by J. S. Cooper
“Where are you two going?” he questioned us in an aggressive tone. Oliver looked stiff and out of place at the party, and a part of me wondered what else I could do to help him assimilate a bit better to college life. When I first met him, I’d assumed that he was a younger version of me and that once he made friends he’d lose his awkwardness, but that never happened. Instead, he seemed to be odder than ever. And he seemed to have become closer to Jeremiah than he was to me.
“We’re skipping out.” I smiled at him. “Want to come?”
“What do you mean? This is Jeremiah’s party.” He looked angry. “You can’t leave. Not until the party ends.”
“We’re bored,” Angelina said, and flipped her hair. “Why don’t you come with us? We can go to Harvard Square.”
“You shouldn’t be going anywhere with Nick,” Oliver said accusingly. “You’re Jeremiah’s girlfriend.”
“Not anymore.” She laughed.
“Since when?” He blinked rapidly.
“Since now.” She put her arm through mine and kissed me on the cheek.
“Nick?” Oliver’s eyes widened.
“Yes?” I couldn’t stop myself from beaming.
“Jeremiah’s your friend.”
“And he’s in the bedroom with Macy,” I snapped, annoyed that Oliver was trying to make me feel bad. “Look, we’re leaving. Are you coming or not?”
“No.” He looked disappointed. “I’m not leaving Jeremiah Bradley’s big party, and you shouldn’t be either.” I felt sad as I listened to him talking. He said Jeremiah’s name in such a reverential way that it broke my heart. Maybe I would have been better off leaving Oliver in the lab by himself that day. He seemed to idolize Jeremiah in a way that wasn’t healthy.
“Well, have fun, Oliver,” Angelina said sweetly. “Let’s go, Nicholas.”
“Bye, Oliver,” I said, and followed Angelina out of the party. As soon as the door closed behind us, we ran down the hallway and scrambled down the stairs. Bursting onto the pavement in front of Jeremiah’s apartment, we giggled as we stared at each other. We stood there for a few moments, just taking each other in. Angelina’s face was bright and cheery, her sparkling hazel eyes glowing green as the streetlights lit the side of her face. Her lips were pink and luscious, and her long brown hair shone like spun silk. She had such a look of happiness on her face that I couldn’t help grinning back at her.
“I’m so glad Jeremiah had this party,” she said finally.
“Why’s that?” I asked softly.
“Because I got to leave with you.”
“Are you sure you want to do this?” I asked, and took her hand. “Jeremiah might be mad.”
“I’m sure. What about you?”
“I’m positive,” I said steadily, and grinned.
“So you do like me?” She cocked her head as she stared at me. “I wasn’t sure.”
“Oh, I more than like you. I love you,” I said, and then I groaned. I wasn’t sure why I’d told her I loved her. It was uncool, and I was scared that she’d think I was a psychopath.
“You love me?” She raised an eyebrow at me and then giggled.
“You think I’m a loser now, don’t you?”
“No,” she said shyly, and stepped toward me. “I think you’re sweet.”
“Really?” I asked doubtfully.
“Really.” She kissed me lightly on the lips. “You’re sweet. And I kinda think I might love you as well.”
“But you don’t even know me.” I frowned.
“I know you as well as you know me,” she said lightly, and I touched the side of her face.
“He’s going to be pissed, you know.” I sighed as I gazed at her. I knew Jeremiah didn’t love Angelina, but he saw her as a conquest, and he wouldn’t be happy to lose her.
“He’ll be fine.” She laughed. “What’s the worst he can do?”
“True, he can move on to other girls.” I nodded, but there was a fear in my stomach that wouldn’t go away. What would Jeremiah try to do? For some reason, I had a feeling that it wouldn’t be as simple as we hoped. I could only hope that he would move on with his life and just forget that Angelina was the one that got away.
four
Bianca London
Present Day
“Let’s go somewhere.” Steve stepped back after replacing his flask in his pocket.
“Go?” I asked him. Was he out of his mind? Did he think I was going anywhere with him? “With you?”
