“You do?” she asked.

Out of the corner of her eye, Marianne saw Vi stand by the door. Had she been chasing after Marianne, or was she just popping out to go to the water fountain?

Mr. Garcia half turned and motioned to Vi that he’d be with her shortly. But Vi stayed put, watching.

“And I’m happy to explain to Ms. Clarke—and your parents—the benefits of peer mentorship involved here and the discipline required by this commitment, both of which will be very beneficial to your situation, I believe.” He crossed his arms and nodded his head. Was he trying to convince himself?

And what did he mean? Why did he talk like a robot reading an instruction manual?

“Obviously, you, Ms. Clarke, and I will have to come up with some form of agreement regarding what’s required of you in order to stay on the team—no absences, no detentions, etc.…”

“Oh, don’t worry,” Marianne jumped in. “Ms. Clarke already told my parents if I get a detention or something, I’m toast. Ha.” She tried to be funny, but Mr. Garcia rolled right along without taking note.

“But!” he said, more serious than she’d ever seen the always-serious Mr. Garcia. “You made it quite clear to Ms. Jacobs that Quiz Quest is a … a dungeon of torture and a friendless abyss…”

“I—” she protested, but he spoke over her.

“And therefore, I will need evidence. Proof! That you’ve earned the extra credit, that you are really and truly trying.” He took out a pencil from behind his ear and tapped it on his palm like a metronome. “Without proof of effort, I reserve the right to deny credit. This is not a participation trophy; do you understand my meaning?” Although he wasn’t that much taller than her, he seemed to loom over her somehow.

“Got it, Mr. G,” she said. “Garcia. Got it, Mr. Garcia,” she corrected herself.

He raised his coffee mug in a “cheers” gesture and then continued toward the classroom to talk to Vi.

Marianne swore she caught Vi smirking, but before Marianne could blink, the scowl returned.

“One more minute until we start again, so don’t take too long,” he called back to Marianne, as if she were merely going to the bathroom.

He must have seen her backpack on. He must have known she had been leaving.

But he had confirmed that this could help her. Maybe. With proof of effort.

Simply joining the prodigy club at all would take a lot of effort, especially considering how the group got along like bees and hornets. Trying to get Vi Cross to accept her would be brutal. And learning even 10 percent of the answers would take a climbing-Mount-Everest level of effort. And from what her sister had told her, more and more people were dying on Mount Everest every day.

Marianne peered toward the school exit and back toward Vi and Mr. Garcia, engaged in a quiet conversation in front of the Quiz Quest door.