Adrienne shrugs. “I’m not going to say it wasn’t scary, but they were just doing their job.”
My sister. Always ready to forgive and forget when someone does her wrong. Even when it’s the police trying to prove she murdered someone.
Clearly, whoever killed the professor does not have the same forgiving nature.
Adrienne leaves a brownie on a napkin on Gul’s desk, and follows me to the door. “For later,” she whispers.
Gul thanks her before turning back to me. “You’re going to keep looking into this, aren’t you? Since you’re dating Ricardo, and he has access to the security footage?”
I square my shoulders. “Yes, I am.”
Quieter, she asks, “Will you let me know if you find anything?”
I hesitate. She’s presented me with an opportunity. Do I take the self-preserving route, or the right one? “Sure, if you keep your mouth shut about Ricardo and me.” I’ll probably let her know what I find, even if she doesn’t agree, but she doesn’t need to know that. I’m not perfect, obviously.
Adrienne’s confused face turns toward mine. “What does she—”
“Nothing. Do we have a deal?”
Gul nods.
“I’ll let you know what I find out.”
Ricardo and Mikhail are waiting outside when we leave Gul’s room.
They fall into step with us back to my room.
Mikhail stops in the hallway, reverting to his stance against the wall.
Closing the door behind my sister, I fill Ricardo in on our conversation with Gul.
“It’s clear that the attack on Professor Rook wasn’t an isolated incident. Whoever killed him sent the footage to Gul to scare her. What I’m wondering is this: is the killer simply trying to keep Gul from talking? Or do they actually intend to kill her?”
Adrienne, who seemed so outwardly calm during our talk with Gul, has gone white. “This school is way scarier than my old one.”
Ricardo gives her a teasing smile. “Don’t worry, chouchou. Your bodyguard won’t let anything happen to you.”
Perking up, Adrienne glances toward the door. “I think I’ll go talk to him for a while.”
Ricardo makes a kissy face, and Adrienne flushes.
I giggle. My sister turns red faster than our dad when Mom asks him to pick up personal hygiene products at the store.
Once she’s gone, Ricardo saunters over to me and gives a saucy grin. “Want me to stay here with you tonight, to keep you safe?”
My eyes roll almost clear out of my head. “No, thank you. Plus, it’s against dorm rules.”
He plops down on my faux fur rug and gets comfortable, despite my rebuff. “Had to try. So, what’s our next move?”
“We go through the footage of that night again. All of it. Maybe we missed something.”
18
Of course, the one time I actually want to spend all night in the security office alone with Ricardo, one of the security guards decides to do a butt load of overtime before his pregnant wife pops out their first kid. It takes us a week to get access to the security footage again, and that’s only because said wife finally calls with the news that her water broke (gross), making Officer Bob run to his car in a panic, only remembering to call Ricardo down to the office as he speeds out of the parking gate.
I’m in my room studying, trying to block out Adrienne and Genevieve’s chatter about vintage clothing when my door cracks open.
I whirl around to glare at whoever has the gall to interrupt us, but when I spot Ricardo’s raised eyebrows, I fly out of my chair. “Are you heading downstairs?” I ask, sounding breathless with anticipation.
Adrienne and Genevieve’s heads swivel between us. Adrienne is practically beaming, and Genevieve is shaking her head, not unkindly. I’d be thrilled that my best friend is adjusting to my boyfriend if it wasn’t all a charade. I’m honestly a little scared to explain the whole deal to Adrienne. She’ll be crushed. And Genevieve? Yikes.
“Yep. Want to be alone with me, mon coeur?” Ricardo wiggles his eyebrows and I can’t help it. I laugh.
“You’re such a dork.”
“A sexy dork,” he shoots back, leaning on the doorframe. The hem of his shirt rides up just enough to give me a glimpse of taut brown skin over abs fit from running up and down a soccer field. I don’t think I’d go as far as sexy, but…
Wait. Where did that come from?
Adrienne starts giggling, which jars me out of staring at my fake boyfriend. Fake. Boyfriend. I can’t let myself forget that, despite how… diverting being in a pretend relationship has become.
“See you girls later,” I say as I push Ricardo out of my room, closing the door behind us. “You’re such a flirt. Don’t you ever stop?”
Ricardo’s eyes shine as he takes my hand, sliding his fingers between mine. “And miss your face when I say something suggestive in front of your friends? Never.”
“You’re impossible,” I rasp, biting my lip to prevent a smile from blooming on my face.
Ricardo chuckles as he lets me steer him down the staircase.
The security guard at the front door nods as we pass, and I smile back. I don’t envy his job of keeping all of us embassy brats safe all the time. We’re not always the most polite, low-key bunch. And despite the fact that he was probably expecting a cushy job with little real danger, it’s not turning out to be like that at all.
Ricardo updates me on Officer Bob’s quick getaway as we settle ourselves into the chairs in front of the surveillance desk. I don’t bother to keep space between us because Ricardo will pull my chair right up against his anyway. He has an almost non-existent personal space bubble and regularly situates himself well within my personal space. Usually when people do that it’s a strong repellant, but I don’t hate it when he does it. I must be getting used to having him around. Or something.
“Your sister is going to be crushed when we break up,” Ricardo says, locking eyes with me.
“Any suggestions?”
“We could just not.”
“Not break up? Who are you, and what have you done with Ricardo LaGuerre, Brat Academy lothario?”
“Kidding,” he says, but his smile isn’t completely genuine as he locks eyes with me. “Anyway, maybe we should kiss for a while in case anyone walks by.” He winks. Actually winks!
“Gross. No. Plus, we agreed, remember? No kissing.”
Ricardo’s voice dips as he leans toward me, eyes heavy-lidded. “You already broke that rule, mon coeur.”
My eyes narrow in my best impression of a scowl. “Stop calling me that. Our arrangement has nothing to do with your heart region.”
Putting a palm to his chest, he mock frowns. “You wound me, Charlotte.”
“You’re fine,” I shoot back. “And I don’t want to stage a break up yet, because all of our flitting about is starting to make Kenneth jealous. Oh, and your mom too, I’m guessing.”
It’s as if the energy in the room was just doused with cold water, smothering it instantly.
I open my mouth to continue, but Ricardo shakes his head.
“Let’s not talk about them right now.” He hunches forward and pulls up the footage we’re interested in. “Let’s just watch this, okay?”