“Yeah.” He nodded, unblinking. “I had a thought.” He looked over at Rosie. “Maybe now is the time?”
“I think so.” Rosie nodded, her eyes narrowed.
“The time for what?” My voice rose. What were they going to do to me? Where did they want me to go? “I thought you said you only wanted to make sure I saw the tape. Why do I have to go anywhere with you?”
“Bianca, there’s someone we want you to meet.” Rosie pursed her lips. “You need to come with us.”
“No one the two of you know is someone I want to meet,” I said scathingly, though I was starting to panic. What were they planning? I tried to imagine what Jakob would advise in this situation. He’d tell me to stay calm, take a deep breath. He’d tell me not to let them see my fear. I felt my heartbeat slowing as I pictured his face and imagined him speaking to me reassuringly.
“Can’t you ever just listen?” Rosie looked annoyed, and then her voice softened as she looked at me. “Please, Bianca.”
“Please? You think that means anything to me?” I looked at her haughtily, my eyes expressing my complete and utter disdain for her. “We were best friends, Rosie. I don’t know how you, in good conscience, can even look me in the eyes right now, you Judas.”
“I’m the Judas?” She leaned her head back and laughed. The sound was hollow and bitter, and it terrified me.
“That is the applicable name for traitors these days.” I nodded, and I could see that Steve was uncomfortable with our conversation. “We’ve been friends for years, Rosie. How could you do this to me?”
“Oh, stop being a frightened little rabbit, Bianca. It’s not becoming.” Rosie turned away from me, but I could see that her face was reddening. I was getting to her in some way.
“Has my friendship always meant nothing to you?” I asked softly, and thought back to our days in college. Had it all been a lie? I thought about the first day we’d met. I’d been lugging two bags of laundry across campus so that I could go to a Laundromat. I hadn’t thought the washers and dryers located in the dorm room were doing a good enough job. Rosie had appeared out of nowhere to help me, as one of my bags had exploded and clothes had gone everywhere.
“It’s a good thing I was here to help you,” she’d said with a confident smile as she’d helped gather my clothes into a big black plastic bag she’d been carrying. To this day, I’m still not sure what she was doing with that plastic bag.
“Yes, thank you,” I’d said gratefully as we’d scooped my clothes up.
“Imagine if a guy had seen you with all these Mickey Mouse granny panties?” She’d giggled as she held a pair up. “You’d never find a boyfriend,” she’d continued, and my face had burned with shame. I think she’d noticed that I was upset because she’d touched my shoulder lightly. “Not that it matters. You’re so pretty that most guys won’t even care.” And of course that had made me forget her bitchy comment. That had been par for the course during our whole friendship, if I was honest. She’d diss me, or say something hurtful, but then she’d be such a good friend that I’d forgive her for the quips. Now that I was thinking back on it, it hadn’t been the best friendship. There had been so many signs that Rosie didn’t actually like me very much. I couldn’t believe that I’d been so blind.
“Bianca.” Steve stood in front of me. His manic eyes looked worried. “We need to leave now.” I stared back at him, my heart pounding, and then I looked at Rosie, her face impassive as she stood there. And then my phone rang—I was never more thankful for a ringing pho
ne. Never in my life. I glanced at the screen and saw Jakob’s name flashing on it. The room went quiet as we all stared at my ringing phone.
“We need to leave. Now,” Rosie said as soon as my phone stopped ringing. “Grab her, Steve. We need to get out of here.”
“Steve, don’t.” I shook my head at him. What were they planning on doing to me? Then my phone started ringing again, and Jakob’s name flashed on the screen again, and I grinned inwardly. Thank you, Jakob. “Jakob keeps calling. He’s not going to stop. And if I don’t answer the phone soon, he’s going to be worried,” I said as I glanced down at my ringing phone again. “He’ll be suspicious if I don’t pick up soon and even more so if I don’t go home.” I watched as Steve and Rosie looked at each other searchingly. They didn’t know what to do. They knew that if I left with them, Jakob would be hot on their trail. “I should answer,” I said and brought the phone up to my face.
