Chapter 4

Early on the first day of senior year, Bret wakes, slips into routine, and drives to Buckley. A discreet police car unsettles him. He trades guarded words with Ryan about leaving Debbie’s party and plans to connect later. In the office, as schedules are sorted, Debbie mentions the Griffin statue was “desecrated,” intensifying Bret’s dread.

Compelled, Bret bypasses a barricade to the library courtyard and finds the Griffin smeared with blood, decorated with decapitated, gutted koi arranged as obscene features. Realizing he likely saw the perpetrator’s flashlight the previous night, Bret decides not to inform police, fearing entanglement and exposure.

Numb through morning classes, Bret attends assembly where school leaders speak and the football team, led by Thom and co-captain Ryan, is introduced. At lunch at the seniors’ tables, rumors swirl about the statue’s vandalism. Bret withholds details, wary of disbelief and his reputation for embellishment.

Robert Mallory arrives—handsome, polite, and immediately compelling. He claims a late LAX arrival, an orientation with Walters and Croft, and a move from Chicago after family turmoil, including his mother’s accidental death. Bret senses the story is practiced and notes Robert’s careful manner, while Thom welcomes him and Susan grows quiet and guarded. Debbie assesses his social usefulness.

As lunch ends, Bret realizes Robert is the boy he once noticed at a screening of The Shining. When Bret asks, Robert flatly denies being there, wearing a blank, worried look. Bret concludes Robert is lying, and that Robert’s beauty and secrecy will dangerously alter their circle.