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We eed on the roof Dozens of other chimney stacks poked out around us

"The ladders were for the chi three stacks to the right, and then tn "This one," she said before cli up Eleanor counted to herself as she stepped tenuously down the rungs--15, 14, 13, 12--and then stopped

"I thought Genevieve Tart was on the Board of Monitors," I said "Aren’t they supposed to follow the rules?"

Eleanor glanced up at ht side of her forehead "Exactly Lynch would never suspect Genevieve" Eleanor tapped the flue tith her foot After a moment, it creaked open "And besides," she said just before squeezing her body through the narrow hole leading to the fireplace, "this was her idea"

Genevieve’s rooht Seven candles were positioned in a broken circle on the floor, and seven girls were lounging about the room I knew some of them from my classes; a few others were friends of Eleanor’s The rest were juniors who I had seen around caie’s thin calves draped over a bed frahs crossed on the carpet, cradling a ed while Rebecca braided her hair; Bonnie’s ankles, just visible beneath her nightgown as she opened the s; and Genevieve’s long, tan legs, which stemmed fro her hs "Are we the last ones?" she asked, lighting our candles and placing them on the floor with the others

Charlotte nodded Charlotte was Genevieve’s rooe eyes and banana curls that bounced when she walked The walls above her bed were plastered with posters of actors andDavid Bohose hollowed face stared back at me over the foot of her bed

In contrast, Genevieve’s side of the room was pink and neat and bespoke an obsessive attention to order Everything was placed in a careful arrangement: the makeup on her dresser in perfect syanized by color, the photographs on the wall frairls and introduced me "Everyone not in the know, this is Renée She’s ave me a fake smile "We knoho she is Why do you think she was invited?" Then she looked atabout you She says you’re one of the best students in your year in Horticulture"

I gave her a confused look I hadn’tabout

"And she’s dating Dante Berlin" She s wide as everyone in the room looked at me with new interest

Genevieve cocked her head "Really?"

I blushed "We’re not dating We’re just friends"

Eleanor rolled her eyes "She’s being modest Dante is practically obsessed with her He’s even tutoring her in Latin"

"That’s not true Ime, but it’s just because I’m terrible at it And the headmistress couldn’t have said that about me I’ve never even met her"

This didn’t seem to bother Eleanor "Professors talk Maybe Professor Mumm told her about you"

"And you shouldn’t be so sure that you and Dante are just friends," Charlotte said, tossing her curly hair over her shoulder "Latin is a Roe, isn’t it?"

"Don’t be stupid, Charlotte," Genevieve snorted "It’s a Latinate language"