Paper Dolls (29 page)

Zach and Emerson’s estate was breathtaking under the soft, inky night air. The house was a restored grand mansion of a bygone era, with checked flooring and polished wooden finishes. Outside, lights twinkled in the trees, picking out every branch and reflecting in the black lake. Waiters brought platters around to people in designer dresses and suits. So many people—elegant in designer dresses and suits. My dress was hardly in that league.

Molly, Aisha and I hung back a little, unsure of where to put ourselves.

Zach strode towards me, dressed in a dark gray suit and white shirt. The effect was so incredible I almost wished he was wearing his old cut-off jeans and tee-shirt—because he looked way too good for me. I’d always hated it when girls said that a boy was too good for them, but I couldn’t help but feel that way right now.

His eyes lit up. He was next to me in a moment, kissing my cheek. “That dress is perfect on you. You’re perfect,” he said in a low voice.

Emerson and Parker stepped up behind Zach.

Parker took Molly’s hand. “My lady.” Molly’s eyelashes lowered as color rose in her temples. “That hair could only belong to one girl on this earth.”

Emerson gazed at Aisha with a questioning look in his eye. Aisha moved into his arms. Emerson kissed her fully on the mouth and then spun her around. “You look even more beautiful than last time I saw you,” he told her. She rested her head against his shoulder for a moment, a distant expression on her face.

An orchestra began to play a classical tune. Zach swiped two tall glasses of red wine from a passing drinks waiter and handed me one.

“To us and the night,” he said.

Smiling, I gulped down the wine. Mom would have a fit if she saw me drinking. It wasn’t the first time I’d had alcohol though—I’d hung out and drunk cheap bottles of spirits on the streets of Miami when I was fourteen. Those days seemed so distant now. If I could have had a vision then of myself at age fifteen holding a real wine glass at one of the most expensive estates in Miami, I would never have believed it. I could never have seen myself with a guy like Zach either—he was much more than anyone I could have imagined for myself.

I stole another glance at him as he finished his wine. His hair caught the light of the lamps above. He stared into the dark, lapping waters of Lake Biscayne—his expression subtly changing and a troubled look entering his eyes.

I touched his arm. “Everything okay?”

He looked through me for a moment before snapping back. “Yeah. Of course. Sorry, my thoughts ran away with me for a moment there.”

I couldn’t help but wonder if he’d been thinking about me, thinking if this was the night he should end our relationship. I eyed a few of the other girls at the ball—they were beautiful and probably rich. I wasn’t perfect for Zach—but they were. A gorgeous blue-eyed blonde walked past—in a sparkly green dress that looked painted-on. She glanced sideways at Zach, giving him a small secret smile.

I told myself not to think about Zach ending what was between us. I intended to enjoy this night.

A stunning redhead in a blue dress ran across the lawn, chasing a small dog. She scooped Lucy up in her arms and kissed her nose. “Naughty doggy. Always escaping.” The guests laughed as she chastised the little dog.

At first I didn’t recognize Viola. Her hair was done in an extravagant up-do and her dress was so figure-hugging it made her seem older.

She ran over to Zach and threw her arms around him. Lucy wriggled between them and began licking Zach’s face.

“Vee, take her inside,” Zach protested.

“Oh but she’s so cute,” giggled Viola. She turned to me. “Cassandra, don’t you look pretty!”

“Thanks. You look—“

‘Hot,” finished a young man who grabbed Viola from behind.

Viola introduced the man as Clarkson. He seemed way too old to be with a fifteen-year-old—he was maybe twenty-four or twenty-five. Perhaps he was why Aisha was against Raif being at the ball—if she already knew Viola had a boyfriend, she wouldn’t have wanted to hurt Raif’s feelings.

“Wish we could kick the orchestra out and get some decent music happening,” Viola complained. “I feel like partying!”

“Won’t hurt you to gain an appreciation for the classics.” Clarkson playfully flicked her ear.

“Stuff that. Life’s too short to waste on things that make you gag,” she said, making a gagging gesture with her finger inside her mouth.

For some reason, Clarkson found this riotously funny and he threw his head back and roared with laughter. “You’re a wicked child, Viola.”

“My sister is a hoot,” said Emerson.

