Imani would barely look at me.
Not in the hallway this morning. Not in the cafeteria during lunch. Not in the one class I had with her. João would’ve told me to forget about her, that it was nothing, that she was now our property, and that she didn’t need to like us. But I felt differently about her. I had for a while now.
She wouldn’t even look at me now while we stood outside Redwood Academy, leaning against João’s car and waiting for the other guys to finish business inside the school with Akio. Tonight, we had plans with Imani. João had told me to make sure she didn’t leave school grounds, but—I glanced down at my phone and grimaced—I had a meeting in a couple minutes.
“Why can’t I leave?” Imani asked, the wind blowing a thick strand of curls into her face. She angrily pushed it awa
