Cruel Love (6 page)

Finally, Landon cleared his throat. It was such a surprise, and so close to Ariana’s ear, that she flinched away.

“I nominate Brother Starbuck,” Landon said, gazing defiantly at Maria from across the circle. Ariana sighed. Apparently they were picking up right where they’d left off. “I second it,” Christian Thacker called out.

“Fine.” April made a note in a black cloth book she had open across her lap. “Any other nominations?” “I nominate Sister Miss Temple,” Maria said, smiling at April.

Kassie went to second it, but April shook her head.

“Sorry, but I decline the nomination,” she said. “I have way too much on my plate right now to take that on too.” Tahira raised her hand.

“Sister Sister Carrie?” April called on her.

At Ariana’s other side, Landon snorted. Ariana smirked. e repetition in Tahira’s Stone and Grave name
was
kind of funny. She was glad she hadn’t been saddled with

it.

“I nominate Sister Portia,” Tahira said, leaning back to grin at Ariana. “What?” Ariana breathed, shocked.

Ariana glanced at Jasper as a round of whispers moved swiftly through the room, echoing off the domed ceiling. He grinned back at her and raised his hand. “Seconded!” he said loudly.

“But she’s a new member,” April said, her pen poised over the book. Ariana’s face turned to stone.

“Sorry. I was just surprised,” April said quickly, noticing Ariana’s reaction. “It’s just … that’s never been done before.”

“Well there’s a first time for everything,” Adam piped up. “And Ana … I mean, Sister Portia, was the MVP of our pledge class.” He raised his hand, leaning forward in

the circle so he could see Ariana. “I second the nomination, too. Or third it. Whatever.” There was a grumble among some of the seniors, but no one objected.

“All right then,” April said with a smile. “Sister Portia has been nominated.”

Ariana held her breath as the tip of the pen scratched across the paper. She beamed at Tahira, her face, she was sure, burning bright red. She couldn’t believe she’d just been nominated for president of Stone and Grave. It was not only the highest position in the secret society, but considering how exclusive S and G was, it was basically the highest position in all the school. And Tahira, Adam, and Jasper thought she deserved to have it.

“Any other nominations?” April asked.

Landon sighed. Christian cracked his knuckles. Otherwise, the cave was silent as a tomb.

“All right then. We’ll hold a special election at our next meeting,” April said, slapping the book closed. “ank you all for coming at such short notice. Meeting adjourned.”

As everyone scrambled to their feet, Jasper, Tahira, Maria, Rob, and a few other members gathered around Ariana to congratulate her. Ariana tried to look solemn, tried to appear as if this was all a lot to take in—the idea of replacing her best friend. But inside, she had never been so excited. As she looked into Jasper’s proud, admiring eyes and squeezed his hand, she felt as if all her dreams were coming true.

Ariana walked across campus toward the dining hall before lunch on Monday afternoon, feeling as if people were already starting to look at her differently. All morning, girls from Stone and Grave had been coming up to her, swearing their allegiance, promising to vote for her at Wednesday’s midnight gathering. With each new promise, Ariana felt her chest inflate a bit more. She looked around at the red brick buildings of campus, the piles of colorful leaves gathered alongside the slate walks, the blue-and-gray APH flag whipping from every hall’s flagpole, and felt as if the crisp fall air was filling her from the inside, bringing all sorts of possibilities.

I’m going to
own
this place
, Ariana thought, pausing near the steps of the administration building.
All I need are a few more votes and this school, these students, the world … may as well be mine.

She licked her lips, wondering what sorts of perks the president of Stone and Grave could expect to enjoy. Lexa had never talked much about it, or at all. She had taken her position of power and prestige in stride, as if it was simply part of who she was, not something to be wielded or shown off. inking of Lexa’s mature demeanor now, Ariana vowed to herself that she would be the same way. She would not abuse her power, nor would she cause anyone to feel envious or covetous of her position. She would be a good, kind, benevolent leader.

If, of course, she won.

Ariana smiled at Quinn, who waved as she went by. She pulled her cell phone out of her bag to see if Soomie had responded to any of the many texts she had sent that morning between classes. There were some new texts, but they were all from Jasper, Maria, and Tahira.

Biting her lip, Ariana speed-dialed Soomie’s cell. The voice mail had already picked up by the time she’d brought her phone to her ear. “You know what to do at the beep!” Soomie said brightly.

