Devon nodded, her curiosity prickling. “So, will Bodhi go back to MIT? I heard he got a full scholarship.” This was the stuff she needed to find out. Ask questions, but don’t be too obvious.
“Don’t know. He’s working with Reed now, not sure he has to go back. I mean, you’ve got this crazy famous scientist right here, what else could MIT offer him?”
“Scientist? I thought Reed grew grapes and rode horses.”
Raven laughed. “Nah, the vineyard was like a retirement project. Reed made all his money ages ago in the bio world. But he’s always been a cowboy. Come on, you gotta see the hub.” Raven led Devon further down the hallway, and down a flight of stairs, which opened into a large room. Windows covered two walls in an L-shape, and a counter crammed with security cameras and computers wrapped around the other two walls of the room.
“I don’t get it,” Devon said.
“Reed’s a bit of a nutty professor. He’s got projects going all the time. You should see the patents he’s got in the works. Major.” Raven sat in a fancy ergonomic chair at one end of the desk and typed a few things into a nearby computer. “You didn’t know he was like a famous scientist at one point? I thought knowing that was a Keaton requirement.”
“Reed? Um.…”
“Cell proliferation,” Bodhi said coming down the stairs—followed by Reed Hutchins, himself. Devon recognized his silver belt buckle with the three trees on it. “Reed was one of the first guys to identify the various stages of cell proliferation. In the bio world, he’s kind of a rock star. He’s practically Elvis.”
“Don’t bio dork out on us,” Raven said to her brother.
Reed stopped when he reached the bottom step and spotted Devon. Their eyes met. His were the same blue as Hutch’s, though rheumy and crinkled. He took a long, raspy breath. “So, Devon,” he started. He had to catch his breath before continuing, “We meet in better circumstances.”
“Hi. It’s nice to meet you properly, Mr. Hutchins.” Devon managed, extending a hand. He shook hers with a surprisingly strong grip. He sat himself in a nearby armchair and gestured to Devon to grab a seat. She swiveled an office chair around to face him.
“Please call me Reed. Besides, I owe you an apology,” Reed began. “When I went to your room, I know I must have given you quite a scare. I should have called first. Or waited outside until you arrived. I’m embarrassed. I needed to lie down to rest a moment. That’s why I was in your bed.”
“I’m sure I could have acted better,” Devon said sheepishly. Seeing Reed’s beautiful house here, his high-end office setup, it was embarrassing to even consider that she had thought he was an asylum escapee who’d accidentally wandered onto campus.
“Hutch mentioned you. That you two were good friends.” Devon felt her ears get hot. That’s how Hutch had described her? It was shocking and flattering at the same time. Maybe Reed was confusing her with someone else? “A fellow not-supposed-to,” he continued. Wow, Devon thought, maybe he was talking about me.
“Yeah, I guess so. Hutch and I talked about that once.” Devon relaxed into her chair a little more. She was a welcome guest in this house; she could feel that now. Reed was trying to reach out to the people in Hutch’s life, and Devon was one of them.
“There’s something going on at Keaton we wanted to tell you about,” Reed started. Devon noticed Raven and Bodhi were both staring at her, their faces serious. Had Raven planned this when she invited Devon over for a Wednesday afternoon excursion off campus?
“Oh?” Devon’s throat felt dry. “What is it?”
“Headmaster Wyler is the one that had Bodhi arrested,” Reed stated. “His camp is claiming that Bodhi was selling drugs on campus and they had him removed.”
“Of course Bodhi wasn’t holding so they looked like idiots,” Raven said. “But the arrest pissed off the pharmacy and they axed Bodhi yesterday.”
“Whatever, that wasn’t meant to last anyway,” Bodhi said with a huff.
Reed’s craggy face darkened. “I’ve told you. You’re far too talented to be wasting away there. I think our arrangement now is much better.”
“So true.” Bodhi nodded.
“Devon, that’s why it’s important that you keep your wits about you,” Reed continued. “Your counseling puts you in a rare position. And we’re not the only ones that know it.”