Chapter 4

When I got home, Dustin was already there with Emily beside him on the couch, his face grim.

He looked up when he heard the door. "So you've got the nerve to send me a message like that now? I'm trying to teach you a lesson about the real world, and this is how you repay me?"

Emily grabbed my wrist. "Sharon, don't be so ungrateful. Dustin's doing this for your own good. Better to learn the hard way now than get cleaned out by some scammer later, right?"

She sighed, looking deeply hurt. "If that post bothers you so much, I'll delete it right now. Don't let me come between you two after all these years."

She pulled out her phone and deleted the post right in front of me.

Dustin frowned and pulled Emily away. "Why'd you delete it? We were just enjoying the river view. What's there to hide?"

His tone softened as he turned to me. "Alright, enough."

He pointed to the thick stack of books on the coffee table. "I had someone get you these study guides from top prep instructors, and I signed you up for an intensive prep course. Just focus on studying. You'll get in next year."

I'd once searched every used bookstore around campus for an out-of-print book of past exam questions.

Now a whole stack of them sat carelessly on the coffee table, but I'd already accepted the job in Harborcrest. I wasn't planning on grad school anymore.

I looked at him and thought of the shredded pieces of my exam ID. He'd lied to me so many times. Now it was my turn to lie to him.

"Okay. I'll get in next year."

Dustin gave a satisfied smile and pulled me into his arms. "That's more like it."

The next morning, I went to my dorm to pack the last of my things.

My phone rang, and the moment I answered, Emily blurted, "Sharon! Come back! Peaches is missing!"

This was the second time they'd pulled the same trick. Last year, Emily told me Peaches was missing, and I spent the whole night searching for her in the rain. I later found out she'd taken Peaches to Dustin's place.

I gripped the phone tighter. "Emily, that trick's getting old."

She was sobbing so hard she could barely breathe. "I'm not lying! She really is missing. I've been looking for half an hour, and I still can't find her."

I hung up.

Was this supposed to be lesson four or five?

But ten minutes later, a sudden sense of dread came over me. I dropped what I was doing, rushed out of the dorm, and grabbed a cab.

The moment I opened the apartment door, the living room was eerily quiet. Peaches didn't come bounding over with her tail wagging, and I didn't hear her usual excited bark.

Emily's eyes were red, and her shoulders shook with sobs.

Dustin sat beside her, wiping her tears. "Don't cry. It was an accident. Nobody wanted this to happen."

My throat tightened. "Where's Peaches?"

Emily cried even harder. "I'm sorry, Sharon. I'm so sorry. I was just going along with Dustin to teach you another lesson. I was going to hide Peaches, wait until you came rushing back looking for her, then bring her out as a surprise.

"But when I took her downstairs, she slipped her leash and ran off. By the time I found her, she'd been hit by a truck and killed. I had the building staff bury her."

My ears rang, and my whole body went cold.

Dustin got up and stepped in front of Emily.

"What's done is done. Emily's shaken up too, and she didn't mean for this to happen. Besides, if you'd believed her when she called and come back sooner to help look, Peaches might still be alive. You were the one who didn't trust her."

My legs went weak, and I had to brace myself against the wall.

"Get out."

Dustin's face darkened. "Sharon, calm down."

"Get out!"

He scoffed and took Emily's hand. "Fine. Cool off on your own. I'll come back when you can talk to me properly."

The moment the door closed, all the strength drained out of me. I sank to the floor, staring at Peaches' unfinished bowl of food in the corner. Tears slipped down my face.

The next morning, I dragged my suitcase out of the apartment without looking back.

When I got to the airport, Dustin texted me.

"Are you done being mad? She was just a dog. There's no need to make such a big deal out of this. When you get into grad school next year, I'll buy you a show-quality Samoyed as a reward. It'll be way smarter than Peaches."

I stared at the message, unable to get past the way he'd dismissed Peaches as "just a dog."

I didn't reply. I turned off my phone and headed for security.