Page 19 of The Debutantes
“We have to go to the darkroom,” Piper says, like it’s the most obvious thing in the world. “We have to at least try to figure out what Lily meant.”
I hike my camera strap up my shoulder. I don’t like the thought of it, bringing Piper and Vivian to the darkroom. It’s my own little cave, and like most trolls, I prefer to inhabit it in peace.
“I don’t know what she was talking about,” I say.
That’s not true. I have an idea, but I don’t like it. I don’t likeanythingabout this—how even now, from wherever the hell sheis, Lily LeBlanc has managed to take control of my day and make it all about her.
Another memory from that summer burns through me: Margot bent over her phone, fist pressed to her mouth to hide a grin. As soon as she caught me looking, she stashed it.Nothing,she’d said when I asked, before telling me that, actually, she couldn’t catch a movie later, because she had a “thing” she forgot about. Obviously a lie. It was also obvious who she was really texting. Lily had been trying to edge me out of their friendship for weeks, and even then, some part of me knew it was only a matter of time before she got what she wanted. She always did.
“Well, then, we’ll go without you,” Piper says, looking to Vivian. “Right?”
Vivian puts her hands on her hips like she’s about to ask me to drop and give her twenty. “You seriously havenoidea what Lily meant?”
I chew the inside of my cheek.
“Look, I know Marty thinks she just ran away, or whatever, but she’s my best friend,” Vivian continues. “She could be—”
“I know.” I take a deep breath in and blow it out.
The thing is, part of me kind of agrees with Marty. Even if no one else can see it, staging her own disappearance seems like exactly the sort of thing Lily LeBlanc would do just to create drama in her picture-perfect life. Because nothing bad ever happens to her. She lives up in her perfect tower, looking down on the rest of us like we’re little ants she could fry alive with the glow from her diamond necklace.
But I don’t think I can walk away from this. Not because of Lily, but because of that text.
We need to talk about Margot.
Ever since I read those words, I’ve been flooded with memories of that night. Margot’s hand around the lighter, the hiss of the flame.April, please.
For a full year, I’ve tried to forget what we did, how it ended. How I know it’s my fault. But now, with Lily’s message… I can’t shake the feeling that maybe I was wrong. Maybe there’s more to the story.
The thought is almost too big, too paralyzing to linger on, so I focus on the immediate issue—Piper and Vivian, waiting for my answer. I sigh, reaching for my keys.
“Fine,” I say. “Let’s go.”
If nothing else, I’m not about to let them go traipsing around my darkroom unsupervised.
Beaumont is technically closed for winter break until Tuesday, but for one of the wealthiest schools in the city, they’ve never been all that concerned about security. They don’t have to be—at a school with fifty kids per grade, everyone knows everyone, and it’s easy enough to spot someone who doesn’t belong.
When we get there, the iron gate by the football field is open, a groundskeeper mowing the grass to Beaumont’s standard of perfection. He doesn’t bat an eye as we pass, just waves a friendly hand in greeting.
We walk down the brick path beside the football field, and Piper frowns at her phone.
“What?” Vivian asks.
“Wyatt. I guess he just woke up and heard about Lily.” There’s a slight wrinkle in her nose, like she doesn’t approve ofslothful habits like sleeping past noon. Then, as she reads further, she looks worried. “He’s going to the LeBlancs’ to talk to Detective Rutherford.”
Vivian gives her a sideways glance. “Was there anything, like… weird with them last night?”
Piper’s grip tightens on her phone. “What do you mean?”
“I don’t know, I just got a weird vibe. Also…”
Vivian hesitates, like she’s not sure if she can trust us yet—which I guess is fair. We may have gone to school together since kindergarten, but it’s not like we’re friends.
She sighs. “Right before she left, I saw this text on Lily’s phone, from an unsaved number. I didn’t see what it said, but she was weird about it.”
Piper’s jaw tenses. For a moment, she’s quiet.
“Okay, so I might have overheard them arguing before they left,” she says finally. “It sounded like Wyatt was annoyed that Lily kept texting someone.” She glances at Vivian. “Do you have any idea who it might have been?”
