“All I mean is that the other girls probably saw it too. Perhaps we can ask if anyone has seen it. Maybe you dropped it at some point? If anyone found it, they’d gladly return it, wouldn’t they?”
“They’d more likely pocket it and never say a word,” she mutters as she frantically turns over pillows and shakes out dresses.
“You don’t think someone would have stolen it, do you?” I keep my tone light and skeptical, as if she’s the one suggesting such a ludicrous idea. “Who would even do such a thing?”
Vanessa pauses and blinks at me a few times. Then, cheeks blazing, she storms out of her room and brushes past me down the hall. I follow hard on her heels. She stops outside Franny’s door and pounds hard. The girl’s chaperone answers, but before she can speak, Vanessa says, “Where’s Franny Delafonte?”
Franny comes to the door with a ready glower. She crosses her arms over her chest, the movement revealing a hint of gold and teardrop pearls from under the lace cuff of her gown. “What the hell—”
With a furious gasp, Vanessa surges forward and takes the girl’s hand in hers. With the other, she pulls back the cuff to expose the rest of the bracelet. “That’s mine!”
Franny blinks down at her wrist, face going pale. “Wait, no! This…this…I don’t know how this got here.”
I do, for I placed it there about five minutes before I called on Vanessa. My stomach sinks with guilt when I see the perplexed look in Franny’s eyes. But if I had to implicate anyone in a scandal, my choice was easy. Either the girl I despise the most or the one who least wants to be here.
“You vile thief. You stole it from me!” Vanessa shouts.
“I did not!”
Their voices have risen loud enough to tempt the other contestants into the hall. Briony leaves her room and sidles up next to me. “What’s going on?”
I shrug and gesture open-mouthed at the arguing pair. There’s a good chance I’m overselling my surprise, but if I am, Briony doesn’t remark on it.
Greta stands at my other side, eyes alight with excitement. “Am I too late? What did I miss?”
Footsteps sound down the hall, and I know it must be the initiates coming to escort us to the ceremony.
Vanessa stomps her foot, oblivious of her audience. “How can you lie to my face? You’re wearing it, you cow!”
Franny bares her teeth as she fidgets with the clasp. “I don’t even want this hideous piece of junk. Take it back.” She flings it at Vanessa, who catches it against her chest. Franny goes to close the door in her face, but Vanessa pushes it open.
“How dare you! You’re a thief and I want you gone.”
Franny looks the other girl up and down, lips curled in a snarl. “Who do you think you are? You have no right in deciding anything about me.”
“I can decide you’re a liar and thief just fine.”
By now, the initiates have entered the hall and stand wide-eyed before the scene. I walk over to Jeremy. “Perhaps someone should go for help before things get too heated.”
The initiate nods but makes no move to leave.
Franny’s voice rises, echoing through the hall. “Call me a thief one more time. I dare you.”
I glance at the two women. Franny stands half a foot taller than Vanessa and stares down at her with a murderous expression. Vanessa glares back, undaunted. She puts her hands on her hips. “Liar. Sinner. Thief.”
In a flash, Franny pulls her arm back and slams her fist into Vanessa’s face.
“Shells,” I curse under my breath. That’s not exactly how I imagined things would escalate. I turn back to Jeremy. “Go get someone! Now!”
This time he springs into action. I race back to the girls and find Franny being held back by her chaperone while a sobbing Vanessa is soothed by Mrs. Nolan. My eyes flash between the two, my heart torn over whom I should console. But why should I console either of them? This is what I wanted, isn’t it? Well, not exactly. I hoped either of them would make the kind of scene that could cast one or the other in great enough disfavor to save me, but I never thought someone would get hurt.
For several moments, all I can do is stare while sound rises all around me, crashing like waves upon the shore. The contestants exchange whispers, Mrs. Nolan shouts at Franny’s chaperone, and now Franny and Vanessa are back to hurling insults—
“Enough!” The voice is firm and manages to quiet the cacophony. We all turn to find Father Viktor standing at the mouth of the hallway with Jeremy at his side. Brother Dorian stands just behind, taking in the scene with a hard expression. His gaze sweeps the hall, and my breath catches in my throat when his eyes land on me. I can’t look at him without recalling the feel of his hands around my wrists before he pushed me away, of the sound of his voice ringing first with apology. Then scorn.
My heart pounds against my ribs and I quickly avert my gaze. It appears I’m not the only one affected by Dorian’s presence. When Vanessa catches sight of him, she breaks into a sob and hides her face behind her hands—but not before I glimpse the inflamed skin around her eye where Franny punched her. I can only imagine the bruise it will leave behind.
Father Viktor leans toward Jeremy. “Tell Brother Billius to inform our audience that the Blessing Ceremony is being postponed.” The boy takes off again and Viktor sweeps his gaze over the rest of us. “Now, will someone with some modicum of sense please tell me what’s going on?”
