“Easily when it’s a Pruitt,” I said with a laugh. “But come on, let’s get upstairs. The last thing I need is to get Miller fired.”
She followed me up the ornate staircase. “This place is seriously insane. I can’t believe you live around all this gold.” She ran her index finger along the gold trim of the railing.
“Isn’t that just paint?”
She leaned down and tapped it with her finger. “I don’t think so.”
The sound of locks clicking open echoed around us.
“Hurry,” I whispered and sprinted up the stairs with Kennedy hot on my trail. But when I reached my room I realized that Kennedy wasn’t with me. She had stopped in front of the door down the hall with the new security system.
“What the hell is in there?” she asked as she stared at the keypad.
“I have no idea.”
“You haven’t asked? It’s right by your room.”
“Miller said not to go in. Which I promptly ignored,” I said with a laugh. “But it was locked when I tried to open it. And the next thing I knew there was all this,” I said and pointed to the display.
“That’s really freaking creepy, Brooklyn. What do you think is in there that they don’t want you to see?”
I shrugged. “I’m sure Miller would warn me if it was something really bad.”
“Yeah. You’re probably right.” But she didn’t look that convinced.
I didn’t have time to think about what was behind that door right now. All I could think about was the fact that I couldn’t get Miller fired. I’d never be able to forgive myself. Especially because my heart was still so stupidly confused.
This time when I pulled Kennedy to my room she didn’t protest. I practically pushed her in when I heard the sound of footsteps on the stairs. I was about to close and lock my door, but I heard her gasp.
I turned around to see what she was upset about. My heart dropped to the floor.
“What the hell happened in here?” asked Kennedy.
My clothes. All the beautiful clothes that Justin had organized for me were on the floor in shreds. Thousands and thousands of dollars worth of clothes that were so nice that I hadn’t even touched them. I swallowed hard. It wasn’t just all my new clothes. No. I took a few steps into my room and I felt like I was about to burst into tears. The few outfits that I’d owned were ruined too. The sundress my mom had always complimented. Her old riding boots. My favorite pajamas. Even my black dress shoes that hurt my feet. Everything. It was all torn to pieces.
All I could think about was how lucky I was to have been wearing my Keds. I was never going to take them off again.
“Seriously, what the hell happened?” Kennedy asked as she wandered toward the mess. She lifted up a pair of designer jeans. “They look like they were cut with scissors.”
“What?” I walked up and looked down at the mess. The rips were precise. Perfect. Planned.
“Oh no, Sissy,” Isabella said from behind us with zero shock in her voice.
Kennedy and I both spun around to look at her.
She was holding a tiny, fluffy white dog in her arms. The smile on her face was eerily calm. She slowly stroked the fluffy dog like a psychopath as her smile grew. “Sir Wilfred must have accidentally gotten into your room.”
“Sir Wilfred?” I asked. Had she had a secret dog this whole time? I hadn’t heard a single bark.
“Yes, isn’t he such a cutie pie?” She scratched behind his ears.
“When did you get a dog?”
“I got him this morning as a reward for my good behavior. Daddy always lets me get whatever I want when I’m good. Because he loves me the most.”
I was going to be sick.
Isabella walked farther into my room. Just her standing here made the room feel less safe. She was invading my space. And I knew for a fact it wasn’t the first time. A dog didn’t do this. Like Kennedy had said, it looked like my clothes had been cut into perfect pieces with scissors. They hadn’t been shredded by dog claws and teeth. I’d been right. Isabella was trying to sabotage me. But why’d she even bother asking what dress I was wearing when she was planning on ruining everything and blaming it on an innocent dog?
Isabella lifted up what was left of the emerald green dress I’d described to her the other day at dinner. “Sissy, your homecoming dress is ruined. And all your other dresses too.” She dropped the dress on top of my other shredded clothes. “I guess you can’t go to homecoming after all.” She shook her head like she was actually upset. The smile on her face was proof that she wasn’t. “What. A. Shame. Oh well.” She turned to walk away.
“You’re such a bitch,” Kennedy said. “These clothes were cut with scissors. Obviously.” She picked up a shirt that was cut in half. “You did this.”
“Are you calling me a liar?”
“If the shoe fits.”
Isabella continued to pet her dog. “At least I have shoes. It looks like Sir Wilfred got to all of Brooklyn’s.” She stifled a laugh. “Such a shame. Wait, what are you even doing here, Kennedy?” A vicious smile spread across her face. “Daddy!” she screamed at the top of her lungs. “Daddy there’s an intruder!”
“Stop yelling,” I hissed. I could handle all my clothes being destroyed by a monster. What I couldn’t handle was getting Kennedy kicked out and Miller fired. What the hell had I been thinking bringing Kennedy here? Of course we’d be caught. “Please, Isabella, I’ll do whatever you want. Go tell your dad that everything’s fine. Tell him not to come up.”
“Whatever I want?” she asked.
“Anything. Please.”
But it was too late.
Mr. Pruitt was standing at the door with a frown on his face.
Chapter 24
Saturday
“Sorry, Daddy,” Isabella said with a smile. “Everything’s fine. It’s just Brooklyn’s friend. I was mistaken.”
He didn’t seem to care what she said. “Where is Miller?” he asked.
“I don’t know,” I said. “I snuck Kennedy in on my own though. It wasn’t his fault.” I stepped in front of Kennedy as if that would save her from his wrath.
“Not his fault? It’s his job to watch you 24/7.”