Destined (2 page)

She’d been watching him closely for several days, too. He was quiet and seemed
actually to
like
being in school. He blogged about astronomy and grinned nervously when he was embarrassed. Corinthe felt a vague sense of kinship with him; she could tell he was someone accustomed to flying under the radar.

Just like her.

She’d read on his blog that Mercury was at its brightest tonight and that he planned to head down to the beach around midnight to view it. She reached into her pocket to check the time, but the emerald ring snagged on the fabric of her romper. She freed the gold setting from the thread, careful not to damage it.

It had been easy enough to steal the ring from Kaitlin Nelson’s locker during PE yesterday. Corinthe had timed it perfectly, hanging back after everyone had left. When she’d broken into the locker for the emerald ring, she’d found another pleasant surprise: a strip of four photos, the kind taken in a photo booth at a fair, of Kaitlin and Nate kissing.

This piece of evidence would make her job much easier tonight. Plus, she deserved a lucky break.

She knew it was human to feel guilty for stealing, but she couldn’t worry about that. Fate restored the balance of the universe, and sometimes that meant her tasks required a blend of deceptions, a certain ruthlessness. It was all in the service of a greater good.

Corinthe stepped onto the patio and pressed through the crowd toward Nate and Ava, who were deep in discussion. She leaned against a tall wooden railing by the bar, just a few feet away from them, then pulled out her phone and pretended to text someone. She watched as Ava fidgeted with her braid. Corinthe imagined the girl underwater, her hair fanning out around her face as she sank into the ocean. She had seen the image in a cloudy marble, one of many she’d collected from the lagoon in Pyralis and left at home for safekeeping. This particular marble told of tonight’s fate, and when Corinthe stared into it she felt Ava’s panic, her hopelessness as she struggled against the riptide.

“Nate, I’m not feeling so well.” Corinthe heard Ava’s soft words as she held on to the
tall boy’s arm. “That sushi I ate earlier is sitting kind of funny.”

“I told you not to eat that stuff. Relax, okay? I’ll get you something to drink.”

Ava shook her head, swaying on her feet. She reached out to steady herself. “Can you take me home soon?”

No, Corinthe thought. She can’t leave.

“Leave your own party? Not yet, okay?” It was as if Nate had read Corinthe’s mind. “It’s not even midnight. Go sit down by the pool. Or find Jared. I’ll be back in a minute.”

It was her birthday, yet Nate didn’t care what Ava wanted. Corinthe was glad for the boy’s selfishness; it served her well. But as he walked away, she saw an expression on Ava’s face she couldn’t quite identify. Annoyance? Anger?

Sadness, she realized. The feeling tugged at something unfamiliar in Corinthe’s chest. She had the strangest urge to comfort the girl, but she had no idea how—or why she wanted to. Her guardian had never taught her that skill.

Corinthe shook her head and exhaled slowly. She pocketed her phone and shifted her weight, propping an elbow on the railing behind her. There was no need to concern herself with such things. She had to plant the evidence, and there was still the issue of the string.…

Focus, Corinthe.

The key to execution was the ability to prioritize. Follow one thread and finish one task,
then
move on to the next.

With a deep, clearing breath, she decided to start with Nate. She moved off the railing and followed him as he made his way over to stand in line for a turn at the keg. The floor was sticky from spilled drinks, and she had to gently peel her shoes off the ground with every step. The line was right next to a picnic table with stacks of red cups and bottles of hard alcohol that sat open and half empty—but there was nothing she could use. A short girl with jagged-cut bangs and jet-black hair stood surveying the table, then settled on making herself a Jack and Coke. Her name was Tiffany Farre, and she was a senior going to Fashion Institute of
Design and Merchandising in the fall. She wore a long gold chain around her neck that Corinthe couldn’t keep her eyes off. Tiffany finished pouring her drink and turned to walk away, but Corinthe cut her off and pretended to fall forward, grabbing Tiffany’s gold chain and ripping it as she went down. The Jack and Coke went flying and Tiffany fell backward, screaming in pain, or shock.

Corinthe had planned to fall on the ground, then slip the chain into her pocket when she hit the floor.

But nothing was going as planned tonight.

Instead, she fell into Nate. He held his cup out to the side in a protective gesture.

