Into the Dark: The Shadow Prince Part 22

I keep my face blank and pretend to be absorbed in the text of my book. When the bell rings, she stays in her seat instead of hurrying off to her next cla.s.s. Is she waiting for me to leave? I pick up my book and head out the door. She follows a few seconds later.

I keep my pace slow so she won't lose me in the crowded hallway. When I get to my next cla.s.s, I duck behind the door. She stands there for a few minutes, satisfied that I'm where I'm supposed to be.

I watch her turn and walk back in the opposite direction.

So she's stalking me now?

I almost smile at the thought.

"You like her," someone says.

I turn and find Lexie standing behind me, her arms crossed in front of her chest. Two of her friends flank her on each side. They remind me of miniature versions of Rowan and his cronies-but with matching shoes and coordinated skirts.

"Pardon?" I ask.

"You like Daphne. I can tell from the way you look at her." "I do not."

"You do. I heard the way you two talked the other night. It's obvious you're jonesing for her."

"I am not," I say, not even sure what she means.

"You are. Heaven only knows why. But I'm feeling generous, so I'm going to offer you a little advice."

"Why would you do that?"

"Listen, I don't know what exactly happened Friday night, and I am not too keen on trying to remember, but I'm pretty sure I owe you for helping me home, and I don't like being in anyone's debt. So I am going to do you a little favor by offering a little womanly advice. You want Daphne to like you, yes?"

I clear my throat. "Perhaps."

"Then ask her to help you with your performance for the Lightup Olympus Festival. Maybe suggest a duet? All that one-on-one time, working together-it'll work like a charm." I consider her idea for a moment. It sounds exactly like something Dax would suggest.

"What if she doesn't say yes?"

"She will," Lexie says. "Trust me. I've seen the way she looks back at you." I'm not so sure about this a.s.sertion of hers but I nod and thank her for her advice. "One more thing," I say as she and her lackeys start to head to their desks. "If you really want to be square with me, then you need to do me one more favor."

She narrows her eyes at me. "What's that?"

"Stop shunning Daphne."

"That's a big request. I'm not sure you have the bargaining power for it."

"Suit yourself," I say. "But you should see it more as me doing you another favor. If Daphne's dad is in charge of writing the play and there are still several parts to be doled out, don't you think you should be a little nicer to the one student who might be able to pull some influence on your behalf? I think you'd make an excellent queen of the underworld, don't you?" Her nostrils flare almost imperceptibly and I know she sees my point, whether she wants to or not.

"Besides, if you owe anyone anything after Friday night, it's her." Lexie uncrosses her arms. "We'll take it under advis.e.m.e.nt." chapter thirty-four daphne I can't find Tobin in the cafeteria, so I carry my lunch tray out to the courtyard. I sit under a statue of some Greek poet or whatever. I pull out the stack of homework I'm supposed to finish in order to catch up on the three weeks of cla.s.ses I missed at the beginning of the year. Between that, rehearsing for the play, my current course load, and now Tobin's "investigation," I am starting to feel a bit underwater.

I try a couple of math problems and then give up. Instead, I pull out a notebook, and decide to make my own dossier of things I know about Haden Lord.

Name: Haden Lord.

Age: 16? 17?

Hair: Dark brown, almost black Eyes: Jade green (but sometimes look like they have bright amber rings around the pupils?) Occupation: Part-time pirate I tap my pen on the paper, realizing what I know about Haden isn't very much at all. I take a bite of my chicken salad sandwich, trying to think of something else to add to my list.

"h.e.l.lo, Daphne," Lexie says as she sits down right in front of me. "Um, hi," I say. I look around, trying to figure out what she's up to. None of her Sopranos is around, so I'm not sure if this is an ambush waiting to happen.

Lexie tucks her legs behind her and opens a prepacked salad, like she's planning on staying for a while. She stabs a cuc.u.mber with a plastic fork. Eats it. And then looks at me. "Do you want to know why I hate you?" she asks.

I almost choke on a bite of chicken.

"Not particularly," I say when I've recovered. "But I have a feeling you're going to tell me anyway." Lexie shakes a little tub of dressing, opens it, and dips the tips of her fork tines into the dressing before taking a bite of salad. She chews it neatly and then repeats the tiny bit o' dressing, lot o' bit of lettuce process before she decides to enlighten me.

"I hate you because you're a natural," she says.

"A natural what?"

I expect the next words that come out of her mouth to be something like a natural-born loser but instead she eats another cuc.u.mber and says, "A natural at everything I want to be." She scoots an olive off her salad with her fork. "You're a natural blond, naturally fit- h.e.l.lo, all the mayonnaise on that sandwich-and most of all, you're a natural singer. I, on the other hand, have to go to a stylist every six weeks to keep my hair color fabulous, do an hour of Pilates every morning to look this rocking, and I've had six different vocal coaches since I was five years old. Don't get me wrong, I know I'm talented, but I've had to work to get this voice. You just have it." INTO THE DARK 265 "I work hard, too, you know," I say, putting down my sandwich. "And I would have killed for the voice coaches you've had."

