Privilege 3 - Perfect Mistake (12 page)

"I'll get you something of Allison's," Brigit said confidently.

"Thanks, Brigit," Ariana said, nudging her in a friendly way. "I knew I could count on you."

Brigit smiled happily. "Oh, hey. There's Lillian!" she said, waving Kaitlynn down.

Ariana scowled as her roommate approached. She hadn't seen Kaitlynn since she'd woken up to the girl's surprise gift that morning.

"Hey, ladies," Kaitlynn greeted them. "Brigit, I love that necklace," she said. "Where'd you get it?"

Suck--up, Ariana thought.

"Thanks. It's a family heirloom," Brigit said, fingering the gold, diamonds, and aquamarines at her throat.

"So pretty," Kaitlynn replied. Then she looked at Ariana, her eyes dancing. "Nice haircut, A," she said. "I heard a few people got their hair chopped. Bizarre, huh?"

"Yeah. Bizarre," Ariana replied flatly. "You're so lucky they didn't get you."

"Y eah. I guess so," Kaitlynn tilted her head to the side, pretending to study the cut. "Maybe I can help you shape it later. I know a little something about short hair." She tossed her head to punctuate her point.

"Gee. Thanks. I bet you're good with scissors," Ariana replied.

"Oh, I am," Kaitlynn said. "Well, see you guys later. I just found

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out I placed into honors Spanish, so I have to get to the bookstore before lunch."

She twiddled her fingers and practically pranced away.

"See? That was sweet of her. She's making an effort," Brigit said.

Ariana clenched her teeth. "Yeah. Really sweet."

Sweet enough to make a girl barf.

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THE SETUP

"Looks like you were right about your roommate," Soomie said as she and Ariana took their seats in the dining hall that day at lunch. Ariana followed her gaze and saw Kaitlynn settling into a chair at Tahira's table, laughing over something Zuri was saying. Ariana bit her tongue. Kaitlynn was no idiot. Psychotic, yes, but not an idiot. So what the hell was she doing with Tahira? If she wanted to be invited to the NoBash, she should have been sucking up to Brigit like she had earlier and avoiding Tahira like the latest strain of exotic flu. Or had it escaped her attention that there was a Princess War going on at Atherton--Pryce?

"Girl has no taste," Maria said under her breath, joining them.

"She's just trying to make friends," Ariana said, the words tasting like sawdust on her tongue. But if she was going to secure an invite to the NoBash for Kaitlynn, she had to talk her up.

Lexa strolled through the back entrance to the dining hall, her

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head bent in conversation with a petite girl with kinky red hair and glasses. Ariana had seen her around Wolcott Hall but had never met her. She was pretty in an unassuming way and wore no accessories other than an ancient, man's watch.

"Who's that with Lexa?" Ariana asked as the waiter approached their table.

"That would be April Corrigan," Soomie replied. "Resume as follows: senior, first in her class for three straight years; president of APH's Amnesty International club, the APH Beautification Society, and the National Honor Society; editor of the Weekly Report, editor of The Ash, and captain of the women's lacrosse team."

"Wow. That's a serious overachiever," Ariana said, duly impressed.

The Weekly Report was the online student newspaper, and The Ash was the literary magazine, which published four times a year and had been the first publication to carry the work of at least half a dozen Nobel Laureates and national poetry award winners. She hoped to join the staff of The Ash herself, when they first met early next week. She hadn't written anything in a long time--not since Dr. Meloni had maligned her work in their sessions--but that didn't mean she couldn't critique other people's work.

"Maybe. Or maybe she's just unfocused," Soomie groused.

"Girl like that has no idea what she wants to do with her life," Maria agreed, sliding into her chair. "Unlike our little Maria here, who wants to save the world with her powers of dance," Landon Jacobs put in, giving Maria a cheek pinch as he joined them.

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"Says the boy who wants to save it through the power of pop," Maria said acerbically, barely making eye contact with her secret boyfriend.

"Hi, Landon!" Soomie said, sitting across from him.

Adam and Brigit walked in together and sat next to Soomie, so wrapped up in conversation they didn't even bother to greet anyone. Lexa split off from April and joined them just as the waiter arrived.

"What's up with April?" Soomie asked. "Starting another new club?"

