Page 74 of Summoned
He walks away, and I open my mouth to shout after him but thesound never escapes. Despair spreads over my skin, seeping into my chest and shrouding my heart in a shadow so deep no one can break through.
Then, at the edge of the schoolyard, I see Gaetano. His gaze locks onto mine, trapping me there. I don’t try to break free. I simply fall into those dark depths and drown, drown, drown…
The nightmare is still haunting me, when—
Knock-knock.
I freeze in the chair in front of my vanity. I can’t deal with my dad today, not right now.
“Miss Nicole? You have a visitor!” Katya’s voice, our senior housekeeper, floats through the closed door.
“Not a good time…” I reach for my spare cap and pull it low over my forehead.
“She insists! Says it’s urgent!”
It must be Boyana. Probably hooked up with someone last night and needs to give me the blow-by-blow.
I part my lips to send her away as the door flies open with a bang, and Daria storms in. Her hair’s yanked into a messy ponytail, and she’s clutching a giant tub of ice cream. Her eyes dart around the room, landing on me. “Jesus, Nicole! Are you okay?!”
Katya plants her fists on her hips. “I told her to wait downstairs!”
“It’s fine.” I stand, gesturing for Katya to leave us, and close the door again. Then I face Daria. “What the hell are you doing here? Why are you yelling? Do you want the entire house to know something’s wrong?”
“You haven’t told your family about the Black Joker?”
I snort, pressing the brim of the cap tighter against my forehead. “Yeah, let them think I’ve lost it, right?”
Daria’s gaze lingers on the visor of my cap.Don’t ask.Don’t ask… “Don’t be ridiculous! They’re your family. Of course they’d believe you…” At least she’s stopped gawking at my cap.
I wave her off and settle back on my stool, creating some space between us. “So, why are you here? I texted you I’m okay.”
Daria perches on the edge of my bed. “I figured you could use some support.” She waves the tub of ice cream in front of her face. “Seriously, Nicole, how can you be so stingy with details in those messages? This is the Black Joker we’re talking about!”
Our last encounter replays in my mind. What does she expect me to say? That I spiraled from terror to desire in a heartbeat when he pressed himself against me? That I melted into the touch of the very man I should have run from?
The thought alone ignites a fresh wave of fury—at him, at myself, at this whole twisted game I never asked to play.
“I guess you’re freaking out because your turn’s coming up at the end of the year,” I snap at her. Even though she doesn’t deserve the harsh words, meanness is my favorite weapon when I need to hide.
A crease appears between Daria’s eyebrows. “I’m freaking outfor you, Nicole. I can’t even imagine what you’re going through…”
The sympathy in her expression makes me want to pull the cap down over my entire face. I’m used to commanding respect, not pity. Trusting her with the information about the Black Joker was a mistake. I can’t help but say, “Yeah, because you’re always such a saint.”
Daria clutches the ice cream tub to her chest. “I wouldn’t say that. I’ve done things I’m not proud of.Once, I promised our neighbor I’d water her plants while she was away, and I forgot—”
“Oh, spare me! You always care.Alwayssee people as saints.”
Her face twists into a scowl. “Right now, I seeyou asa bitter bitch who could disappear from this world in days. But you were the one who taught me not to be afraid of the dark when we were kids. You taught me not to fear the unknown, and I’ve never stopped being grateful for that. That’s why I’m here. Because I care about the girl you were, not the one you’ve become.” She presses her lips together, her gaze sweeping my room. I don’t know what she sees, but then she shakes her head. “This was a mistake.”
She stands and heads for the door. The grinning Cheshire Cat on the back of her T-shirt fades in a slow-motion shot. A forgotten detail from my past—those days when Daria and I played that weird video game where Alice was a bloodthirsty zombie, and the cat was a demonic hound.
The quiet days, before I grew up. Before I became the “Baroness.”
“Daria, wait! I’m sorry for what I said. I’m just… on edge.” I sigh and pull off the cap.
Daria turns,her eyes widening on the mark. “Oh, my God!”
* * *
