Chapter One

In China a red envelope meant the owner had good luck and protection from evil. At Brighton Junior Academy a red envelope meant the owner had half a brain and way too many pairs of shoes.

I never expected to be in that group, but somehow, on the first day of seventh grade, one of those envelopes found its way to my locker.

Across the front of the envelope my name, Delilah James, flowed in fancy gold script, complete with a sparkling rhinestone dotting the i. As a writer for the school paper, I’d seen my name dozens of times in the byline, but never printed with quite as much...