“Oh … ,” Adrian says. “You mean the blond girl dating Corris Hawkes?”

“You know her?” I ask.

“No.” She shakes her head. “But I’ve seen her around. She seems cool. Corris is nice; he’s not like the others.”

“Then can you follow them?” I ask. “I would owe you a huge favor.”

Adrian shifts into gear. “Sure,” she says. “But you don’t owe me anything.”

I thank her and sit back. Sydney and I watch as Adrian follows the black SUV through the neighborhood. We drive for about ten minutes, but it seems to take forever. Suddenly, being in a strange car with a person I hardly know feels alarming.

I have this irrational worry that we’re driving back to Innovations Academy. That Mr. Petrov, Anton, and the professors will be waiting on the front stairs to usher us inside like they used to after a field trip.

“Well, this is different,” Sydney says, bringing me back to reality. I look out the window and see that the neighborhood has changed. The houses are bigger, the lawns more expansive.

“Your friend must be pretty rich,” Adrian says. “This is a nice place—lawyers, doctors, CEOs.”

Lennon Rose doesn’t have any money, at least not that we know of.

“It’s probably the boy’s house,” Sydney says, looking out the window.

“Corris?” Adrian replies. “No, he lives in my neighborhood. And trust me, it doesn’t look like this.”

I have no idea how Lennon Rose could have ended up in an area like this, assuming it’s hers. Where would she get that kind of funding?

We come to a stop as the SUV pulls up to a set of iron gates leading to another section of the neighborhood. Adrian waits as Corris punches in a code, and then the gates begin to open.

“I’m going to try to sneak in behind him,” Adrian says. She’s got an itchy smile on her face, like she’s enjoying this pursuit but doesn’t want to admit it.

Sure enough, the guy drives through and the gate stays open long enough for us to follow. It’s only a few minutes later when the SUV eases to the side of the street outside a massive brick house.

Adrian drives past them so as not to arouse suspicion. She parks down the block, and we watch the couple in the mirrors.

I see Lennon Rose kissing Corris in the front seat of his vehicle. It’s shocking and unnerving. Does she want to be kissing him? Does she even really know him?

And why didn’t she stop to talk to us?

Lennon Rose gets out of the SUV, holding up her delicate hand in a wave before heading toward the front door of the house. She unlocks the door and walks inside.

“We’ll get out here,” I tell Adrian. Her lips part, and she seems worried as she watches me in the mirror.

“Do you want me to wait?” she asks.

“No, but thank you,” I tell her. “We’ll be fine.” We all downloaded a car service app at Marcella’s insistence. I smile at Adrian. “We really appreciate all your help.”

She nods, but I note the small bit of disappointment in her features. She liked feeling included, even though she has no idea what we’re really doing. Sydney climbs out of the backseat, but just as I start to, Adrian calls my name.

“The answer was yes,” she says, looking into her lap instead of at me. “Your earlier question about the boys.” Her voice is a whisper, one that pains me in its familiarity. “And I’m not the only one they’ve hurt. It just doesn’t matter.”

Anger boils up. The boys getting special treatment have been hurting her, hurting others. And they’ve gotten away with it.

“Of course it matters,” I say, but she shakes her head.

“Not according to the school.”

“It matters to me,” I respond immediately. Adrian’s eyes soften, like my words mean something.

Sydney knocks on the window, waiting outside the door. Adrian gives me a polite smile.

“You’d better go,” she says.

“I don’t have to. We can—”

“I don’t want to talk about it,” she says. “I just … I wanted you to know. I wanted you to be prepared.”

“We can help you,” I say, even though I have no idea how I would help beyond my emotional support.

“I’m okay, Mena. Really. Just … forget I said anything.” Her voice has taken on an edge, and I know that pushing her now will shut this conversation down permanently. So I nod, waiting a few extra seconds in case she changes her mind. When she doesn’t, I thank her again for the ride and climb out of the car.

Sydney and I watch as she drives away, offering her a wave. When she’s gone, Sydney is curious.

“What was that about?” she asks.

“I’ll tell you later,” I say.

Sydney turns to face the massive house. “What has Lennon Rose gotten herself into?” she asks.

“We’re about to find out,” I murmur.

There are beautiful plants set all around the porch as we get to the front door. I wonder if Lennon Rose put them here, a reminder of the beauty of the Federal Flower Garden. I’ll probably never go back there. Too bad. It was one of the few places that I enjoyed visiting with Innovations Academy.

“Here we go,” Sydney says. She uses the large, attached handle to knock. A hollow sound echoes behind the door.

We only wait a moment before we hear the clicking of locks, and then the heavy door pulls open. Inside, the house is darker than on the porch and it takes a moment for my eyes to adjust.

And then suddenly, as if she’s just appearing, Lennon Rose stands in front of us. Her ponytail is down, her blond hair flowing over her shoulders. My breath catches.

But it’s Sydney who leaps forward to hug her.

“Oh, Lennon Rose!” Sydney calls, gathering her into her arms. Lennon Rose squeezes her eyes closed like she’s overwhelmed too. They hug desperately in the entryway, and my heart just about bursts to see them together again.

“I’ve missed you so much,” Sydney says, tears streaking her mascara down her face.

They cling together for several moments before Lennon Rose sniffles and straightens out of her arms. She smiles at both of us, wiping her cheeks, even though they’re not wet with tears. Sydney and I, however, are a mess.

We take a moment to get ahold of ourselves. Lennon Rose presses her lips together sympathetically.

“I’m sorry I didn’t talk to you at the game,” she says in the same sweet tone we remember. “I didn’t want to draw attention to us. But I knew you’d come find me.”

“We’ll always come for you,” Sydney says. Lennon Rose steps aside and invites us in. She watches us as we enter, studying us.

The foyer itself is grand, and my eyes feast on the stimulus. Wood floors and patterned wallpaper, a massive staircase with oversized windows along the wall. Paintings are hung in gold frames, and I imagine everything in here is expensive. On one side of the entry is a room with a thirty-foot-high ceiling and a grand piano, almost like a ballroom.

Lennon Rose closes the front door and locks it. She leads us down the hallway a bit and opens a set of doors. The room is beautiful. A library or study, I’m not sure, but it has tons of books, a brown leather sofa, and a desk. We take a seat as Lennon Rose stands in front of us. Sydney is still shaking.