“Soomie, it’s Ana,” Ariana said, turning and moseying up the walk with a leisurely gait, enjoying the feeling of the sun on her face. “I’m sure you’re tired of Maria and me stalking you, but we’re both really worried. Just … give one of us a call back as soon as you can. We don’t need to have some long, drawn-out talk or anything. We just want to know you’re okay.”

And also, it would be nice if you could come back to campus and vote for me Wednesday night
, she added silently. She racked her brain for a way to say this without really saying it, but came up blank.

“Okay, well. Hope to see you soon!”

She hung up the phone feeling frustrated and concerned. Of course Soomie was upset. First her best friend Brigit had fallen to her death, and now Lexa. Not everyone could take such awful tragedies in stride. Ariana just hoped that wherever she was, she wasn’t going to do anything stupid.

The last thing she needed was another death to avenge.

Suddenly, a dog’s bark split the cold air. Ariana’s pulse completely stopped, then thumped back up to a frightening pace. She whirled around, searching the campus for the source of the noise.

e bark sounded familiar. Too familiar. Every inch of Ariana’s skin tingled. e tiny hairs on the back of her neck stood on end. Where was it coming from? e sound seemed to echo off every wall, coming at her from all angles. She had to see the dog. She had to make sure it wasn’t—

And then, suddenly, the barking stopped.

Ariana narrowed her eyes, scanning the campus, but there were no canines in sight. e fist of fear that gripped Ariana’s heart loosened slightly. She was just hearing things, clearly. All these thoughts of Reed and Briana Leigh and avenging deaths were starting to fool with her mind. That’s all it was.

Ariana lifted her chin as she turned her steps back toward the dining hall.

All she had to do was get rid of Reed and all this insanity would stop. Get rid of Reed, and everything would be all right.

THE
WRONG
GIRL

She must die … she must die … she must die …

Ariana followed twenty paces behind Reed on Tuesday as she made her way back from her second class of the day and toward her dorm. After calling in sick—so early she’d gotten the nurse’s voice mail—she’d snuck out of Privilege House, to her car, and through the gates. She’d arrived at Georgetown within half an hour, at exactly 5:30 a.m., just in time to see Reed walk out the front door of her dorm and take off on an hour-long jog. After that, she’d returned to her dorm and emerged two hours later, traipsing along the path in a camel coat with two of her healthy, fresh-faced friends at her sides. Now it was one o’clock, and Reed hadn’t once glanced over her shoulder, hadn’t looked around suspiciously, hadn’t suspected she was being watched. The girl had no instincts. No intuition. A major defect, as far as Ariana was concerned.

Reed used her key card and stepped inside the dorm. Ariana leaned back against the trunk of a nearby oak tree and whipped out the small notebook she’d purchased at the campus bookstore that morning while Reed was in class. In it were her meticulous notes.

5:30–6:32: Jogs around campus. Returns to dorm via dark alleyway (POSS) 8:30–8:34: Walks to dining hall

8:34–9:15: Breakfast with friends

9:15–9:20: Walks to English class, takes public route through quad (NG) 9:25–10:30: Endures most boring lecture on Shakespeare ever 10:30–10:37: Walks to gym, cuts through deserted parking lot (POSS) 10:45–11:30: Lifts weights (EW)

11:30–11:45: Showers and changes, not many people in gym at this hour (SHOWERS, POSS?) 11:45–11:55: Walks to biology class, another public route (NG)

12:00–12:43: Takes biology exam. Fifth student to finish

12:43–12:52: Walks to dorm, cuts behind the biology building, passing only one other student (POSS?)

Satisfied that her notes were concise and clear, Ariana tucked the notebook away and checked her phone. There was a text from Tahira.

STOPPED BY W/BAGEL. WHERE R U? PLAYING HOOKY? WANT CMPNY?

Ariana thought about texting back, but decided against it. She was planning on spending her entire day here at Georgetown. She had a lot of work to do. Tahira texted again.

WHERE R U?????