“Oh,
hi
,” she said, still clutching the necklace. She tilted her head up and smiled at him. She had to play it cool. Corinthe had watched the girls at school and learned that this worked to divert a guy’s attention.

He smiled back and helped her up before she could pocket the chain. Tiffany stuck her face in Corinthe’s and grabbed for the gold necklace.

“Excuse
you
,” Tiffany said as she snatched the chain away. She closed a fist around it, smoothing the front of her red satin shirt with her free hand.

“I—I’m sorry,” Corinthe stammered as Tiffany walked away. And she
was
sorry—not about Tiffany, but about bungling another opportunity to get a chain. She glanced at Nate and gave him a practiced smile. “Oh, hi, Nate.”

“Don’t worry about her.” Nate took a sip of his beer and peered at her over his cup, his brown eyes glossy and unfocused. “So how come you know my name but I don’t know yours?”

“Because I’m friends with Ava. She asked me to get your jacket … she isn’t feeling too well.”

Annoyance flashed across his face. “Shit, I was hoping it wasn’t that bad. I should probably go back and check on her.”

A shock jolted through Corinthe.
Something
had to go right tonight; she had to take control of the situation before it was too late. She couldn’t bear to think what would happen if she failed; the consequences were too great. Corinthe
always
executed her fates. It was something she prided herself on. She thought of the mechanic in Oakland … another task where everything had gone wrong. The BART had been delayed, and by the time she’d arrived, the auto body shop had closed. But the mechanic was still there, working late. She couldn’t see his face, only his oil-stained jumpsuit and his legs sticking out from under a car. Corinthe had crept silently into the open garage and, without hesitating, kicked the jack supporting the car.

The mechanic hadn’t died; he’d only been badly injured. Either way, it wasn’t her place to care. She only needed to ensure the course of fate.

“It’s probably fine if
I
take it,” she responded, trying to keep her voice normal. “Besides …” Corinthe stepped closer, laid her hand on Nate’s arm, and looked up at him with a suggestive smile. Those little moves she had learned held so much power. “You might miss all the fun
here
.”

Nate’s demeanor changed. His grin was unsettling. One side of his mouth turned up; he looked like an animal baring its teeth. His eyes moved down over her body, then back up to rest on her face.

“True,” he said.

Corinthe ran her thumb back and forth over his forearm. It was time to get things back on track. This had to work. “How about I bring your jacket back to Ava right now, and then maybe we’ll see each other later?”

“Sure,” he said with a sly smile.

From the corner of her eye, Corinthe saw Kaitlin Nelson coming toward them across the patio. She didn’t look happy at all. Her darkly painted lips were pursed, and she was yanking the hem of her slinky tank top around the waist of her jeans. Kaitlin was everything
Ava was not—petite, blond, prone to breaking into loud peals of laughter. Corinthe watched as she stopped at the bar and poured a long shot of vodka into a red plastic cup. She tipped the cup back into her mouth and shook her head in disgust, then poured herself another as she glanced in Corinthe’s direction. When Corinthe made eye contact, Kaitlin frowned and looked away quickly.

Kaitlin looked miserable. Did she care about Nate, or Ava? Corinthe wondered why humans were so emotional, why they acted the way they did. She valued having control over her feelings above all else—control, she had learned, was essential to her existence.

Only when Nate had finally shrugged out of his jacket and handed it to her did she exhale. The jacket was still warm from his body heat and the flannel lining felt soft, but it was heavily doused with cologne. It smelled fake—the musky scent was too overwhelming, too intense. She checked his pockets, hoping to find a string or shoelace, but they were empty. The search would have to wait anyway; the next part of the plan involved Ava, and Corinthe needed to ensure that it went off without any more glitches.

As she moved through the crowd of people dancing, she slipped the ring and photos into one of the jacket pockets. She made her way to Ava, who was sitting on a raised brick step at the edge of the Jacuzzi. Her dress was pulled up to her knees and she was dangling her feet in the water.

“Ava, right?” Corinthe asked after composing herself. When the girl looked up and nodded, Corinthe held out Nate’s jacket. “Your boyfriend wanted me to give this to you. He said you looked cold.”

The girl’s eyebrows rose in surprise, and she smiled. She took the jacket and draped it around her shoulders. “Thanks.”