“Don’t.” Rosie turned to me with a grimace. “Just be quiet while we think, Bianca.”
“Excuse me?” I stared at Rosie. “Who do you think—”
“Bianca.” Rosie sighed in exasperation. “Please.” Her eyes widened in frustration, and my heart sank slightly as we just stared at each other. A wave of sadness passed over me as I gazed at her familiar blond hair and pretty, yet hard, face.
“What should we do?” Steve looked at Rosie, and I could see that she was thinking deeply. I studied them casually. How long had Rosie been working with Steve? Did David know? My head started pounding as I thought about all the double-crossing that was going on. Was anyone trustworthy? I knew that of everyone I knew, my college friend Blake was someone I could absolutely trust to help me and Jakob. He had already proven himself to be a true friend when he’d researched the Bradley family for me. He had no agenda in this whole situation. If only I’d told Blake where I was going, maybe he could have helped me. Maybe I could have brought him with me? Why had I hurried over here by myself? I was so annoyed at the amateur mistakes I was making, like some dumb chick in a horror movie. Had I learned nothing from my slasher-movie-marathon weekend? A twinge of guilt ran through me as I thought about Jakob. I should have told him as well. He’d think I’d come because I lost faith in him again. He’d think we were back at square one, but we weren’t. Not really. I’d just acted without thinking. Now I wished I’d told both of them. There was no way Steve and Rosie could have overpowered all three of us. The phone stopped ringing and then immediately started again, and I held it up for them to see.
“It’s Jakob again,” I said softly. “He’s going to come looking for me if I don’t answer. He’s going to come looking for me, and if he doesn’t find me, you two are going to be the prime suspects. What do you think he’s going to do when he finds out that you’ve taken me?” My heart warmed as I spoke, for I was sure the words were true. I knew that Jakob was desperately worried and I’d never been more grateful for his overprotective ways as I was when that phone kept on ringing.
“Don’t be such a stupid bitch, Bianca.” Rosie’s voice cracked. “I have tried to keep this in all these years, but you are the most ungrateful, most idiotic little . . .” Her voice rose, and she stepped toward me with her eyes spewing hate and her hands in the air. “I’m not going to hit you,” she spat out as I cringed. “You’re pathetic, aren’t you? He bloody kidnapped you, but he’s the one you trust?”
“What are you talking about?”
“Jakob kidnapped you. You knew he kidnapped you, yet when you came back, you trusted him more than you trusted me. And I was your best friend.”
“I didn’t trust him more than I trusted you,” I said, but I knew that was a lie. At the end of the day, I had never let Rosie in. I’d never let her know my plans to infiltrate Bradley Inc., I’d never really told her about my investigations. I’d never let her in too deeply, and when I’d come back, I still hadn’t told her everything. I bit down on my lower lip as I realized that some instinctive, subconscious part of me had been wary of telling her too much. Had I known that she was bad without every really acknowledging it?
“You’re like your mother,” she said, her blue eyes cold. “So nicey-nicey, but inside you’re a fake.”
“My mother?”
“Yes, your mother. My mom told me all about her. The games she used to play. She used to pretend she was the perfect little angel. Angelic Angelina that all the men wanted.” Rosie scoffed. “If it wasn’t for her . . .” Her voice trailed off, and she looked at Steve. Steve was also frowning, and he looked at me.
“If it wasn’t for your mother, none of us would be here,” Rosie concluded.
“What are you talking about?” I shouted. “You didn’t even know my mom. My mom was a good person.”
“Your mom was a gold-digging whore,” Rosie said with such venom that I knew that she had a real hatred for me and my family.
“My mom was not a whore!” I said, my voice cracking. “Maybe she made a mistake by sleeping with Jeremiah, but she wasn’t a whore.”
“She was Jeremiah’s girlfriend,” Steve said. “She was with him before she started dating your dad.”
“What?” My jaw dropped.
“It was because of your mom that Jeremiah did what he did.” Steve clenched his fists. “If your mom hadn’t left Jeremiah for Nick, then he never would have set everything up. My father wouldn’t have ended up being the casualty in the middle.”
