Wicked Truth

by Mae Doyle

  Jackie glanced behind him down the hall and shook his head. “You’re wasting time, Rosita. Get gone. Hide. I don’t care where you go, but you need to go now before someone comes and finds you here.”

  The fear in his voice was obvious, but I stood my ground. “Why won’t you answer my question?”

  Brett’s face darkened and he signed, turning away from me and running his hand through his hair. When looked back at me there was something in his yes that I hadn’t seen before. Longing? Caring?

  I didn’t know.

  “Of course we care about you, Rose.” His voice was so quiet that I had to lean forward to hear what he was saying, and as soon as I heard the words, I began to tremble.

  “Then why? Why are you treating me like this?” Nobody likes a whiner, but I couldn’t help myself, and the words were out of my mouth before I could stop them. “Why do you want me to leave so badly?”

  “We don’t have a choice.” Kaleb’s voice pulled my attention from Brett.

  “But we can’t talk bout that now.” Jackie reached out his arm like he was going to touch my shoulder, but instead he dropped his hand to his side. “But you need to go, Rose. Do you think that we’d be warning you if we didn’t care about you?”

  He was right, and one look at their faces told me that they all meant it. I had to go, even though I wanted nothing more than to stay and try to hash out exactly what it meant if they said that they cared about me.

  And I needed to figure out what I felt for them.

  Instead of trying to push them for more information, though, I turned and started to jog down the hall. I no longer walked with a limp, but that didn’t mean that I could run as quickly as in the past. As far as I knew, they didn’t move. They just stood there behind me, watching me go.

  I hoped that if the harpies came while I was still making my escape that they would keep them from coming after me, but I didn’t know if they would. Not when Kaleb had said that they didn’t have a choice for what they were doing to me.

  The back staircase was empty and I ran down it quickly, my hand sliding down the metal rail as I took step after step. By the time I reached the bottom of the stairs, I was breathing hard, and I rested for a moment with my back against the wall.

  After a moment I took a deep breath and opened the back door to the dorm. I peeked through, only opening the door enough for me to make sure that there wasn’t anyone out there. When I was sure that nobody was going to see me, I slipped through, holding the door so that it wouldn’t slam behind me.

  It wouldn’t do any good to make noise and draw attention to myself now.

  Not when I was almost to the woods.

  The rogues told me to get out and hide, and I wasn’t going to tell them where I was going. There was only one place on the Taylor Prep campus where I knew that I could hide and nobody would be able to find me.

  As long as the rogues didn’t come looking for me for any reason then I’d be safe there.

  In their bunker.

  Chapter 14

  It took me way too long to find the bunker. I kicked around the leaves in the back woods looking for it, feeling more and more anxious.

  What if I couldn’t find it?

  What if I was in the wrong area of the woods?

  I’d leapt over the part of the creek where Brett had taken me before, which meant that my feet weren’t wet, but I had slipped in the mud. Wiping my hands on my leggings, I turned around in the woods.

  “Okay, Rose, think.” Closing my eyes, I took a deep breath to try to focus. The problem was that all of the leaves, trees, and branches looked the same out here. I could be walking in circles for all that I knew and I wouldn’t realize it until it was too late.

  When I opened my eyes again, though, I immediately looked at a place in the leaves that looked a little scuffed up. My heart leaped in my chest and I rushed over, kneeling on the ground.

  “Please, please, please,” I chanted as I swept the leaves away with my hands. It took a minute, but suddenly I felt the cold metal of a handle. Relief flooded through me and I worked faster, brushing away more leaves.

  I knew that I wasn’t going to be able to cover the hatch back up once I went through it, but that wasn’t something I could worry about. I had to get somewhere where the harpies wouldn’t find me, and all I could hope was that the rogues hadn’t brought any of them there before.

  I grunted, yanking hard on the handle, my feet in a wide stance while my shoulders burned. After a moment, there was a dull shriek and the lid lifted just enough for me to smile.

  I was going to make it.

  Another yank and the lid opened more. This time, once I had it open, I didn’t hesitate to climb down as quickly as possible. I knew that safety waited for me inside, and while I’d been afraid to get into the bunker before, it was the only place I wanted to be now.

