“You were?”
“Yeah. But anyway, go on. What did she say?”
“Lots of stuff about marriage, and kids, and…” She pauses. “Maidens.”
“Maidens.” I repeat the word to buy myself some time.
“I’m like… your fucking handmaid, Cooper. It’s pretty creepy.”
“Yeah. It is.”
“You don’t sound too surprised. So you knew about this?”
“I’ve heard rumors. But that you were mine? No. I didn’t know that until this afternoon when my father told me.”
“That’s because I wasn’t. I was Dane’s Maiden.”
“Yeah. He mentioned that too.”
“OK. I know we’ve all come to this unspoken agreement that my mother was actually the one who killed Dane, but… do you believe it?”
I shake my head. “Not for a second.”
“So why is your father looking out for me?”
“I don’t know, Cades. I swear. If I did, I’d tell you.”
“Well.” She leans in to me a little. “I’m not going to dwell on any of this. I love this night. And even though Elexa was my attendant today and she is a total fucking bitch, I didn’t mind the bath with Isabella.”
“Whoa, whoa, whoa. You took a bath with Isabella?” I have to allow myself a few seconds of fantasy over this revelation.
“No. Not together.” She half-heartedly slaps my shoulder. “Side by side tubs. And everyone was naked. That was fucking weird. But then I found out that Sophie will be Elexa’s Maiden when they graduate, I guess.” She pauses to look at me. “Are we still playing Dante’s game?”
“I dunno, Cadee. It doesn’t seem likely, does it?”
“Then… what should we do? Come up with a new one? Talk to them? I’m going to throw a dinner party for Thanksgiving. Not Thanksgiving Day, but the day after. At the inn. That’s a good idea, right? Invite them all over for a party and then we’ll sort it all out. Because I’m starting to get really confused.”
“Starting to?” I laugh.
“Right?” She smiles back at me.
“Sure, Cadee. I think that’s a good plan. A dinner party at the inn sounds almost as nice as this.” Then I pause to frown. “Are you worried about the tomb tonight?”
Cadee sighs up at me, her face beaming with happiness. “Nah. This night is all about us. And I don’t even care what happens at the tomb. I feel like a… I don’t know. A reporter. I’m there to gather facts. See what it’s all about. That’s all.”
“It might get weird,” I caution her.
“Might?” She laughs. “Cooper, this whole place is weird. It’s always been weird. I just didn’t realize it because I grew up here and have never been any farther than Poplar Lake. I’m the frog in the pot of water. At first, it’s cold. And the frog has no idea that the heat has been turned up. I never noticed the weird shit that was all around me.”
“I don’t like that analogy,” I say. “You do realize the frog dies at the end?”
She giggles. “Yup. I do get that. But what can we do? We decided we were not going to run.”
“No, we’re not gonna run. There’s no point. We need to go out on our own terms.”
She shrugs. “So whatever.”
“Aren’t you even a little afraid though?”
“Of what? What could they possibly do over there at the tomb? Some creepy ritual? Aren’t we expecting that?”
“Dane was killed in front of a hundred people, Cadee. It’s not out of the realm of possibility that something like that could happen again.”
“Sure. And that was ballsy. But if they wanted me dead none of this pageantry would be happening. Right?”
I’m not sure, so I say nothing.
“Like I said, I’m an observer. I just want to see it. Then we’re out of here in the spring. So who cares?” She pauses and looks at me. “You’re not having second thoughts about leaving?”
“No.” It comes out quickly. “No way. I’m out. And I’m taking you and Isabella with me. We’re not getting caught up in this shit.”
“So then… who cares what happens? Dane won’t be there. That was my biggest worry about this year and now, he’s gone.”
Yeah. That’s kind of convenient. But I don’t say that out loud.
“So… should we go back down and join everyone?”
I look down at the dance floor. Lars is out there. Valentina, Selina, Isabella—all of my summer pledges. And I suddenly want to be somewhere else. I want to keep Cadee all to myself for as long as possible. “Do you want to go down there?”
“I will if you want to, Cooper. I don’t care where we go as long as we’re together.”
“What kind of shoes are you wearing?”
“What?” She laughs.
“Show me your shoes.” She lifts the hem of her dress up to reveal slipper flats with intricate gold beading down the sides. “Perfect.” Then I take her hand. “Come on. I have something else to show you.” I lead her down the tower stairs, then over towards one of the gates and when we get there, we don’t go left or right on the main bridle trail, but instead, I lead her through the trees until we come up on a mostly hidden footpath.
“Where are we going?”
“You’ll see. It’s just a little further.”
“If you were anyone else, I’d be creeped out about taking a walk in the dark woods.”
I look over my shoulder and smile at her. “I promise, it’s not that creepy.” She laughs. Then stumbles, and I whirl around to catch her before she falls. “You OK?”
“I’m fine, Coop. But where is this place?”
“Just right up here.”
We continue walking on the path and I try to point out the tree roots as we go so she doesn’t stumble again. The moon is full tonight, but the woods filter out most of the light before it reaches the ground.
The path I once traveled as a boy is mostly overgrown now. Which is a good sign. It means no one really comes out here anymore. And that means there won’t be a bunch of partiers messing up my plan.
The path abruptly stops and Cadee looks around. “This is it?”
“No.” I push a few leafy branches aside and take her into the underbrush with me.
“Oh, my God, Cooper. Where the hell—” But then she sees it. “Holy crap, what is that?”
I take her over to the old wrought-iron gate and push it open. The hinges creak loudly and a few small animals scurry away in the underbrush. “Cadee Hunter, meet my great-great-great-grandfather, Vernon Valcourt. Founder of the High Court Schools.”
“Wow.” Cadee shakes her head. “That is… some statue.”
She’s not kidding, either. It is some statue. Part man, part lion, and part swan. Obviously, this is where the whole Fang and Feather thing originates. But it’s also a throne. The main part of the memorial is the chair. Good old Vernon is sitting on it, but only his face and lower legs are in relief. The rest of his body is smooth and flat, so when you sit on it, you’re like… sitting in his lap.