Jameson Angelle and Benjamin Jacoby – Angelview Academy Seniors
Eleanor Mallory – Ravenwood Preparatory Senior
Ravenwood Preparatory is one of Angelview’s nearby rivals. Nora was a student at Ravenwood, not Angelview.
That’s why I didn’t find her in any of the yearbooks.
That’s why she appeared to never have existed in this school because she didn’t.
After months of searching and questioning, the feeling of finally finding something, even just a small something like this, is euphoric.
I’m actually a step closer to figuring this whole mystery out, even if it’s just a baby step.
And I have Saint to thank for it.
I also realize that Jenn was definitely lying to me. More questions begin to flood my brain to replace the few I just answered.
Where did Saint get this photo?
Why was Jenn trying so hard to make me think that she wasn’t Nora? That she didn’t know Saint’s father? That everything she’s ever told me—from her name to her age to where she was born—is a lie?
And, most important of all, the biggest question that’s been burning in my mind since I received that first picture.
Who the fuck am I?
27
I rush from my dorm room, the picture and note clutched in my hand. Since Ghost and Jenn are MIA, I’ve decided to go question the only other person who seems to know anything about Nora.
I practically run across campus to get to Saint’s dorm, and when I reach his door, I begin pounding on it with my fist. It’s Friday night, so the chances of him actually being here are slim, but I’m hanging on to that tiny hope that something will go my way for once in my life.
To my shock, the door opens, and he smirks down at me.
“Took you long enough.”
He reaches out and snakes his arm around my waist to yank me into him, then lowers his head to kiss me. I’m too amped up to get swept away by his touch so easily, though, and I turn my head away and push against his chest. His lips land on my cheek, and I shiver at even that small amount of contact from him.
“That’s not why I’m here,” I growl.
He lifts his head and sighs, as if put out.
“I figured, but I thought it was worth a shot.” He lets me go and takes a step back so I can get into his room. Shutting the door behind us, he turns and leans against it with his arms crossed and brow arched. “So, what brings you by, Mallory, if not my excellent oral skills?”
I roll my eyes and hold up the picture. “Don’t be dumb. I’m obviously here because you left this in my room.”
He barely spares the photo a glance. “Yeah. So?”
Why does everything have to be a game with him? Why can’t he just give me straight answers?
I take a deep breath and pray for patience. “Why did you leave it in my room?”
“Because it’s the reason I targeted you.”
I stare at him, shocked at his honesty, and at his confession.
“What?” I twist my hand around so I can look at the image again myself. “Why would this picture make you come after me as viciously as you have?”
Pushing away from the door, he meanders toward me and plucks the photo from my fingers. He casually studies it, but his eyes don’t look particularly focused, and I realize he’s distracted by something in his head.
“This photo has been in my father’s study for as long as I can remember,” he says. “His best friend and the slut that came between them.”
The slut that came between them? “Wait … Nora dated your dad?”
He meets my gaze, his gray-blue eyes glinting with interest. “So, she is your mom.”
“No.”
“Sure as fuck looks like you.” He says with a shake of his head. “Dad never really talked about her, other than to say she was dead along with Benjamin.”
“But why did you give it to me?” I ask.
He glances between me and the picture.
“Because you wanted answers. And I wanted…” He trails off, carving a hand through his blond hair before he gives me a look that’s half-crazed. “Did you know that this stupid fucking school sends out this back-to-school magazine each year?”
I shake my head slowly, opening my mouth to ask what that has to do with anything, but he quickly continues, “That’s where I first saw you. In this bullshit article congratulating all the new scholarship students entering this year. I recognized your face immediately because of that picture,” Saint explains. “I even gave my dad shit about it, telling him his ex must’ve fallen pretty hard down the pecking order if her kid was a charity case.”
My eyes shoot up to meet his. “Kid?”
He shrugs. “Like I said, I assumed you were her daughter, given the resemblance. That’s when he told me it was impossible because Nora’s been dead for years.”
“I’m not her daughter,” I lie even though I’m 99.9 percent certain this is Jenn and every word that’s ever come out of her mouth is a lie. “I don’t even know this woman.”
“Whatever you say,” he sighs. “But I told you, I never forget a face.”
“And like I said, this isn’t my mom. Anyway, what did your dad say when you told him about me?”
I can’t imagine what Mr. Angelle would think if a trailer trash girl like me showed up looking like his ex-girlfriend from high school.
Saint’s face darkens and his brows knit together. “He asked to see your photo.”
The tone of his voice sends a nervous chill running through me. “Why?”
“I thought at first he didn’t believe me, but then when I showed him, he freaked the fuck out.” Saint’s jawline tightens. “Told me to get rid of you. Make you leave Angelview. He told me to name my price and I’d have it.”
My hands clench into fists. “Why would he ask you that?”
“I haven’t a fucking clue.”
His confession brings my world crashing down. He’s been trying to drive me away because his daddy told him to, but he hasn’t bothered to figure out why. I thought he hated his father. Why would he listen to him when it came to me?
“Why would your dad have any interest in me?” I snap. “Does this have something to do with Nora? With Benjamin?”
“Mallory, honestly, I don’t know, and I don’t really give a fuck.”
“How can you say that?” I cry, stepping toward him so I can pound my fists against his chest. “How can you say you don’t give a fuck about me?”
He grabs my shoulders in a hard grip and forces me still.
“I didn’t say I don’t give a fuck about you. I don’t give a fuck about any of this bullshit surrounding you. None of that matters. You’re just Mallory to me. I care what happens to you, and that’s why I need you to leave this place.”
I’m too overwhelmed to even process the fact that he just confessed to caring about me. It doesn’t matter! He’s been cruel to me the whole time I’ve been at Angelview, and he never even bothered to ask why. My stomach churns, and for a moment, I think I’m going to actually be sick. I twist against his hold, trying to escape so I can get out of this room and away from him.