Malice

With a start, I look up into the ugly, angry face of Jon Erik. He’s seething, and I can practically see the wrath rolling off his big shoulders.

“There you are, whore,” he hisses.

I clench my hands into fists, my anger toward Dylan focusing in on this douche. Out here, there’s nobody to report me to Headmaster Aldridge if I hit this motherfucker. And I might have to, considering what happened the last time Jon Erik and Fi

And now that there’s no longer a Fi

Focusing on the embroidered winged knight crest on his blazer, I ask, “What now?” My tone isn’t the snarl I intended, but a soft whisper because I remember what it was like losing my best friend.

Except James wasn’t a rapey sociopath, the voice in the back of my head reminds me. James was good and kind and you killed him.

Like always, I ignore the voice, but my voice still cracks when I demand, “What do you want, Jon Erik?”

“You,” he states bluntly. “You’re a dead bitch walking.”

I wish I could say I’m taken aback by the seriousness in his tone, but sadly, I expected this. It doesn’t stop my stomach from roiling. “Look, I’m not doing this with you because I—”

“You killed Fi

For the first time since he approached me, I meet his gaze only to discover it’s not focused on me, but on something that has him looking up. I take a quick glance over my shoulder, and my breath catches when I spot a security camera mounted high on the wall.

I try not to imagine how this would have gone down if that wasn’t there, but I fail. Miserably. A shudder courses through me, but I square my shoulder and look at him again. “I did not kill Fi

“Lying bitch. Everyone knows it was you. Cops just can’t nail your ass. Yet.” When I start to argue my case, he shakes his big square head and grinds out, “Shut your redneck, piece of shit mouth. Just remember that Angelle’s not around to save you this time. By the time I’m through with…”

This is where I zone out because I can see there’s no getting through to him. No matter what I say, he won’t believe me. Hoisting my backpack higher onto my shoulders, I walk around him without another word. He yells after me to stop, but he doesn’t try to force me to do so because he’s afraid of evidence.

So, I just keep walking.