Evergreen Academy - The Complete Series

by Ruby Vincent

  “Come. We are the only ones left in the hotel and Mrs. Fountaine made you a special breakfast.”

  “Um, okay. That sounds nice.”

  I followed her out into the hall and fell in step beside her. I asked her the question plaguing my mind. “How’s Eric? Did you find him?”

  She kept her gaze ahead, but I noticed the tightening of her jaw. “Mr. Eden is still missing.”

  I swallowed hard. Visions of my old friend floating facedown among the things that lurked in the swamp flooded my mind until tears threatened to fall again.

  “That is another reason I stayed behind,” she continued. “The police and Mr. Eden’s parents are on the way.”

  “Is he the only one missing? You know they took him. They—”

  “Everyone else was accounted for.”

  “Why did you let them leave?” I demanded. “They all need to be questioned.”

  “You told me last night that you could not identify the people who took him. If I tried to keep those students here, I would have a million parents and their high-priced lawyers threatening to sue me.”

  “So you just—”

  “I know what you are going to say, and you’re right.” There was a hard edge to her voice that quieted me. “I do not like this either. I’m trying to keep my students safe and... I’m not doing a good job.”

  No more passed between us on the way to the dining room. My thoughts were spinning through my head too fast for me to hold on to one of them. What had they done to Eric? Ace used him for a pawn and then attacked him when he tried to tell me the truth. They couldn’t have killed him. He never got a chance to tell me anything that I could use against them. He—

  I stopped dead on the polished hardwood as one thought slowed down enough to penetrate. He didn’t get a chance to tell me, but he did bring the yearbook. No wonder he was acting so squirrelly. He did not want to risk his Spade friends finding out he was giving it to me. He truly turned on them.

  And he paid for it, another voice countered.

  But it doesn’t have to be in vain if I find out what he was trying to tell me.

  “Professor Markham.”

  She glanced over at me as she took her seat at the dining table. A lovely spread had been laid out for us—complete with a plate of chocolate biscuits. This charming scene was so out of place with the horrors that went on last night.

  “Yes, Miss Moon.”

  “Eric’s things. Are they still here?”

  “Of course. The police will no doubt want to go over everything. His room hasn’t been disturbed.”

  “Okay, okay,” I mumbled as I took a seat. This was good news. He took the yearbooks off the bus. They would be in his room and I would get them the minute we were done here.

  “Please, eat.” Markham reached for the teapot and tipped the steaming hot water into my mug. “And drink this. Irish Breakfast tea is very strong. It’ll help.”

  I gazed at her while she fussed over me. There was a kindness in the lines of her face—often hidden under disapproving scowls and furrowed brows. I could believe in that moment that she truly cared about me. Maybe that was why I said what I did next.

  “Professor, tell me about Nora.”

  The hand stirring the tea stilled. “Excuse me?”

  “Nora Wheatly. Tell me what happened to her and Walter. There’s no reason to hide anymore. I know about the Spades and the thirteen families—”

  Her eyes bugged. “Don’t say that. You—”

  “We’re alone. It’s just you and me so let’s stop this already. Tell me why he was killed.”

  She looked away, lips pinched. “What does it matter? It was over thirty years ago.”

  “It matters for the very fact that people keep trying to pretend it didn’t matter. Why will no one face this? I know you were there, Elizabeth Fairchild.” Her head whipped around at the name. “You were in their class. You must know why this started.”

  She lifted her chin. “It seems like you know quite a bit yourself. How?”

  “I saw your yearbook at Eric’s house. It was also the day Wilhelmina Eden told me Nora was a common slut. Why would she say that?”

  Her lips twisted. “Of course she would say that. Harsh woman.”

  I sat back, waiting. Markham looked from me to her cup and then back to me. She seemed to be trying to make up her mind.

  “Nora was my friend,” she finally said. “Even though she was everything I wasn’t. Wild, free, bold, and beautiful. She sat down next to me during assembly and that was it.”

