I closed the door to Vivienne’s study behind , my brain already overheating from trying to track which sister wanted what and who I’d accidentally promised things to. The hallway stretched ahead, the sa disapproving ancestors staring down at like a council of judges who’d already decided my guilt.
Troubleso.
My phone buzzed. Harlow’s na lit up the screen with approximately thirty-seven emojis and a ssage that read: ASSISTANT-KUN WHERE ARE U!!! IRIS AND I NEED U FOR VERY IMPORTANT COSPLAY BUSINESS!!!
Below that, another ssage: also i made cookies and if u don’t co eat them cassidy will eat them all and then complain about her stomach hurting
Yeah. That tracked.
I texted back a simple on my way and started walking toward Harlow’s room. My feet knew the path now, which bothered less than it should have. Three weeks and I could navigate this ridiculous mansion without getting lost. Muscle mory or surrender to the chaos, I couldn’t tell.
The door to Harlow’s room stood open about six inches. Pink light leaked into the hallway along with the sound of giggling and what might have been ani music. I pushed it wider.
Harlow and Iris sat on the floor surrounded by fabric swatches, costu pieces, and a laptop displaying what looked like reference images. Both heads swiveled toward the second I stepped inside.
"ISAIAH!" Iris jumped up with a guilty expression that made my brother senses kick into overdrive. "You’re here! Perfect timing!"
"Suspicious," I said flatly. "What are you planning?"
"Nothing!" Iris smiled too wide, too bright. "I just, uh... I need to use the bathroom."
I stared at her. She stared back.
"Now?" I asked.
"Yes! Very urgently!" She edged toward the door. "And then maybe I’ll grab so snacks from the kitchen! That Mrs. Tanaka said I could raid the pantry! And then maybe a walk! To digest! I’ll be safe!"
Every alarm bell in my head started ringing at once. My fourteen-year-old sister, who normally clung to like a barnacle in unfamiliar places, was suddenly eager to disappear.
"Iris," I said slowly. "What are you doing?"
"Nothing!" She backed toward the door, grinning. "Just being independent! Growing up! You always say I should be more independent!"
"I never said that."
"Well you should have!" She bolted into the hallway. "Harlow will take good care of you! Bye!"
I turned to chase her, but sothing made glance back at Harlow first. Just for a second, just from my peripheral vision, I caught Iris throwing a thumbs up at Harlow before disappearing around the corner.
Oh.
Oh no.
My little sister had just sold out.
I closed the door slowly and faced Harlow, who sat on her carpet looking up at with her purple eyes wide and innocent. Too innocent. She wore a pink hoodie and tiny shorts, her hair in twin tails, and her expression radiated wholeso friendliness.
Lies. All lies.
"So," I said. "What did you bribe her with?"
"I have no idea what you’re talking about!" Harlow bounced to her feet. "Iris just wanted so alone ti! She’s a teenage girl! They need space!"
"She’s in a mansion she’s never been to before with staff she doesn’t know and swans that attack."
"The swans only attack if you look them in the eyes." Harlow grabbed my wrist and tugged toward her bed. "Co on! I really do need your help with sothing!"
I let her pull because fighting would take more energy than I had. The bed was piled with fabric, sketches, and what looked like costu pieces in various stages of completion.
"The horror maid cafe," Harlow explained, her voice speeding up the way it did when she got excited. "I’ve been working on prototype costus all week! But I need a second opinion! Soone with taste!"
"I don’t have taste. I have survival instincts."
"Sa thing!" She rifled through the pile of fabric. "Okay so the the is Halloween sexy but still appropriate for school, which is SO HARD because Mr. Patterson already sent an email saying nothing revealing, but like, what does revealing even an? That’s so subjective!"
I sat on the edge of her bed, watching her gesture wildly. The hoodie slipped down one shoulder. She didn’t fix it.
"So I made three options!" She held up a finger. "Option one is classic vampire maid! Black and red with little bat wings on the headband!"
"Sounds fine."
"Option two is zombie maid! Which is harder because how do you make zombie makeup cute? But I figured it out! Pale foundation, dark circles, but with glitter!"
"Also sounds fine."
"And option three..." She paused dramatically. "Is succubus maid. Purple and black with tiny horns and a heart-shaped tail."
"That one sounds like a dress code violation."
"That’s what Vivienne said!" Harlow huffed. "But I made it tasteful! Mostly!"
She pulled three garnt bags from her closet and laid them on the bed. "I need you to tell which one looks best. For the cafe. Not just theoretically, but like, actually worn."
My survival instincts started screaming again. "You want to judge costus."
"I want you to judge costus on a live model!" She bead. "So you can see how they move and how the fabric sits and everything!"
"Can’t you just take photos?"
"Photos don’t capture the full experience! Fashion is about movent and presence!" She was already unzipping the first garnt bag. "Please? I’ll give you one of Iris’s tickets! She said I could borrow one!"
"My sister is corrupt."
"She’s smart! She knows I’ll owe her forever!" Harlow pulled out the vampire maid costu. Black fabric with red accents, lace trim, and a white apron. "This one is the safest option! Very covered! Patterson can’t complain!"
I nodded. "Looks good."
"You didn’t even look at it properly!" She clutched the costu to her chest. "I’m gonna change! Don’t peek!"
Before I could argue, she darted behind a silk divider screen in the corner of her room.
I stared at the screen. At the ceiling. At my phone. Anywhere except at the shadow moving behind the silk.
This was a trap. Obviously a trap. Iris had conspired against with Harlow to create a situation that violated every professional boundary I’d spent this morning trying to reinforce.
"Okay!" Harlow’s voice ca from behind the screen. "Close your eyes!"
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