Secrets of the Sisterhood (The Cinderella Society, Episode 1) (8 page)

“As you probably remember from last night, my name is Gaby Winston. I’ll be your Alpha Chair for the next year. My job is to lead your Alpha-level meetings and get you ready to take the next step in the Sisterhood.

“Since this is your first time back to the Club, here’s the lowdown. This is our meeting place for Cindys only. No one else knows it exists. There are security locks on the outer management entrance and on the door to the Club. You’ll each be given your own code, and the security system will log every time you enter the facility. You’re free to come back here whenever you want during the Grind’s business hours to study and work on your projects.”

Gaby stretched out her arms to encompass the room. “This is what we call study hall. Through that door”—she pointed to her left—“is the Alpha office. That’s where I’ll be when I’m on duty this summer. If I’m not on duty, you can leave me a note in my mailbox.”

Gaby gestured to the other doors farther down on her left. “The next door is the leader’s office, Paige Ellis. She’s a camp counselor this summer, so she’ll be MIA for the next week or so during counselor training. The last door is the Gamma office. It has its own keyed access and is off-limits unless you’ve got Gamma security clearance.”

She pointed a thumb over her shoulder. “Behind me is the Cindy lounge. We’ve got a great setup in there: a kitchenette with a couple of tables, two laptops, a TV, and a bathroom. Audrey keeps us well stocked, so have at it if you get the munchies. If you want a sandwich or something from the front while Audrey’s here, instructions for ordering are next to the laptops. Audrey will bring it back.”

Security clearance and a supermodel waiting on us. Who ARE we?

“From now on, you only hang in the front if you’re here to socialize. If you’re here for the Society, you enter through the outside door near the bathrooms and come straight back through the employee entrance. You leave the same way you came in. No one should see you enter or exit if you can help it. If anyone questions you, just tell them you’re doing some work for Audrey.”

“Audrey hires students for lots of things around the store,” Kyra explained. “That helps us with the cover.”

They weren’t kidding about secrecy. I wondered if fingerprinting was far behind.

“The binders in front of you,” Gaby continued, “are your Sisterhood training manuals. The
CMM
on the cover stands for
Cinderella Makeover Manual
. It’s one of the most top-secret documents in the Sisterhood. The
CMM
does
not
leave the Club. There are lockers in the lounge for you to lock them up when you leave.”

Gaby consulted the book in front of her, leaving her finger on the page to mark her spot. “It goes without saying that nothing you see, hear, or do in the Club goes beyond the Club. You’re not to mention the
CMM
or anything about The Cinderella Society to non-Cindys.”

I raised my hand. “What about Audrey?” I asked. “Doesn’t she know?”

Gaby smiled. “A group like ours can’t function without help, so we have a dedicated support system for what we do. Audrey has a lucrative contract with us for the space, so that works for both of us.”

I couldn’t imagine what
lucrative
meant to a millionaire-supermodel-franchising-phenom, but the Cindys had to be seriously well funded. I made a mental note to get the scoop from Sarah Jane on who was financing our little group. She’d sworn it was strictly a no-dues thing. Which was good, because my allowance couldn’t support a hamster much less a supermodel.

“She’s also our eyes and ears,” Sarah Jane added. “That’s part of why she’s so chummy out front. She’s like that anyway, but she picks up a lot from people who come into the store. If it’s detrimental to us or to”—she paused—“other people, Audrey lets us know.”

“And those other people are exactly why you’re here,” Gaby said. “The Cinderella Society’s creed is simple but powerful.” She passed around a half sheet with three short statements on it.

CELEBRATE YOUR STRENGTH

EMBRACE YOUR FUTURE

BE EXTRAORDINARY

“Learn it and live it,” Gaby told us. “Every Cindy, no matter what level, has the same core mission. Our creed is what drives everything the Sisterhood’s about.”

Gaby had us flip open our
Cinderella Makeover Manuals
to a section called
WELCOME TO THE SISTERHOOD
that had a chart shedding light on the whole ranks thing.

