Good Girls Lie(91)

A chill runs through me.

Did Becca push Camille? Was Camille about to expose my past and Becca took care of it for me?

Is she capable of murder?

And then I remember. Becca’s mail. I’ve forgotten to deliver Becca’s mail.

I have to go face her.

I need to think. I need to figure this out.

I have to act like nothing is wrong.

I grab the mail and sprint up the stairs. Becca isn’t in her room, and the relief is overwhelming. I set the mail on her desk and, before I am seen, slip into the stairwell and hurry back downstairs.

The notecard, folded in half, is pinned to my corkboard. It wasn’t there when I left. There is a small bird wrapped in vines etched on the front. The Ivy Bound symbol. Becca was here, I’ve just missed her. Or maybe her minions, the twins, who knows?

I take the card with a shaking hand and move into my room to read it.

9:00 p.m. Commons. Mandatory for all.
Mandatory is underlined three times. Becca has called for a meeting of the Swallows. Why?

Oh, God. Who cares. If I’m in a group, I’ll be safe. She wouldn’t dare hurt me in front of witnesses.

“Ash?”

Piper sticks her head in.

I slide a book over both notes. “What are you doing up here?”

“Same as you, I suspect. Cutting.”

O-ho, how wrong you are, little girl.

“Listen. I know things are really weird right now, but you should know the dean was in here ten minutes ago. I think she was searching your room.”

“Searching my room? For what?”

“Your phone.”

“I don’t have a phone.”

“She found one in your closet. I was watching. It had tape on it. She looked at it, swiped around some, then saw me and hid it behind her back. I had to spin a quick tale about needing a tampon.”

“Why are you telling me this?”

“Because I’m your friend, asshole. At least I’ve been trying to be, though you don’t make it easy.”

I blow out a breath. “Okay, I’m sorry. I’m a little stressed out.” I’m holding a note that says my world is about to blow up. Know anything about it?

“Maybe we could talk later?” she says, hopeful.

“About?”

“What’s happening. Man, you are weird today.”

“What do you mean?”

“Um, hello? The sheriff has been here several times, the dean just searched your room. They think you did something to Camille. And there’s some rumor about you having a sister. And that you and Becca are on the outs. I just thought you might need a friendly ear, that’s all. I know you wouldn’t have hurt Camille. You’re not that kind of person.”

What kind of person am I, Piper? Do you really know me?

“Becca and I were never on the ins. Besides, there’s nothing to talk about. I can’t discuss a family matter. I appreciate you letting me know about the dean, Piper. But I need to lie down now, I’m not feeling well.”

Disappointment crosses her face, but she nods. “No worries. I need to get back to class.”

She disappears, and my mind dismisses her, but not entirely.

The dean in my room. Finding a phone?

Whose phone did she find? It’s one rule I actually followed—I didn’t bring a phone. I have other ways to communicate with the outside world, I hardly need a phone. They’re too dangerous.

Then it hits me. The mobile signature on the email. She wanted me to decode where the email with the photos was sent from.

Shit. If the dean found a phone in my room, she’s going to think it came from me, that I lied and said I didn’t know who sent the email. It looks like me. It’s going to be hard as hell to deny it without exposing myself.

Who is messing with me?

And why?



69

THE INITIATION

In case the dean comes looking for me again, I slip off into the arboretum, where I plan to cool my heels under my favorite hemlock until my appointment with the Swallows. While it’s chilly out, the sun still shines, so I find a patch of warmth and close my eyes. When I wake, it’s dark. Piper and Vanessa were right when they said I’d get used to the bells—they are easy to hear from all corners of campus, so I must have slept like the dead. The stress and the late nights with Becca finally shut me down. I feel better than I have in days. I can deal with whoever is trying to spook me. I’ve dealt with worse.

Since I’m relatively sure the dean has left Main Hall for the night, I head back to the dorm. I grab a tuna melt from the Rat and eat in my room, away from everyone, stoking the rumor mill even further.

After all the craziness that’s gone on today, I didn’t think I’d be relieved to go to an Ivy Bound meeting, but when the time comes, I am. I’m safe in this twisted little group.

At nine, I mount the stairs to the attics. The rest of the Swallows are in the Commons, waiting. Everyone is nervous, you can smell it coming out of their pores.

“What’s happening?” I ask Jordan, who looks like death warmed over, but she shakes her head.

“No idea. No one knows. I’m scared to death. Amanda is a psycho, Miranda is, too. I think they switch places for fun. They’ve been torturing me with stupid tasks, taking all my study time. I failed a chem exam today. This is out of hand. If they take things much further, someone should complain to the dean. They’re not allowed to haze us like this.”