Saven Deception (22 page)

Shoot. How on earth can I explain this
afternoon’s drama without upsetting her? I make a quick ten-second decision.
She needs to understand exactly what she’s facing with Dante. Even if it means
I risk her telling him about this afterward. Logan won’t let him touch me.

“I have stuff to tell you, Jen. You’re not
going to like it,” I caution.

“It’s about Dante, isn’t it?” She sounds
terse.

“Yeah.” I motion toward the couch. We sit
down and I fill her in, leaving out the part where Logan and I went to the
waterfall cave and had a hot, steamy make-out session. No point in rubbing her
nose in it.

“I knew it!” she exclaims. “This is all
because I won’t sleep with him.” She puts her head in her hands. I want to
assure her that it isn’t; however, I’m reluctant to confide anything else until
I’ve spoken to Logan to identify what’s safe to disclose.

“Any guy that’s pressuring you into
sleeping with him isn’t worth it, Jen. Stick to your guns. Don’t sleep with
him,” I add, recalling Logan’s strange suggestion.

“He’s not pressuring me as such.” She
looks down, messing with the hem of her shirt. “He asks me every so often if
I’m ready yet. But I must have misinterpreted his need. He is a guy after all.”
She stares at her feet, and I hate that she’s blaming herself.

“I have an idea,” I say, as I have an “aha”
moment. “I can read your cards.”

Her head flips up and her eyes pop wide.
“You said you didn’t read the cards for others.”

I
had
told her that when I’d first
given her an insight into my unusual hobby. “I don’t, but it doesn’t mean I
can’t. Forget it,” I mumble, waving my hand, “it’s probably a bad idea anyway.”

She slants toward me. “No, it’s not. It’s
a fantastic idea. Please, Sadie. Read them.”

“You may not like the reveal,” I caution.

“I’d still rather hear it.”

Sighing deeply, I rise and retrieve my
tarot cards from the bedroom. I hand them to Jenna and instruct her to shuffle
them. “I think we’ll run with a one-card spread given this is my first time
doing a reading for anyone. Besides, my grandma always said a one-card spread
was the most powerful. First, you need to decide what question you seek an
answer to.” I sink to my knees in front of the coffee table.

Jenna slinks down beside me and places the
shuffled cards on the hard surface. “I know what I want to ask,” she says
meekly. “Is Dante the one for me?”

Jenna chooses a card and positions it face
up on the table. I gulp nervously. This is the tricky part. There are so many
ways to interpret each card and the meaning often isn’t as obvious as it
appears. Jenna dips her head and peers at the card. “Well? What does it mean?”

“It’s the Tower. It’s one of the major
arcana cards indicating transformational change,” I begin to explain.

Jenna squeals and claps her hands. “He is
the one!”

“Hang on, Jen. Let me continue.” I clutch
her wrist and drill her with a serious look. Her excitement shrivels up and
dies. “In its simplest form, it means impending disaster or upheaval, pointing
to some important revelation. But we’ve got to consider the hidden meaning
behind the card and what it’s trying to say.” I rub my temples and squeeze my
eyes shut. I should never have suggested this. I’m too close, too involved, and
not nearly objective enough. My loathing for Dante leans me toward the ominous
meaning when it could signal the opposite. Put simply, it means either he’s the
one for her
or
he’ll be her greatest undoing.

“Pick another card,” I blurt out in
desperation. Grandma would turn in her grave.

“But you said—”

“I’ve changed my mind. This time let’s
focus the question on you. Specifically, what should you do about the situation
with Dante? Keep that thought in your mind and choose another card. Take your
time, inhale slowly, and focus on tapping into your inner unconscious. Ask it
to help you decide what to do.”

She throws a funny look my way but does as
she’s told. She lays the card out on the table.