  “Why was she marked?”

  Markham gazed into the depths of her cup. She didn’t look at me as she spoke. “I told you, Nora was wild and beautiful. Guys fell at her feet and she was happy to pick a few of them up. By sophomore year, she was dating multiple guys, but unlike your case, they did not know about each other.

  “The grades were just as separate as they are now. It was easy to keep them apart and she used to brag to me about having lovers in every grade. Her biggest catch was the Knight: Andrew Eden.”

  I sat up in my seat. “Eric’s father was with Nora? Was he the one who—”

  “Please, Valentina. Let me finish.”

  Slowly, I nodded and settled back down.

  “As I was saying, she had many boyfriends, but the one she truly came to care for was Walter. He was kind to her. Sweet and charming while one of the others wasn’t.”

  “One of the others?”

  She bobbed her head. “She wouldn’t tell me who, but things turned sour with one of her boyfriends. They became possessive, mean, and on occasion, violent. She showed up to class one morning with a black eye.”

  “Oh no,” I breathed.

  “I wanted her to go to the headmaster, but she refused. She promised me she ended things with him and that everything was fine. She had bigger things to worry about after discovering she was pregnant.”

  My mouth fell open. “Pregnant? Was that why...?”

  “Yes, that was why she was marked. She kept it quiet for as long as she could, but then the baby began to show and the card appeared in her locker soon after she confirmed it.”

  I shook my head. Disbelief colored my tone. “Of course it did. Pregnancy may not be an expellable offense, but it sure doesn’t look good to parents to find out kids are running around getting knocked up at Evergreen.”

  “Precisely.”

  It all made sense. It all made perfect sense. “So Walter stood up for her and paid for it. Was he the father?”

  “No.” Markham paused to take a steadying sip of tea. “She would not tell me who it was, but she assured me it wasn’t Walter. They were together for the first time weeks after the baby was conceived.”

  “But do you have any idea who it was?”

  “I have ideas. I suspect Nora ended up in the bed of someone with the power to make her go away.”

  “A Spade.”

  “Yes. That seems almost certain now.”

  “The same guy who hit Nora. The same guy who killed Walter.”

  She inclined her head. “You do not know how Walter died, do you?”

  “No.”

  “He had asthma—a very bad case. He was found on the floor of his room, clearly having suffered an attack, but his inhaler lay inches from him. It might have been declared an accident if it wasn’t for the clear signs that there was a struggle and he had been pinned down.”

  “How awful,” I hissed. “He was only trying to do the right thing.”

  “His loss broke Nora. She left the school without a fight and we lost touch.”

  “So you never found out who fathered the baby or marked Nora?”

  “Never.”

  “What about the baby? Did she have a boy or girl? Where—”

  “I know nothing about the child. Nora’s parents would not give her the phone when I called, and one day, I found the number disconnected. I have no idea what happened to her or the baby.”

  I shook my head. “Why would you c
ome back and teach at that school after everything that happened? You know that nothing has changed. The Spades are still free to destroy lives and Eric told me it’s even bigger than a few students.” The words were tumbling from my lips. “They are backed up by their parents, and money, and maybe the headmaster himself! That’s why he does nothing but sit in his office all day—”

  “Valentina.”

  “You know the school is some kind of brain farm. They’re looking at all of us as the beings who will turn around and make them money one day.”

  “Valentina.”

  “They made Maverick Technologies a reality, and what does a grateful Marcus do? He moves in down the street, fits the school with the best computer system, and then sends his genius son there. It’s a vicious cycle and no one sees it for what it is because they haven’t broken any laws. They let their children handle everything and then step in on graduation day saying ‘let’s talk about your future.’”

  “Valentina,” she broke in. “Take a breath.”

  I tried but my breathing was shallow. I couldn’t take it all the way in. “It’s just wrong. It’s painted as kids being kids, and bullying that normally crops up in schools, but it’s actually an organized system to make the rich get richer.”

