He frowned. "She's fine…Why?" His eyes seemed wary.

I shrugged. "No reason."

Logan's gaze had been skirting between us with a frown on his face. A look of frustration passed over him. "Where's Mason, Sam?"

I jumped. "Why would I know?"

"You saw him last?"

I looked away and cursed when my face went in flames. "I have no idea. I've been asleep the whole afternoon."

"Uh huh. Right."

When I glanced back, I was grateful to see that only Logan studied me. He gave me a tight smile and I knew that he knew. Guilt and anger coursed through me, but I frowned back at him. Then I stuck my tongue out at him before I pushed through a set of doors that led where Mark had told me to go.

When I pushed into the kitchen, so many people poured everywhere. No one looked at me and I got an extra bounce in my step from that. No one cared. That was good, very good. And I meandered through to the patios. From the top, I looked down and my eyes went wide again. When Logan said my friends were on the bottom patio, he'd declined to tell me there were six different patios. There were walkways that connected them and each patio was set beneath the other one.

When I got to the bottom, that patio was settled between a tennis court and a sand volleyball court.

Who were Nate's parents and what did they do for a living?

"Sam!" Becky saw me first and pumped her hand in the air. The fierceness of her movements sent most of her drink over the glass' edge that she held in her other hand. Amelia White scrambled up next to her and brushed frantically at her lap.

As I approached, she had snapped something at Becky, who didn't seem to care as her grin was etched from ear to ear. She pulled over an empty seat next to her and shoved it out to me. "Here. Sit here."

I sat.

Amelia scoffed and rolled her eyes as she moved a seat away on the other side of Becky. Her two other friends, Miranda and Cassandra both gave me polite smiles before they sipped their drinks. Adam was surrounded by Peter and a second guy that I didn't know. He looked like the Academy Elite, preppy and stuck-up.

"Where did you go?" Becky gushed. "I didn't know you ran. Adam said you went running. How far did you?"

I shrugged. "Far enough."

"That's so cool. You should go out for cross country. I bet you'd be awesome at it."

Adam gave me a biting smile. "Did you rest up this afternoon?"

I wanted to glare at him, but I held back and took a breath instead. "I did. You?"

Cassandra laughed shrilly and placed a hand over his. She gave me a forced smile. "Oh, you wouldn't believe how long he napped."

I frowned. "I wouldn't?"

"No." She heartedly shook her head. "Not at all, not one bit." Then she wiggled two fingers at me. "You're so secretive, Samantha. We had no idea you liked to run."

My eyebrow shot up. "Well, how could you? We've been such great friends since…" I waited a beat and gave my own forced laugh. "Oh, that's right. We're not friends."

Her smile clamped up and she glared instead. "You don't have to be mean."

I smiled back. "Why not? It's so much fun."

Becky gasped and patted her chest in an exaggerated fashion. "Could this be? Has Cassandra Uppity met her match?"

She turned her glare on her and an added coldness sparked in her depths. "Watch it, Sallaway. You're two steps from being ousted at school."

Becky seemed to purr in her smile. "Adam's been my neighbor all my life. We're good friends too."

Cassandra's eyes were sharp. "I don't see him defending you right now. Two steps, outcast, two steps and your humiliation is all mine. I like to serve my dishes best cold."

Becky lifted her hand and pretended to claw her. "Retract 'em, beeotch. We all know what they say about felines."

"What?"

She seemed to search for words. "That…they're the female version of the human species: catty, moody, and sneaky."

"You're a girl."

Becky shrugged. "I'm more a dog."

The smile on Cassandra's face was the crème of the crème and she leaned back. "You're right. You like to bound around looking like a fool most of the time when everyone knows you're just panting for any scraps from your master. You're low class, Rebecca. You used to accept it."

Becky turned green and looked away. I leaned forward, not sure what to do, but Adam remarked as he continued to lounge back in his chair, "Sullivan, chill."

She glared at him. "Why?"

He stared her down. "She's my friend."

She rolled her eyes and harrumphed before she shot from the table and stormed away.

Becky looked back up from her lap. A small smile started on her face. "Did she just leave?"

The other two Academy Elite females didn't say a word, but shared a look.

I frowned at that. What did that mean? And then we were all distracted when two new arrivals showed up. They were by the beach and paused in clear view from the mansion's top decks.

I sighed.

Tate and Tanya had arrived.

Both looked stylish, dressed in tight khakis and tank tops. Tanya's blonde hair was in curls as it lay past her shoulders and Tate's hair was swept up in some French-twist thing. I didn't know what it was, but it looked sophisticated.

Adam shot forward, but he didn't stand from the table. He raised his hand.

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