“You shouldn’t have done that.” Clipped voice. Tight jaw. The boy smoothed his black fitted jacket, stepping away from her. “Now they’re going to come after you.”

“They won’t. I’ll leave a couple of petals in their lockers tomorrow. Nonpoisonous petals,” she went on before he could interrupt, “but they won’t know that. They’ll think it’s a warning.” She grinned, plucking his backpack from the ground. “I’m Belladonna, by the way.”

“Raven.”

“Oh, the rich boy? I heard you buy your lunch with fifty-dollar bills.” A pause, followed by a lift of her eyebrow. “That true?”

“Come over sometime. I’ll show you the bathtub filled with hundreds.” When he smiled, it was mischievous. There was a dimple in his left cheek, and Belle found her eyes drawn to it. She’d never wanted to go to a boy’s house before. Not alone. Not accompanied by an adult.

But suddenly her grand library felt small. Suddenly her bedroom felt like a prison, with its locked door and nailed windows. Her heart sank at the thought of returning there, alone, for one more night. “I can’t come over,” she said. “My dad’s really strict.”

“I could sneak you out.”

“I promise, you couldn’t.” She looked down. She was never supposed to break eye contact with a boy. Never supposed to show submission. But she couldn’t look into those wide brown eyes anymore, because she couldn’t understand how they could be so dark and so bright at the same time. Raven Holloway was like the night sky lit up by stars.

“I should go,” Belle said, turning to leave. When he caught her arm, she remembered Edwin’s instructions. She wasn’t supposed to lash out. She was supposed to slip out of his grip and run as far away as possible. Tell an adult. Ask for help.

Belle didn’t run. Instead, she turned to find Raven standing right in front of her. “Are you afraid of me?” he asked, and his question felt loaded. There were kids at school who would judge Raven simply because his mom was black and his dad was white, but Belle would sooner threaten those people with poison than stand next to them.

Still, she was scared of getting close to him. She was scared of getting close to anyone, and before this moment, she hadn’t wanted to. “I told you, my dad’s really strict,” she said, hoping he wouldn’t push her to say more. “He nailed my windows shut when I first moved in.”

“Wait. He what?” Raven’s brow furrowed, and his voice was sharp. Angry, even. “Did he think you were going to fall out?”

“I… maybe. Just forget I said anything.”