“It’s okay, Mena,” Lennon Rose says gently, reading my hesitance. Her hand is warm and soft in mine. “You’re completely safe, I promise.”
She motions inside the house. I have only a moment to decide. Ultimately, if I want answers, this is my opportunity to get them from the source. I trust Lennon Rose, but wish I’d told the other girls I was heading here. Just in case.
I swallow hard, and then I nod and follow Lennon Rose down the hallway. The house is exquisitely decorated, and although I suppose I should admire the art, it makes me uncomfortable. Everything is exactly in its place.
Is that what Lennon Rose is to this house—perfectly placed décor?
Lennon Rose steps aside to let me enter the room at the end of the hall first. I walk in, struck immediately by the scent of food. It smells delicious.
It’s a grand dining room with a massive stone fireplace and atable set for twelve. And at the far end is Winston Weeks, cutting a piece of meat with a very sharp knife. He takes a moment to chew before setting aside his cutlery and looking up at me.
He sighs like he’s taken with my beauty.
“It’s nice to see you again, Philomena,” he says warmly. “I was hoping you and I would get the time to talk.”
I note his use of “I” while Lennon Rose used “we.” I check to see if she caught it, but her expression is unreadable. Winston sees me watching her, and he clears his throat. Lennon Rose turns to him.
“Will you excuse us, please?” he asks her. I’m immediately panicked and reach for Lennon Rose’s arm. When I touch her, she moves forward a step to break our contact.
“Of course, Winston,” Lennon Rose says with a nod. “I have to meet Corris anyway.” She pauses, turning back to me. “I’ll see you soon, Mena,” she adds.
I stand there, too stunned to reply. She presses her lips together in apology and walks out, leaving me alone with one of Innovations Academy’s most important investors. I stare after her, betrayed, before I straighten my expression and turn back to Winston.
I try not to show my discomfort, but the room is suddenly too small. Winston examines me from the other end of the table, taking a sip from a glass of ice water as he runs his gaze over me. He’s smart, calculating. I’m sure he can see that I’m afraid.
“Please,” he says, his voice soft. “Sit. I can get you a plate if—”
“Have you been trying to hack me?” I ask. My voice doesn’t hold the fear I feel. I sound strong.
Winston is in this same small town as us. In close proximity, just like Raven suggested the culprit would be. If anyone has a reason to want inside my head, it would be an investor in the corporation that built me. Truth is, I have no reason to trust Winston Weeks. And it only makes sense that he’s the one behind that phone call.
Winston dots the corners of his mouth with a napkin before laying it across his lap. He seems almost amused by my question.
“Philomena,” he says. “I have absolutely no idea what you’re talking about. Has something happened? Lennon Rose informed me you’re here searching for an investor. I take it things aren’t going well, then?”
I figured that Lennon Rose would tell Winston about seeing us, but I didn’t think she’d tell him about our purpose. I’m hurt, if I’m honest.
I ignore Winston’s question.
“You’re telling me it’s a coincidence?” I ask. “All of us ending up in the same small town?”
“No,” he says. “I wouldn’t insult your intelligence.”
His answer catches me off guard. “Okay. Then … what are you doing here?” I ask.
“I have a house and a laboratory here. Just like I do in several states. Why this town?” he asks. “Why now? My purpose is the same as yours.”
“I don’t think so,” I say, taking a step farther into the room.“You have power within the academy, and I’m assuming, the corporation. Couldn’t you just ask for the names of the original investors?” Although as I say that, I remember Leandra telling me that even her husband doesn’t have access to that information.
Winston holds up his finger and wags it back and forth. “Yes, I’ve invested in Innovations. I’ve worked with them, but there is certain information above even my paygrade. Besides, my relationship with Mr. Petrov has soured since your … untimely departure.”
“What does it have to do with you?”
“Mr. Petrov and the school believe that Guardian Bose went on a killing spree, I’m told,” Winston says. “Burned you right up along with your friends. When the doctor tried to stop him, he killed him, too. It’s a nice story. I suppose, in Petrov’s theory, my push for loosened restrictions on your time gave way to free thinking. And that rebellious act is what drove Bose to murder you all. I’m sure to a psychopath like Petrov, blaming me makes sense. Bose wasjealous,and that, of course, is the explanation for his murderous intent.”
How many violent crimes are excused by the term “jealousy”? It’s always in the news, mentioned in crime stories sensationalized for television. I hate that word. I hate that it’s used as an explanation. To me, it implies violence. Violence against girls, mostly. It was violence against us.
Winston takes a sip of his water. “It doesn’t matter,” he says, waving his hand. “I’m sure you girls had a good reason for killing that man. Now the Guardian is gone, and we know what our capableLeandra did for you. I’m sure she told you that she had a hell of a time getting Bose’s body to the lab.” He smirks. “She broke a nail.”
