ater mansion. The house was a monument of new money, all white columns and sprawling lawns, an ostentatious display that felt alien and host

d, overly eager smile plastered on his face. "Thea, you're fi

s almost imperceptible, but it left his hands h

them nervously. "Here, let

aid, her tone leaving

as Katherine Slater, her stepmother. The woman didn't stand. She simply watched Alethea approach, her eyes, cold and assessing

speaking to Alethea, but to Barney, as if discussing a piece of furniture that had ju

blotchy red. "Katherine,

inching, her own expression a blank mask. Th

ged something wonderful for you." He was practically vibrating with a desperate, sweaty excitement. He explained the plan: an arranged marria

it. Not a reconciliation, but a t

"The Duncans? Aren't they

erest. "Exactly! This is our chance to get into their circ

man from the alley. The world suddenly felt very small,

ed to settle in first." It was eno

going to live here? She'll make the whole house smell like poverty." K

fore turning her warning gaze on Aleth

l and sparsely furnished with a narrow bed and a rickety de

nd greed. She dropped her duffel bag and pulled out a plain, black laptop. It looked unrem

ystem, finding the records of the taxi she'd taken from Redwater County. With a few keystr

tory Academy, the most exclusive private school in the state.

athetic game. She would get close to the Duncans a

the screen. Barney and Katherine thought they had her trapped in their gi