Aisha finished one glass of wine and took another from a drinks waiter.Her eyes were already a little glazed.

“Better take it easy on the firewater, Aish. Pace it out a bit.” I gazed at her in concern.

“I’ll have as much as I need.” Aisha finished off her glass in one gulp.

“Well, she’s going to make a beautiful drunk,” Emerson quipped.

Zach took another glass of wine from a waiter and offered them to me and Molly.

I held up both hands. “Not for me.”

“Me either.” Molly shook her titian curls. “Wine tastes sour to me I’m afraid.”

“Well you two are freaking killjoys,” said Viola. She took both glasses of wine from Zach and swallowed them within seconds. “That’s how to have fun.”

A man threaded his way through the guests and stood on the dark perimeter of the grounds. Something about his walk and the angles of his thin body were familiar, though I couldn’t see him clearly.

“Come for a walk with me?” Zach’s blue eyes smiled into mine.

“Sure.” I looked around for Molly, just to check she was okay. She was busy chatting with Parker and an older woman, who might have been Parker’s mother. Molly seemed comfortable enough.

I followed Zach down to the lake.

“Careful,” he said. “There’s a bit of a sharp drop off.”

“I love the way the water comes right up to your back lawn. It’s amazing.”

“Yeah.” He seemed distracted. He took a long breath, threading a lock of my hair through his fingers. “Are you happy?” he said softly.

“Of course. Look around—everything’s incredible, and I’m with you.”

“I want you to be happy and I want you to know that.”

“Well whatever happens, I am.”

“I didn’t expect…” he shifted awkwardly, loosening his bowtie. “I didn’t expect to fall for you, back when I met you. But something about you is just so…pure.” He sighed. “That didn’t come out right. I meant that you say what you mean—there’s no guessing games. And you’ve never tried to impress me.”

“That’s because I don’t have anything to impress you with,” I said, making a light joke.

“You’re wrong about that,” he said seriously. “You have everything to impress me with. Why don’t we get out of here…now? On the yacht. Just you and me. Be alone. We haven’t had any time alone—not once. Except for a few minutes snatched here and there.”

“I can’t leave the party—I can’t leave Molly and Aish.”

“Yeah, I understand. I just…wanted…I just wanted you. Just you and nothing else.”

Leaning forward, I kissed his warm mouth. “I love being with you too.”

He kissed me back—a long and searching kiss. “You and only you,” he murmured into my temple.

I flinched. “What did you say?”

“I said, I want you.” Confusion crossed his face.

“I thought you said something else. Sorry—the wine must have gone to my head already.” I gazed at the dark lake lapping at the edge. “What you just said… does that mean you want to take things further… tonight?”

“You think I was asking for sex?”

“Weren’t you?”

“Cassie, I want everything from you, and yeah, of course I’ve thought about it. But that’s not where I was heading. Not this night.”

“Okay.” I smiled at him. “But so you know. I want to, too.” I didn’t know if I was ready or not. I just knew that Zach was the most wonderful guy ever and the thought of being with him in that way blocked out every other thought right now.

He nuzzled my temple. Heat ran along my spine.

But for a moment, Zach was replaced in my mind with Ethan. The wild rawness of Ethan bled through me, taking me to a place I’d never been to with Zach. I tried to throw it off but the thought clung to me.

I craned my neck around to the house. “Looks like everyone’s heading inside.”

“Stay with me,” Zach pleaded. “We can have our own dance out here.”

I laughed. “That’s not very social. How about we have a few waltzes inside with the others first?”

We stepped towards the house, Zach holding my hand so firmly it almost hurt.

Couples spun around the dance floor. Aisha hung on Emerson’s shoulders, her eyes with a dreamy, faraway expression. She looked as though she could barely stand up unaided. Molly waltzed with Parker, dancing so gracefully that others had stopped to watch her.

Chatter hushed audibly as Zach and I entered the room.

“They’re looking at us,” I said in a low voice.

“Because you’re beautiful.” Zach’s voice had a wistful edge to it. He brought me close as he led me into the dance.

Due to all that crazy waltzing practice with Jessamine, I could waltz and waltz well. It wasn’t the first time I’d danced with Zach, but this time was different. This time he clung to me as though he was afraid I’d run away. I could feel heat rising from the skin beneath his shirt and suit.