"And yet here you are, in one of the best music programs in the country without an ounce of professional training. Don't deny it, Daphne, you know you're special. You've just got it, and people can see it. They can hear it."

"So you hate me because you're jealous?"

"No, I hate you because you're an idiot."

"Excuse me?"

"I saw the look on your face when your dad announced that he's writing a freaking opera-just for you. He threw the biggest opportunity in the world at your feet. And you didn't want it. You would have thrown it back at him if you could. Meanwhile, I work my a.s.s off trying to get a big enough part so my parents will even bother to come. Which means you're the biggest idiot I've ever met."

"Why are you telling me this?"

"Because I want to propose a truce. I'll call my Sopranos off if you help me get what I want."

"Let me guess, my part in the play?"

"We both know your daddy wouldn't go for that. No, I'll let you play the damsel in distress. I want to be the queen. Put a bug in your dad's ear that I'd make a good Persephone, and I'll make sure you have a nicer time at this school." She packs up her salad and stands. "Sound good?"

"I guess," I say.

"Cool. I like your . . . um . . ." She scans her finger over my outfit ". . . barrette, by the way. Tres chic."

"Thanks," I say and watch as she walks through the courtyard back into the school.

I pick up my sandwich and take a couple of bites, wondering how this lunch break could get any weirder than Lexie proposing a truce, when someone very large steps in front of my sun, casting a shadow over my food.

I look up. Way up. And see Haden Lord, with a purple paisley tote bag on his arm, standing over me.

chapter thirty-five.

haden

When I see Daphne sitting in the courtyard during our lunch break, I don't hang back or pretend to be aloof. I walk right up to her with the determination of a warrior and address her as if she were an Underlord of my same rank. "I have agreed to sing during the festivities of lighting up Olympus. I request that you help me prepare. Or perhaps a duet would be prudent." She blinks at me for a moment, then looks down at the notebook at her side as if contemplating what she's written there. She looks back up at me. "Um . . . okaaaay."

"Very well, then," I say, hiding my surprise that she has actually agreed. "We shall commence rehearsal at your earliest convenience."

"Next week," she says. "I have a ton of homework to catch up on."

"I bid you a pleasant day, then." I give her a respectful nod and start to take my leave.

"My purse?" she says, pointing at the bag over my arm. I had intending on giving it to her first thing as a peace offering.

"Oh yes." I hand it over to her. "Everything is as it should be, but I took the liberty of charging your phone for you."

I walk away at a fast clip, not giving her time to reconsider our arrangement.

chapter thirty-six.

daphne

After Haden is gone, I pick up the list of things I know about him and add sometimes talks like Thor.

This day definitely can't get more surreal.

A light flashes in my eyes and I jump, hitting my back on the base of the statue behind me. Tobin lowers his camera and laughs. "That was a good one. I'll give it a 'dazed and confused in the daytime' caption."

"What the c.r.a.p are you doing?"

Tobin raises his camera to take another picture of me. I push him away. "Go away. You know they don't allow paparazzi past the gate, dork face."

"Come on, it's for the yearbook!" Tobin seems way too happy, considering our earlier conversation.

"Since when were you on yearbook?"

"Since I found out from the librarian that the yearbook staff has commandeered the school collection of yearbooks dating all the way back to the founding year. They're working on a project to scan and digitize all of them and put them online for OHH's fiftieth anniversary. I guess it's supposed to 'nostalgialize' the alumni into sending big, fat donation checks."

"Which means you'll have access to cla.s.s lists for the last fifty years."

"Exactly. I am going to find every Lord who has ever gone to this school and cross-reference them with the girls who went missing. The investigative avenues will be endless after that."

"That's going to take a while," I say, but it's far preferable to the thought of Tobin getting arrested for hacking government files.

"How's your end going?" he asks.

I show him my meager list about Haden. "But I think the perfect opportunity to study Haden more closely just fell into my lap. He just came over and requested that I help him prepare for singing at the 'festivities of lighting up Olympus.'" I move my arms while I'm speaking, acting like I'm doing an impersonation of a robot.

Tobin laughs. "That's perfect."

I stick out my tongue as he snaps a picture of me.

He puts the camera down and gets real quiet for a few minutes, absentmindedly picking blades of gra.s.s.

I fish my phone out of my tote bag and check to see if I have any messages or texts from CeCe, explaining why she had quit and left town. I expect to find at least a good-bye text, but there's nothing.

I try to send her my own text, but it doesn't go through. Like her number has been disconnected. I blink back tears, wondering why CeCe would just cut me out of her life like this.

Tobin brushes my arm, drawing my attention. I give him a small smile, happy to still have a friend like him.

"Just promise me you'll be careful around Haden, okay?" he says. "Don't get too close." I nod, remembering that Haden might be dangerous.

chapter thirty-seven.

haden

"That was very nice," I say from the doorway of Daphne's bedroom. She jumps and almost drops the guitar she's been playing. I'd caught her right at the end of a song.