Marie wants out,” Danielle said.

“Of the house?”

“Out of school,” she said. “Like you did with Sang.”

Like Sang? Did they think she unenrolled? School restarted last week, and Sang was out on Doc’s orders. But she was going back, just not to class. She was pulled from class and she’d have a different set up, like the rest of them. They didn’t have normal classes any more either.

He kept the information to himself. He just wanted to find out where they were going with this.

Nathan raised his eyebrow and forgot about pizza, focusing on Marie. “Don’t you have just one year left after this or something? Why do you want out?”

Marie frowned. “Sang’s got it so I’m in with that counselor woman every day. And she keeps asking me questions about everything.”

Nathan blinked rapidly. Ms. Wright had given Sang a hard time not too long ago. But their attention returned to Mr. Hendricks and other teachers once it seemed she backed down. “She’s been after you?”

Marie nodded. “Every day since we were back, and then before the break a few times. And Hendricks. Always threatening me with detentions and suspensions.”

Nathan’s attitude toward Marie changed then. Marie had a weird trust in Danielle, but she knew better than to talk to Mr. Hendricks about anything private about Sang or about the boys, or else Hendricks would have been able to do far more damage to them. “I didn’t know. I wish you would have told me.”

“Sang’s been in trouble, too, right?” Danielle asked. “They always ask about her and what you guys are up to, but lately it has been about Sang. Like why she wasn’t seen in school this first week we returned to class.”

“We kept her out after she was passing out at your house,” he inclined his head toward Marie. “Doc’s orders had her on bedrest.”

Marie frowned again, her lips wrinkling a little. “I’m tired of being asked and I’m tired of worrying if I’ll end up in detention every day. I don’t want to have to go back. But if I don’t go, they’ll show up at the house or call and I can’t...”

Oh. He saw the bigger problem. Mrs. Sorenson might turn punishments on her if the school started calling. The Academy could field the calls, but this was still a lot they were asking Marie to deal with until she graduated. Homeschool could be an option, but her mother wasn’t going to go to the school to sign paperwork and do all that was required in her condition. And wouldn’t that draw attention to Sang? The only reason they kept Sang in the same school was to not draw too much attention from Hendricks while it was still risky. He was clearly angling to get to them through Sang.

Nathan scratched at his chin. “Now I see why you needed me.”

“I know you can get her out,” Danielle said. She smirked. “Maybe even me. I wouldn’t mind bailing. Next year is my last year anyway.”

Nathan didn’t like Danielle knowing this much about what they could do. He suspected she figured it out given all they did for Sang.

However, Ms. Wright asking questions and Hendricks looking in on Marie posed big problems. In addition, Marie probably didn’t have the grades to get into an early college program, she didn’t have a license, nothing to help her.

“I can’t make any promises,” Nathan said carefully. “But I can possibly look in on what’s happening at school and see if I can get them to stop. But even Sang will be going back tomorrow on Monday.”