“Exactly where is this lore site, anyway?” Jessica asked.

Dess watched Rex carefully and thought she saw a moment of pleasure as he answered, now that he had another reason for Jessica Day to be scared of midnight.

“It’s called the snake pit.”

18

11:06 A.M.

NOTORIOUS

On Monday morning it didn’t take long to find out where Jonathan had spent the rest of the weekend. Jessica didn’t believe it at first—it sounded too much like a rumor to be the truth—but his empty desk and the stares in second-period physics said it all.

It was true. He was in jail, and it was all her fault.

There were a lot of versions circulating, but everyone seemed to know that Jonathan had been busted in the company of Jessica Day. She had gone from new girl to bad girl in record time. Most people seemed surprised to see Jessica here in school, as if they expected her to be rotting away in her own jail cell. She caused a stir everywhere she went, with everyone (except those few clueless teachers who were eternally immune to gossip) wanting to know what had happened.

Thankfully, Constanza came to her rescue, shepherding Jessica between her morning classes and filling her in.

“It’s like this: Someone’s aunt, or mother, works as a dispatcher, or deputy, in the sheriff’s department and was there on Saturday night when Jonathan was brought in. News travels fast in Bixby. What were you guys doing, anyway?”

“Just walking.”

Constanza nodded. “Breaking curfew. That’s what I figured. But some people are saying that you got busted for breaking into a car, or a drugstore, or both.”

“None of the above. But why did they take me home and him to jail?”

“Well, everyone knows—at least as of this morning—that Jonathan has been in trouble with the police before. Like a million times. His father has too. In fact, I heard that Jonathan, or his father, maybe, was wanted for armed robbery back in Philadelphia, or maybe manslaughter, which is why the two of them had to move here in the first place.”

“Are you absolutely sure about all this?”

“Absolutely not. But you have to know what people are saying, Jessica.”

“Yeah, of course. Sorry.”

A few freshman girls were standing near Jessica’s locker, and Constanza shooed them away while Jess got her books for study hall. Jessica picked through her locker, feeling the stares of people passing by, trying to decide if she was more behind in trig or physics.

She could still see Jonathan’s empty desk, the final confirmation that he hadn’t made it home that night. Jessica couldn’t believe how things kept getting worse. Everything that could have gone wrong, with the possible exception of being eaten, had.

Jessica Day: darkling magnet, police magnet, shady character.

She grabbed her trig book and slammed the locker closed.

“I heard you two were kissing when the cops showed up,” Constanza said.

“No, we weren’t.”

“What, you were out there just to hold hands?”

“No.” Jessica paused. “Well, actually, we were kind of holding hands.” She rubbed her wrist, which was still sore. Hanging on for dear life required muscles that normally didn’t get much exercise.

“So you and Jonathan are an item?”

Jessica felt her face heat up. “No. I don’t know. Maybe…” She barely knew Jonathan, but she’d never felt a connection with any guy the way she had with him Saturday night. Of course, after the way the night had ended… “Probably not, after what happened,” she finished.

Constanza put her arm around Jess, leading her toward the library.

“Me, I think that the curfew is a stupid law. I think I’m going to write an article about it for the school paper, maybe even the Register. ‘Young lovers busted for holding hands.’ ”

“Just leave me out of it, please.”

“I wouldn’t use your real name, of course.”

Jessica had to laugh. “Great idea, Constanza. No one will ever figure it out. Just change my name to Jess Shady.”

Constanza smiled. “Not bad. I like it.”

They entered the library as the late bell rang. Ms. Thomas looked up from her computer.

“Good morning,” she said, one eyebrow raised. She looked as if she expected a good session of gossip to animate today’s study period.

“Morning,” Jessica said, then groaned inwardly as she saw the long table. The rest of Constanza’s crew were already settled in, ready to hear the scoop.

She turned to Constanza and said, “I really have to study trig. What with my criminal career, I didn’t get anything done this weekend.”

Constanza smiled. “Oh, I wouldn’t say that, Jess Shady. Sounds like you had fun. But don’t worry. You get your studying done and I’ll work on setting the record straight.”

“Thanks, Constanza. I really appreciate it. But, um, which record are you going to use?”

“How about a medium one? Hand holding but no kissing? And no previous criminal record?”

“Well, thanks, I guess. Try not to make me sound too evil, though? I could be living here in Bixby for a while.”

“Not a problem, Jess. A little drama wins more friends than boring. Which is not to say that you were… boring.”

“Thanks.”

“In fact, what are you doing this Friday?”

“Being grounded.”

“That’s too bad. Some friends of mine, of the senior persuasion, are having a party out at Rustle’s Bottom.”

“Rustle’s what?” Jessica said.

“It’s a dried-out lake bed. A good place to park a keg, you know? It’s over in Broken Arrow County, officially outside the dreaded curfew zone. I’m not sure if Jessica Day would have wanted to come, but Jess Shady would have a great time.”

“Sorry. Both of us are grounded until October.”

“Too bad. Anyway, see you at lunch.” Constanza hugged her. “And don’t worry, this story’s only prime-time news for a week, tops.”

She swept back to the long table, and Jessica sank into the corner chair, grateful that Constanza would be filling in for her on the gossip circuit. At least someone was on her side.

Jess realized that Dess was in her usual place across the table.

“Oh, good. I was hoping you’d be here.”

“I wouldn’t miss my favorite period,” Dess said.

“What, the tutor-Jessica-in-trig period?” Jessica asked hopefully.

Dess smiled. “Today, any tutoring will cost you.”

Jessica groaned. “Not you too.”

“Don’t worry, I don’t want to hear how you got busted. Your lame criminal record is uninteresting to me. All I want to know is, did you fly?”

Jess glanced at the long table. Constanza had them all spellbound.

She turned back to Dess and nodded.

“Isn’t it excellent?” Dess said.

A tiny and unexpected stab of annoyance went through Jessica. Almost jealousy. But of course Jonathan had taken at least one of the other midnighters flying. How else would he know how it worked? Still, flying had felt like a private thing between the two of them.

“Yeah. It’s great.”

“I thought you’d like it. That’s why I told Jonathan where you lived.”

Jessica nodded and smiled at Dess. “I’m glad you did.”

“Someone had to.”

“You’re sort of not taking sides in this Rex and Jonathan thing, are you?”

Dess sighed. “It’s kind of pointless, really. Rex is okay. I wouldn’t know half what I do without him. But he gets this seer-knows-best attitude sometimes. And Jonathan’s great, but he can be all ‘Freebird’, not that I blame him. The thing between them goes back to the beginning, more than two years ago.”

“So all four of you have never worked together?”

“For about two weeks. When Jonathan arrived, he was just starting to discover his power, his dream come true, when Rex and Melissa show up. Rex, of course, wants to spend every night checking out lore.”

Jessica nodded. It must have been a lot easier for Rex to get out to his precious lore sites with Jonathan’s help. It still would be.