“Come in,” Cece called out, and Kate helped her by opening up the door — from across the room, of course.
The room went entirely silent as we all looked up and saw Jenna Holley standing there, looking gorgeous, as usual. She must have been six feet tall, thin but not too skinny, with high cheekbones and bright blue eyes. Her hair was a mix of brown and gold — expensive highlights. Everything about Jenna looked expensive, even her clingy black halter dress.
“Hey, can I talk to you for a sec, Violet?” she said, as if we were friends or something.
As if perfectly synchronized, everyone’s head swung around toward me, waiting for my reply.
“Uh, yeah, I guess.” I finished zipping up my boot, and made my way over to the door.
I felt her gaze sweep from the top of my head down to my toes, as if she was appraising me. “Never mind. I just. here,” she said, holding something out to me. “I’m supposed to give you this. From Aidan.”
I let her drop whatever it was into my hand, and then she turned and walked away.
“Well, that was weird,” someone said behind me, and then the door slammed shut on its own.
I don’t know why, but I felt a little queasy, my heart beating too fast for comfort as I turned around to face them.
“Well, what is it?” Cece asked, coming to stand next to me.
Completely bewildered, I opened my fingers and stared down at what lay in my palm.
All the air left my lungs in a rush. It was a painting, a little miniature painting set in filigreed gold. An antique, I was sure of it. And the woman in the painting.
Oh. My. God.
It was me. At least, it looked just like me. Same light brown hair, same green eyes, same smile. Only she was wearing clothes like nothing I’d ever seen, not in this century, or the one before.
My heart skipped a beat as I turned it over, somehow knowing exactly what I’d find on the back. One word: Isabel. Written in old-fashioned black script. It was Isabel, Aidan’s Isabel, and she looked just like me.
“What is it?” Cece asked again, taking it from me as I sank to the bed, too stunned to say a word.
“That’s weird. It’s like a painting of you, in costume or something.” She turned it over, just as I had. “I wonder why it says ‘Isabel’? Maybe she’s the artist or something?”
Everyone else had gathered around her — Marissa, Kate, Sophie. They were all examining it, passing it around, almost as if they’d forgotten my presence there.
“But why would Aidan give it to Jenna to give to Violet?” Marissa asked, her voice loud above the din. “Why not give it to her himself?”
Finally Cece turned toward me. “Hey, are you okay? You look like you’re going to puke or something!”
Bile rose in my mouth, and I swallowed it down, gagging as I did so. How could he keep something like this from me?
Because he doesn’t care about you, my mind answered. He never did. He’s using you. Because you look like her.
What other explanation was there?
“I don’t feel very well,” I mumbled.
“What’s going on?” Sophie asked, reaching for my hand.
No! No, I didn’t need her diagnosing me, not right now.
“I’ll be okay. Just. go on, all of you. I’ll catch up with you later, okay?”
“No, I’ll stay with you,” Cece said. “Sophie, can you tell Todd?”
“No. Please. I swear, I’m fine. I just. I need to be alone right now, okay?”
“No way,” Cece said, meeting my gaze with her own determined one. “Go on, everyone. Out. We’ll catch up with you later.”
Mercifully, they obeyed.
As soon as the door shut behind them, Cece turned toward me. “What’s going on, Violet? And don’t lie to me, I know it has something to do with that picture.”
I sat back down on the bed, wishing I could disappear, wishing that a vision would come — anything, to get me out of this.
I swallowed hard before I spoke. “Cece, you’ve got to trust me on this, okay? You’re my best friend, and I feel awful about it, but there are some things about Aidan — about Aidan and me — that I can’t tell you. Not because I don’t want to,” I said quickly, seeing her eyes darken, “but because I really, really can’t. They’re not. not my secrets to tell.” Hadn’t Aidan said something like that about Jenna?
“Has he done something to you? Has he hurt you or—”
“It’s nothing like that, Cee. It’s just private, that’s all. I can’t explain it, but this picture — well, I need to talk to him. Now.”
“You’re scaring me, Violet,” Cece said, her bottom lip trembling. “After what happened with Allison—”
“This is nothing like that, and I promise you I’m not going anywhere, okay? Honestly, I don’t know what I’d do without you.” Cece was probably the best friend I’d ever had, and I couldn’t even tell her half of what was going on in my life. It wasn’t fair!
“What can I do?” she asked, sitting down beside me on the bed.
“Go on to the dance, and tell everyone I’m not feeling well. Tell them I’ve got cramps or something.”
She put her arm around my shoulder and gave it a squeeze. “Okay. But later tonight I’m going to want some answers.”
I just nodded, knowing full well that I could never give her the answers she wanted.
Cece stood up, straightening her dress. “And for the record, you’re a much better roommate than Allison was.”
“Thanks,” I murmured, my heart swelling with affection. “You look great, by the way.” It was the truth. Her slip dress was a deep shade of burgundy, perfect with her skin tone. She wore a little black shrug over it, and her hair was twisted into a knot on the back of her head. “Very sophisticated,” I added.
“Yeah, well, Todd better appreciate it.”
“You really like him,” I said, suddenly realizing that I’d been so caught up in my own crazy love life that I’d barely realized what was going on in hers.
Cece just smiled. “Yeah, I do. And my parents aren’t going to like it, not one bit. Because he’s white, you know? They’re old-fashioned that way.
They’ll say there are plenty of black guys here at Winterhaven, and. well, anyway, I better go. You sure you’re okay?”
“I’m sure,” I said, trying to sound more confident than I felt.