Ariana groaned and tucked her phone away. Maybe she’d tell Tahira she’d sat in movie theaters all day and turned off her phone.

e front door of the dorm popped open and Reed walked out, chatting on her cell. Instead of turning to the right, as she had done every other time that day, Reed walked up the path directly in front of her. e path that would lead her straight past Ariana’s tree. Heart in her throat, Ariana turned to the side and leaned her shoulder against the rough bark of the tree trunk. She whipped out a worn copy of
Catch-22
and held it up to her face, pretending to be engrossed.

“Are you kidding?” Reed said into the phone with a laugh. “My parents are
psyched
to spend New Year’s at the Cape. My mom doesn’t have to worry about making plans and my dad is all about skeet shooting with your father. He bought a vest and everything.”

Ariana bit down hard on her tongue. Bit down until she tasted blood. Reed was passing by just a few feet away. Mere inches. What she wouldn’t give to just reach out and grab her. Cover her mouth and pinch her nose closed. Drag her behind the tree and hold her down and press and press and press until she stopped struggling.

“Josh! Shut up! No, we are not sharing a room,” Reed screeched, laughing like a hyena.

A chill raced down the back of Ariana’s neck. Reed was talking to Josh Hollis? It made sense, she supposed. His parents did have a gorgeous, sprawling house at Cape Cod. But really. ose two were still together? How was that even possible? Josh was a good guy. Smart and kind and big-hearted. How had Reed managed not to irritate him to within an inch of his sanity by now?

“I know, I know,” Reed said. “I love you, too.”

She hung up the phone and kept walking toward the dining hall. As Ariana slipped away from her tree, she felt an odd pang of sympathy deep within her chest. Poor Josh. He’d be so sad when he found out Reed was dead.

But then, it was his own fault. There was always a price to pay for getting involved with the wrong girl.

BLAST
FROM
THE
PAST

As Ariana walked out of the Privilege House café, she popped the top off her vanilla latte and took a nice, long whiff of the sweet, comforting scent. Slowly, her shoulder muscles started to uncoil. It had been a long, cold day. She’d had a lot of success, of course—nailing down Reed’s schedule, getting some ideas as to where, when, and how the deed could be done—but by the time it was over, she felt frozen from the inside out. Now that she was back home, she deserved a little downtime.

Halfway across the common room to the lobby, Ariana caught a glimpse of April’s red curls inside the lounge. She was sitting on one of the couches with the TV tuned to the news, which seemed to be covering one of the charitable stories of the season—all fresh-faced kids and lovingly wrapped presents. Ariana smiled, seeing a perfect opportunity to nail down April’s currently iffy Stone and Grave vote. Apparently the downtime would have to be put off a bit.

But the moment she was through the door of the lounge, she stopped in her tracks. Seated on the couch in front of the second flat-screen TV were Palmer, Christian, Rob, and Landon, playing a raucous game of
Call of Duty
. The last thing she wanted was to be around Palmer, and she almost backed out again, but then he turned and saw her. His face was covered in day-old stubble and he wore a rumpled V-neck sweater, but was still annoyingly hot. He gave her a cursory, dismissive glance and returned his attention to the game. Ariana’s face burned. As much as she wanted to, she couldn’t leave now. She couldn’t let him have the satisfaction.

“Hi, April,” she said brightly, walking around the side of the couch. She plopped down next to the senior, disturbing the binder she had open across her lap and ruffling some papers. “Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t realize you were studying.”

“I’m not,” April replied, heaving a sigh. “I’m trying to organize all these submissions for the lit magazine.” She lifted a sheaf of papers in one hand. “Hasn’t anyone at this school ever heard of e-mail?”

Ariana smirked and took a sip of her latte. “Need help?”

“Yes, please, thank you,” April said in one breath. She handed a disorganized stack of submissions to Ariana. “I’m starting by sorting them into piles by format. This one’s poetry and that one’s fiction,” she said, pointing to two separate stacks placed on the couch at her sides.

Ariana put her coffee down on the glass coffee table, and noticed another pile of looseleaf and printer paper there. “What’s that?” she asked, as the guys on the other couch shouted over a huge explosion.

April rolled her eyes behind her tortoiseshell glasses. “Unknown format.” Ariana laughed. “I don’t even want to know.”

“And now, a breaking news story from our nation’s capital,” the newscaster on the television announced. Ariana and April both looked up, and Palmer glanced over from the opposite couch. “This afternoon, a grizzly discovery was made on the banks of the Potomac River as the body of a young woman washed up on shore.”