I slump in the back seat of the police cruiser, utterly defeated. I can't muster tears or Kitalia or even a scrap of Grace Grant. Not even the tiniest sniff of optimism or a shroud of darkness to hide beneath. I'm here, in the hands of the law, about to be grounded for life and kicked out of school for going about this all the wrong way. It has to be the wrong way or I'd be winning, wouldn't I? Maybe there's no way to win.

That thought only makes me feel worse. I feel like ...