Chapter 2

As long as you paid enough, the testing agency worked quickly. Two days later, I knocked on Emily's door with the test report in hand.

Emily opened the door with her hair a total mess. When she saw it was me, she shrieked and slammed the door shut.

I stared at the closed door, blinking in confusion.

Before I could even react, the door clicked open again.

Emily reappeared, but this time she had changed clothes, put on a full face of makeup, and looked as polished as one of those boutique window mannequins. She had transformed completely in a matter of seconds. She had even spritzed herself with perfume.

I hesitated. "You look amazing today. Are you going on a date?" I wondered if she was going on a date with James.

Emily blushed, and she covered her face, acting all shy. "You really think I look that good?"

"You do," I said honestly.

Emily looked even happier. Before I could get a word in, she tugged me over to the couch and said she had something to show me.

A moment later, she returned with a beautifully tailored long dress, a few brand-new double-C handbags, and a bottle of conditioner.

Looking at them, I felt familiar.

Before I could figure it out, Emily sat down right beside me. The light floral scent on her drifted over, making me feel oddly self-conscious.

"Do you like them?" she asked with a sweet smile, batting her long lashes.

The scent grew stronger, and I felt a little light-headed.

I took a deep breath and said seriously, "I like them, but this isn't the time. I have something important to tell you, and you need to brace yourself."

Emily cut me off, her eyes shining. "Actually, there's something I've been hiding for a long time..."

I widened my eyes. "So you already knew."

Her face turned even redder. She nodded.

"Then let me go first," I said. We looked at each other, and for a moment it felt like we were perfectly in sync. "James is coming after both of us."

Emily's smile faltered.

I handed her the test report and recited the speech I had rehearsed earlier. "So don't waste your feelings on James anymore. He's bad news. If you need proof, I've got it right here. And if you still don't believe me, you can check it yourself."

Emily rolled her eyes. "Seriously? Please. He was never my type."

Her words choked me. Back when James and I were dating, she had jumped at every chance to get close to him. If she didn't like James... what, did she like me?

Then it hit me like lightning. Of course—she must have chased James too openly before, and now that I called her out, she was too embarrassed to admit it.

Girls' minds were a total mystery. It was impossible to guess.

Emily opened the report in a few quick flips. The further she read, her frown tighter. She suddenly threw the report to the floor, her eyebrows shooting up, eyes burning like she could spit fire. "He actually tampered with your bracelet?

"That two-faced bastard! I'm going to storm into his place right now, slap him until he bawls, and then chop him and dump his ashes in the trash."

Well said. The image of Emily's lifeless body flashed in my mind—her face, the one she cherished most, scraped and cut all over; her long lashes resting quietly. She would never open her eyes again and call me in that sweet voice.

Every time I remembered it, I wished I could send James down to hell.

Wait—this reaction wasn't right. Shouldn't Emily be glaring coldly at me, accusing me of trying to drive a wedge between them, refusing to believe a single word I said, and then kicking up a dramatic fuss until I was forced to provide proof?

Emily seemed even angrier when I didn't answer. She shot me a fierce glare with those beautiful eyes of hers. "What, you still hung up on him?" she snapped.

Was she testing me or just fishing for something?

I chose my words carefully and said, a little unsure, "Killing is... illegal."

Under Emily's increasingly cold stare, I forced myself to go on. "Emily, I don't want you to ruin your life over a piece of trash like him. You're meant to be the brightest, proudest one wherever you go."

*****

That night, I soaked in the bathtub, feeling quite satisfied. It turned out I had misunderstood Emily all these years. She was still the same girl from our childhood—the type you could talk sense into with a few soft words. With the two of us working together, James would finally get what he deserved.

Meanwhile, Emily was lying on her bed. "Grace said I'm the brightest one in the crowd. Does that mean I matter to her?"

She rolled over, staring at the ceiling, her cheeks burning. "So Grace likes me too? But if she ever notices what I did before, will she think I'm too scheming and end up hating me?"

Emily yanked the blanket over her head and muffled, "Ugh! Grace is so annoying. I'm dying of embarrassment."