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stop by this weekend. We could hang out or something,” he said, briefly touching my arm with the tips of his fingers. It was a completely innocent gesture that made my legs go all weak and wobbly. 
    “Sure,” I said, with as much nonchalance as I could muster. I thumbed over my shoulder. “I’m in that house over there. The one behind the fence. The gate’s always unlocked, so feel free to come over whenever. Or you can circle around back to the greenhouse. That’s where I work.”
    “Adrian! Get in here now !”

    Adrian rolled his eyes and made a face that only we could see before finally sprinting back to the house. His dad continued to stare at us even after Adrian had disappeared inside. I raised my hand and waved to him, but he didn’t wave back.

Chapter 3
    When we got back to the house, Meg was standing in front of the refrigerator with the door wide open, complaining loudly to David that his turn to clean out the leftovers had come and gone. Now there was a container of molded something-or-another and a terrible funk that would probably stink up the entire house for the next week.
    David was doing an excellent job of ignoring her.
    “So those people who just moved in,” I said, before Meg had a chance to really get going on her tirade.
    “Uh-huh,” she answered, giving me only half her attention as she pulled out expired yogurt containers and tossed them into the sink.
    “Honestly,” she said. “Why do I buy this stuff if no one eats it? I swear you two would eat cereal three times a day if I let you.”
    “I told you I don’t like the kind with chunks,” I said in my defense. “Anyway, listen to this. The new neighbors are Indian.”
    “Oh. That’s interesting,” she said, checking the expiration date on a bottle of ranch salad dressing. “Where in India are they from?”
    “They’re not from India,” I clarified. “They’re like us. Only, they came from some reservation up north.”
    I picked up one of the plastic containers Meg had just placed on the counter and peeked inside, only to regret it instantly. The stench practically knocked me over. I coughed, waving my hand in front of my nose, and set it down in a hurry.
    Meg stopped what she was doing and turned to me, her dark brows pulled together. “They’re American Indian, you mean?”
    I nodded. “Adrian, he’s the son, goes to our school. He’s in our grade. I guess it’s just him and his dad.”
    “Cranky old tool,” Priscilla muttered under her breath.
    Meg stood staring at me, almost as if she hadn’t heard a word I’d said. Then she blinked and said, “That’s great. That’s really great.” But I got the impression she didn’t think it was that great at all.
    She turned to David. “Can I speak to you?” And then she looked meaningfully at Priscilla and me. “ In private .”
    “Is it just me,” I said to Priscilla, once we were alone, “or was that really weird?”
    “Totally weird,” Priscilla agreed. “Come on. Let’s eavesdrop.”
    We trailed my aunt and uncle where they’d fled into the dining room. They were whispering at each other, their heads bent close together in confidence. All I managed to hear was David say, “I’ll check it out.” Then they saw us, and they immediately jumped apart and pretended like they hadn’t been swapping secrets at all. David stalked off toward the kitchen, his face stony and unreadable.
    “What’s up?” I said, inclining my head after David.
    Meg just shook her head and muttered something unintelligible. She pushed a bundle of cloth napkins into my hands and told me to finish setting the table, and then she marched off, presumably after David.
    “Whatever,” I said, handing two of the napkins to Priscilla.
    When we had finally managed to sit down, Meg began the conversation by asking what the new neighbors were like. I had to give her credit for trying to be casual about it, but I could tell she was a lot more curious than any normal person would be if