Aurora slumped at the table, grimly staring into her coffee. “Why is there blood all over our house?”

“Rafe was at the school last night when Alan brought me back.” Esti cautiously sat down across from her mom. “They got in a fight.”

“And Rafe won. Is that why he’s in bed with you?”

Esti winced. “He got hurt pretty bad. He lost a lot of blood, and the whole thing was my fault. When Rafe’s dad came over here with Dr. Tyler—”

“Here?” Aurora finally looked up. “Last night?”

Esti nodded.

“Great.” Aurora leaned her forehead against her hand. “That’s wonderful, Esti.”

“I’m sorry,” Esti muttered. “I know that’s my fault too. I threw away the wine bottles, and you were in your room by the time everyone got here. They didn’t see you.”

Aurora just groaned.

“You both sound pathetic.” Rafe came out of the bedroom, gingerly touching his mouth. “Damn, that hurts.” He looked almost worse than he had last night. Blood stained through the white bandage taped to his forehead. His eye was still swollen shut, his lower lip puffy beyond recognition.

Aurora stared at him in disbelief, then turned to Esti. “You let Alan beat up Rafe—”

“Wait a minute,” Rafe interrupted, putting his hands on Esti’s shoulders as he stood behind her. “Let’s see if I get this straight, babe. Last night you said it was all your fault the jumbee scared you and made you scream. Then you forced him to hit you. Your mom thinks you’re the reason I’m such a wimp he was able to beat the crap out of me. And I just heard you take credit for Aurora being a lush.”

“Rafe, you are a jerk.” Aurora closed her eyes. “Please tell me you didn’t say that Alan hit Esti last night.”

“It’s not what you think,” Esti began, but Rafe interrupted her.

“Hey, mon, I say it like it is.”

“I am so . . . upset about all this,” Aurora said. “Upset is the wrong word. It doesn’t begin to come close to how I’m feeling. Thank you, Rafe, for rescuing my daughter, and I’m truly sorry you got beat up.”

She opened one bloodshot eye to glare balefully at Esti. “I need more coffee and Rafe needs a shower. He looks even worse than I feel.” She propped her elbows on the table, covering her face with her hands.

“And then,” she muttered, “Esti has a lot of explaining to do.”

Aurora listened with very few interruptions, although she grew frighteningly pale at the descriptions of Manchineel Cay. When Esti began explaining the Shakespeare posters and the boarding school near London, however, Aurora slammed her hand down on the kitchen table.

“Your father never knew this guy. I would have known.”

“He said Dad was like a father to him. And Dad’s inscriptions were—”

“He lied,” Aurora ground out. “He forged the posters to make you believe him.”

Esti slowly shook her head. “What about the boarding school?”

“If your father had tutored a boy like Alan,” Aurora snapped, “he would have told me. He did not keep secrets from me.”

Esti couldn’t bring herself to mention that she had never kept secrets from Aurora either, not until she met Alan. She felt a surge of pity for her mom, followed by an even greater burst of pity for her dad. She knew the posters weren’t forged, even if her dad had regarded Alan merely as a prodigal student, rather than some kind of adopted son. Until yesterday, Esti had never dreamed that her dad might have had cracks behind the façade. You have the remarkable ability to give me strength when I doubt myself, he wrote to Alan. If Esti hadn’t experienced the same thing from Alan, she wouldn’t believe it either.

Despite her resolve to be neutral, she finally broke down when she tried to explain about removing Alan’s mask. Her throat grew so thick she couldn’t talk, and after the third try, she gave up and stared out at Manchineel Cay.

“Rafe,” Aurora asked in a steely voice, “did you see Alan?”

“Yeah, mon,” Rafe said. He hadn’t uttered a word all afternoon, merely holding an ice pack against his face as he sat on the couch and listened. “I saw a monster, anyway. I guess that was Alan.”

“Esti?” Aurora said.

Esti could only close her eyes and nod.

Her mom was quiet for a long time. When Esti finally looked back at her, Aurora picked up the stolen Shakespeare treatise with a fierce, questioning look. Staring at the blood-stains, Esti forced herself to tell the truth.

