The Replaced(48)

I might feel a certain amount of loyalty to each of them, for different reasons, but I was my own person. I made my own choices. “I don’t belong to either of them,” I insisted.

“Ooh, a loner. I like that.” She got to her feet and stared down at me now. “We could use a girl like you around here.”

When she reached down and pushed a piece of my damp hair from my face, I jerked away from her. “Who are you? Where’s Griffin? I think there’s some confusion—we just came here because we needed a place to hide . . .”

She folded her arms over her chest. “There’s no confusion. We know why you’re here.”

Except I was still confused. “So . . . why hold us prisoner like this? I thought the Returned worked together. . . .”

“There are a lot of things you still don’t understand, although I can’t say I’m totally surprised. Simon does that, keeps things to himself; he was always that way. And Thom’s no better—he’s always been a man of few words. Even when they were here, it was hard to know what either of them was thinking.”

“So . . . you . . . you knew them?” She had my full attention then. It hadn’t crossed my mind, that she’d been here when they had. That this girl might know things about them, and their pasts, that I didn’t.

She sighed, giving me a conciliatory look. “You really have no clue, do you?”

There was a sharp rap on the door, and then Buzz Cut stepped inside. The brown-eyed girl was halfway across the room before the door had even swished closed again.

I couldn’t quite put my finger on it, but I was riveted by the two of them, by the way they interacted. It was off somehow. Buzz Cut sat tight, just inside the doorway, until she was invited to join the other girl. And when she did, she kept her voice low and her hands at her sides. I couldn’t quite name her demeanor, but she was well-mannered. Quiet.

Not at all the way she’d been with me, and almost the exact opposite of the way she’d been with Simon.

When she was finished, Buzz Cut waited stiffly for a response, which was also whispered. It made me wish I had super-hearing on top of the whole seeing-in-the-dark thing, because I was dying to know what they were saying.

It was okay, though, because I’d figured something out just by watching them, and I felt stupid for not realizing it sooner.

I waited until Buzz Cut had shut the door, leaving us alone again. “Oh my god,” I accused. “You’re Griffin. You’re the guy we came here to see.” No wonder she knew so much about Simon and Thom. She was the reason we were here. She was the person they thought would help us.

The girl put her hands together once, twice, three times in a long, slow clap as she appraised me, as if seeing me in a whole new light. “And here I was, starting to think you might be on the slow side. Took you long enough.”

I ignored the jab, because it wasn’t like she’d given me a lot to work with, what with the whole you-should-eat act, and the You’re safe, trust me thing. How was I supposed to know she was the one in charge of this operation? “What kind of name is Griffin? For a girl, I mean?” I jabbed back.

Her expression closed off. “My dad wanted a son. I was something of a disappointment.”

It was a sad answer, if it was an honest one, and it made me wonder how old she was, or where she’d been born. The idea of being a letdown simply because of your gender was foreign to me, completely antiquated. I could hardly fathom it.

My dad had never made me feel anything but wanted, loved . . . cherished. Suddenly the comment about her name made me feel like I’d sucker-punched her for no good reason. “Sorry,” I said, wishing I could take it back. “I didn’t mean . . .”


She tried waving it off. “Don’t give it a second thought. I don’t. Water under the bridge, so to speak. Old news.” But the waver in her voice made me think it wasn’t such old news.

She recovered like a champ, and came back with that same smile she’d been wearing when she’d first walked in, like she was trying for a do-over. “So here’s the thing,” she said. “I feel like we’ve gotten off on the wrong foot. What can I do to fix that?” I wondered if she knew how transparent she was.

But I wanted answers, and maybe if I played along, I could get a few before she revealed her true intentions.

What was it Thom had said? There was always an end game with Griffin.

I plucked up a slice of apple and leaned back on the bench. I had to tread carefully. Griffin wasn’t stupid. “So if you guys were friends—you and Simon and Thom—then why are we being treated like this? Why ambush us at all?”

She took her spot on the bench again, facing me, and I tried to gauge her reaction. She was definitely suspicious, and regarded me warily. If we’d been predators, it would have been hard to tell just who was circling who. But I knew she was the one who held all the real power here. She might want me to answer some of her questions, but ultimately, we were in her custody.

“First,” she started, “I never said we were friends. I said I knew them. Second, you were wrong when you said you’re being held prisoners. You’re not. But look at this from my perspective: You guys just show up here, with absolutely no warning at all, saying you’re being chased by the Daylighters. For all I know, you’ve just led those sons-a-bitches right to our doorstep. You can’t fault me for wantin’ to take some precautions.” She took a grape from my plate and slid it into her mouth. “We can never be too careful. Surely you’ve learned that much?”