Not that I care, I’m too shocked by how easily the word girlfriend slipped out of my mouth. George isn’t but if she was, this would be the most dangerous place to say that aloud.
Luckily, the maid doesn’t care about semantics.
“Not Kari. I’m talking about a few weeks ago at the party. You gave some pills to George, and she had no idea what they were. Care to enlighten me?”
In a second, she’s turned white.
“Don’t do that,” I snap as though it’s something within her control. “Just tell me what they were.”
“A… friend of mine makes them. They’re nothing dangerous,” she hurries to add. “Just something to help me relax.”
No need to ask her why she needs them. Nerves are something all of Dad’s employees suffer with. “How many can you get on short notice?”
“For tomorrow?”
“Right now would be better.”
She grimaces and shifts her weight onto one foot, rubbing the back of her ankle with the other. “A hundred?”
“That works for me. Cash okay?”
Amanda nods, leaving to fetch them from her quarters. I move back to my room to get the money. At some point, I’ll need to trace this back further, work out her contact and evaluate whether that poses any threat to my family, but for now all I want is the drugs. A few for me, the bulk for another student.
Not that he’ll realise they’re in his possession. If everything goes to plan, he’ll work that out about the same time as the school security team does.
Once I have them in hand, I re-join Kari and Mum in the kitchen and wait until she’s ready to leave.
I try to keep up with her chatter during the drive but lose interest before we hit the main highway. Not that it stops her talking. Kari’s more than equipped to perform to an audience of one.
Once we’re back at Kingswood, I give her a token kiss and we go our separate ways.
I’ve barely closed the door to my room when there’s a knock, and I open it again to see a vaguely familiar boy standing outside. “Yes?”
“Hey, I’m Keanen.” He rubs the back of his neck, glancing along the corridor. “I’m friends with George.”
“Right.” I’ve seen them about and she mentioned he wastaking her to the dance, but I didn’t expect him to wander along to my room and challenge me.
If that is what he’s doing. “What d’you want?”
“Just checking that you’re cool with—” Keanen breaks off when he makes eye contact with me. My face is apparently broadcasting a lot more than just my confusion. “We arranged to go to the dance together, but that was before…”
Good god. Finish a sentence, why don’t you?
“Are you asking me if it’s okay to take a girl who you’re already going to the dance with, to the dance?”
He nods, suddenly gushing, “Just checking I’m not stepping on any toes.”
Stepping on toes isn’t what I’m worried about. I don’t usually rate guys for their attractiveness but I’m aware he has a country boy swagger thing going on that I suppose George might find attractive.
“She said afriendwas taking her,” I say in my most casual I-don’t-want-to-tear-the-face-off-you-but-I-will-if-you-make-me kind of way. “Why would I mind? Were you planning on hurting her?”
His eyes bulge. “No! Why would you—?” He gathers himself, licking his lips nervously. “No. Nothing like that.”
“You eat lunch with George, yeah?”
His nod is so cautious, his head barely moves.
“Bring her along to our table tomorrow. It’d be nice to get to know more of her friends.” I frown as I try to remember where I’ve heard his name apart from out of George’s mouth. “You tried out for the team, didn’t you?”