“We’re moving back to Oregon tomorrow,” her mom said when she finished. Aurora no longer looked angry, merely exhausted.

“But I want to finish the showcase,” Esti protested.

When her mom stared at her in disbelief, Esti felt a growing sense of determination. She wasn’t sure why, but it suddenly felt like the most important thing in her life.

“I need to do it, for Dad’s sake.” And for Alan’s sake.

“For your father’s sake,” Aurora ground out, “we are getting out of here the minute I can get you on an airplane.”

“Alan’s afraid of me now,” Esti said, unable to stop her fingers from reaching up to touch the necklace.

“He’s afraid of you?” Aurora let out a burst of incredulous laughter.

“He is,” Esti said calmly, not allowing the slightest hint of her desperation to show. “He didn’t want to take me to Manchineel Cay, but I talked him into it. I’m the one who let things get to this point, even though he warned me.”

“Warned you of what?”

Esti slowly tucked the necklace beneath her blouse. “He said all along that it was a mistake, but I didn’t listen. This whole mess is my fault.”

Aurora stared at her in disbelief. “He almost killed you.”

“No,” Esti said softly. “He never hurt me.”

“Look what he did to Rafe!”

Esti abruptly covered her face with trembling hands. She didn’t know what to say. After a moment, she heard Aurora’s chair screech on the floor tiles, followed by the slam of the cupboard and the familiar rasp of the balcony door as her mom stomped outside.

“What’s up, babe?” Rafe’s voice was flat. “You’re still not over the monster?”

Esti stood up, aware of the catapult trembling in anticipation. “I’m over him.” Walking to the couch, she gently settled herself on Rafe’s lap. She reached up to his swollen face, trying not to cry. “He almost killed you, and I can’t forgive him for that. Ma Harris always told me he was too dangerous, but I didn’t believe her.”

“You’re not serious about wanting to finish the showcase, then.”

“I am serious. If I leave him alone, he’ll leave me alone.” She leaned against Rafe, resting her aching forehead on his chest. “Manchicay School has a lot riding on this, and Frederick isn’t the only one who’ll hate me if I quit now.”

“For true.” Rafe’s arms tightened around her. “You wouldn’t believe the industry heavies Frederick convinced to come next weekend. Some of them are already here, and he’s set up a bunch of yacht tours and parties.”

“I know.” Esti felt Rafe’s hands moving, absently stroking her hair. “I can’t run away now.”

“What if Alan comes after you?”

“He won’t.”

“And if he quotes Shakespeare at you?”

“I’m done with him.” She placed her hand on top of Rafe’s. “I won’t let him hurt you again.”

At his skeptical expression, she twined her fingers through his, gently bringing his hand up to her lips. “I promise.”

Although he still looked unconvinced, he slowly nodded. “I guess that means you’re my bodyguard now. I’ve never gotten whipped that fast.”

Esti couldn’t even smile.

“My dad’s gonna throw a fit when he finds out Aurora wants to leave.” Rafe glanced out at the balcony. “He ain’t no cop, but he’s hugely respected on Cariba, and the jandam does whatever he wants. Everyone knows how important this is for the school.”

Esti nodded bleakly, watching Aurora through the screen door. Her mom didn’t even bother with a wineglass this time. Taking a swig straight from the bottle, she stared out at Manchineel Cay.

“That’s not your fault, you know,” Rafe said softly.

“Maybe.” Esti looked up at Rafe again, his beautiful face barely recognizable through the swollen mess. “All I do is cause trouble. It’s your mom who’s going to throw a fit when she sees what happened to you. Your parents must hate me.”

“They would figure something was wrong with me if I wasn’t getting in trouble. My mom says I got testosterone poisoning, and she gives you all the credit for keeping me out of jail this time. They love you, believe me.”

“I almost got you into jail.” Esti stretched up and touched her lips to his. “I’m still not sure why you put up with me.”

“Because you’re irresistible.” Smiling crookedly, he slipped his hand beneath her necklace to caress her shoulder blade. “Does this hurt?”

She stiffened. “Does what hurt?”

“You didn’t even notice. You got a couple blisters on your shoulder that had to come from Manchineel Cay.”