  I climbed halfway down the ladder as quickly as possible then reached back up and pulled the hatch door shut. It made me nervous that I couldn’t cover it up with leaves, but this would just have to do.

  It had to be enough.

  Once I got the lights turned on, I settled down on the sofa, pulling the blanket up over me. I had no idea how long I should stay in the bunker or when it would be safe for me to come out. At the very least, I figured that the harpies would spend the afternoon looking for me, and then when they didn’t find me, maybe they’d give up.

  But did that mean that I needed to spend the entire night down here? The thought turned my stomach. It was bad enough to know that I was currently in a hole in the ground, but even worse to think that nobody at Taylor Prep knew where I was.

  The rogues probably could have guessed where I was if they were thinking about it, but the looks they gave me earlier told me that they had more on their minds.

  And what was that crap about them caring for me?

  “Jerks.” I punched the pillow that was on the sofa next to me then remembered that the last time I was down here there had been snacks. Curious and hungry, I got up, determined to poke around a little until I found something to eat.

  If nothing else, maybe spending time in the rogues’ lair would give me a little more insight into who they were. If nothing else, I reasoned, I would come out of there a little more prepared to deal with the evil that waited for me at Taylor Prep.

  ◆◆◆

  The first thing I did after I inhaled three bags of chips and a candy bar was check out the books in the bunker. When I was there the last semester, they had been stacked on the floor by the sofa, but someone had moved them and put them up on a bookcase in the back of the room.

  Most of them looked pretty normal, like ones that you’d find on any teenage boy’s bookshelf, but I was surprised when I trailed my fingers across Taylor Prep yearbooks. I didn’t think that the rogues were particularly hung up on the past or wree emotional guys, so I yanked them out and tossed them onto the sofa.

  I also found a map of the area, which I pulled to look at, and a folder with newspaper clippings about the start of the school. Even though I’d done my research on Taylor Prep when I was first accepted, I hadn’t been able to find out a lot of information about its creation, so I was excited to read those.

  Well, excited probably wasn’t the right word, but I was looking forward to seeing what else I could find out, at any rate. I figured that, at the very least, I would spend a cozy day learning about the school, the rogues, and eat all of their snacks before I went back to my dorm.

  Hopefully by then, everything would have blown over and I could work hard to avoid the harpies for the rest of the weekend.

  I snagged another candy bar and settled down on the sofa, adjusting the pillows and pulling the blanket up over my lap before I picked up the map. It opened easily and I spread it out on the blanket to check out my surroundings. Just pulling up to Taylor Prep the first time made it obvious how massive the school was, but I had no idea that it was on so much land.

  Slowly, I traced my finger around the p
roperty line. It was hard to imagine that they had fenced the entire thing in, but knowing Mr. Taylor, he wasn’t going to let anything to chance. His family had had enough money to build this monstrosity of a school, so it was silly to think that they wouldn’t be able to find the money needed to fence it all in when it was said and done.

  Besides the main buildings, there wasn’t anything marked on the map, including the bunker, so I folded it up and tossed it onto the table. I kept meaning to ask the rogues how they found the bunker and where it came from, but it wasn’t like I had a lot of intimate conversations with them.

  Popping another bite of chocolate into my mouth, I pulled the file folder to me. It was stuffed with clippings, some of them yellowed and brittle, and I took my time flipping through them to make sure that I didn’t accidentally damage any of them.

  Not only did this contain information about the land purchase for the property, but also dates and invitations to the rich and famous to come and check out the school. There were tons of articles with photographs of galas and other events, probably to try to entice wealthy benefactors to send their spawn here to learn.

  I was skimming the articles by the end of the folder, but one word caught my eye. Council. Swearing, I read the clipping, whispering the words out loud to myself.

  “The council at Taylor Prep is designed to be an anonymous group that oversees the welfare of the students. When there is a problem with a student or a group, the council has the power necessary to intervene and handle any issues that may arise. These could possibly include students cheating, breaking the rules of Taylor Prep, or students who are not fit to learn at the institution.” I paused, dropping the clipping back down into my lap.

  This was literally the first time I’d seen anything concrete about the council existing, and I read it again, slower this time. Excited, I flipped through the rest of the folder, but it was the only mention of this super secret police group.