“It’s a Reversed High Priestess,” I
explain, feeling more assured. It helps me make sense of the previous card.
“This one indicates there are hidden agendas at play that you don’t yet
understand, and it’s cautioning you to heed your inner instinct. Taking both
cards into account, it seems to imply that Dante’s involvement in your life
will have huge impact, but you aren’t aware of his motivations and you need to
trust your gut instinct and listen to what it’s telling you. This is a clear
caution.”

I start tidying up the cards.

“Are you telling me the truth or what you
think I need to hear?” she asks.

“This isn’t an exact science. There could
be any manner of meanings, but that is the interpretation that’s most
believable given the situation,” I explain rationally.

“But the first card—it
could
mean
he’s the one, right?” Her look is pleading.

I turn the question back on her. “Are you
looking to hear what you want to hear or the truth?”

“I …I ... Oh God, I don’t know.” She hooks
her hands behind her head.

“Irrespective of what the cards are or
aren’t saying, he’s not a good guy, Jen. I feel it deep in my bones. I wish
you’d break up with him.”

She stiffens. “That would suit you
perfectly, wouldn’t it? If I break up with him, then you’ve free rein to go
after him yourself.” She pins me with glacial look that chills me to the core.

I stare at her incredulously. 
Where
the hell is this venom coming from?
“You know I’ve no interest in him.”

Jenna rises to her full height, soaring
over me.

I refuse to be intimidated. Standing up, I
hold my ground.

“I know exactly what you are up to,
missy.” She jabs her finger in mid-air and her face contorts unpleasantly.

In that moment, I don’t know who she is
anymore. “Jen. Stop. This isn’t you talking.”

“It’s not like you’d stand a chance
anyway.” Her eyes roam me from head to toe in a derogatory fashion.

Now I’m starting to get pissed. “There’s
no need to be mean. This is a pointless argument.” I count to ten in my head,
determined to keep a level head. One of us has to.

“I’m onto you.” She prods me viciously
with her finger. “You’re one of those girls who pretend to be all sweet and
innocent while scheming behind other girls’ backs. I’ll bet this has been your
plan all along.”

Tears sting my eyes. “I can’t believe
you’ve said something so horrible. I’m only trying to help.”

She laughs bitterly. “The truth hurts,
doesn’t it?” She flicks my cheek with her finger and stalks off toward her
room, slamming the door shut behind her.

I slump onto the couch, heart sore, head
sore, and so, so worried. Jenna is changing right in front of me, and there
isn’t a damn thing I can do about it.

***

The only contact I receive from Logan is a cursory message
that reads, “All sorted. Don’t worry. See you tomorrow.”

Jenna has gone out with Dante, and having
brushed off Jarod’s invitation to spend the time gorging on old TV re-runs, I’m
alone with my thoughts. Worryingly so.

How can one day herald such highs and
lows? So many fluctuating emotions? I focus on the memory of my amazing evening
with Logan rather than focusing on the hurtful recollection of my disastrous
falling out with Jenna.

I fall asleep remembering how incredible
Logan’s lips felt moving against mine.

I’m in the midst of a delicious dream of
Logan when a sharp pinch in my arm disturbs my sleep. My eyes flash open and
the room blurs in and out. My vision is hazy. I think I detect movement in the
room, but I can’t be sure. Something warm spreads over my cheek and my pulse
quickens. Rampant fluttering in my stomach attests to my sudden anxiety.
Something prods my face and my stomach lurches warily.

My eyes waver, the room spins, and two almond-shaped
pink spots appear in my vision.

Then I fall back into unconsciousness.

***

I’m groggy and moody as hell the next morning. I slept
through my alarm, and Jenna left without waking me. It was only Haydn hammering
on the door that roused me. Thankfully, we have a free period first thing, so I
have time to hustle a quick shower and something to eat.

I only remember the nighttime incident as
I’m toweling myself dry. I must be totally losing the plot now if I’m imagining
such weird things. I chalk my experience up to a particularly vivid nightmare
and decide to leave it at that.

