“Is that why you said you were four when you were really fourteen?”
His feet stop moving. Then, just as suddenly, they pick up again, spinning us around in quick steps. I can barely keep up.
“No one blames a four-year-old. But fourteen … they wonder why you didn’t see the signs. How could you not have known there was something wrong, especially since I’d been on her bipolar roller coaster my entire life? I should’ve known when she slipped into her dark place. It’s been eating me alive for years, and now … I’m hollowed out.”
I search the dark depths of his eyes, the same near-black shade as mine. “It’s not your fault.”
A ghost of a smile passes over his lips. “Neither is your grandmother’s death.”
I swallow hard.
“I chose to lie. And you created curses to explain away the evil. Because if it’s out of our control, something we’re cursed with, then it’s not really our fault. You chose not to tell the truth, so then you cursed yourself with Honesty, never to lie again.”
“I didn’t …” But I can’t finish the sentence. Because I’ve been lying to myself for years in the form of silence. Avoiding the truth doesn’t make it go away.
“We’re all cursed, Lana. We’re human.”
“Uh, can I cut in?”
Brendan and I break our intense connection to find Grant beside us. We’re not moving. I don’t know when we stopped dancing. We’ve been staring at each other, searching the other’s eyes for hints of the truth that transformed us into the broken souls we are.
“Yeah,” Brendan says, dropping his hands like I’m fire and striding to the mocktail bar.
“What was that about?” Grant asks, wrapping me in his arms.
I rest my head on the not-bloody side of his chest, breathing him in.
“Just comparing tragedies,” I say quietly.
“Oh.” Grant absorbs the gravity in a single utterance. “It looked serious. And a little dangerous with the way he was flinging you around the dance floor.”
I laugh lightly. Tilting my head up to take in his beautiful face, I tell the truth, “You’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me.”
Grant looks down at me, smiling affectionately. “I love you.” He bends and kisses me gently. “Hey, why are you crying?”
A fat tear rolls down my cheek. I shake my head, swiftly brushing it away with a forced smile. “Didn’t mean to. It’s been my go-to emotion lately. Part of my anger-management treatment.”
Speaking of, I catch sight of Parker and Mr. Garner out of the corner of my eye. “Um, I’m going to go say hi.”
Grant looks at who gained my attention and nods.
He leans down and says against my lips, “You’re the best thing that’s happened to me too.”
With a tender kiss that sets my heart alight with a thousand fireflies, we part. He walks back toward our friends. Ashton has her hands covering her heart, cooing like she’s watching a real-life fairytale, and Arden gives me a quick wink with a sly quirk of her mouth. The guys purposely look everywhere but at us.
I pass Lance, Kaely, Lily and Sawyer on my way to the corner of the lawn. They’re laughing and talking, walking in the direction of everyone else, never noticing me.
“Enjoying yourself?” Mr. Garner asks in his tailed tuxedo and top hat, both hands propped on a cane.
I almost don’t see who he’s meant to be until the spectacles balancing on his nose give it away. I laugh.
“Jiminy Cricket. How appropriate.”
He tips his hat at my acknowledgment.
“And you …” I eye Parker in his gallant attire with a bow strapped across his chest. “Isn’t King Richard more suitable than Robin Hood?”
“We’re not always who we appear to be. You should know that better than anyone.”
I raise my brows, surprised by the not-subtle message. “You’re right, Parker. I’ve been betrayed more times than I can count.”
His face softens. “Sorry. I didn’t mean …” He sighs. “I’m just on edge.”
“I get it,” I tell him. “But you are right. I thought I always had you figured out, but I really don’t know why you do what you do. Especially with the family you have, who loves and supports you. You put it at risk … for what? Money? Power? Control?”
“Accomplishment,” he says. “To know I can make my way without the name supporting me.” He leans in. “And, no, it hasn’t always been legal. But I’m working on that.”
Mr. Garner pretends to be scanning the crowd, taking his chaperoning duties seriously. But I know he’s listening.
“Having your family name isn’t a bad thing. They love you. You’re lucky to have them,” I tell him before turning to walk away, colliding with Brendan.
Brendan grabs my arm and pulls me to the side, his eyes frantically skating across the crowd, searching. “He’s here. And I know who his date is.” When I can only stare back, he continues, “Sophia.”
The mirror only reflects the truth. The person I despise will forever be myself.
Where is she?” I ask, panic coursing through me. “We have to find her.”
“I don’t have access to her bracelet,” he says, the same frantic tone in his voice. “I’ve tried. But it’s blocked.”
I close my eyes and press my lips together. “She’s the hacker.”
“What?”
“Sophia is the person who broke into your files. One of her parents does something with computers, and she’s just as talented, I guess.”
Brendan clenches his jaw. “You know where she’s from, don’t you?”
“Uh, Chicago?” I say, not understanding why this matters.
“Exactly. That’s where Thorne Industries is located, where Vic grew up. Her parent, whichever it is, probably works for Thorne Industries.”
I can only stare at him, dumbfounded. My head begins shaking back and forth, like if I deny it, it can’t be true.
Brendan jostles me, snapping me out of it. “What’s she dressed as?”
“A mermaid, a turquoise dress.”
We return to the table. Everyone immediately stops talking when they see our faces. Kaely and Lily wear mirroring confused expressions. But the others know. Even Sawyer, although I don’t know how much he’s figured out. Considering his family background, I’m sure it’s enough.
“Where?” Lincoln asks, scanning the crowd.
Brendan taps on the screen of his phone. “Not far.” He lifts his head and looks in the direction of the tables set within pumpkins.
“We need to find Sophia,” I tell Ashton. “He’s with her. We can’t let anything happen to her.”
Sophia’s drug-induced words from earlier in the night come back to me, but I can’t quite untangle them. In my gut, I know she didn’t want to do whatever he’d trapped her into doing. Even if it was just helping him gain access to the event.
I take Ashton’s hand, and we head toward an entrance into the Court.
“Lana, wait,” Grant calls to me, catching up. “Let me help you find her.”