Esti relaxed. Rafe wasn’t talking about the necklace.

“Spots this big will leave permanent scars,” he said. “Manchineel sap does that. Keep ’em covered up as much as you can. You don’t want people to know you went to the haunted cay. Superstition runs deep on Cariba.”

“What would people do to me?”

“Nobody’s gonna do anything to you. It’s just that I’m not in the best shape after last night, and I’m tired of washing dishes.”

“Oh.” She winced. “I’m sorry.”

He gave her a lopsided smile. “You know, when I left Los Angeles, I thought I would get bored here.”

Aurora hadn’t moved from the balcony by the time Rafe drove away. Esti went into the bathroom, craning her neck to see in the mirror. She studied the two blisters on the back of her shoulder, each as large as a nickel. Damaged skin trailed beneath them, where the sap had dripped before coming to a stop. As awful as they looked, she was surprised they weren’t painful.

She sagged against the sink, then straightened and methodically washed her face. When she finally went back to the living room, Aurora still hadn’t moved. Taking a deep breath, Esti walked outside.

“Okay, Esti.” Aurora didn’t look at her. “I heard you and Rafe talking. I won’t let Alan destroy Manchicay School. If the police promise to protect you, we’ll stay until Frederick’s showcase is over. Next week, though, we’re out of here. I’ll call Ashland High and make arrangements for the rest of the semester.”

“That’s fine.” Esti stared out at Manchineel Cay.

“Esti, I want you to promise me you’re through with him.”

She leaned numbly against the doorway. “Yeah.”

“Swear you’ll never talk to him again. I want to hear the words.”

“I swear I’ll never talk to Alan again.” Esti tightened her jaw and looked back at her mom. “Now it’s your turn. I want you to stop drinking.”

“I’m not an alcoholic.” Aurora’s voice grew thin.

“I didn’t say you were.”

The balcony was silent for a minute, tempered by the chirps of distant frogs.

Finally Aurora sighed. “You’ll give up your addiction if I give up mine.” She picked up the bottle and held it over the rail, pouring the last of her wine into a bougainvillea bush. “If you stay away from Alan, I won’t drink another drop until you’re out of high school. Now I’m going to call Rodney. If he gets a couple of policemen down to the school, I’ll let you go to rehearsal tonight.”

For a moment, they stared at each other, then Esti leaned forward into her mom’s arms. She closed her eyes, trying to remember the time, not too long ago, when Aurora had been her friend. Although the hug was awkward, it was nice to feel her mom’s arms around her.

“We gotta talk,” Lucia said. She folded her arms across her chest and glared at Carmen. “’Tis not for melee, what I say to Esti now.”

Carmen’s eyes grew wide. She instantly nodded, for once not saying a word.

Lucia looked around to make sure no one else was listening, then leaned against the building. “Ma say something happen to the jumbee last night. Something bad.”

Although Esti met Lucia’s piercing gaze, she couldn’t make herself speak.

“You have scare him away.” Lucia’s eyes narrowed. “Ma she want you to bring him back. She say’tis a bad thing you do.”

“I can’t bring him back,” Esti whispered.

“Ma vex that you got more power than she.”

“I don’t have any power,” Esti said, shaken. “Your mom has known him a lot longer than I have. He’ll talk to her again, even if he never talks to me.”

“Ohmigod,” Carmen breathed. To Esti’s surprise, Carmen wasn’t looking at her, but across the grassy courtyard. “What happened to him?”

Rafe stood at the edge of the parking lot, watching them. His battered face looked serious as he approached with a hardcover book in his hand.

“I gotta talk to Esti alone,” he said.

Lucia studied his split lip and swollen eye, and the bandage on his forehead. After a moment, she turned and silently walked inside the theater. Carmen lingered for another moment, her expression desperate to know more, then reluctantly followed Lucia.

“What is it?” Esti asked in apprehension.

“Let me read you something about Elon Somand.”

Esti glanced at Manchineel Cay. “He isn’t Elon Somand,” she said stiffly.

Rafe opened his book. “My dad showed me this when I got home.”