“The Society has four levels,” she explained. “Alpha, Beta, Gamma, and Delta. As soon as you accept the call during initiation, you’re officially an Alpha. As Alphas, your priority is to learn about the Society’s mission and complete the first part of your Cindy training to prepare you for the battle ahead.”

Training, training, and more training. When did we get to the makeovers? I had a long road ahead to get Ryan to notice me. Notice me in a good way, I mean. Not in an ouch-you-stepped-on-my-foot way. I was ready to—

Wait.

Did she say “
battle
”?

“We stay on mission and stand up for what matters,” Gaby continued. “But for every one of us, there’s someone on the opposite end of the spectrum. It’s like in physics. Newton’s Third Law says for every action, there’s an equal and opposite reaction.”

“Gab,” Sarah Jane cut in. “Ix-nay on the science lecture.”

Gaby wrinkled her nose at Sarah Jane. “Party pooper. I was going to start diagramming things.” She turned back to us with a grin. “What I mean is that for every Cindy there’s an opposite. Someone trying to exert her force to push back against our efforts.”

 
“A Wicked?” I joked. “Like Cinderella’s wicked stepsisters?”

Gaby lost any hint of a smile. “We never joke about the Wickeds. But yes, they’re our opposites. For the most part, Wickeds live a surface existence. Very superficial, very interested in the now. Casual sex, drinking, sometimes drugs, even small-time illegal. They push the envelope without worrying about the repercussions. Or if they worry, they don’t let it cramp their style.”

An Alpha named Kat nodded. “Taking the ‘Me Generation’ to the extreme.”

“You got it,” Gaby said. “Cindys, on the other hand, understand the need to sometimes sacrifice the now—
sometimes
, not always—to get the bigger win later. There’s a grander plan in motion, and we’re only one piece of the puzzle.”

My fantasies about simple before and after photos were looking more and more like a pipe dream.

 
“So,” Mel said, trying the idea on for size, “the Cindys are good and the Wickeds are bad. Like a high school battle of good and evil?”

“The Wickeds aren’t one hundred percent bad, just like the Cindys aren’t one hundred percent good,” Gaby cautioned. “But otherwise, yeah. The Wickeds gain power by manipulating and dominating other kids. Mostly the Reggies—that’s what we call kids who aren’t Cindys or Wickeds. It’s short for regular kids, but don’t let the name fool you. Every one of them can make a major impact. You don’t have to be a Cindy or a Wicked for that. The Wickeds’ mission is to rule the Reggies and get whatever the Wickeds want from them. Even if it’s just the cheap thrill of watching someone squirm. Our job is to protect the Reggies and ultimately take the Wickeds down.”

The Cindys versus the Wickeds. Battling for the souls of the Reggies. And that was just from day one of our introduction? If any of my doubts had faded since initiation, they were back in full force now.

I was in
way
over my head.

Chapter Eleven

Gaby slid aside the bulletin board on the wall behind her to reveal a whiteboard underneath. “To defeat the Wickeds, you need to remember two things.”

She picked up a blue marker from the tray and wrote commandment number one on the board.

PROTECT YOURSELF

“The Sisterhood can help by offering backup when you need it,” Gaby said, “but you have to be able to go head-to-head with a Wicked and win. That means preparing yourself so you don’t let their lies get inside your head and mess with your mind. That’s their specialty. Their mental games are the stuff of legend.”

I thought of Pastor Mark back in Seattle. When our youth group had studied the book of Ephesians, he taught us how we could use the armor of God to protect ourselves from evil. I’d always thought that was just a church thing, but I was beginning to understand it on a whole new level. Even if the evil that roamed in this case was in the form of hateful girls in short skirts.

Gaby turned back to the board and wrote the second Cindy commandment below the first.

PROTECT THE REGGIES

“Power is key,” she said. “Everything about the Wickeds comes down to power: who has it and why. If they don’t have power over someone, they figure out how to get it.”

