by Katrina Leno
Melanie’s sister.
Melanie’s sister had let her die. She’d waited too long to try to save her, and wasn’t that the same as letting her die?
Jane felt tears stinging down her cheeks.
And wasn’t it too late for Melanie, too?
Jane turned around to look and Melanie’s hand was limp and lifeless. A twitch in one of her fingers that might have been the wind. The wind that picked up even now, blowing through Jane’s hair, sending it flying in every direction.
It’s only fair, Jemima repeated.
And it was fair.
Jane could see that now.
So much of Jane’s life had been unfair—Greer’s death, the upheaval of their lives, their move across the country. But this.
This was fair.
She uncurled her hand. The rose petal glowed in the moonlight.
Jemima smiled.
And Jane put the petal into her mouth.
And swallowed.
Acknowledgments
These books I write keep taking longer and longer and are harder and harder to finish, and I become more indebted each time to the people who make the journey easier—and in some cases, possible at all. This story particularly threatened sometimes to pull me down into darkness, just as Jane is pulled into darkness, and I have had the express good fortune of knowing people who routinely pulled me back into the light. And the light is good, friends. Three cheers for the light.
First and foremost, always, always thank you to my agent, Wendy Schmalz, for knowing exactly when something is ready—and when it is not.
Thank you to the two incredible editors who worked on Horrid. I feel infinitely lucky to have both started and ended this journey with women who cared so deeply for me and Jane. Pam Gruber and Rachel Poloski—you made this book so much better.
I still feel so happy to have found such a welcoming and nurturing home with Little, Brown. It takes a small army to bring a book to life, and I have so many people who have ushered this one into existence, including Karina Granda and Tran Nguyen (don’t tell my other covers, but this one is my favorite!!!), Regan Winter, Stefanie Hoffman, Natali Cavanagh, Savannah Kennelly, Valerie Wong (and everyone on the NOVL team!), Siena Koncsol, Victoria Stapleton, Lindsay Walter-Greaney, and Olivia Davis. My heart is filled with gratitude for all of you.
To my family, who, as far as I can tell in all my extensive digging in the rose garden, are not hiding any dead bodies or twenty-year-old secrets. Maybe because you are so good, I am able to write stories about families who are so not good.
To my friends-who’ve-become-family, you know who you are, and I truly cherish you.
And to S, of course. Without you, none of this is possible.
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About the Author
Katrina Leno was born on the East Coast and currently lives in Los Angeles. She is the author of five critically acclaimed novels: The Half Life of Molly Pierce, The Lost & Found, Everything All at Once, Summer of Salt, and You Must Not Miss. While she has never eaten an entire book, she admits to tasting a page or two. You can visit her online at katrinaleno.com.