  “That is what all things are about in the end.”

  “I’m going to stop it,” I announced. “They can’t do this to people.”

  “So you will be returning to Evergreen next semester?”

  “I—” My reply lodged in my throat.

  “You’re done at Evergreen Academy. You do not come back next semester. If you do, you’ll go the same way as Walter McMillian.”

  Tears prickled behind my eyes. “They’ll just keep doing this. They’ll never stop.”

  “We don’t know who they are. We can’t fight an enemy we can’t see.”

  “Someone has to try.”

  “That someone does not have to be you.” Markham reached across and laid her cold hand on mine. “You must stop now. The Spades have destroyed too many good people. I could not stand to lose you too.”

  I said nothing. I couldn’t. I did not know what to say. I knew even less what to do. After a few minutes, I went back to sipping my tea.

  “THANK YOU FOR SPEAKING with us, Miss Moon.”

  I rose with the officers. “You’ll find him, won’t you?”

  “We’re organizing a search party as we speak. We’ll find him.” The uniformed women in front of me sported stern, but confident faces. I wished I shared that confidence.

  “I wish I could do more to help.”

  “You’ve done all you can. You should go. I believe your teacher is waiting to take you back home.”

  “Okay.” I shook their hands one last time and left the room. I didn’t go outside to the waiting car.

  This is my chance before they search his room.

  I thought this hotel cute and charming when I arrived. Now the eerie silence roared in my ears. The creak of the floors beneath my feet ratcheted up my heartbeat. I needed to hurry, get those yearbooks, and get out of this place.

  Eric’s room was at the end of a short hallway. I quietly let myself in and went over to the bed with the green backpack. I knew that was Eric’s.

  I gazed around the room. Now to find the brown duffle bag.

  I peeked under the bed, looked in the closet, searched the bathroom, and even took the cushions off the couch. After scouring the place twice, I accepted it.

  The duffle bag was gone.

  DUSK HAD FALLEN OVER Evergreen when the car pulled up to the gates. Markham parked behind a beat-up four-seater. Mom climbed out of the car as she turned off the engine.

  “Thank you,” I said softly.

  “Goodbye, Valentina.”

  I stepped out and Mom burst into a run. She enfolded me in a hug that I returned just as fiercely.

  “My baby. Are you okay?”

  “I am now.” I buried my nose in her neck, breathing in the scent of love and safety. “Please, let’s get out of here. I don’t want to be near this place.”

  “Don’t have to ask me twice.”

  We piled into the car and I instantly saw someone was missing. “Where’s Adam?”

  “He’s at home with the babysitter. I didn’t know how long you would be or how you’d feel when you came back.”

  I accepted that as the best move, although I ached to see him. “Let’s go home.”

  “Leaving right now, baby, but on the way, I want you to tell me everything that’s been going on.”

  “Mom—”

  “Everything.” This was a tone I didn’t hear often. This was serious, not-messing-around Olivia. “Afterward, I’ll decide if you’re going back to that school.”

  I might have argued, but at that moment, there wasn’t a speck of fight left in me. “Okay.”

  We made the ride back, but not in silence. I told Mom everything that had happened in the last four years. There was yelling, shouting, and even more crying. She cycled between distress at all I had kept from her and rage at what had been allowed to happen to me. When we pulled up to our tiny house, the both of us had been put through the emotional wringer.

  Mom pulled me into her arms when we reached the doorstep and kissed my forehead. “Just go inside and get some sleep. We’ll talk in the morning.”

  “Yes, Mom.”

  We stepped inside to a dim house. The soft glow from the living room drew me to the babysitter. She smiled at us when we walked in.

  “The little angel is sleeping.”

  “Thank you,” I said. I veered off and went into Adam’s room. The nightlight cast swirling stars on his sweet face, and I felt my tension ebb away as I gathered him in my arms. The toddler didn’t wake as I carried him to my bed and snuggled under the covers with him. I slipped away, feeling truly safe for the first time in a while.

