“I’m so, so sorry.”
“There’s also that. You have no reason to be sorry. You didn’t get me into this mess. The mess just kind of formed around us, didn’t it?”
“Still—”
“He has to be stopped. That’s the bottom line, right? Because your boygirlfriend isn’t going to, like, talk Poole out of being evil. He might be lonely, but he’s also, like, an überasshole, and reason tends not to work with überassholes. They make their own reason and get all pissy when people don’t agree with them that the world is flat.”
“I don’t know if we’re going to stop him. First we need to see what he wants.”
“Apparently Wyatt’s disappeared.”
“Wyatt?”
“The teenager whose body Poole’s in. Wyatt. I’ve been monitoring all his social media, and it’s taken a turn. A lot of Hey, buddy, where are you? and Call your parents, okay? Timed with him using my body for batting practice. That doesn’t bode well for Wyatt.”
“Has he posted anything back?”
“Nope. He hasn’t posted anything for days. I guess Poole doesn’t like social media. Which is weird, since so many modern megalomaniacs do.”
“Poor Wyatt.”
“Yeah. I have to tell you, I wasn’t thrilled about losing a day of my life. But at least A had the decency to leave when the day was up.”
“I guess in a way we got lucky.”
“In a way. I like that. How many of them do you think are out there? Dozens? Thousands? Just the two?”
“I have no idea.”
“Neither do I. It’s like there’s this whole other layer to existence. The dark matter of humanity.”
“Is that why you’re going to the library? To research?”
Nathan smiles, shakes his head. “Nah. I’m going to the library hoping to see a girl.”
“Any particular girl? Or just, like, a girl in general?”
“A very particular girl.”
He tells me a little about Jaiden—a little because that’s all he knows.
“It sounds like a promising start,” I tell him.
“Well, we’ll see how she feels once she sees what a rough-and-tumble crowd I hang with.”
“Tell her you were rescuing a kitten.”
“From Satan. That’s my story—I was rescuing a kitten from Satan.”
“How could she possibly resist?”
“Easily?”
He looks out the window, and we fall silent. Finally he says, “I also wanted to talk to you. Before this weekend.”
“About?”
“About whether the Caps have a chance at the Stanley Cup this year.”
“Really?”
“No. About the mess we’ve gotten ourselves into. I know I fell into it, while you’re more like a volunteer. Because you love A. I get that. And I know you have plenty of friends who probably give you plenty of unsolicited advice—but I’m guessing that in this case, they have no idea what you’re up to, or what might happen to you. So I’m going to step into the breach. You’ve known A as a lone wolf—and from all accounts, A’s been a good wolf companion. But A’s about to meet the leader of the wolf pack. And, as discussed, he’s not a good dude. Even if A doesn’t join the pack, A’s going to get more of a sense of what can be gotten away with. And I have to believe that’s dangerous. Not just to you and me, but to everyone. Which is why I said what I said before: Poole needs to be stopped. And if A isn’t prepared to stop him, you’re going to have to get the hell out of there. Not just away from Poole, but from A as well. Even if it breaks your heart.”
“Where is this coming from?”
“It’s what keeps me up at night, Rhiannon. You and I—we’re getting to glimpse something very few people see. But we have to remember that we’re only glimpsing it, not living it. We have no idea how the people who are living it will react to an invitation to the pack.”
“A will react like any other decent human being. That’s who A is.”
“I want to believe that. You want to believe that. But how are we ever going to know it for sure?”
“You can’t know it about anybody, Nathan. Belief is all we have.”
Nathan nods. “Fair. And, for the record, I believe in you. Which is why I can say these things.”
“And I believe in you. Which is why I’m glad you’re saying them.”
“We have reached an understanding. And whatever happens this weekend—I’m only a text or a call away.”
“I will definitely keep you posted.”
When we get to the library, I start to get out of the car, to help him out.
“No, no—I’ve got it,” he tells me.
“Do you need a ride back?”
“Probably. I’ll text you. I’m not even sure if she’ll be here.”
“Well…good luck.”
“Thanks. I’ll need it!”
He gets out of the car and hobbles into the library. I know I should drive away, but I park instead. I just want to make sure he’s alright.
I don’t have to walk that far into the library to see I’m no longer needed. He’s made his way to a carrel in the center; a girl is standing up, gesturing for him to sit down. His hand gestures imply that he’s telling her how he rescued a kitten from Satan. She’s laughing, praising his bravery.
I sneak back out before he sees me. I’ve only driven for ten minutes before I stop at a light and see I’ve gotten a text from him.
Jaiden will give me a ride home.
The simplicity of this makes me happy.
And jealous.
But mostly happy.
* * *
—
That night at Rebecca’s, I try not to be distracted. Rebecca is always nervous when people are over at her house—her dad likes to interrupt every five minutes with a joke he’s heard, and her mom, who worries about everything, worries even more than usual that her valuables will be stolen or broken. She moves them all into her bedroom and keeps watch…only there are always valuables she’s forgotten, so every few minutes, while Rebecca’s dad is throwing around pope jokes as if they’re still things that high schoolers tell their friends, her mom will sneak behind him in her nightgown and robe, take a Hummel figurine off a shelf, and run back to their room.