She saw Claire’s face.
For the tiniest fraction of a second, Claire’s eyes went soft and her mouth turned down, registering sympathy for Maria’s loss. But then, like one of those movies they’d watched in science that shows a flower dying in fast-forward, Claire’s face twisted into jealousy before decomposing into a quiet rage.
Maria could guess why Claire was jealous. She got to the front of her row and did a confident twirl, letting the hem of her dress spiral out like a movie star’s. Her classmates all locked their eyes on her, enthralled. It was the first time they’d seen her since Grandma Esme had died.
But for the moment, the only reaction that really mattered was Claire’s, and Claire’s face looked like the snake from page fifty-three, ready to strike.
“Nice dress,” she sneered, although she was unable to hide all the envy from her voice. “Where’d you get it, the dollar store?”
“It’s from Europe, actually,” Maria said, sitting down.
Claire choked on a laugh, then lapsed into silence for a full ten seconds. She turned to Mark and Tina. “Don’t forget, my party’s at six thirty,” she said. “All the cool people will be there.”
Mark and Tina smiled, but they looked a little nervous, too. They — and the rest of the class — could feel that something had changed in Maria. Something that went deeper than just a strange and expensive new outfit. Maria had power. Claire’s insults practically bounced off her.
Maria faced the front of the class with a smile.
Let them wonder, she thought. Let them feel like outcasts for a change.
“So I’ve decided we should go to Claire’s party,” Maria said at lunch. It was true, she had decided this, but at the moment she was trying mainly to get Derek’s attention. He’d been staring at his food, hardly saying a word. He looked like Rafi had once when he’d gotten food poisoning.
“I thought we weren’t invited,” Derek said, almost bored.
“Well, I wasn’t. I mean, I’m still not. I’ve decided I want to crash Claire’s party.”
“Why would you want to do that?” Derek held the same silver dollar from earlier in the week. He gripped it in his right hand like he was afraid he might drop it.
“Is everything okay?” Maria asked, though she felt weird saying it. Usually in their friendship, he was the one who made sure she was okay.
“Yeah, everything’s fine. I just don’t understand why you’d want to go to a party where you’re not wanted.”
He didn’t sound like Derek at all.
“I heard about a special surprise that was happening, and I thought it might be fun to see.”
“Heard where?”
“Um, from Claire? In English? Or maybe Rob told me. I can’t remember.”
Clearly, Derek didn’t believe her. “Does this ‘surprise’ have anything to do with your magic ring?” he said. She did her best to keep her face totally blank.
“No,” she lied. “Rob spent the night with Rafi last night, and he said this thing about … Never mind. Forget I said anything.”
“Are you still going to bring it by my dad’s shop?” Derek said, ignoring her outburst. “Grandma Esme’s ring?”
“If I do, will you start acting normal?” Maria snapped.
Derek seemed like he was about to snap right back, but then thought better of it.
“Yes,” he said. “I mean, sorry. It’s been weird not having you at school this week. I’ve been worrying about you and that ring. And now you show up in this fancy dress, saying you want to go to Claire McCormick’s birthday party? It just doesn’t seem like you.”
If Maria had been surprised before, this sudden role reversal really caught her off guard.
“Don’t worry about me,” she said. “I’m still the same Maria. And if that stops being true, you’ll be the first to know.”
Derek nodded. He spun the silver dollar on the table, and he and Maria watched it until it finally wobbled and fell on its side, heads up.
“I’ll have my mom bring me by the shop after dinner,” Maria said.
“And then, if you really still want to, we can go crash Claire’s party.”
“Really?”
“Really. I wouldn’t want to miss this special surprise.”
Maria smiled. “If it’s half as good as Rob said, you’ll never forget it.”
Maria had no problem convincing her mom to take her to the shop, in yet another dress she claimed to have gotten from Grandma Esme. After what her mother had said last night about wanting them all to enjoy life, Maria probably could have asked for the car keys and driven herself.
With a quick call to Derek’s parents to let them know they were on the way, Maria and her mother hopped in the car and drove to the historic downtown district. Maria loved this part of town, over by the railroad tracks. You could still see the original brick roads peeking out where there were holes in the asphalt, and the old-timey streetlamps looked as if they could be powered by gas. Maria liked to picture the people who would have shopped here when it was the only place to go, before there were cars and outlet malls.
“Derek’s dad said he’d bring you home when you’re ready,” Mom said. “Have fun.”
Maria walked up to the front door of the shop, sandwiched in between two large display windows. There were a few new items since the last time Maria had been here. An eerie porcelain doll sat on a rocking horse with chipped paint. Maria couldn’t imagine anyone in this town buying either item, but you never knew. Sometimes the most ordinary people liked the strangest things.
It was five o’clock now, which meant the shop would be open for another hour. Derek’s family usually hung around after closing on Friday nights, though, checking inventory and setting up displays for the weekend shoppers. Saturday was a busy day for the historic district.
The old cowbell above the door clunked as Maria entered.
“Well, look who it is, dressed all nice to see us,” Mr. Overton called from behind the counter. He stepped out to meet her by the front tables. “I’m so glad you’re here. We just got in a necklace this morning that made me think of you.” He reached out his hand as if to pat her on the shoulder, but then, so fast she could hardly see it, he’d clasped the necklace around her neck. It was a string of black and purple rocks with little silver beads in between.
“Wow,” Maria said, “it’s so pretty. But there’s no way I could afford this, even with the family discount.”
“Are you kidding?” Derek’s dad said. “This beautiful necklace was clearly made special to go with this beautiful dress. Let’s call it a gift.”
It was true, the match was perfect.
“Oh, Mr. Overton, my mom would never let me accept this.”
“Please,” he said, waving his hand like it was nothing. “Besides, those look like gemstones, but they’re really just colored rocks. I couldn’t sell it for more than twenty dollars.”
“All right, then,” Maria said, laughing. “Thank you.” Fake rocks or not, it was still the third-nicest gift anyone had ever given her.
“Derek’s downstairs,” Mr. Overton said, nodding to the door in the back that led to the basement. “And do me a favor when you see him? Tell him to lighten up.”
So Maria wasn’t the only one who’d noticed Derek’s recent mood swings. That made her feel a little bit better, and a whole lot worse.
“Will do,” she said, making her way through the maze of display tables.
She descended the steps to the cavernous basement. All the buildings in the historic district had these carved-out, cave-like spaces beneath them. They were never open to the public because the sandy Florida soil made them a little unstable. Nowadays, it was rare to find a basement in any Florida building at all.