“Because that’s what you need,” Glitch said. “Something to put the edge on.”
I completely ignored him, and three mocha lattes and a whipped almond toffee cappuccino with nonfat milk later, we headed to school.
The minute we entered the building, a supercharged drink with chocolate warming our hands, Brooke nudged me with her elbow. “Check it out.” She pointed across the hall into Mr. Davis’s office. “Sheriff Villanueva is talking to Mr. D.”
Cameron was right behind me as usual, making me wonder why I didn’t have bruises on my heels. “He did say he was going to make sure I could stay with you all day.”
As if on cue, they both turned and spotted us. Mr. Davis summoned Cameron into his office with an index finger, his movements sharp.
“Crap,” Brooke said. “That was weird. It’s like they knew we were talking about them.”
“I’m out of here,” Glitch said. He ducked down the hall while we shuffled forward and into the main office.
“Hi, Mrs. Gutierrez,” I said to the school secretary.
“What can I do you girls for?” she asked. She was so nice. She was older but looked young because of her dark bob and huge brown eyes.
I was about to tell her when Mr. Davis barked, “In here, Lusk,” in that gruff voice of his.
Everyone jumped. Including Mrs. Gutierrez. She turned a sympathetic expression on Cameron as he walked into the principal’s office. We sat in the outer office as Mr. Davis and Sheriff Villanueva talked to him. Moments later, he came out with a grin and a note.
“I have to admit,” I said as we walked to first hour. “I love having the sheriff on our side.”
“Me too,” Brooke said.
We walked into Ms. Mullins’s classroom armed and ready. Cameron handed her the note. She took about two seconds to look it over, then scanned the classroom, completely unsurprised. Which left me completely surprised. I mean why would another student be joining her class for the day? It made no sense. I had serious doubts the rest of my teachers would be so obliging, but at least for the next fifty minutes, things would go smoothly.
“I don’t have an empty chair this hour, so we’ll have to wait and see who’s absent.”
“I’d like near the back, if that’s okay, close to Lorelei.”
She nodded, as though strategizing a stakeout were an everyday thing for her. “Okay, you know what? Just take Nathan’s desk right there.” She pointed. “I’ll put him somewhere else.”
“Thank you. And I’m supposed to let you know—” He stuffed his hands into his pockets as though he felt bad about what he was going to say. “—you’ve been summoned.”
Her lips thinned and she bit down, reprimanding herself. Without taking her eyes off me, she asked Cameron, “I’ve been found out, haven’t I?”
He grinned and leaned down to her. “Like a thief in a cop bar.”
With a sigh, she bowed her head in resignation. Cameron tipped an invisible hat, then strolled to a middle desk closest to the door. Like a guard, or a barrier.
“I just wanted to apologize,” she said to me, her voice soft so no one would overhear. “For all the secrecy. I couldn’t tell you who I was.”
“Ms. Mullins, how long have you been the observer?”
She smiled. “For as long as you’ve been alive, sweetheart. I was friends with your mother and couldn’t even tell her. And we certainly can’t talk about it here, but I just wanted to apologize. I wanted you to know, I wasn’t purposely trying to keep a secret from you.”
That meant a lot. “Thank you.”
Brooke leaned in. “Since we’ve been under all this stress with visions and prophecies and all, can we get extra credit on the upcoming test?”
“No.” Her eyes sparkled with humor. “And you always pass my tests with flying colors. Why do you want extra credit?”
Brooke shrugged. “There is one thing better than an A.”
“And what’s that?” she asked.
“An A-plus.”
“Ah, got it.”
“Nathan,” Ms. Mullins said when he walked into the room and noticed Cameron in his chair. “Take Michelle’s desk for today. She’s out sick.” She glanced down at the messages on her desk. “Lots of kids are out sick today, actually.”
For a moment, Nathan looked like he was going to argue, but when Cameron glowered at him, he quickly conceded. Cameron had such a way with people.
* * *
The minute we stepped out of first hour, Ashlee Southern rushed up to us, her eyes like saucers. Glitch met up with us too. Her gaze darted to him, then back to me. “Isaac tried to commit suicide last night.”
“What?” Brooke and I said in unison.
“When? What happened?” Brooke asked.
“He called Syd and—” She glanced around to make sure no one was listening. “—and said he couldn’t do it. He couldn’t kill the prophet. Syd tried to find out more, who he was talking about, but he hung up. Next thing we know, his parents are calling from the hospital. He’d taken his dad’s gun.” Her voice broke, so we gave her a minute. She swallowed hard and continued. “His dad walked in on him just as he was about to pull the trigger. They fought for the gun, it went off, and that’s all we know.”
I looked around. “Where’s Syd now?”