We Set the Dark on Fire (We Set the Dark on Fire, #1)(13)



But when had she ever been lucky?

Dani’s view of her future was not improved by the predawn light. Her personal belongings fit in a single small carton, which she carried down to the school’s driveway at sunup without ceremony. The pickups were staggered throughout the morning, to avoid crowding in the circular driveway, so when she arrived, she stood alone.

More than once, she patted the blue-white papers in the outer pocket of her leather satchel, just to make sure they were still there, though she’d checked and rechecked them a thousand times before stepping out into the hallway.

Sota had said there would be a checkpoint on the way into Medio’s government complex. She had no choice but to trust him, even though the thought of it made her chest feel tight.

Just then, of course, Carmen arrived. Three of her minions pushed a rolling cart of dresses behind her, and she waved a hand to direct them, never lifting a finger herself.

Typical, Dani thought, not bothering to conceal her eye roll. She was at the far end of the driveway, and she hoped Carmen would have the good sense to stand at the other. But of course, Carmen beckoned her retinue closer, parking herself and her rolling closet right behind Dani.

“Good morning, Primera,” she said without looking at Dani.

“Good morning, Carmen.”

“You’re not going to cry again, are you?” she asked, shattering any hope Dani had of civility. “I was out late, and my head is killing me.”

The postgraduation Segunda party was legendary, even among Primeras. Dani’s roommate, Jasmín, had been invited last year, and she had come back at sunrise actually giggling. Embarrassing, to say the least.

“Quiet today, huh?” Carmen asked, banishing her sycophants with a wave of her wrist. “Probably a better strategy than whatever you tried last night. It was hard to watch, I’ll be honest.”

“I see you’re sticking with what works,” Dani said without looking up.

“What’s that?”

“Putting me down so you don’t feel as insecure.”

“Ha! Me? Insecure?” she asked. “I’m sorry, have you seen me?” But Dani saw her shoulders stiffen under the crisscrossing straps of orange silk.

“You know, I’ve heard you can be beautiful and still be a cruel, small-minded person with few qualities that endear you to others. But that may have just been a rumor.”

Carmen’s eyes narrowed in anger, but a nearly silent black limousine crept up the drive just in time, preventing Dani from having to hear whatever came next. She picked up her carton and approached the door, leaving Carmen to wrestle with her wardrobe alone in her impractical outfit.

It was a small victory, getting the last word, but when it came to Carmen, Dani would take what she could get.

“Good morning, ladies,” said Se?ora Garcia, stepping out of the car in a boxy black traveling dress. She had been the one to conduct Dani’s placement interview, and her greeting was as warm as could be expected from one of the most powerful Primeras in the country.

Mama Garcia wasn’t far behind, and Dani could immediately see why the Segunda had been taken with Carmen. They were practically copies of one another. Both dressed in head-to-toe silk, with long, cascading curls and expressions that said the world owed them a perpetual favor. They air-kissed on both cheeks, their smiles wide, as though they were close already.

Another one to watch out for, then, thought Dani as the driver loaded her meager belongings into the car and relieved Carmen of her cumbersome luggage. The four women settled into the back of the car, and Dani tried not to gawk. After five years at school, she was used to a certain level of luxury, but this car was the size of Dani’s parents’ living room.

“Mateo wishes he could have greeted you himself, of course,” said the se?ora in a brisk, businesslike tone.

The car began to maneuver down the steep driveway, and Carmen looked back as the Medio School for Girls disappeared into the trees behind them.

Dani did not.

“He has urgent business with his father and the president, but will be back this evening,” explained Mama Garcia. “Until then, Se?ora Garcia and I will be introducing you to the house and grounds, and to your new lives as Garcia women.”

Carmen nodded, and Dani followed suit.

“Now,” said Se?ora Garcia. “I know you feel prepared, after your schooling, with your marriage contracts newly signed. But I assure you the real work has yet to begin.” She dug down in her bag, retrieving folders. “Before Mateo returns, you’ll need to have the house in order. He travels often for business, as most government officials do, and it will be your responsibility to present him with a well-maintained residence each time he returns. Tomorrow morning will be your first test, and we’d like you to be ready. Please turn to page seventeen of your household manuals.”

She handed a folder to Dani, and one to Carmen. It was completely filled with what Dani assumed was Se?ora Garcia’s tidy print.

“I’ll give you a few moments to look it over,” she said, folding her hands in her lap.

As they read section three in silence—about the supervision of housekeepers, and Mateo’s preferences for everything from food to lighting to temperature—the tree-lined drive opened up into residential streets.

It was mostly widowed wives down here, the ones too old to be placed again when their husbands died. Some of them chose to remain together in old age, Primera and Segunda, already so used to living together that they decided not to part.

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