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Pemberly.”
    “I know,” I said, my heart and chest full.
    “I didn’t get to finish my senior year when I should have, all because I made some seriously stupid choices,” she said.
    I breathed in and out slowly, trying not to imagine Thomas tied up in the woods somewhere. Trying not to think about Ariana’s ice blue eyes as she threatened to throw me off the Billings roof. That was all over. This—this book I was holding—this was my future.
    “So I need to make another choice now,” Noelle said, pushing herself away from the wall. “And my choice is to keep my head down and my nose clean, and graduate. End of story.”
    I swallowed hard, my eyes stinging with tears. A few days ago, while we were still in St. Barths, we’d decided to room together in Billings. I’d had all these fantasies of staying up late and chatting all night long, being together like real sisters. Now, not only could that dream never come true, but she was completely blowing me off.
    “Noelle, come on,” I said, hugging the book to my chest. “I can’t do this without you. Billings isn’t Billings without you.”
    She glanced ruefully at the book. “Apparently, someone out there thinks it is.”
    All at once, the anger bubbled up again. Was she really going to be that petty? Noelle Lange, ultimate Billings Girl, was going to let all her sisters down just because some ancient alumna had chosen me over her?
    “Who cares? This isn’t about them, it’s about us.”
    “Reed, enough already, you’re giving me a headache,” Noelle said, squeezing her eyes shut.
    I snorted a laugh. “Fine. Forget it. I’ll just do it alone.”
    “Good luck,” she said sarcastically.
    “Thanks a lot,” I shot back.
    On my way out, I made sure to slam the door hard enough to send those hastily folded jeans sprawling back onto her head.

PARTNER
    I was up all night reading through The Book, as I had come to call it in my mind. Capital T, capital B. By Tuesday morning I was exhausted and hooked. I sat on my unmade bed, rereading Elizabeth’s diary-style entries about the vetting and initiation of the first members of the society. This was where she started to mention Catherine White all over the place.
    Catherine and I spent the afternoon evaluating the new class of girls for membership in the society. … Catherine and I wrote to the proprietor of the general store in town and have secured the necessary supplies for our initiation tomorrow night. … We are both filled with trepidation at the thought of the path we have chosen, but we are confident as well, knowing that wherever it may lead, we will travel it together.
    Clearly, Elizabeth had a partner. A friend. Someone helping her with every aspect of getting the BLS started.
    I sat up straight. Just like Elizabeth had her Catherine, I needed someone to travel the path with. Someone who would find this whole thing as intriguing as I did. Noelle wouldn’t help me, but she wasn’t my only friend.
    I considered the other senior Billings Girls. Rose had always been obsessed with the rituals of Billings, but she could be meek and wishy-washy. Tiffany was loyal, but she’d made a deal with her dad to work in his studio in New York on the weekends, so she wasn’t going to be around much, and when she was she’d be busy catching up on work. London wouldn’t do it without Vienna and vice versa. So that left Portia and Shelby. Not exactly trailblazing types.
    Lorna and Missy were out because they were practically my sworn enemies. Astrid and Kiki were both cool, but independent and busy—not exactly sidekick types. Which left Constance.
    Constance was a good friend. There was no denying it. Loyal, steadfast, and true? You bet. But when it came to taking chances, to being brave, to breaking rules, she was not in the top five—not even the top ten—Billings Girls. Plus she was a babbler, no doubt about it. And she was dating Walt Whittaker, whose grandmother was on the board of directors. If she told