Good Girls Lie(88)

He doesn’t miss a beat, though she can see him visibly relax. “Depends on your settings. You might have recorded it without meaning to. Let me see.”

She opens the program, lets him sit at her desk. Damn Tony and his niece’s prying, now she’s doubting herself, doubting Ash, doubting everything.

“Which interview do you need?”

She flips through her desk calendar looking for the exact date of her first meeting with Ash. “July 17.”

He taps away, then sits back. “Sure, here it is. You want me to play it?”

“Wonderful. No, thank you, I’ll do it. But let me ask, how was it taped?”

“You have auto-record on in your settings. Every Skype chat you’ve had is in the system. You have to dig a little to find them, but they’re here.”

“Oh, wow. I had no idea. I can delete them, right? There’s an expectation of privacy, I had no idea I was recording everything.”

God, Ford, could you sound any guiltier?

“Sure. Easy. But in this case, it sounds like you’re lucky to have them all right at your fingertips. Want me to delete them? You just click up here, select All, then Delete.”

“Good to know. I’ll take care of it once I take a quick look at this old chat. Thanks so much, Dominic.”

Her tone is meant to be dismissive but he doesn’t leave. “While I’m here, a moment of your time?”

She doesn’t have time, but she can’t seem too anxious. “Sure, what is it?”

“I hate to bring this up, but considering the circumstances... A few of my students are falling behind. Jordan and Ash, specifically. Something’s up with them. I think they’re being bullied.”

Oh, boy, are they.

Ford smiles and gestures to the chair, which he takes, looking anxious.

“It’s tap season. They’re being initiated by their secret societies. The tasks can be a little over the top, but no one’s being hazed, I assure you. That’s against the rules, and the societies always comply with the rules. They’ll be back to normal soon.”

“I see. Ford, far be it from me to comment on how you run things here—”

“But you’re going to anyway?” She leans back in her chair, tapping a pencil on the desk.

He clears his throat. “Yes, I am. This term has been quite challenging, for me, for all the teachers. It feels like the students are running the show, instead of the other way around. I know you told me this elite program works differently than the usual private school curriculum, and I’m supposed to cut them some slack. But I fear I’m not as effective as I could be if the girls were, say, a bit more dedicated to their studies instead of partying.”

“Partying? At Goode?” Crap, Dominic. We’re going to do this now? Really?

“Ford, surely you’ve seen this. They reek of alcohol. They come to class stoned. And now we find out a student was pregnant and killed herself... Add in the bullying I’ve seen...” He holds up a hand. “Even if this is some sort of tap hazing, it’s going too far. Ford, I fear you’re going to have a major problem on your hands if you don’t crack down immediately. If the parents get wind of this, or the board—”

She drops the pencil. “Are you threatening me?”

“No. No, of course not. But I’d like permission to discipline any of the girls who break the rules.”

“You don’t need my permission, Dominic. We do discipline here. Ash has been serving detention with me all week.”

“Unsupervised detention isn’t much of a deterrent. I heard her tell Jordan all she’s done is sleep.”

Ford has had enough of this. She has bigger problems than a puritanical teacher who isn’t willing to get with the program. But she can hardly say that aloud.

“I’ll be sure she doesn’t get away with that from here on out. Melanie will stay with her. And give out all the JPs you want, Dominic. I won’t stand for the girls not showing the proper respect for their studies or their teachers. I appreciate you making me aware of this situation. The girls are given great leniency when it comes to the society taps, yes, but that doesn’t include the use of alcohol or drugs. Confiscate any you find and let me know who is responsible. If we need to do a dorm search, we can. I’ve expelled girls for less.”

Dominic seems satisfied by this show of force. “Will do. They haven’t been careless enough to flaunt it, but I’m not so far removed from my school years that I can’t see the signs.” He stands, brushing his hands down his jeans. “I should let you get back to it. Thanks for hearing me out, Dean.”

“Ford. Call me Ford.”

He smiles shyly. Ah, she has read this correctly. If she wanted to, she could lead him by the hand to the couch for a holy hallelujah with Melanie listening fervently at the door, but she doesn’t need any more complications right now.

Your mind exists in the gutter, Ford. Get it out of his pants.

When the door closes behind him, the smile drops immediately. Every fear she’s had for the term has come to fruition. Drugs. Alcohol. Pregnancy. Death. And now, eclipsing them all, the idea that one of the students has lied about her identity to gain entry to Goode.

This cannot go on. The walls of this institution are strong, but even brick and steel can crumble under appropriate pressure.