Betrayal - By Lee Nichols Page 0,42

an instant. “What’s wrong?” she asked. Lukas stood in his compelling stance.

I gestured helplessly at the great white expanse before me. The drive was enveloped in a fluffy white blanket, and the bare limbs of the maples were highlighted with snow. Sunlight twinkled off the ice. “That’s just the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen. Like a Disney winter wonderland.”

“Yeah, it’s kind of cool,” Lukas admitted.

Natalie scrunched up her nose. “Until it gets all brown and slushy.”

“Don’t ruin it,” I said. “I just want to enjoy.”

“Where should we go?” Natalie asked.

“Is there a pond?” Lukas asked. “We could ice skate.”

Natalie gave him a look.

“Oh, right, bad idea.” He stepped off the porch into the snow-covered drive.

“Wait,” I said. “Have either of you seen Coby? Is he okay?”

“I think so,” Natalie said. “He left after you fainted.”

“I want to make sure he’s all right,” I said. “Should we sum—”

Whappp! Something hit me in the center of my stomach, and flakes of white snow clung to my coat.

Lukas laughed from halfway down the drive, as he reached to scoop more snow from the ground.

“Oh my God,” I said. “Did you just throw a snowball at me?”

“You are in for it now!” Natalie grabbed a handful of snow between her mittens and dodged a snowball before hurling hers at Lukas.

I made my own and tossed it at Natalie. Game on. In the end, she and I teamed up against Lukas. He put up a valiant fight, but I’d grown up with a brother, and Natalie—well, she was just tough.

We called truce before walking into the village. The roads hadn’t been cleared yet, and it was like the world had come to a standstill. We trudged through a foot of snow, marveling at the way it glistened in the trees and shrouded everything in silence, even the ghosts. The day felt like it was put on hold. I could forget about school, and no one expected me to be a ghostkeeper.

The café in the village was open, and I convinced them to get mocha red-eye chais. We sat in the warmth and watched the frozen white world and talked about everything and anything but ghosts. We were just three ordinary kids enjoying a snow day. I wished there were more days like this.

12

I wore Bennett’s sister’s coat again the next morning. The snow hadn’t melted, but the wind had blown it from the trees, and the roads had all been plowed. As we trudged to school, I was less thrilled by the winter wonderland and more wondering how I was going to survive a whole New England winter.

Latin was miserable. Harry was completely hungover, and bragging about spending the snow day “Ad fundum3-ing” through endless shots of Stoli.

Coby would not be happy with him. Or with me.

So I sidled up during open conversation and said, “Harry, can we talk?”

He took a deep gulp from a thermos he’d claimed held chicken soup and said, “Abi sis, belua.”4

Vodka fumes rose from the thermos. “Don’t you think you’ve had enough?”

“Quando podeces te regina eorum fecerunt?”5

Took me a moment to work that one out. And I was repulsed, once I had. “Harry, stop. We need to talk. Coby’s worried—I mean, would be worried about you. You can’t go on like this.”

“Shall I say it in English, Emma? You are a human cancer. You are a scab and an abomination, and you ruined the best thing in my life.”

There was no polite way to answer that, so I slunk back to my desk. Well, at least I’d talked to him.

Later that morning, I vowed to keep my distance from Sara in Fencing, but then I found her crying alone in the locker room.

Maybe I should’ve walked away, but I sat beside her instead. “Sara, what happened?”

She turned toward me, her face wet with tears. “Don’t you dare be nice to me.”

“I’m not being nice. I’m only asking what’s wrong.”

“What’s wrong? Coby’s dead, and Harry’s drinking, and it’s all your fault.”

“So let me help you. It’s what Coby would want. What are we going to do about Harry?” I asked.

“There is no we, Emma. There’s only you.” Her hands balled into fists. “And he’d still be alive if not for you.”

Natalie stepped beside me. “It’s not her fault, Sara. She couldn’t save Coby—none of us could. But we can help Harry, if you let us.”

“Oh God!” Sara screamed. “Don’t even pretend you care.” She grabbed her bag and stormed out of the locker room.

“That went well,” I said.

“Very,” Natalie agreed.

After