He flipped through the pages until he came to a book-mark. “Elon Somand was a Danish slave owner, known from a very young age as the ‘monster of the islands.’ His reputation came from his notorious cruelty, as well as his revolting appearance. Historians now believe he suffered from a rare skin disorder.”

Esti grew numb.

“He massacred most of his slaves before vanishing from Cariba Island in 1848, on the day that Denmark abolished slavery in the West Indies. Although it’s believed that Somand met his fate at the hands of his few remaining slaves, his body was never found. He was in his mid-twenties.”

Rafe looked back up at her. For a moment they stared at each other in silence, then his eyes flicked down to her fingers, nervously twisting the necklace Alan had given her. Without thinking, she jerked her hand away.

Rafe’s eyes widened. “Did he give that to you?”

Esti swallowed. “It’s not what you think.”

“What is wrong with you? I thought you were done with him.”

“I am done with him.” She began to shake.

“Why are you wearing his damn necklace?”

“It’s my way of proving I don’t hate him.” She stared at Rafe with pleading eyes. “I can’t despise him for what he looks like.”

“You’re not over him,” Rafe said furiously. “He’s holding your soul with that thing.”

“Oh, yoo hoo, Esti.” Frederick peered out of the theater doors, his voice a bit testy. “We’re waiting for your fabulous Lady Capulet this evening.”

“I have to go.” She gave Rafe a helpless look. “I’m late.”

“Yeah, Alan taught you how to choose right, for true.” Slamming the book shut, Rafe reached out before Esti could move. With a twist of his fingers, he pulled the delicate chain from her neck.

“Rafe! Give it back.”

He shook his head. “Listen, babe,” he said grimly.

Alan’s despairing words stabbed into Esti’s heart. I will know you despise me.

“No,” she said.

“Esti, darling?” Frederick’s eyes had widened at the sight of Rafe’s face. “We can’t start the next scene without you.”

“Give me my necklace,” she demanded. “Right now.”

When Rafe silently held out the chain, Esti snatched it from his hand. He turned away without a word.

“Darling,” Frederick said to Esti as Rafe stomped away, “I won’t ask about your lovers’ spat, because I don’t want to know. I do not approve of my students being late, however. Not even my shining stars like you.”

“I’m sorry,” she muttered. “It won’t happen again.”

After her scene, Esti sat by herself several rows back to work on the delicate link that Rafe had broken. She could see Officer Wilmuth slowly pacing in the wings, his hands clasped behind him as he made his way back and forth behind the stage. She didn’t expect the relief that swept through her when she finally clasped the chain around her neck during Danielle’s bedroom scene. And she certainly didn’t expect the quiet voice that immediately tickled her ear.

“Danielle has gotten better in the past two weeks, hasn’t she?”

Esti closed her eyes in shock.

“It’s because of you,” Alan murmured. “Frederick makes her study your techniques whenever you’re onstage. The difference in her acting is already noticeable.”

She shouldn’t be listening to him. She should leap to her feet and run away as fast as she could. Alan could have killed Rafe last night. He had shown a horrifying ruthlessness that she still couldn’t believe.

But he had never once tried to hurt her, she thought miserably. How could he still sound so good?

“I’ve been watching Frederick McKenzie since he got here,” Alan said gently. “He searches for ways to improve your Juliet and your Lady Capulet, but he finds nothing to criticize. You can do nothing wrong.”

Esti shook her head as a tear slipped from beneath her eyelid. She’d done it all wrong from the beginning. Gentle Esti, the queen of betrayal.

“Don’t cry,” he said, his voice stroking her. “Oh please, don’t cry.”

“Esti, you okay?” Lucia called down from the stage.

Esti realized she had missed her cue. She couldn’t bear to go up onstage now, knowing Alan was watching her. Knowing she couldn’t talk to him.

Her tears started in earnest.

“I’ve hurt you again.” Alan sounded like a bewildered child. “What did I say?”

No. She shook her head again. I’m hurting you. That’s all I’ve done since we met. She couldn’t tell him that, of course. She had promised Aurora she would never talk to him again. She had betrayed her mom so deeply this year; she couldn’t do it anymore.

“Forgive me.” His voice became soft and pleading. “Whatever I said, I’m sorry.”

She put her hands over her face. There was no answer.

