The Prince (Masterpiece Duet 0.5)

“I could do what you did. I could be a teacher.”

Her nose scrunches like it does when someone gets a wrong answer. “Penny, I don’t think you realize how special you are. It’s not just that you’re the smartest girl at this school. You’re the smartest person I’ve ever met, anywhere. And I wish—”

My head tilts. “You wish what?”

“I wish that you would give Mr. Scott the right answer. I convinced him to give you another chance. He’s coming back tomorrow.”

Curiosity sparks inside me, but it’s not because of his special school. What did he do to Damon to make him run away? If he has so much money, why does Damon sleep outside?

The questions follow me home on the bus. They nip at my heels like the wild dogs that sometimes follow me around the trailer park. They keep my eyes open when I’m in bed, waiting for the soft shift of the walls that means he’s come back.

I find him in the kitchen, pouring a can of soup into a bowl.

“What are you doing up?” he says without turning around.

“Couldn’t sleep. Where did you go today?”

He gives me a warning look. “Around.”

I sit down at the kitchen table, swinging my legs. “Fine, don’t tell me. I have a secret, too.”

“Do you?” The way he asks I know he thinks it’s something dumb, like maybe I’m going to tell him what Jenny Carson said during gym class again. That was only one time.

“It’s about you,” I tell him, triumphant.

He drops the spoon into the bowl, his eyes narrowing. “What?”

My heart squeezes a little, because when he stares at me like that he reminds me too much of Jonathan Scott. “You tell me your secret first.”

“This is not a fucking game. Did someone come around asking about me?”

I’m not going to budge, even though he used the f-word. “You go first.”

“Jesus,” he says, running his hand through his hair. He pulls some money from his pocket, tosses it on the kitchen table. “I was getting this. You don’t want to know how, because it wasn’t exactly legal. And I don’t like going into the city because it means there’s a chance I’ll be seen, but this way you won’t have to go wandering if your daddy doesn’t come back. You’ll have enough to eat, at least.”

I frown, looking at the money. There’s more than two hundred dollars. How could he make that much in one day? “Was it dangerous?”

He laughs, the sound sharp and short. “Tell me your secret.”

Now that it’s time, I don’t want to tell Damon. I’m afraid of what he’ll say, what he’ll think, but I can’t back out now. If there’s one thing I learned from going with Daddy to those poker games, it’s the importance of following through on your promises.

The importance of paying your debts.

“Your daddy’s coming back to the school tomorrow.”

He’s silent a moment, but it’s not a quiet silence. It’s louder and louder in the still night air, so much that when he finally speaks it sounds soft. “Say that again.”

“My teacher, Mrs. Keller. She said he’ll give me another chance. That I should tell him the right answers because he can help me.”

“He can’t help you.”

“But she said—”

“I don’t give a flying fuck what she told you.”

“Why would she lie?”

“Because she’s working for him? Because he’s blackmailing her? Or maybe she thinks that no matter how bad he is it will still be better for you, but I’m telling you she’s wrong.”

I shrug, uncomfortable with his intensity. “I guess.”

“Don’t talk to him, Penny.”

“He’s going to talk to me at recess. What am I supposed to do?”

“Ignore him. Scream. Kick him in the balls.”

“Why is he so bad?” I demand. “Why did you leave?”

“You’re too little to talk about that.”

“I’m not too little!”

“You are, baby genius.”

“I’m not a baby,” I say, making my voice as loud and strong as I can. “And anyway, you don’t have to tell me. I’ll just ask Mr. Scott when I see him tomorrow.”

His eyes darken. “You wouldn’t.”

I probably wouldn’t, because it would put Damon in danger—wouldn’t it? Then Mr. Scott would know where to look for him. It’s such a coincidence that I would even meet them so close together. The father and the son. In two totally different places. The odds had to be huge. I’ve calculated hundreds of odds with just fifty-two cards, but the number of people in Tanglewood is a lot more than that. Even if you narrow that down to the west side, you’re still in the tens of thousands.

And with a horrible click the calculation fell into place.

I scramble up from the chair, backing away. “Why are you here?” I whisper.

“What?” Damon looks confused, but I already know he’s a good liar.

“Is it some kind of trick? You tell me not to go so that I will?”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“Or maybe you’re here in case I say no. Like if I don’t go with Mr. Scott at school tomorrow you’ll be here waiting for me when I get back.”

“And do what?”

“I don’t know! Whatever people like you do. All I know is that it’s not a coincidence that I meet you and your father in the same week. It can’t be.”

Guilt flashes across his face. “Look, Penny.”

“Don’t say my name.”

“It’s not what you think.”

“You lied to me.”

“I left some stuff out.”

“That’s lying!”

“Okay, I lied. But not because I’m working with my dad. I swear to you.” He stands and paces in the small kitchen, his expression severe. “And I’m serious about what I said. Stay away from him.”

My lower lip trembles, and I bite down hard. It’s an old trick from when one of Daddy’s poker friends starts saying things I don’t like. I refused to cry in front of them.

Damon’s dark eyes flash. “I knew who you were because my dad keeps tabs on everyone. On people who owe him money. On people who might be useful to him. People like you.”

It’s warm outside and downright hot in the trailer. The poor air conditioning unit struggles against the coming summer, certain to lose that battle. But right now, standing in my bare feet on the kitchen linoleum, I feel freezing cold. I wrap my arms around myself.

My voice is small. “That’s why Daddy’s been gone so long, isn’t it?”

“He owed a lot of money.”

“You saw him?” A knot swells in my throat. “Is he alive?”

Damon shoves his hands across his chest, looking somehow older and younger at the same time. “He was desperate, okay? You have to understand that.”

I blink. “Okay.”

“People like that, they see their life flashing in front of their eyes. It breaks something inside them. And my father—he loves that moment. He lives for it.”

“What did he do?” I whisper.

“He starts talking about his daughter, how smart she is, all the things she can do. How you help him count cards. At first my father doesn’t care. He says, not that well since you ended up here. But your dad explains how you aren’t allowed at the high stakes games. That’s where he lost all his money.”