Page 84 of Make Me Scream

As much as I may hate Mundell, at least he came through for Joel.

“Thank you. You’re right,” he laughs. “But oh no. I’m gonna have to do so much work! They want thirty finished pieces!”

Wow.

“Anything you need, I’ll be there,” I say. “Like, don’t worry about cleaning the apartment, or grocery shopping. I’ll take care of everything.”

He sighs, leaning in to whisper.

“I think I need to quit the cafe.”

He’s right. He’ll need the time. Money will be tight, but this is his future.

“We’ll figure it out. Don’t worry,” I say. “Do what you have to do.”

What’s a little extra credit card debt? If the gallery goes well, and he sells a lot of paintings, he’ll be able to pay it all off with ease.

“Okay, I’m leaving. See you tonight.” Joel winks. “Maybe.” He hugs me one more time, throws off his apron and jogs to the back office.

I pour myself a cup of coffee and duck behind the counter to drink it. This is going to be a long, busy day.

—

No one from the cafe can come in on short notice to cover the rest of Joel’s shift. My phone buzzes repeatedly inside my purse, but we’re too swamped for me to respond. I don’t get out until after dark, and by then Lane’s texted four times and left two voicemails.

What the fuck is going on?

I call him on my walk home, forgetting my sore feet and sweaty skin. My heart pounds, concern growing when he answers on the first ring.

“Mundell knows about us,” he says. “He wants me to resign or you’re gone.”

I stop in place, listening as Lane gives me the details. More than one passerby bumps me until I have the presence of mind to step aside.

All of our plans to continue my art in secret, to bide my time until I finish school — it was for nothing. Either Lane resigns or I leave — no matter what, Mundell wins.

“When I see him I’m going to…” I start, but draw a blank. “I don’t know. Mundell got Joel a show at the Madrigal. If I lash out at him…”

“Fuck. He did that to force your hand, Gwen. He’s playing on your loyalty to your friend.”

“Hey! Joel’s the best artist at the whole school. This was in the works before we became a thing.”

Lane’s clearly pissed, but he needs to watch what he says about Joel. He doesn’t know what he’s talking about. If there’s anything I can agree with Mundell about, it’s Joel’s talent.

“Sorry,” Lane says. “I’m sure he’s excellent if he got into Madrigal. The point is, Rush’s putting the screws to us. I wanted to do the same to him, but he got there first. Almost as if he’d planned it, then played each card perfectly.”

Is he for real?

“Lane, we dealt him the cards! Maybe if you hadn’t turned your sights on a student, he wouldn’t be able to put you, or me, in this position. Mundell has every right to fire you.”

“What do you want, Gwen? You want me to quit? You can say so.”

He’s hiding the anger from his voice. If Mundell saw me on the street, that means Lane spent all day seething, searching for solutions and coming up empty. The last thing I want to do is cost him his job, but… what other option do we have?

“Do you know what was the happiest moment of my life?” I ask him, closing my eyes and traveling back in time.

“What?”

“When I saw that envelope from Mundell Academy, when I saw that it was a big one. I knew then I got in. Even if I couldn’t afford to go there, they thought I was good enough. They said I belonged. And when I opened it and it said I had a full scholarship… I cried, Lane. I nearly fell over, I was so dizzy. It was my ticket out of Ohio, and I’d earned it, all on my own.”

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