New guests were entering the ballroom. Their faces seemed oddly familiar. Had I seen them in the newspapers perhaps—in the Miami social pages? Were they supporting actors in movies I’d seen? Lots of actor-types hung out at Miami.

The waltz ended and the orchestra stopped playing.

Zach’s father strode to the front of the ballroom. He put out his arms. “Dearest friends and family, Beverly and I are overjoyed that you could join us on this occasion.” He gestured towards his wife, Zach and Emerson to step up there with him. “We have travelled the long road to come to this point, this pinnacle as it were. Sometimes difficult decisions must be made to achieve great things. A small part of things has been our restoration of this house. Built and abandoned in 1920 by Tobias Fiveash, it took a good deal of time and effort to return it to its original glory—reimagining the vision of the original owner.” He gestured towards a thick curtain that covered something on the wall. “Without further ado….”

He pulled a cord that stripped the curtain away.

The saliva in my mouth turned ashen.

A massive wooden carving was inlaid on the wall. A mirrored tree—with bare branches stretching up and roots stretching below. And the house… the house had belonged to Tobias.

I tried to steady myself. Tobias Fiveash apparently had real estate everywhere. It was just chance that Zach’s parents had bought this house. And to them, the tree carving was a tree and nothing more.

I glanced at Molly. Her face was white.

Applause broke out around the room. I clapped along with everyone else.

Mr. Batiste waited for the applause to subside. “We found this wonderful carving hidden behind a false wall during renovations. It was a pleasure having craftsmen restore it over the past year. Things of value are worth waiting a great deal of time for."

I felt a tug at my side. Molly smiled widely at me, but I could tell her smile was forced. “Have you tried one of those awesome feta rolls? Come try one. The waiter went this way.”

I walked with her, not quite understanding.

“Cassie, you trusted me when we were in the underground, right?”

“Of course….”

“Please look like we’re just having a normal conversation, whatever I say next. Keep smiling and don’t stare at anyone.”

Faint nausea rose in my stomach. I nodded.

“These people,” she said. “The ones who came in recently. Those faces. I can never forget them. They’re the faces from the Feast of Fools. Ghosts….”

The last word dropped from her lips like lead.

“Molly, that’s not possible. How could—“

“I know. But you need to trust me. And we need to get out of here… now.”

I stole furtive glances around the room. Fear coiled deep within me. I saw what she could see. These were not people at a ball. These were actors playing their parts. “Why are they here? Why?”

“I don’t know.”

“I’ll tell Zach we need to leave.”

“Cassie… wait.” She swallowed. “I think we should just get Aisha and leave quietly. Tell no one.”

“But Zach and Emerson and Parker could help us. Are we supposed to walk out of here alone?”

“That might be the best we’ve got.”

Disjointed thoughts spun through my mind. I didn’t know which way to turn or run. I desperately wanted Zach, wanted his arms around me. But Molly’s eyes urged me on.

I walked beside her, trying with everything in me to look like my world hadn’t just fallen into a burning pit.

Aisha stood dancing a small swaying dance all on her own, while Parker had a conversation with a man off in a corner.

“Aish, having a good time?” My voice was brittle.

She nodded. “Uh huh.” She closed her eyes and kept swaying.

“Aish,” I repeated. “We have something to tell you.”

“So tell me.”’

“You need to listen carefully. And you look pretty drunk.”

“Do I? Maybe I wanted to be.”

“I don’t know what’s going on with you tonight. But please, you need to listen. What I have to say will shock you, but you mustn’t give us away.”

“Just spill it.”

“Aish, without looking around… do any of these people look familiar to you?”

She shook her head. “No, why should they?”

“Take a quick look at the man in the waistcoat talking to Parker. Don’t let him see you looking. Doesn’t he look like that man who ran off with you over his shoulder—at the Feast of Fools?”

Blood drained from Aisha’s face. “That’s not him. How could it be? Anyway, all that stuff was just our imaginations.”

“You know we didn’t imagine any of that.
You know
.”

“I don’t know anything. Down there, each of us had a chance to escape if we wanted. Henry offered it to us. And we could have figured out that Jessamine was just a lonely little girl playing house. But we refused. We stayed to the bitter end. Well now, I want this life. I want to stay with Emerson.”