Page 27 of Caged
The mention of the gorges makes me remember all the times the four of us went swimming together and how Monroe would fearlessly jump off the high cliffs into the water. I’ve never met anyone as courageous as she was,is,when it comes to heights. God, the thought of those happier, simpler times makes my heart hurt.
“We were going to invite you,” Ele chimes in from behind the wheel, “but you left in such a foul mood, we figured you wanted some time alone to stew.”
“Whatever, there are probably dead bodies in that water, anyway.”
“Okay, morbid,” Viv states, holding a cigarette between her teeth. Two seconds later, the smell of smoke blasts me in the face, and I’m torn between finding it repulsive and soothing.
“Well, while you two were out on a joy ride, I was doing reconnaissance. I went to DG to find Kasey. She wasn’t there, but I had quite the interesting chat with her roommate, Adrianna.”
I retell every bit of Adrianna’s overshare, down to the last detail, and watch as my friends’ faces change from curiously intrigued to stunned and disgusted.
“And, as if that’s not crazy enough, I also ran into Jace at the campus store, and he was more cryptic than ever.”
“Wait, hold on,” Ele interjects, shocked, “can we go back to the part about the fucking brand? You know, the whole seared flesh bit. Is that for real?”
“Adrianna says she saw it with her own eyes!”
“And you trust this Adrianna person?” Viv asks skeptically.
“I guess, but I mean, who would make up something like that?”
“That makes me deeply uncomfortable,” Ele states.
“It’s disgusting,” I agree. “But leave it to the all-mighty Sigma to come up with something as diabolical as recruiting girls under the guise they’re going to part of a special little sisters thing only to brand them like property.”
“How does something like this even happen in this day and age?” Ele asks, infuriated. “At a fucking Ivy League school, no less. God, the world is so sick.”
I swallow and lean back against the seat. Students walk in front of the car while we wait at a crosswalk. A group of girls in lively conversation smile gleefully. Sticky, humid air clings to my clammy skin as unrest settles in my stomach like lead.
“We need to confront Kasey tomorrow after the chapter meeting,” I state. “Something very wrong is happening at Sigma, and we need to figure out the truth.”
The silver tongs in my hand squeeze into the firm white flesh of another overcooked and under-seasoned chicken breast – one of Colleen’s Sunday dinner specialties. I’m pretty sure Colleen has been Delta Gamma’s resident chef for longer than I’ve been alive, yet the woman cannot cook a decent meal to save her life. Next to the chicken is a banquet serving tray of green beans swimming in a questionable, watery sludge, which should have taken the prize for worst dish of the night, but was upstaged halfway through dinner service when Colleen brought out a tray of lukewarm tofu smothered in marinara.
“I was really hoping for lasagna,” Ele confesses in a low whisper as she cautiously places three green beans on her plate. Although I echo her sentiment, because lasagna is one of thosedishes that seems impossible to fuck up, I’m too preoccupied with scanning the room for Kasey to respond.
Ele and I sit across from each other at the end of a long wooden dining table in the back of the room. We’re the only seniors here, and our presence sticks out like a sore thumb. By comparison, the rest of the sorority members at dinner appear to be sophomores living in the house. Most seniors live in College Town, where there are restaurants aplenty, and understandably, have opted to eat elsewhere. Ele gags on a bite of a green bean and covertly spits it out in her napkin.
“I can’t,” she states.
I push my plate away in agreement. My stomach is in no mood to ingest food. We clear our untouched plates and head into the living room, where the chapter meeting will be held.
Minutes tick by, and members filter into the room from dinner in a slow procession. A few juniors I recognize have arrived and sit across from us in the matching set of armchairs. Everyone is on their phone, scrolling.
Younger, sophomore members sit cross-legged on the floor, facing one direction. The front door opens, and a petite girl with mousy-brown hair steps inside carrying a notebook. It takes me a minute to place her, and then I remember she’s in the pledge class below mine.
I hinge forward to get Ele’s attention. “What’s her name?” I mouth.
“Dana,” Ele whispers back. She leans closer. “She’s the Secretary. She took over when Monroe disappeared.”
“Oh,” I say quietly.
I study Dana as she makes her way into the living room from the foyer. If Monroe had a polar opposite, it would be Dana. Monroe isn’t particularly tall, and if I had to guess, I’d put her somewhere around five and a half feet – same as me. It’s the way Monroe carries herself, the way her presence lights up a room,that is of stark contrast to Dana, who I watch scuttle inside like a terrified kitten.
She meekly takes her place at the head of the room, but none of the members notice. Several uncomfortable seconds pass as poor Dana attempts to garner everyone’s attention. The room is a cacophony of voices, and to no surprise, she fails, and my hangry frustration gets the best of me.
“Everyone shut up!” I shout. “Chapter is starting.”
Ele cocks an eyebrow at me and I shrug. I’m annoyed. I have yet to spot Kasey, and I want to get this stupid meeting over with so I can find her, convince her to tell me everything she knows, and leave.
