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Later that evening, as Maxine and Minnie howled with laughter in Maxine’s room and seemed about as likely to study for math as Rose now was, seated on the sofa with a book, the doorbell rang. Rose answered it, then started, finding Hannah Moore standing on the porch, smiling nervously at her. Rose had forgotten she’d invited Minnie’s mother over.

“Hi there,” Rose said. “You must be Hannah?”

“I hope it’s okay I came over like this?”

“Of course! Of course.” Rose beckoned for Hannah to enter.

Hannah pulled a bottle of wine from her bag. “I brought…”

“Oh! You’re too kind,” Rose said, realizing that Hannah wanted a hang-out session with another woman nearly as much as Rose did. She hurried to the kitchen to fetch glasses and a few freshly baked brownies, then returned and ordered Hannah to sit down.

On cue, Minnie and Maxine burst into another round of giggles upstairs.

“They can’t stop laughing,” Rose said as she poured the wine.

“I forgot what it’s like to find everything funny,” Hannah admitted. “But it’s been good for Minnie, you know? She’s had a hard year. And I was worried because she immediately fell in love with that boy, Viggo. Maybe you know him?”

Rose nodded. She’d seen him around.

“But I think it’s important for young women to have female friendships,” Hannah continued. “So when she said she met Maxine at school this year, I was overjoyed.”

Rose smiled. Although she’d heard sinister things about Hannah and knew she was involved with the Legacy Club in some way, she was surprised to find that she rather liked her. There was something genuine about the way she spoke.

“Maxine’s had a hard time with friendships as of late,” Rose explained. “The girls seem to keep moving away.”

“Well, we’re not going anywhere,” Hannah said. “For better or for worse.”

Surprised at how open she was, especially about an island filled with secrets, Rose tilted her head, and Hannah lowered her gaze.

“I’m sorry. I don’t mean that. I’m very grateful to Nantucket for welcoming us,” Hannah said.

Rose was quiet. She filled her mouth with velvety wine.

“Can I say,” Rose said finally, “that if you ever feel unsafe, if you ever feel you need to talk to anyone…”

Hannah’s cheeks were red. “Oh.”

“It’s just that I know what they can be like,” Rose said. “I know better than most.”

Rose wondered if it was clear she meant the Legacy Club. Maybe Hannah thought she was talking about something else, like their daughters’ teachers or the teenage boys at school.

But the glint in Hannah’s eye told Rose she knew exactly what she meant. Rose’s heart pumped.

“I don’t think I knew what I was getting into, to tell you the truth,” Hannah said. “It was a bit of arrogance. They’ve certainly put me in my place.”

“For better or for worse,” Rose echoed.

Hannah bit her lower lip. “I’m sorry. I wish I could talk more candidly about this.”

“But you don’t know who you can trust on the island,” Rose said. “I get it.”

Again, Rose thought about Harry Orlett, about how unsure she’d been if he was one of the Legacy Club. She burned to ask Hannah, now. Maybe Hannah was in on the goings-on. Maybe she could tell Rose that sending Harry had been little more than a test, concocted by Eleanor Pike to see if Rose was really as loyal as she claimed.

Before Rose could, though, they heard the girls on the stairs.

“No, but that’s what he said. He said he liked the shoes,” Maxine told Minnie. “But it was weird how he said it. Like maybe he was making fun of her?”

“I get what you mean.” Minnie nodded. “He has this way of moving his face around when he’s being sarcastic. Like this.”