“You’re positive she isn’t going to prom with Aaron?” Lacy asked Max suspiciously over lunch.

He nodded, his mouth bulging with food. A minute later he answered.

“Benjamin says he’s going with Alice Wheatley. I overheard her talking to her friends yesterday; she isn’t going at all.”

Lacy frowned. That put a wrench in their plans. They were supposed to drug her drink at prom and take incriminating photos in a room at the hotel.

Max did say he had a contingency plan but it left them more open to risk. How were they supposed to grab her without anyone seeing?

He noticed her worried expression and smiled confidently.

“Don’t worry, my cousin owes me a favor. I’ll get him to send extra members of his security force to all three of the nearby subway stations. They’re trained to be stealthy; they can tranquilize her and whisk her away in two seconds flat. In such a crowded place, no one will notice a thing.”

She felt better after hearing that. This would surely push that annoyance away from Aaron forever. Who would want to be with someone who caused them so many problems?

Keeley would disappear from school and all of this would be over. That’s what she gets for trying to fly above her station.

They ate the rest of their lunch chatting about what needed to be done to get ready for prom. Lacy had an appointment with an exclusive stylist to do her hair, nails, and makeup.

As one of the nominees for prom queen, it was her duty to outshine everyone else.

Winning that crown would boost her status among the socialites her age but the greater incentive to win was that Aaron was one of the nominees for king.

If they both won, he would have to dance with her. It might give her a chance to redeem herself in front of him.

When the bell rang and Lacy was about to head to her next class, Max grabbed her arm and whispered in her ear.

“I’ll text you once my cousin’s men have her. See you at six!”

She nodded, a cruel smile marring her beautiful features. This could be fun.

===

Keeley grinned at her friends as they finished singing the birthday song off-key.

She couldn’t have candles to blow out at school but they wouldn’t exactly fit in the donuts Jeffrey brought anyway.

“I would’ve brought cupcakes but I figure you’ll get enough cake tonight,” he said apologetically.

“Donuts are great! And you’re right; my dad is buying me a special ice cream cake and I’ll probably eat most of it this weekend.”

With just two of them and the baker of the family gone, he bought a small round cake every year from Keeley’s favorite ice cream chain. She always chose the red velvet cake filled with cake batter ice cream and topped with rainbow sprinkles and Kit-Kat bars.

Sometimes she really missed her mom’s homemade birthday cakes but still looked forward to the store bought treat she only got once a year.

“Jeffrey’s present is just the donuts so open mine!” Lydia said excitedly while setting a rectangular wrapped gift in front of her.

“Hey, these cost me fifteen bucks!” he protested but she ignored him and looked at Keeley expectantly as she unwrapped the gift.

It was the same thing Lydia got her the first time; a mystery novel by one of her favorite authors.

“Thanks guys! You’re the best.”

They both smiled a little guiltily.

“We wish we could go do something fun with you but senior prom only comes once. How about we go bowling tomorrow to make up for it?” Jeffrey suggested.

“Don’t worry about it; I understand. That sounds fun! Let’s do it.”

The rest of lunch passed joking around and having a good time.

As far as birthdays go, this one was pretty good so far, even with Aaron talking to her again out of the blue.

Keeley had been caught off guard by the almost friendly birthday wishes he gave her after weeks of complete silence.

When she saw the gift box she dreaded what might be inside since he had a bad habit of giving her insanely overpriced gifts she didn’t want or ask for.

Refusing random gifts secretly was a no brainer but turning down a birthday gift in front of her classmates would look bad.

The contents surprised her. Sure, it probably cost more than everything in her apartment combined but it actually catered to her interests.

Aaron didn’t have the best track record of giving thoughtful gifts. When they were dating he typically gave her electronics or appliances for her apartment, which were helpful but not exactly fun.

After they got married he only gave her luxury items that would help her fit in as Mrs. Hale. Most of the time she didn’t even like them but was so grateful for any tiny scrap of affection from him that she considered herself lucky.

She was so thrown off by a present that actual thought clearly went into that she acted a bit warmer towards him than she should have and let him put it on her.

She’d nearly forgotten that she told him about her plans to be a geneticist. The DNA strand necklace was perfect.

Keeley had very conflicted feelings about it. Objectively, she loved the gift. But it was from Aaron! The man she hated and was doing her best to avoid!

If she wanted to give it back, she’d have to do it when no one else was around. That was the obvious choice.

On the other hand…would it be so horrible to keep it?

It would make her think of him every time she wore it. That wouldn’t do since she was trying her best to forget him and live her life right this time.

It would be a pity to get rid of it though. It was a beautiful necklace; she’d never seen anything quite like it.

She still hadn’t made a decision by the end of the day. She fingered the necklace restlessly as she took the escalator down to the subway tracks. Keep it or return it?

Returning it would mean interacting with Aaron again and he’d actually been respecting her wishes lately. That could reignite whatever flame of interest he’d had in her.

She could keep it and just not wear it…that might work…

Keeley didn’t notice the men closing in on her due to the throng of people in the afternoon rush until the tranquilizer dart was jabbed into her neck.

One of the men wrapped an arm around her waist and made it look like she was still walking as he dragged her into the shadows.