Amy did not seem discouraged by Maria’s response.
Her excitement remained as she leaned closer across the dining table.
“You used to call him Curious George,” she said.
“He still remembers the summer you spent together at science camp.
I thought it might be nice if the two of you met again.” Maria understood where the conversation was going before her mother could finish.
Her expression hardened and she answered without hesitation.
“No.” Amy stared at her.
“Maria, you don’t even know what I was going to suggest.” “I know enough.” Maria turned her face away and pushed the food around her plate.
“Please don’t say anything else.” Amy’s smile faded.
She had hoped that reconnecting Maria with an old friend might help her become more social, but the immediate rejection left her uncertain about what to do next.
Dan looked up from his dinner with visible irritation.
He disliked emotional conversations at the table and had little patience for Maria’s attitude.
“That’s enough,” he said.
“Your mother was only trying to help.” Maria lowered her eyes but said nothing.
Amy tried to explain again, while Dan’s increasingly sharp tone made the situation worse.
The conversation ended with Maria leaving the table.
Amy remained seated beneath the pale dining-room light as Dan returned his attention to his meal.
Late that night Maria sat alone before the bathroom mirror.
The house had become silent, and the only sound came from her uneven breathing.
Her fingers rubbed together without conscious thought.
She stared at her reflection while exhaustion slowly blurred the edges of her vision.
For several seconds, nothing moved.
Then the reflection turned its head.
Maria remained completely still.
The girl inside the mirror looked directly at her with cold and calculating eyes.
The movement had not matched Maria’s body.
Terror struck her so suddenly that her heart seemed to stop.
She jumped from the vanity and rushed back into her bedroom without looking behind her.
Maria climbed onto the bed and pressed herself against the headboard.
Her breathing came in short gasps while she tried to understand what she had seen.
It could have been exhaustion.
The pressure from school and her family had been growing for weeks.
Perhaps her mind had created the movement because she expected something terrible to happen.
Maria waited until her heartbeat slowed.
She then forced herself to stand and cautiously returned to the bathroom.
The mirror showed an ordinary reflection.
Maria approached one step at a time.
The girl behind the glass copied every movement and wore the same frightened expression.
“You aren’t real,” Maria whispered.
“I imagined you.” The reflection’s lips moved even though Maria’s remained still.
“Then why can you see me?” Maria stumbled backward.
The voice had come from the mirror.
It sounded like her own voice, though it carried a colder tone.
“Because I’m right here.” Maria gripped the edge of the doorway to keep herself steady.
“Who are you?” The reflection tilted its head.
A faint trace of resentment appeared in its eyes.
“You don’t recognize me?” Maria shook her head.
“I don’t know you.” “I have always been here.” The girl in the mirror raised one hand and pressed her palm against the glass.
“Wherever you go, I go with you.
Every time you believed you were looking at yourself, you were also looking at me.” Maria stared at the raised hand.
Her own arm remained at her side.
“What do you want?” “I want to help you.” The reflection’s expression softened, but something disturbing remained beneath the smile.
“I can take away your sadness.
I know who hurts you, and I know who you wish would notice you.” Dante’s face immediately appeared in Maria’s thoughts.
The mirror girl’s smile widened as though she had seen the memory.
“I know who you like.” Maria’s breath caught.
“I also know who you hate.” Images of Mark, Lily, and her father moved through her mind.
Each one carried a different kind of pain.
The reflection leaned closer from the other side of the glass.
“I can help you deal with all of them.” Maria remained suspicious despite the temptation in those words.
“Why would you help me?” “Look at me.” The reflection’s voice became gentle and persuasive.
“What do you see?” Maria reluctantly faced the mirror.
“My reflection.” “What does she look like?” Maria studied the familiar features.
She had spent years hearing criticism from her father and cruelty from other students.
Saying anything positive about herself felt almost unnatural.
“She’s beautiful,” Maria whispered.
The reflection smiled.
“No.
We are beautiful.” Maria stepped closer.
The fear inside her had not disappeared, but curiosity now competed with it.
“Do you have a name?” The girl behind the glass lowered her hand.
A dark and satisfied smile slowly spread across her face.
“My name is Airam.” Across town, music thundered through the venue where Low Shoulder was performing.
Guitars roared from the stage while flashing lights swept over the packed crowd.
The band’s alternative-rock sound shook the floor beneath Dante’s shoes.
People moved together near the stage as the air filled with heat, perfume, and the faint smell of spilled drinks.
