It was the secret she'd been working up the courage to tell her friends all summer. Edison had a glimpse of the truth, not that he knew it. Sloane and Sisse knew nothing. Not even Lester or Calla had an idea of what she had planned. Had she not been so surly and caught within the web of her pity party she wouldn't have began the sharing with Cameron, but at least now someone other than Mr. Chatham knew.

Facing him dead on with a stoney expression, Alice informed him of the news. "My parents needed me to receive the scholarship if I was to continue on at school. The academic one is good, but it doesn't cover enough. And after this year Niamh will be off to school, too. It'll just be too much for them." She fidgeted with her hands, her gaze dropping to the floor between them. "I'll be leaving school after OWLs this year."