The Scammer(85)

His girlfriend . . .

It’s hard to think after a brain implosion. The scattered pieces jiggle around in my skull.

“Uh, yeah,” I say, forcing myself to seem as normal as possible. I have to stick to the plan. “I wanted to stay but after . . . everything that’s happened, it just makes sense for me to withdraw.”

Vanessa’s lips wiggle as she gazes at my suitcases.

“Damn, I feel like this is all my fault.” She takes a deep breath. “Look, I’m sorry for . . . everything. I don’t know how I let it go so far. And Devonte, well, maybe prison just messed him up real bad.”

I stare at her, speechless.

“So can we . . . well. You’re my sister! With Kammy gone and Loren sick . . . you’re all I have left. Maybe we can just . . . start over?”

His girlfriend . . . His girlfriend . . . His girlfriend . . .

“O-kay,” I sputter.

She smiles, rubbing her shoulder. “I’m gonna make us some tea. It’s so cold. You like mint, right?”

I lick my lips. “Yeah. Mint.”

I turn around, trying to control my breathing as the earth spins off its axis.

His girlfriend . . .

All this time . . . I thought they were brother and sister. How did I not know this. How did I miss it? I go over everything I saw, everything I know, and nothing makes sense.

His girlfriend . . .

In the kitchen, Vanessa hums as she pours boiling water into our school mugs, then steeps the tea bags.

“You gotta wait at least two to three minutes,” she sings. “That’s the proper way to make tea. Or so I’ve been told.”

The shape of her body, her smile, the way she can seduce a spoon to bend to her will . . . you only learn those types of skills with time and age.

Vanessa holds the mug out. “Here you go.”

I steady my shaky hand to take the cup from her.

“Thank you,” I mutter.

“Oop! One more thing.”

She runs into her room and returns with a small plastic bag full of white powder. My stomach drops.

“What’s that?”

She reads my reaction and laughs. “Girl, relax, it’s just sugar! I had to stash it away. Devonte would KILL me if he caught me with this shit.”

She pours a little in my cup and stirs it with a straw. “There! That should be perfect. Come on! Sit on the sofa with me. One last time!”

The white powder evaporates in the swirling water.

“Uh, one second, let me just grab my phone.”

I rush into my room, trying to stay focused on my breathing. Outside, I see the unmarked police car but I have no way of reaching it.

His girlfriend . . .

The sick, demented things they’ve done. The hearts they stomped over. The lies . . . I grab my phone to shoot Nick a quick text. Maybe he could—

“Girl, hurry up!”

I jump in my skin, dropping the phone on the table.

Don’t panic. Pull it together.

Except this feels like the perfect time to panic. With a deep breath, I grab the laptop out of my bag.

She laughs as I return, handing me a mug. “Always working, this girl.”

I watch her back as she strolls into the living room, carrying such effortless grace. She’s had years to perfect it.

She sits on the sofa, holding up her steaming cup. “Cheers, bitch!”

I join her and we clink mugs. I stare into the cup, mouth parted open, but can’t bring myself to take a sip.

“OMG, are you serious?” She shakes her head, shooting her mug out at me. “Here, girl, drink mine if you’re so worried. I ain’t gonna poison you.”

“I know,” I say with a nervous chuckle. “It’s just . . . you know ever since that night during homecoming . . . teas taste so different to me now.”

She shakes her head, grinning. “Drink, girl.”

Even with the switched cup, my nerves are too fried to trust anything this woman says or does. But I know it’s the only way out of this.

Play along and act fast.

I take two big gulps. The hot water sizzles down my throat. Vanessa watches me intensely then smiles. For a moment, it feels like old times, us sitting on the sofa, drinking out of mugs. Even without Loren and Kammy around, Vanessa just puts me at ease. It’s a superpower. One I fell for easily.

I glance at my phone, realizing I didn’t press Send on the message to Nick. No one knows we’re here.

Alone.

“But for real, I’m really sorry about everything that’s happened. Like, I can’t believe he set those girls up to jump you!”

“Anger always results in sloppiness.”

He’d never do anything crazy on campus. He was too careful, tight roping around the loopholes. Vanessa isn’t as careful. She leads with emotion.

“Have you heard from him?” she asks. “Text or anything?”

“No. Thought he didn’t like cell phones?”

I take another drink. She watches my mouth and licks her lips. Satisfied with something unsaid, she sips more of her tea.

“He doesn’t. Well, sometimes he uses mine. It’s just . . . weird ’cause the last time I talked to him, he was meeting up with you.”

I keep my face emotionless, though my heart is racing wildly. “Oh.”