Crescendo

eavesdropping, when it dawned on me that I didn’t think he’d spoken out loud. In fact—

I was pretty sure he’d spoken to my … thoughts. No. Not my thoughts. His mother’s. And somehow I’d overheard.

Mrs. Parnell flipped her palms up. “All I said was rot his soul— I’m not taking that back, it’s exactly how I feel.”

“I said stop talking.” Scott’s voice was quiet, eerie.

My mom spun around, as if just now noticing that Scott had entered the room. I blinked in dazed disbelief. I couldn’t really have overheard him speaking to his mom’s thoughts. I mean, Scott was human … wasn’t he?

“Is that how you talk to your own mother?” Mrs. Parnell said, shaking her finger at him. But I could tell it was more for our benefit than for any purpose of putting Scott in his place.

His cold stare stayed fixed on her a moment longer, then he retreated to the front door and yanked it shut at his back.

Mrs. Parnell wiped her mouth, pink lipstick staining her napkin. “The nasty side of divorce.” She let go of a long, troubled sigh. “Scott never used to have a temper. Of course, it could be that he’s growing up to be his father’s son. Well. It’s an unpleasant topic and not appropriate for dinner. Does Patch wrestle, Nora? I bet Scott could teach him a few things.”

“He plays pool,” I said, my voice uninspired; I had no desire to talk about Patch. Not here, not now. Not when the subject of his name had caused a rock to swell in my throat. More than ever, I wished I’d brought my cell phone to the table. I wasn’t feeling half so angry, which meant Patch had probably cooled off too. Had he forgiven me enough to send a text or call? Everything was a tangled mess, but there had to be a way around it. This wasn’t as bad as it seemed. We’d find a way to work it out.

Mrs. Parnell nodded. “Polo. Now there’s a true Maine sport.”

“Pool as in pool halls,” Mom corrected, sounding a little pale.

Mrs. Parnell cocked her head like she wasn’t sure she’d heard right. “Hotbeds of gang activity,” she finally said. “The Law & Order I saw? Wealthy, upper-class young men were running their neighborhood pool halls like Las Vegas casinos. Best keep a close eye on that Patch of yours, Nora. Could have a side to him he’s keeping from you. A side he’s keeping in the dark.”

“He’s not in a gang,” I repeated for what felt like the millionth time, straining to hang on to a courteous tone.

But as soon as I said it, I realized I had no way of knowing for certain that Patch had never been in a gang. Did a group of fallen angels count as a gang? I didn’t know much about his past, particularly before he met me …

“We’ll see,” Mrs. Parnell said, doubtful. “We’ll see.”

An hour later, the food was gone, the dishes were washed, Mrs. Parnell had finally left to hunt down Scott, and I retreated to my room. My cell was faceup on the floor, showing that I had no new texts, no new messages, and no missed calls.

My lip quivered, and I dug the heels of my hands into my eyes to stop the tears beginning to blur my vision. To keep from dwelling on all the awful things I’d said to Patch, I tried to work out in my mind a way to repair everything. The archangels couldn’t forbid us from talking or seeing each other—not when Patch was my guardian angel. He had to stay in my life. We’d keep doing what we’d always done. In a couple of days, after we’d shaken off our first real fight, things would go back to normal. And who cared about my future? I could work everything out later. It wasn’t like I had to have my whole life planned right this moment.

But there was one thing that just wasn’t adding up. Patch and I had spent the past two months displaying our affection openly, with no reservations whatsoever. So why was he just now showing concern over the archangels?

My mom poked her head inside my room. “I’m going to pick up a few toiletries for my trip tomorrow. I should be back soon. Need anything while I’m out?”

I noticed she didn’t bring up Scott as potential boyfriend material. Apparently his uncertain past had withered her matchmaking urges. “I’m good, but thanks anyway.”

She started to pull the door shut, then stopped. “We sort of have a problem. I let it slip to Lynn that you don’t have a car. She volunteered Scott to drive you to summer school. I told her that really wouldn’t be necessary, but I think she thought I was only saying no because I was worried we’d be putting Scott out. She said you could pay him back for his time by giving him a tour of Coldwater tomorrow.”

“Vee gives me a ride to school.”

“I made that clear, but she’s not taking no for an answer. It might be better if you explain things to Scott directly. Thank him for the offer, but tell him you already have a ride.”

Just what I wanted. More interaction with Scott.

“I’d like you to keep riding with Vee,” she added slowly. “In fact, if Scott stops by while I’m out of town this week, maybe it’s best to keep your distance.”

“You don’t trust him?”

“We don’t know him very well,” she said carefully.

“But Scott and I used to be best friends, remember?”

She looked at me emphatically. “That was a long time ago. Things change.”

My point exactly.

“I would just like to know a bit more about Scott before you go spending too much time with him,” she continued. “When I get back, I’ll see what I can find out.”

Well, this was an unexpected turn of events. “You’re going to dig up dirt on him?”

“Lynn and I are good friends. She’s under a lot of stress. She may need someone to confide in.” She took a step toward my dresser, pumped a dot of my hand lotion into her palm, and rubbed her hands together. “If she mentions Scott, well, I’m not going to not listen.”

“If it helps build your case that he’s still up to no good, I thought he acted really weird at dinner.”

“His parents are coming off a divorce,” she said in that same carefully neutral tone. “I’m sure he’s going through a lot of turmoil. It’s hard losing a parent.”

Tell me about it.

“The auction ends Wednesday afternoon, and I should be home by dinner. Vee’s staying over tomorrow night, right?”

“Right,” I said, just now remembering I still needed to discuss this with Vee, but I couldn’t imagine there’d be a problem. “By the way, I’m thinking about getting a job.” Better to toss it out in the open, especially since with any luck, I hoped to have employment before she returned home.

Mom blinked. “Where did this come from?”

“I need a car.”

“I thought Vee was fine with giving you rides.”

“I feel like a parasite.” I couldn’t even run to the store for emergency tampons without calling Vee. Worse, I’d come this close to having to hitch a ride to school today with Marcie Millar. I didn’t want to make unnecessary demands on my mom, especially when money was so tight, but I didn’t want a repeat of this morning, either. I’d been longing for a car ever since my mom sold the Fiat, and seeing the Cabriolet this afternoon had pushed me to action. Paying for the car myself seemed like a good compromise.

“You don’t think a job will interfere with school?” Mom asked, her tone telling me she wasn’t wild about the idea. Not that I’d expected her to be.

“I’m only taking one class.”

“Yes, but it’s chemistry.”

“No offense, but I think I can handle two things at once.”

At that, she sat on the edge of my bed. “Is something the matter? You’re awfully snappy tonight.”

I took an extra second to answer, coming very close to telling the truth. “No. I’m fine.”

“You seem stressed.”

“Long day. Oh, and did I mention Marcie Millar is my chem partner?”

I could tell by her expression that she knew just how deeply this cut. After all, it was my mom I’d run home to for most of the past eleven years after Marcie had had her way with me. And it was my mom who’d picked up the pieces, put me back together, and sent me back to school stronger and wiser and armed with a few tricks of