13
Friday morning, Miranda woke up so early that QM and KD were still asleep. Quietly, she got dressed, ate breakfast, and went out to Blake, who was waiting to take her to school in the fancy royal automobile.
“You’re early,” Blake said. He didn’t look up from his newspaper.
“Maude’s house first,” she whispered, climbing into the back of the car. “Then school.”
If Blake wondered why Miranda was whispering, he didn’t let on. He nodded, put down the newspaper, started the royal automobile, and drove to Maude’s.
When Blake parked, Miranda took a shiny gold envelope out of her bag, opened the Kayes’ mailbox, and put the envelope inside. Then she hopped back into the car and told Blake she was ready to go to school.
When Miranda arrived at 3B, Miss Kinde wasn’t in the room, but Miranda knew Miss Kinde was at school, because a practice exam was already on her desk. Very quickly, Miranda took a second gold envelope out of her bag and placed it on her teacher’s desk.
When Miss Kinde came into the room thirty seconds later, Miranda was sitting at her desk working on her exam.