“Esti?” Lucia’s hand touched her shoulder. “I have watch you since you sit down. I think the jumbee he talk to you.”

Esti’s eyes flew open, and she swiped her fist across her nose. Officer Wilmuth was rapidly approaching with Frederick; the other cast members stared curiously from the stage.

“Listen to me,” she hissed to Lucia. Alan must still be listening. He would have to hear her.

“I can’t keep hurting him. I would tell him if I could, but I swore I’d never speak to him again. If I stay here, I’ll”—her voice broke—“I’ll be forsworn before the night is over. I’m quitting the play. I hope he can forgive me.”

“No,” Alan whispered.

“You’re joking, darling.” Frederick had drawn close enough to hear her last words. “I’ll never forgive you if you quit.”

She wiped her nose again, then rose to her feet. She couldn’t sit here and ignore Alan, when all she wanted to do was talk to him again. Despite her love for Rafe, despite Alan’s terrifying face and fury, and his endless disturbing secrets, she couldn’t make herself let go.

“I have to leave.”

“No!” Alan protested, more loudly.

Frederick hesitated at the sound, and Officer Wilmuth’s eyes widened.

“I’m sorry,” Esti gasped. Without waiting to hear any more, she turned and fled.

“Esti,” her mom began urgently, then trailed off in confusion. Esti had forced herself to calm down as soon as she got home, surrounding herself with classical music and sandalwood incense. She’d dialed the number for Rafe’s restaurant half a dozen times, hanging up each time before it rang.

Now she looked up from her cup of tea and smiled. “Hi,” she said.

“What in the world happened?” Aurora studied her. “I almost had a heart attack when Officer Wilmuth called us. Frederick told us you ran off in tears, swearing to quit. I just knew that Alan had come back for you. Thank God I was wrong.”

“No, you were right.”

Aurora sank down beside her on the couch, her eyes wide.

“I heard his voice,” Esti continued, “but I kept my promise. I didn’t say a word to him, and then I left.” She raised her eyebrows at Officer Moore. “I hope you don’t mind melodrama.”

He briefly gripped her shoulder. “I’m worried about you, is all.”

“What did Alan say?” Aurora demanded.

“Nothing much, really. A few things about Frederick’s teaching. I left before he was finished, and he didn’t follow me. I knew he wouldn’t.”

“This terrifies me, Esti.”

“It shouldn’t,” Esti said softly. “I quit the showcase.”

“You did what?” Aurora stared at her, stunned.

“I quit.” As Esti repeated the words, Officer Moore’s cell phone began to ring.

“It’s Rodney,” he said, glancing at the phone. “I think we all know why he’s calling.”

Taking a deep breath, Esti looked out the open window as he answered the phone. She couldn’t see Manchineel Cay in the darkness, but she definitely heard a wail in the trade winds. She imagined Rafe’s dad was probably on his way to her house again, accompanied this time by Frederick. She wondered when Rodney would finally throw his hands up in the air and decide that even The Great Legard’s daughter wasn’t worth this much trouble.

“Esti,” Aurora said, “look at me.”

Esti turned to her without protesting.

“Is Alan a jumbee, or is he some crazy stalker?”

“I don’t know.” Esti met her mom’s frightened gaze. “Honestly Aurora, I really don’t know. All I know is that he’s never tried to hurt me, and I’m not afraid of him.”

Aurora shook her head in disbelief. “Then why did you quit the play just now?”

“So I wouldn’t have to lie to you. I want to talk to him, just like you probably want a glass of wine right now, but I promised you I wouldn’t.”

Aurora sighed. “You sound twenty years older than you are. I feel so guilty for bringing you to Cariba.”

“It was my idea.” Esti leaned her head on her mom’s shoulder.

“Do you really want to quit?”

“No.”

She heard Frederick’s excited voice coming through the phone now. We’ll surround her by cops; make sure the jumbee doesn’t come near enough to talk to her; ensure he never touches her again. We have to convince her to stay. She wondered how many minutes until Rodney walked in the door.

With a sigh, she stroked the tangled chain in her pocket. No matter who Alan was or what she decided to do now, she would never again throw it away.