When she was the last one in the classroom, she knew she couldn’t delay any longer. It was time to dive back into the less-fun parts of her life. Heaving her backpack over her shoulder, she headed for the corridor. The classroom was on the third floor of Meyers Hall, an ancient brick building that was stiflingly hot in the summer and as cold as a walk-in freezer in the winter. The majority of the students had already made their way outside, and the few remaining were making their way toward the stairs.

Cara followed slowly, still reluctant to get home and have to think about which skip she would choose to take the place of Henry Kavenski. The soles of her tennis shoes squeaked slightly against the highly polished floor, and the sound echoed through the hall, making her realize how quiet it had become. The classrooms had emptied and the rest of the straggling students had disappeared, leaving her alone.

Even as she told herself she was being silly, she couldn’t help but tense. Her pace quickened, the sound of her hurried footsteps making her even more aware of how horror-movie-like her situation was. She tried to be amused by it, but it was hard to laugh at her very real apprehension as she rushed toward the stairs. All the crazy and dangerous things that had been happening to her and her sisters lately made her see menace in everything.

“Hey, Cara Pax.”

She whirled around, a shriek of surprise trapped in her throat. As soon as she saw who’d spoken, she was glad that the startled sound hadn’t made it out. The little weasel had intentionally tried to scare her, and she would’ve hated to give him the satisfaction of knowing he’d succeeded.

“What are you doing here, Stuart?” she asked, wanting to keep walking toward the stairs but not trusting the creep enough to turn her back. Moving backward away from him felt too much like running, and she wasn’t scared of the little punk. He’d been one of the many who tried to break into their house. Since Molly and John had caught him in the act, he’d been popping up around campus wherever Cara happened to be. He seemed to have a mistaken impression that she knew where her mom had hidden the stolen necklace.

“Why are most students in a campus building?” He really did have the most punchable smirk in the history of the world. “What do you think I’m doing here?”

Irritation surged at the question, and she pivoted toward the stairs, too annoyed to be worried about what he’d do if her back was turned. “Quit stalking me.”

His low laugh followed her, and she straightened her shoulders, fighting the urge to glance back. She wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of knowing just how creepy she found him. He was trying to frighten her. What he didn’t realize was that she dealt with scarier people every day. She’d faced down Henry Kavenski. After that, Stuart seemed like small potatoes.