"No, nothing like that," Lexa said with a brief smile.

Ariana saw Lexa, Maria, and Soomie exchange a quick glance. A casual observer wouldn't have caught it, but Ariana did, and her blood sizzled. Did April have something to do with Stone and Grave? Maybe she and Lexa were working together to figure out who had executed the prank that morning. Ariana wondered what they would do if they found Kaitlynn out. Disqualify her, probably. Could Ariana find a way to turn her in without Kaitlynn knowing?

Tor a moment, she felt the exhilaration of a new plan forming. But then reality set in. If Kaitlynn didn't get into Stone and Grave, Ariana would be the one to pay.

"What can I get everyone today?" the waiter asked, pencil at the ready.

Ariana ordered the turkey burger, seasoned fries, and a side salad. All this plotting and planning was making her hungry. Her friends quickly placed their orders as well and handed over their menus. The waiter was just about to step away from their table, from which Palmer

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was again absent, when Conrad Royce strode up and filled the vacant chair with his athletic bulk.

"Hey," he said to Ariana with a smile.

Ariana glanced at Lexa, who appeared bemused, then smiled at Conrad. "Hi. Glad you can join us. You know everyone, right?"

"Of course," Conrad said, dropping his burlap bag on the floor next to his chair. He leaned across the table to slap hands with Landon. "How's it going, bro? Heard you left a trail of broken hearts across Europe this summer. "

Maria blushed and looked down at her iPod, letting her hair hide her face. Had Landon really cheated on her, or was this just celebrity gossip?

Landon meanwhile, smiled, tossing his bangs back from his face. "You know how it is, man."

Conrad laughed. "Unfortunately, I don't." He shrugged out of his blue blazer and settled in. "Hey, Lexa," he said with a smile. "Saw you running the trail this morning. New kicks?"

Lexa smiled. "Yeah. This year's Asics line is so lightweight. Have you tried them?"

"Not yet, but if you think it's worth it, I will," he said with a smile.

Lexa blushed slightly and ran her hand under her hair at the nape of her neck, fluffing it out slightly. Ariana exchanged a triumphant look with her friends. She had chosen wisely.

The door to the dining hall opened and in walked Palmer. Ariana was surprised to see him, since he'd been spending all his meal hours

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in the Hill since he and Lexa had broken up. Was it just a coincidence that he'd chosen today to show up in the dining hall, or was he here to see whom Ariana had set Lexa up with? Apparently it was going to take a little bit more than random meetings in theaters and bathrooms to help Palmer forget his ex entirely.

Palmer was just turning his steps toward their table when he noticed that it was full--that Conrad was the guy who had taken his place. He hesitated a moment, then turned quickly and joined his friends from the crew team a few tables over.

"What can I get you, Mr. Royce?" the waiter asked.

Conrad placed his order and Ariana sat back in her chair. On her side of the table, Brigit and Adam flirted shamelessly, while across from her Lexa kept sliding glances at their handsome newcomer. Now if only she could find someone other than Landon for Soomie, maybe they could all be happily paired off before the NoBash.

Ariana looked over at Palmer to see how he was faring, seeing Lexa with another guy. Palmer looked right into her eyes, smiled broadly, and flashed her a discreet thumbs--up. Ariana's heart tingled with delight. So he wasn't jealous. He had just wanted to make sure Ariana had picked the right guy for Lexa. And apparently, he agreed that she had. Ariana couldn't have stopped grinning if she'd tried.

Yes, very soon they would all be happily paired up.

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ACTION

Friday morning, Ariana awoke to find another pink jewelry box at her bedside, this one the perfect size for a ring. Her stomach filled with acidic dread. What had Kaitlynn done now?

Quaking from head to foot, Ariana got up and inspected her hair in the mirror. It looked the same. Badly cut, slightly matted from sleep. The same. She turned and stared at the jewelry box.

Don't open it. Don't play into her game. Ignore it.

She started for the bathroom, but just couldn't do it. The curiosity was too much. Cursing under her breath at her own weakness, she walked over and pried open the box. The contents tumbled out onto the floor, tiny little crescent moons, bouncing off in various directions. A lump formed in Ariana's throat as she realized she was looking at fingernails. Perfect clippings of fingernails. She turned her hands over. Her expert manicure was gone.