  “WHAT DID YOUR MOM SAY?”

  “She was mad as you can imagine,” I replied. “She doesn’t want me to go back.”

  “Do you want to go back?” Sofia asked.

  I didn’t answer. My eyes drifted down to the open envelope on my bed. The letter resting on top of it carried the embossed logo of Somerset University.

  “Congratulations, you have been accepted to...”

  “How are you?” I asked. “Did you talk to Zane?”

  Her sigh came through the phone. “I did. He promised me that he didn’t kiss her. He said Penelope ran up to him under the arch, crying about something flying into her eye, and when he bent to see, she planted a kiss on him and then ran off.”

  I shook my head. “She’s certainly evil enough to set him up.”

  “I know,” she said softly. “It’s not that I don’t believe him, but when I saw that photo... It was like someone punched my heart out. It was just so c-cruel, Val.” Her voice became choked. “And Paisley and Kai? Everyone saw that photo. Paisley has been crying all week.”

  I crumpled the sheets in my fist. It was hard to believe a week had passed since that awful night.

  “Ciara and Claire will probably be expelled for the weed and pills. I knew they would hit us hard, but this...”

  “It’s like you said: Cruel.”

  There was a lull as it sunk in. I looked around at Adam, happily playing with his toys on the carpet of my room. I tried to picture raising him on a legacy of deception and deceit, and then sending him to the academy to continue the tradition. My mind rejected the very thought.

  “I’ve been thinking about what you said for the past few days,” Sofia said. “Thirteen families. People watching me—marking me to see what I’ll invent next like I’m some betting horse they’re waiting to see perform. I haven’t slept properly since that day.”

  “You and me both.”

  “Mom is freaked out too.”

  “You told Madeline?”

  “Yes. Dad too. We actually had a good talk the other night. I told them what I was feeling. It was weird.” She let out a soft laugh. “But they ope
ned up too and apologized to me.”

  “I’m glad, Sof.”

  “Yeah. But the thing is, they don’t have a clue who the other eleven families could be. They’ve heard of the Spades, but never thought it went so far as some kind of mafia organization. They’re thinking of pulling me out of school too.”

  “Can’t blame them.”

  “Have you talked to the boys?”

  “Yes. I told them everything that went down in the bayou when I got home the next day. Ryder didn’t say much. I don’t think he knew what to say, but I’m going to see him today so we’ll talk properly.”

  “I’m happy you guys are still doing it. You need this after everything you went through.”

  “You all loving me and supporting me is everything right now. Just like I’ll love and support you whatever you decide to do.”

  “Thank you.”

  “I hope I see you after Christmas.”

  “I’m not sure if you will. Mom and Dad have been talking about going on a family vacation—get away for a bit. I’ll call you every day if we do.”

  “Perfect.”

  “Just don’t put that kid on Santa’s lap this year,” she continued.

  I laughed. “He’s older. He should be able to handle it, right?”

  “Or he’ll give him another wallop and get you really banned this time.”

  We chuckled, enjoying a rare, light moment. “No Santa. I got it.”

  “I have to go, but I’ll call you tomorrow.”

  “Bye.”

  I set my phone down on the bed and got up to play with Adam. I was tickling him into submission when Mom knocked on the door to tell me Ryder had arrived. I picked my laughing baby up, peppered him with kisses, then handed him to Mom.

  Ryder stood on the front porch waiting for me. He looked great in a pair of loose jeans and a wooly sweater that strained to contain him. His raven locks curled at the nape like they did when he let the air dry them after a shower. “Hi, Val.”

  “Hi.”

  We kissed—just a soft peck—but it warmed me through. I had missed him over the last week.

  “You ready to go?”

  “More than ready.”

  He took my hand and led me to the car. I waited until we were inside to grill him. “Will you tell me about the hotel we’ll be staying at? What will we do this weekend? It’s before Christmas so we can see the lights, go shopping, watch movies.”