Haydn shoves a muffin and apple in my hand
and hauls me out the door. “Less of the manhandling, if you don’t mind,” I say
grouchily. The lack of Logan’s presence is adding to my pre-existing bad mood.
“Why didn’t Logan come with you?”

“He had something to attend to first.”

“When will I see him?” I’ve a real bad
feeling, and I’m hoping I’m wrong about it.

“He said he’d meet you at the campus
entrance at lunchtime.” I’m marginally more assured.

Haydn is his usual quiet self on the train,
and I have far too much time on my hands to think. There’s so much confusion
swirling inside me, and I’m sick of thinking about it. My heart twists at Jenna’s
cruel words, and I don’t know what’s to become of our friendship.

Then there’s Logan. In the cold light of
day, I’m starting to feel less confident about him. It’s not as if we actually
agreed to anything, and the fact that he didn’t come over last night has me on
tenterhooks. I hope I’m overreacting, but I’m fearful that I’m not.

Haydn and I are walking around the side of
the science building, when I spy a couple of familiar faces through the window.
Blood solidifies in my veins. Before Haydn can stop me, I dash to the side and
peep in. Neve and Logan are engaged in conversation with Dante and the tall,
dark-haired man from City Hall.

I’ve already determined he’s acquainted
with Dante, but I can’t recall any interaction with Logan the night of the gala
event. And what the hell is Neve doing in there? She wasn’t even in the
auditorium for the bust-up yesterday.

“What are you doing?” Haydn demands,
clutching my arm.

“What’s going on in there? Who’s that
man?”

“None of your business. Let’s go before
we’re discovered.”

Logan’s head flits to the window as if
he’s received some silent summons. I step back, intimidated by the hostility in
his glare. “Sadie! We need to get out of here. I’m not asking.” Haydn drags me
around the far end of the building. I’m morosely quiet. The ferocity of Logan’s
stare has intimidated me. I can’t decide whether I’m upset, or angry, or
afraid, or a combination of all the above.

The morning classes crawl by and I check
my watch at least fifty times. As soon as the lunch bell tolls, I zoom off like
there’s a rocket up my ass.

My heart starts this weird little tribal
dance as I approach the entrance and spot Logan’s alluring form waiting for me.

“Hi.” I attempt to project confidence.

“Hi, Sadie.” He glances at me once before
looking away. I sense something is off, and I’m having a hard time keeping a
lid on my writhing panic. Shoving his hands in his jean pockets, he shifts
awkwardly from foot to foot. “Walk with me?”

I place one foot in front of the other and
follow him in jerky, robotic fashion. The typical warmth in his presence is
gone, replaced by discernable coolness. Giving myself a quick pep talk, I pull
myself together. If he’s going to give me the cold shoulder again, then I’m not
going to give him the satisfaction of seeing how much it upsets me. As we round
the corner to the little café, I add a layer of steel to my heart.

Dismissing Logan’s offer of lunch, I
simply request water. At least if Ria is anywhere in the vicinity, I won’t have
to remove my shirt this time if things turn nasty.

Logan reappears promptly with a glass of
water for me and a cappuccino for him. He blows gently on the steaming cup
before pressing his lips to the frothy foam and licking it with one quick sweep
of his tongue. All I can think is those lips were on my mouth yesterday. That
tongue was feathering against mine.

While it’s apparent that it meant nothing
to him, it meant the world to me.

Logan appears reluctant to kick this off,
so I man up for both of us. I know I only have a short window before my
disappointment and heartache get the better of me. I refuse to show any outward
upset or cave to any urge to cry. “So, what happened?”

“You have permission to stay in Thalassic
City; however, the director might be a bit frosty with you.” He says all this
while looking at the strangely fascinating table.

“I’m quitting the performance anyway.”

“No, don’t do that.” His gaze reluctantly
meets mine. Unnamed emotion shines briefly behind his eyes, but it’s gone
before I can figure it out.

“It was a silly idea anyway.”
Self-consciously, I run my fingers through my much-longer hair.