“Do you mind if I sit down?” Corinthe asked.

“Not at all,” Ava said. She motioned to a spot on the brick edge. Corinthe sat, then removed her flats and dipped her feet in the water. Despite her nerves, the water was calming.
Ava gently moved her feet back and forth, and for a second Corinthe shuddered—all she could see was the girl kicking and flailing, gulping in salt water as she desperately gasped for air.

“So, are you feeling okay?” Corinthe asked, shaking the image from her head.

Ava shrugged. “I was feeling nauseous earlier, and the alcohol definitely didn’t help. Plus, I’m just not a big drinker, I guess,” she said with a laugh. “How about you? Are
you
okay?”

It occurred to Corinthe that she must look out of place, too. There was no drink in her hand and no smile plastered across her face—not like all the other girls in the pool or on the dance floor. Corinthe sized them up, trying to figure out which necklaces could be ripped off more easily than others. This would come together. She would still execute. She’d faced far more difficult challenges.

“Yeah,” Corinthe said. “I guess I’m not much of a drinker, either. It always makes me a little sick. I hate the way it makes me feel different, more …”

“Immature?” Ava said, finishing Corinthe’s thought. Her gaze moved to where Nate stood, surrounded by his buddies at the keg. They were whooping and cheering and gulping down cups full of beer.

Corinthe caught site of Owen again, cutting through the crowd on the patio, just beyond Nate and his crew. She saw him glance up at the sky and quickly checked her phone. It was 11:50. This was when her plan became a delicate dance; it was imperative to make the right moves.

“Ten minutes till your birthday is over,” Corinthe said. “It was really sweet of Jared to throw you a party.”

“Yeah. He and I practically grew up together,” Ava said. “His parents and my parents are friends, so we spent a lot of summers here. When I was younger, my mom and I would stand at the end of the pier right there for hours. We always waited until it got dark enough
for the stars to appear.” A blush spread across her cheeks when she saw Corinthe watching her. She untied the long silk ribbon that held her braid and began undoing her dark hair. It fell in waves, and she ran her fingers through it. Corinthe noted how Ava placed the ribbon on the brick between them.

“Now I go there when I need some peace,” Ava continued. “It’s like this special place where things are totally clear. And I feel … safe.”

Corinthe felt a twinge of regret. Tonight’s outcome would only happen because she’d played on Ava’s weaknesses. She was going to drive Ava so crazy she’d flee to the one place she felt safe—but what was waiting for her there? And why did Corinthe even care how Ava
felt
? If she realized her true fate, the universe would remain in balance. And what was more important than that?

“You transferred into my chem class,” Ava said. “Are you new?”

“Yeah. I just started at Franklin last week and don’t really know many people yet. Owen Miller invited me tonight.” The lie slid easily from her lips. “Do you know him?”

Something in Ava’s eyes changed and her gaze slipped from Corinthe’s. “He’s my neighbor. We’re friends.… Well, we used to be friends, I guess.”

“What happened?” Corinthe asked before she could stop herself. Did she genuinely care? She should be concerned about the ribbon, now inches away from her hand. When the girl shifted and looked away, Corinthe quickly grabbed it and slipped it into her pocket. “I mean, sorry. I shouldn’t have asked. You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want.”

“It’s okay. We just … we sort of grew up together. Best friends, practically. But then things got weird when we started high school. People grow apart, right? It happens all the time.” Ava’s gaze moved over the crowd and stopped on Owen, who was glancing at his watch.

Corinthe wanted to press Ava further but stopped herself. Her curiosity had always gotten her into trouble. She couldn’t complicate things any more, and she couldn’t afford
another slipup. Not after she’d nearly gotten everything in place.

The task at hand was the only thing that mattered.

As if on cue, Owen disappeared around the side of the house—presumably to grab his telescope. Corinthe stood and scooped up her flats.

She had to move
now
. It was time for the ring to perform its role in the scene.
Feel inside your pockets
, Corinthe willed. But Ava was staring at her reflection in the pool, apparently lost in her memories.

“It was really good to meet you, but I gotta get going. Hope you feel better,” Corinthe said. “Oh, and I almost forgot! Nate said to check his pocket … I guess there’s a birthday surprise or something?” It sounded a bit forced, but it was the best she could do in a rush.