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“Hell is empty and all the devils are here”

– William Shakespeare

Prologue

Missouri summers are never easy, but this was a su co heat orsened by the humidity that stuck to you like a second skin and kept most of the locals indoors—but not the children Soh sprinklers in their front yards, others splashed around in the many brooks and creeks that surrounded the town The older kids were looking for troublefireworks, alcohol, pot—anything that would give the, and some cool points

But for Orion Darby, it was not the heat she was concerned with, nor any childish gae rebellion No, it was the blue-eyed boy standing across from her on the back deck of his parents’ ho in June

It would be the last little breath of happiness before her world went dark, and a cell became her home Before she would wonder whether it was cruel of the universe to give her that little taste of happiness, Maddox’s soft, hesitant ive her that singular memory to hold on to when the pain felt like it could kill her Much later than that, she’d realize that the universe was not concerned with her, that there were no greater powers at work other thanas men and she was just a pawn in their world Surely, if there was a god, he would’ve saved girls like her

But that was later

This was still that perfect summer daythat perfect first kiss

Maddox Hampton Novak—or Maddie as loved ones called him—wasn’t supposed to like soe heartthrob He played lead guitar in a punk band, started every varsity game as wide receiver for the football team, and he was even the lead in all the school plays A true Renaissance man Had he not been the older brother of her best friend, April, Orion kneouldn’t have thought twice about looking at her, let alone kissing her At least, that’s what she told herself Besides, he was sixteen, two years her senior, and he had plenty of girls his own age to chase after Some older ones too

Orion had never planned on kissing hi returned She didn’t want to piss off her best friend, didn’t want to destroy the only real thing she had in her life then But when the town stud starts noticing the girl from the poor family, with Walmart clothes two sizes too small and a face dotted with countless freckles, what exactly was she to do?

That was the most peculiar aspect of it all really She was a Darby, and Darbys were poverty-stricken nobodies Always had been Alould be They lived in squalor at Sunnyside Trailer Park, the scourge of Grandview, in a trailer passed down fro to the next Darbys drank away their paychecks and fed their kids scraps, perpetuating a cycle of addiction and abuse that lasted generations

The Novaks—Maddox and April—lived in a two-story house situated on three acres, in a community where each home was more impressive than the next Their father was the only dentist in town, their hts were always on, the water always ran, and life was good Maddox and April had two parents who cared about them, who didn’t have rap sheets, who didn’t lay a hand on theht them whatever they desired In other words, they were the exact opposite of everything Orion had ever known

When she first befriended April in the second grade, she had yet to realize just how different her existence was compared to everybody else’s It wasn’t until she saw the Novak’s house for the first tis, and all their happiness and fas were

That hy Ri never expected the heartthrob she’d secretly loved for years to finally see herto want her

The week before, he’d pulled her aside at Jessie Knowles’s party, and told her how he felt, told her he wanted to kiss her, and his words made her come alive

She had drea but never expected it, that smile he flashed as he held her hands on the back porch, the sun setting behind thees like fire across the sky Slightly crooked, that s the son of the town dentist had more benefits than just a nice home For a moment, it reh white froht-lipped smile back