Lexy definitely had to be a Wicked. Which just made things very complicated with Cassie. And with Ryan.

“There aren’t many of us compared to the Reggies, so our goal is to give a Reggie the tools to save herself, and step in as backup to give her confidence. The best way to protect a Reggie is to help her protect herself. When she stands up for herself instead of backing down, she gains back some of her power and the Wickeds lose some of theirs. Sometimes it can be an ugly tug of war”—she tapped
PROTECT THE REGGIES
on the board—“and that’s when we can help. Provide support, tools, and backup if we’re there.”

Gaby capped the marker and put it back on the tray. “It’s not easy, but by the time you’re done with your Alpha and Beta training, you’ll be ready to do battle with the Wickeds and come out on top. Any questions so far?”

Her question met seven glassy-eyed stares around the table.

Did I have questions? Only about a bazillion. But I didn’t ask any of them. Mostly because I wasn’t sure I wanted to hear the answers. The still, small voice inside reminded me to breathe.
One step at a time.
 

Gaby nodded at our blank looks. “Yeah, you look like I probably did at the beginning. It’s a lot to take in at first.”

She consulted her book again, then closed it. She looked at Sarah Jane for a second like she was gathering her thoughts, then took a deep breath and launched into her last topic.

“Okay,” she said, “about the fourteen . . .”

My system got a dose of verbal caffeine. This was one question I actually did want an answer for.

“Every year, we offer bids to seven girls to begin their training as Cindys and fulfill the Cindys’ mission. Who can tell me The Cinderella Society’s creed?”

Kat’s hand went up first. “Celebrate your strength, embrace your future, and be extraordinary.”

“
Perfecto
. To continue building the Sisterhood, we offer bids to seven girls every year. Until now, so have the Wickeds. But if Audrey’s intel is right—and she’s rarely wrong—the Wickeds have stepped it up a notch and recruited fourteen girls this year.”

Hence the double.
 

“So they’ll have more than we do,” Mel said slowly, trying to grasp the significance. “The scales tip in their favor. How does that affect us as Alphas?”

Gaby held up a hand. “In more ways than we can get into on day one. I’m sure there are already people hot on the trail of that particular problem. For now, just focus on your
CMM
. That’s the best way to prepare for whatever they’ve got planned.”

When Gaby retreated to her office, our mentors (or “big Sisters” according to Gaby) headed into the lounge. All of the Alphas opened our binders and started dutifully reading the rest of the
WELCOME TO THE SISTERHOOD
section. Which was about the history of TCS rather than makeovers. Not nearly as fun.

Until I got to page seven. Turns out our little organization wasn’t so little after all. Who would’ve guessed a secret society dedicated to defeating the mean girls of the world had thrived in Mt. Sterling for more than a century?

I mean, really . . .
Mt. Sterling?
Montgomery University might be the premier women’s college of the South, but still.

Halfway through the history section, I started to skim. Where was the good stuff? I snuck a peek at the other sections Gaby had mentioned. Behind
WELCOME TO THE SISTERHOOD
there were several more tabs, including the much-anticipated
APPEARANCE
section. Sadly, they were all empty except for brief overviews.

Gaby peeked her head out of her office, and I guiltily dropped the pages hoping she hadn’t seen me trying to skip ahead.

“If you guys need anything,” she said, “I’ll be in here for the rest of the day. Since tomorrow’s your first full Alpha class, try to get through the Welcome section and the other overviews before then so you’re ready to dive into phase one of your makeover.”

The magic word had finally been uttered.

Visions of potential gorgeousness and Sarah Jane-caliber popularity toyed with my focus. We might have to learn about the Sisterhood first, but that didn’t mean I couldn’t dream about what came next. I was surrounded by the In crowd, held a top-secret guide to fabulousness in my hands, and had the junior prom queen playing fairy godmother for my very own ultimate life makeover. It had all the makings of a full-blown fairy tale.

Except that everything about our mission prickled the hairs on my neck.