Page 17 of Artifice (Pros and Cons Mysteries #4)

A s soon as Olive stepped back inside, Margaret found her at the door. Just as before, she didn’t appear happy that Olive had gone off script.

“I’ve been searching for you.” Her expression remained tight.

Olive paused near the door, feeling cornered by the woman. “I just needed to get some air.”

“If you could apprise me where you go, that would be advisable. We need to be aware of these things for the safety of our students. And you too, of course.”

“I understand. My apologies.”

Margaret looked her up and down with disdain.

That was when Olive realized she was dripping wet.

“I’ll ask Sadie to get you some towels,” Margaret said. “We don’t want you to track water through the building. Could be a slipping hazard.”

“Of course.”

Margaret grabbed her radio and talked to Sadie.

Then she turned back to Olive, clearly still annoyed. “She’ll be here in a moment.”

“Perfect.”

Margaret shifted and raised her chin again as they waited near the door. “We were able to look at the security footage to see who locked you in the Quiet Room. Now that student would like to apologize to you. He’s waiting in my office.”

“Okay then.” Olive could still remember the sound of the student’s laughter after he locked the door. “How did the student even get the key to trap me inside? Because I noticed that’s the only way it can be locked.”

Director Ingraham’s face darkened. “This student has been a real troublemaker, and that means a lot considering the caliber of student we have here. He’s constantly a problem.”

“So I assume he’s had to be placed in the Quiet Room before?”

Her expression remained terse. “You assume correctly.”

Sadie appeared with a towel just then, and Olive dried herself off.

Then they began walking toward Margaret’s office.

“Tell me about Ethan,” Olive said as they walked.

Margaret’s eyes flickered with surprise. “Ethan?”

“I met him outside.”

Her cheek twitched. “Ethan comes from a rough background. He’s been here about three months now, and we’re working on making him into the best version of himself he can be.”

“I see.” She wasn’t sure what it was about Ethan that kept the student at the forefront of her mind.

Maybe it was the fact that he reminded her in some obscure way of her own father.

Why was that?

Maybe it was his looks. The two had the same basic facial structure. The same boldness.

She couldn’t put her finger on it exactly.

But the thoughts caused a fresh round of grief to press on her.

She and Margaret paused outside her office door, and Olive braced herself to meet the student who’d locked her in the Quiet Room.

As soon as Olive walked into the office and saw the boy sitting on the other side of the desk, her heart quickened.

It was Abe Garcia, Colin’s friend.

He’d been the one to lock her in that room?

Olive wasn’t sure how she felt about that.

She observed him. He was fifteen and of Latino heritage. His dark hair had been buzzed, and his eyes appeared hollow. Plus, he was remarkably thin, like he didn’t get enough to eat.

“Abe.” Director Ingraham peered down her nose at him. “What do you have to say for yourself?”

The boy glanced up, his gaze heavy. “I’m sorry for what I did.”

“I think you can do better than that.” Her voice sharpened with reprimand.

Abe shifted, looking as if he hated every moment of this. “I shouldn’t have let my impulses get the best of me. I thought it would be funny to lock you in the room, but now I realize that it wasn’t humorous. I’ve learned my lesson, and I won’t be repeating my bad behavior.”

Just as during her interviews earlier, the lines sounded so rehearsed.

Even though she didn’t want to feel sorry for Abe, she did.

“I accept your apology.” Olive turned to Director Ingraham. “Would you mind if I had a moment alone with him?”

Surprise flickered through her gaze. “Is that necessary?”

“I just want to talk to him one-on-one.”

Margaret looked as if she were trying to think of any excuse to say no.

Finally, she nodded. “I suppose that’s okay. But only five minutes, and then he needs to get back to his class.”

“Understood.”

She waited until the director closed the door.

When Margaret was gone, Olive went to sit beside Abe. She turned to him and lowered her voice. “That wasn’t nice what you did earlier.”

“I said I’m sorry.” A touch of insolence filled his voice. “What else do you want me to do?”

Olive studied his face, the defiant lines across his forehead and around his eyes. “How long have you been at Lighthouse Harbor, Abe?”

He offered a half shrug. “I don’t know. Five months or so.”

“And how much longer do you have?”

“Don’t know that either. Don’t think my parents are in a hurry for me to get back home and cause them more headaches.”

Olive’s heart pounded harder. She could only imagine how hard it would be to feel unwanted by your parents. Despite her father’s deception, Olive had always known her parents loved her.

She shifted. “Do you have any friends here?”

Surprise registered in his gaze. “Why do you want to know that?”

Olive shrugged, determined not to scare him by being too forthright in her questions. “I’m curious what it’s like for students here.”

She needed to play her cards carefully. She wanted to reveal that she knew Colin and that she was here looking for him. But she also didn’t want to blow her cover.

She needed to feel this situation out first.

“I didn’t come here to make any friends.” The defensive edge returned to his voice.

“You weren’t even friends with Colin Andrews?”

Abe’s eyes widened, and suddenly Olive had his full attention. “How do you know about Colin?”

“I know he disappeared.”

Abe studied her as if unsure if she was trustworthy or not. “They say he ran away.”

“That’s what administrators seem to think.” Her heart pounded in her ears. “But what do you think?”

“I think it’s all messed up.” He scowled. “That’s what I think. And I think if I’m not careful, I’m going to disappear too.”