“I wish I could forget you. They loved me before you,” she whispers, grimacing at the thought.
“Why does this place remind me of Edge?” I ask, trying to shift the mood.
“Because Rowland was a stuffy asshole,” Mr. Brickman answers, both of us shocked to see he’s reappeared silently.
“He owned both?” Thinking back to something Zoey said to me when I arrived.
Mr. Brickman laughs. “Ollie told me all about the deal. I know she signed everything over to you on your fifth birthday.”
“Why did she do it? I asked Nolan, but he said he didn’t know,” I question them both.
“She tried to cut a worthless deal,” Hendrix’s voice surprises all of us. “Who are you?” he asks Mr. B.
“The teacher,” he answers, eyeing Hendrix, sizing him up.
“How? All the hiring is approved by me.”
Mr. B shrugs. “Guess you were distracted that day,” he jokes as though he knows something.
“I want answers. Tell me about the deal,” I demand, trying to keep the tension I feel building to a minimum.
Hendrix glares at Amethyst. “Tell her why you were sent here,” he urges. “I heard you avoid the question,” he accuses hatefully.
“Fuck you, Hendrix. I’m an adult. I don’t have to listen to anything you say,” she grits evilly.
“Fine, I’ll tell her.”
“Mommy told you it was an accident. But you wouldn’t listen and drove me here anyway,” she argues quickly.
He shakes his head in disbelief. “Onyx, you have a scar on your back shaped like an upside-down L,” Hendrix says, staring at me, waiting on me to confirm what he’s said.
I nod slowly, remembering Vex tracing it with his finger when we were kids. “Yes.”
His eyes slide to her, giving her one last chance to defend herself. But she chooses to stay silent. “Opal didn’t want to be bothered, so she told your sister to take you outside until I got home. When I got to the house, I couldn’t find anyone. On my way to check the pool, I noticed your sister by the edge of the cliff. I heard you start to cry.”
“She always cried! That’s why Mommy hated her. We used to hide her when you left the house.”
My jaw drops at what she’s said. “I was a baby, right?” I ask Hendrix.
“You were one when she was sent away,” he answers me simply, glaring at Amethyst.
“She wouldn’t shut up!” Amethyst blurts, shoving both hands in the bun on her head. “Mommy was screaming because you were screaming. I told you to shut up, but you never listened. I warned you. I told you if you didn’t shut up, I was throwing you to the fish.”
“What!” I shout. “You threw me in the river?”
“She wasn’t strong enough. So she kicked you over the side of the cliff,” Hendrix interjects, and I can tell the memory upsets him.
Amethyst starts to pace, mumbling under her breath. I notice Hendrix watching every step she takes as he inches in the door,slowly migrating toward me. Mr. B must notice, too, and stalks him like his prey.
“It was an accident!” Amethyst shouts, startling us, her eyes bouncing wildly, completely oblivious to what’s going on around her.
None of us move for a second. My breath sticks in my lungs, waiting for what, I’ve got no clue.
“Stop lying,” Hendrix growls.
She sucks in a deep breath, then exhales slowly. Cautiously, I back towards the corner again, removing myself from the explosion I feel brewing in the air. One spark is all it’s going to take. She plasters on a smile before strolling casually toward him. From the corner of my eye, I notice Mr. Brickman stepping in front of the doorway on his way toward Hendrix. Then, a hand wraps around his mouth and chest, and he disappears silently through the door.
Who the hell grabbed him?