“Bianca, your dad made both my father and Steve’s collateral damage,” Rosie said. “He ruined lives, and now, in effect, so have you.”
“So now you want to ruin mine?” I said softly. “I’m not my mother. What have I done to you?”
“We don’t want to ruin your life, Bianca.” Steve shook his head. “We want to help you. We want to help you get revenge on the men that ruined all of our lives.”
“The men?” My head was pounding and I just wanted to tell them to stop for a few minutes. I needed to think about what they were saying.
“Jakob and David Bradley,” Rosie said, and looked at me. “We want to bring them down.”
“David as well?” My eyes narrowed as I stared at Rosie. “You love David.”
“I do?” She shook her head and looked at me sympathetically. “You think I could love a man that tries to sleep with every two-bit whore he meets?” She looked me up and down. “You think I could love a man that tried to sleep with you?”
“But . . .” My voice trailed off. So Rosie didn’t love David. Did that mean she was playing him as well? I stared at her beautiful face and marveled at what a good actress she was. She could have made it big in Hollywood. I was pretty certain she had fooled both me and David.
“Bianca, it will all be explained if you come with us,” Steve said. “Someone’s after you. Someone we want you to see before he sees you.”
“Who?” I asked in confusion. Who was it that they wanted me to see so badly?
“We can’t tell you.” Rosie walked away and muttered something under her breath that I couldn’t hear.
“Jakob is going to wonder where I am if I don’t call him or go back home.” I said his name again, wanting them to remember that it wasn’t just me.
“Do you really trust him, Bianca? None of the Bradleys are to be trusted,” Rosie said. “Don’t you understand that? Yes, he’s handsome and charming, but what does that really mean? Nothing, Bianca. It means nothing. You need to stick with the people who have been trying to help you. Listen to Steve and me.”
“Okay,” I said, and nodded slowly. She didn’t know it, but her words confirmed to me that I could trust Jakob. If he had anything to do with this, she wouldn’t be advocating so hard for me not to trust him. I knew without a doubt that when it came to trusting Steve and Rosie or to trusting Jakob, that Jakob had my trust every single time. Even though I still didn’t know what I’d seen in the video or what was going on or what David had been talking about. Why had Jakob tied David up? Why had David said that once I found out the truth I would leave Jakob? What trut
h was I supposed to find out? And why had they been discussing my father’s death?
I just didn’t understand what I’d seen in the video at all. The only thing I knew for certain was that Jakob and David were not working together. There had been way too much hostility between them for that to be the case—the video practically crackled with intensity. And even though I didn’t always understand Jakob’s motivations, when it came down to it, he’d always protected me. He wasn’t going to hurt me. And in that moment, I knew that I couldn’t let them know that. “So what do you want me to do?”
Rosie nodded and smiled as she gazed at me. “I knew you’d come to your senses.”
“Yes, you know me, Rosie. A little ditzy.” I stood there with a small smile, but I could tell she was still a little suspicious. “I always have bad luck choosing men. You know that.” I made a face and stepped toward her. “But I do remember how you’ve always been there for me, taking me for drinks and tacos.” I rubbed her shoulder. “You were a good friend to me, Rosie. I won’t forget that. You’re right, you’re the one I should have been trusting this whole time. I don’t know why I was so dumb as to have not told you everything from the beginning.” I almost choked on the lies.
“Go and see Jakob so you can reassure him you’re okay,” Rosie said with a flip of her blond hair. Steve looked angry at her decision, and she continued. “This is for the best. This way Jakob will think she still trusts him. This way we can get him where we want him.”
“So what do I do?”
“The Masquerade Ball is on Saturday,” Rosie said, and looked at me with a small smile. “You both need to come.”
“The Bradley Ball?” I frowned. I’d been there once before, and I didn’t know that I really wanted to go back again.
“Yes.” She nodded. “It’s the perfect place for us to have some anonymity while still in a public place.”
“And I’ll meet whoever it is you want us to meet.”