about a photo of you in the Forbidden Zone to back up my story?”
“We’re not allowed to have cameras.”
“Correction,” I said, turning on the phone that, unbeknownst to him, could only call the Queen and do nothing else. “You’re not allowed to have a camera.”
The phone automatically rang Her Majesty, who got on sounding more irritated than usual. “What is it now, Zoe? Honestly, if you keep pestering me like this, I’ll never get the beauty sleep I need.”
But by then Jake was long gone.
“Nothing, ma’am. I just want to report that the sound shouldn’t be bothering you anymore. Some sort of animal digging, apparently. Scared it off.”
“And no sign of . . . anyone else?”
I hesitated for a second as I debated how to answer this. “Just a Hansel who was doing a citizen’s watch thing on the lookout for your so-called spy.”
“Really? Interesting. Now go to bed and quit bothering me. It boggles the mind why you teenagers insist on staying up so late. Might do for you to take a page out of my book. Early to bed, early to rise makes a woman beautiful and wise.”
I clicked off the phone and found my way to the path. I never did get that sleeping potion.
Thirteen
“Wake up, sleeping beauty.”
Jess’s command shattered the peace and warmth of my nice, comfy dream. Hadn’t I fallen asleep minutes ago after dragging myself out of bed to walk Tinker Bell? Also, judging from the pitter-patter against the window and the gray skies outside, it was raining. And rain meant sleep.
“It’s Sunday,” I mumbled. “Leave me alone.”
“No can do.” Cruelly she stole my pillow and started bouncing on my bed. “Your kind and beneficent boss will soon require your services.”
I had to smile. Ever since we’d been overheard in the bathroom gossiping about the prince and the traitor and Ian, Jess’s new tactic was to speak of Fairyland—especially the Queen—in outrageously glorious, insincere terms.
Her theory was that, since the walls in our dorm room were made out of toilet paper and spit, anyone could eavesdrop on our conversations. And with every cast member competing for the Dream & Do grant, you couldn’t afford to be caught committing any innocent act of disloyalty.
“Yes,” I agreed. “She is so generous.” Generous being our code word for hideous.
“So very generous.” Jess stifled a laugh and poked my back. “Now roll over and get your caffeine fix. I have some incredibly juicy gossip from last night.”
Jess handed me an Iced Caramel Vanilla Mocha Cappuccino from the cafeteria in Our World, all vanilla soy milk and sugar. Her maroon Bridgewater-Raritan Panthers hoodie couldn’t quite cover the purple hickey on her neck.
Class.
She took a sip of coffee. “If anyone asks, I came back from the party early. I definitely did not spend the night in Marcus’s room and sneak out just before dawn. Unless it’s RJ doing the asking, in which case you might want to suggest that apparently other guys do find me hot.”
Oh, no, she didn’t. Oh! No! She! Didn’t!
Throwing off the sheet, I grabbed my shower caddy and towel. “To the Bat Room. Stat!”
Once we were in the hall, I took my judgment-challenged cousin aside and cornered her by the fire extinguisher in the stairwell, where we were clear of the other dorm rooms. “Tell me you didn’t go back to Marcus’s room.”
“All right. I didn’t go back to Marcus’s room.”
“You didn’t?”
“No. I did. But you told me not to tell you that.”
Grrrr. Rule #6 specifically stated that boys and girls were not allowed in each other’s rooms after 10:00 p.m. And it had been waaaaaaay past 10:00 p.m. when Jess went back to Marcus’s. The party didn’t even get going until around eleven.
“Nothing happened,” she said.
“Sure.” I took another glance at the purple mark and shook my head in utter disbelief. “What if RJ sees that?”
Jess pulled up her sweatshirt. “What if he does?” Her lower lip protruded. “Honestly, Zoe, I’m ready to give up. I’ve tried everything with this dude—being super nice, laughing at all his jokes, practically sitting on his lap while we watch movies—and nada. I’m beginning to think he really is gay and is just too inhibited to let people know. So here’s the test: If he’s fine with me and Marcus, if he wants to rehash all the gory details of last night like a friend . . .”
A female troll passed by, hands behind her back on her daily inspection. I said cheerfully, “Good morning on this rainy Sunday,