Page 77 of Good Girls Lie

My danger trigger is on fire. I have to get out of here. Now.

“I’m not sure I want to do this, Becca. I don’t know. I’ve had a very long night. I need some sleep.”

The words linger between us for a moment. They can’t be taken back. And I know I’ve made a terrible mistake.

“Becca—”

Becca holds up a hand. She is brisk, businesslike. Her face betrays no more emotion. She’s become the Mistress again. Retreated behind her perfect veneer. There is no more softness, no more vulnerability. She is hard, implacable, like diamonds. The switch is fast and unnerving.

“I understand. Forgive me for being so forward. I see how you watch me. Everywhere I go, you’re just offstage, watching. I thought you were interested. I thought you wanted to be with me. But if you don’t, that’s fine. Completely fine. There is a set of stairs to the sophomores’ hall right outside my door. Go to bed, Swallow. Report at 7:00 a.m.”

I’m frozen to the spot. I have wounded her. The one person who’s been accepting of me, kind, even if her attentions have been slightly twisted. She brought me into the fold and I’ve rejected the offerings.

“Go,” she says.

Miserable and oddly relieved, I comply without another word. Out the door, into the stairwell, down, down, down. Every tread, her name rings in my head.

Becca. Becca. Becca.

Flashes of her face, the kiss, the way she stood up for me with the cop. The shirt, soft and worn, with the bird on it. A gift.You looked pretty in my shirt.

Becca more than likes me. That’s why she has been so nice. These past few weeks have been a seduction.

Flattering. Interesting.

But there is something else Becca said that makes me stop cold, my hand on the knob.

It’s going to be so much easier now that we both have singles.

It’s like she planned this from the very beginning.

46

THE ABSOLUTION

The night is no longer so dark when I get back onto the hall. I shouldn’t be surprised to see Vanessa and Piper waiting for me, but I am. Vanessa’s lovely face is wrecked from crying, her nose and eyes swollen and red. Piper looks upset but in control. When they see me emerge from the stairwell, the two of them move, uninvited, to my side.

There is crime scene tape across my door, but no cops stand guard. I rip it down and enter. They follow me in, close the door behind them.

“Where have you been? We...we were worried.” Vanessa’s voice breaks, and I have to fight the urge to say,Stop putting me on.

“You weren’t worried about me.”

“Yes, we were,” Piper says. “Vanessa?”

Vanessa is wringing her hands. “Ash, I need to apologize. I’ve handled everything so terribly. If I had any idea how today would end up, I wouldn’t have been so mean to you. I wouldn’t have gone along with Camille. Your parents... I’m sorry. For everything. I was a total bitch.”

“Ditto,” Piper says.

“If you’re trying to get me to talk, I don’t know what happened,” I say, collapsing on the sofa. “Being nice now won’t change anything. She’ll still be dead, and I’ll still not know anything about why. And what do you mean, gone along with Camille?”

Piper blurts the truth. “She’s been spying on you for weeks now. She watched you input your computer password, memorized it, and used it to get into your system. She found the article about your father.”

Now they have my full attention. “What? Camille? She’s been in my computer?”

“She’s been in everything. After she saw the report, her father did a background check. That’s how she found out your real name.”

I close my eyes, trying to rein in the panic.You underestimate people, you always have. It’s your biggest weakness, assuming people don’t lie as well as you.And then,This is fine. Everything is backstopped. You are fine, if they knew anything, you wouldn’t be having this conversation.