As her vision clouded, Ariana stumbled back and sat on her bed.

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The box dropped, and out popped another folded slip of paper. Ariana could only imagine that it was another calendar--another countdown. Eight days left. She put her head between her knees and breathed.

In, one. . . two. . . three. . .

Out, one. . . two. . . three. . .

In, one. . . two. . . three. . .

Out, one. . . two. . . three. . .

How had she done it? How had she managed to lift Arianas hands and cut her nails without waking her up? Arianas stomach heaved.

She jumped up, dropping the box, and ran for the bathroom. As she retched over the toilet bowl, one thought kept repeating itself in her mind.

She's going to kill me. First she's torturing me, and then she's going to kill me.

Finally, Ariana lifted her head. She reached one shaking hand for the handle and flushed. Her butt on the cold ceramic floor, she drew the back of her hand across her mouth and hugged her knees to her chest.

Out in the hallway, Brigit shouted, then Tahira screamed, and Ariana knew that I Caitlynn had hit the others again, just for good measure. But little did they know that all of this was for Arianas benefit. All of it engineered to remind her just how crazy and capable Kaitlynn was.

This week had gotten away from her what with class and the Allison plan and the Lexa and Conrad thing and everything else. But she couldn't put off safeguarding herself any longer.

It was time to take action.

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INSURANCE

That morning, Ariana did the unthinkable: She skipped English class. As her cab pulled up to the covered front doorway of Wolcott Hall, she felt as if she was being watched. As if at any moment Headmaster Jansen was going to jump out from behind a potted plant and slap her with some kind of demerit. But it wasn't her fault. Circumstances were forcing her to break the rules. Right then, Kaitlynn was sequestered somewhere, taking her final placement test of the week, and it was the only time Ariana could be sure that the girl would not be able to follow her.

She got into the back of the cab, swallowed back her guilt--induced nausea, and gave the driver the address she'd printed off the Internet.

You're skippingfor a reason, she told herself. A very important reason. It's just one class and you can always get the notes from someone.

From Conrad.

Her skin tingled as the idea occurred to her. It was perfect, actually

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She could use her transgression as an excuse for throwing Conrad and Lexa together again. She might have been committing a crime against academia, but at least she could make something good come out of it. The thought comforted her, eased her racing pulse, and she sat back against the vinyl seat, feeling much more relaxed.

Twenty minutes later, the cab pulled up in front of stately white columns of the First American Bank. Ariana paid the driver, got out of the car, and walked purposefully up the stone stairs. The guard at the door eyed her disinterestedly as she strolled past the tellers and right up to the information desk. The elderly gentleman behind the counter looked up at her and smiled. His teeth were yellow, but his white hair was perfectly coiffed and his brown eyes alert. His burgundy wing tips, Ariana noted, were freshly buffed, and his gold name tag read Bernard.

"Can I help you?"

"Y I'd like to rent a safety--deposit box," Ariana said confidently. Sometimes older men saw a teenage girl and refused to take her seriously.

es. Ariana found that an authoritative tone could often preclude a lot of patronizing talk.

"I can assist you with that," he said. He opened a slim drawer and pulled out a white card. "Y need to fill this out and sign at the bottom, and

ou'll then I'll just need to see an ID."

Ariana quickly filled out the card with all her information and signed Briana Leigh's name at the bottom. She placed the pen down and removed her Texas driver's license from her wallet. Bernard slipped the card from the counter to inspect it and held the license up against the signature. Ariana snapped her bag closed and waited.

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And waited. And waited. The man stared at the signatures, looked up at Ariana's face, narrowed his eyes. Ariana's heart started to pound.

She told herself to relax. The man was just doing his job, that was all. It was Ariana in the picture. Ariana's Briana Leigh signature on both documents. There was no reason for him to suspect anything.

Then Bernard reached for the phone on his desk. Ariana stopped breathing. He was calling security. Ariana surreptitiously looked over her shoulder at the door, wondering how fast the security guard could possibly be. Wondering if she was faster.

Bernard picked up his glasses, which were resting on the counter next to the phone, and slipped them on.

"I apologize," he said with a chuckle. "I keep telling myself I don't need them, but obviously I do."