I don’t know how to respond. I knew Tobias’s family was wealthy—his dad is in the upper echelons of Moncha Corp, after all—but I had no idea there was this much of a disparity between my family and his. I cringe as I wonder what he must think of my crummy apartment building and the locker I spend most of my time in. I mean, my locker is probably smaller than any of the bathrooms in this place. Once, I might have found that inspiring—look what I could achieve if I worked hard enough at Moncha! But now I’m wondering whether the “utopia” that Monica provides at Monchaville is really everything I’ve grown up to think it is or whether it’s just another way to placate us just enough so we don’t question the disparity at work. Would the other perks of working for Moncha—the affordable housing, the community amenities, the superclean sidewalks and access to health care and good schools and plentiful food—would all that offset the lack of privacy and personal freedom?

And now I get to spend a week with the guy I like’s impossibly rich and talented parents, who may or may not be involved in Eric Smith’s sinister plans. Joy.

However, my eyes light up when I see Tobias standing at the top of the stairs, waiting for us in the warm glow of the front porch. The car pulls around the semicircular driveway, and I get out, waving. But the guy at the top of the stairs doesn’t wave back. And then my stomach drops. Now that we’re closer, I can see that it’s not Tobias at all. That becomes especially obvious when his baku slides out from behind him: a gorgeous black jaguar that looks as if it should belong on a security team. But it’s obviously his personal baku.

“Lacey, is that Tobias’s brother?”

My cheeks redden with embarrassment as I realize my mistake. I take my time getting out of the car, grabbing my backpack from the trunk with deliberate slowness. I pull my hat down low over my forehead, hoping it covers up the fact I didn’t even brush my hair this morning—that’s how early we left. Also, the longer I take, the more I hope Nathan will just get bored and leave us to it.

No such luck. I glance up and I can see he’s still standing inside the doorway, staring down at us with a look of mild amusement.

“Slick,” I say quietly under my breath. “Send a message to Tobias that we’ve arrived.”

>>Right away.