Dante sat in a corner booth with Jennifer, Frank, and Needy.
The concert had not officially started long ago, but Frank had already spent most of the evening talking about Ghostface.
He leaned across the table and raised his voice to be heard over the music.
“You’re basically a celebrity now!” Dante took a drink from his soda and gave him an unimpressed look.
“I was already popular.” “I’m serious.
Everyone at school is talking about how you captured Stu Macher.” Frank shook his head as though he still could not believe it.
“You fought a serial killer inside your own house and tied him up before the police arrived.” “It wasn’t difficult.” Frank stared at him.
“You really need to work on pretending to be humble.” Dante leaned back against the booth.
“Why should I pretend?” Jennifer laughed from beside him.
She had stayed close throughout the evening, and her shoulder remained pressed against his arm.
“Our hero is too confident for humility.” She turned toward Dante and studied him with a playful hunger in her eyes.
“I can understand why.
Taking down a murderer is incredibly attractive.” Needy glanced at Jennifer.
Her expression carried the familiar mixture of concern and resignation that appeared whenever her friend became too intense.
Dante noticed but said nothing.
Jennifer moved even closer until her lips were near his ear.
“You know, hearing about what happened made me want to eat you alive.” Dante looked at her from the corner of his eye.
“That sounds dangerous coming from you.” Jennifer smiled and slowly ran her tongue across her lower lip.
“Maybe you like danger.” The words carried more meaning than Dante could ignore.
Jennifer had been teasing him since school, and she had clearly planned the rest of the night long before arriving at the concert.
Dante finished his drink and looked toward Frank and Needy.
“Sorry, but Jennifer and I need to leave for a while.” Frank’s eyes widened.
“You’re leaving before the band finishes?” Jennifer stood and took Dante’s hand.
“We have other plans.” She pulled him away from the booth before Frank could ask anything else.
The two disappeared into the moving crowd and headed toward the exit.
Frank watched them leave before turning toward Needy.
He gave her an awkward smile and shrugged.
“Well, I guess it’s just us.” Needy looked toward the door through which Jennifer had vanished.
A hint of concern appeared in her eyes, but she quickly pushed it aside.
Frank stood and offered his hand with exaggerated formality.
“Would you honor me with a dance?” Needy looked at his waiting hand before smiling.
“All right.” She placed her hand in his, and Frank carefully led her toward the crowded floor.
The music grew louder as they joined the students moving beneath the flashing lights.
Neither of them noticed the brief shadow that passed across the venue’s back entrance.
Later that night, warm yellow light filled a hotel room several blocks from the concert venue.
Dante sat on the edge of the bed while Jennifer emerged from the bathroom wearing an oversized shirt.
She had replaced her earlier confidence with an even more deliberate kind of boldness.
Her footsteps were slow as she crossed the room.
She stopped in front of Dante and placed both hands on his shoulders.
“You’ve been very quiet.” “I’m waiting to see what you planned.” Jennifer climbed onto his lap and wrapped her arms around his neck.
Her playful expression softened as nervousness briefly appeared beneath it.
“This is my first time doing something like this.” Dante noticed the uncertainty that she was trying to hide.
“You don’t have to prove anything.” Jennifer studied his face before leaning closer.
“I know.” Her confidence returned as she whispered near his ear.
“I’m here because I want to be.” Dante placed his hands around her waist.
“Careful what you wish for.” Jennifer smiled.
“I’ve never been careful.” She kissed him before he could respond.
The lamp beside the bed was knocked crooked as they fell backward onto the mattress.
The bedroom door remained locked while the night continued beyond it.
Much later, blankets and pillows lay scattered across the room.
The fallen lamp rested harmlessly against the carpet.
Jennifer remained stretched across the bed beneath the sheets.
Her hair had become a complete mess, and she looked too exhausted to lift her head.
Dante stood near the foot of the bed and began doing push-ups as though he still had energy to spare.
Jennifer slowly turned her face toward him.
“How are you still moving?” Dante completed another repetition.
“Good genetics.” Jennifer groaned and pulled a pillow over her head.
“You’re impossible.” He laughed and continued exercising while she remained buried beneath the pillow.
At the same time, Maria stood before the bathroom mirror in the Brennan house.
Her reflection no longer copied her movements.
Airam watched from the other side of the glass with a satisfied smile.
Her fingers slowly traced the place where Dante’s face seemed to appear within the darkness of the mirror.
“Soon,” she whispered.
Her smile became colder.
“Soon, we’ll have him.”