  Okay. I blew out a breath of air and stood up from the sofa to stretch. I learned that there was indeed a council and that it wasn’t just something that the rogues thought they could try to scare me with. It was a group of people designed to keep kids in line at Taylor Prep, but it seemed like they could pick and choose how they did that, since it wasn’t directly outlined.

  The chances of anything about the council being mentioned in the yearbooks was slim to none, and I knew that, but I carefully put the folder of clippings on top of the map before settling back down on the sofa.

  Harper’s mom had had more recent yearbooks, but these were from the first few years that Taylor Prep was established. If the dates on the front of the books hadn’t given it away, the ridiculous hairstyles and outfits would have, although, on second look, the uniforms wasn’t that different than what we were forced to wear now.

  I scoffed as I flipped past the president’s page, but I paused at a picture of three handsome boys. They had their arms thrown around each other’s shoulders and were grinning up into the camera. I scanned the page under the photo – their names didn’t matter to me, but the blurb made me shiver.

  Torrance, Zachary, and Bryson show what fun they have at Taylor Prep. These rogues are always seen together and have stolen the hearts of all of the girls.

  From this, it looked like the rogues were something that had been around for as long as Taylor Prep had, but I wasn’t sure what that meant. Did it mean that the rogues had a certain job that they had to do?

  Or was it just that they loved to hang out and spend time together?

  I sighed, shutting the yearbook and leaning back on the sofa. Chances were good that there would be more information in there that I would want to know, but I was exhausted. Just a few hours ago I had been sound asleep in my bed, looking forward to spending a lazy day in my room, and now I was a few feet below the ground hiding from a team of super bitches.

  It didn’t seem surreal.

  I glanced at my wrist before I remembered that I hadn’t had time to put on my watch this morning. There wasn’t a clock in the bunker, so I had no idea of knowing what time it was. Although I knew that I should be more worried than I was, there wasn’t anything for me to do right then, so I dropped the yearbooks onto the floor and pulled the blanket up over my shoulders.

  Either the rogues would figure out where I was and would come for me or I would get tired of being locked in the bunker and head back to campus. Either way, I had a long time to wait, so I might as well get comfy.

  I was asleep in just a few minutes.

  Chapter 15

  When I woke up, I sat up in a panic, my heart pounding wildly in my chest. “Where am I?” The words were out of my mouth before I could stop them, but then I slowly started to relax.

  The rogues. The bunker. The yearbooks.

  I glanced down at the table and saw everything I’d taken from the bookshelf. Okay, it was all real, but I wished more than anything that I knew what time it was and that I knew what to do with the information I’d read. My mouth was impossibly dry and I stood up, stretching, and throwing the blanket back onto the sofa.

  No matter what time it was, I needed to be getting back to my room. I had to pee and I needed something to drink, and staying down here much longer was probably going to result in me going insane. Slowly I climbed the ladder, then pushed the hatch open just enough for me to peek out.

  The early afternoon light told me that I’d been asleep for a few hours but that there was still plenty of time left in Saturday. I lifted the hatch a bit more and took in a deep breath of fresh air. No matter how nice the bunker was, it was easy for the air to grow stale down there, and it felt really good to be out in the fresh air again.

  The door squeaked and complained loudly as I pushed it open enough for me to climb out. After I shut it, I took special care to make sure to kick leaves over it so that nobody would be able to find it. I just didn’t want to do a good enough job that I wasn’t able to find it again in the future if I needed it, although I hoped that it wasn’t going to be a regular occurrence.

  Through the woods and across the creek I crept, taking my time and listening to make sure that there weren’t any harpies trying to sneak up on me. By the time I made it back to the quad, my ears were ringing from the silence in the forest and my entire body felt like I needed to run as fast as I could up to my room.

  But I couldn’t. Not yet. I was close, but I wasn’t close enough to make a run for it and to still be safe.

  Trying to look calm, I started to walk across the quad. It was a gorgeous day out, enough though it was a bit chilly, and there were clumps of students scattered all across the quad. I figured that as long as I avoided the sidewalks and stuck to the grass I would be able to skirt most of them.

  I made it halfway across the quad when I heard someone call out.

  “Rose is a gutter rat!” The voice rang clear through the air and I recognized it immediately even though I didn’t turn around to see who it was. Harper was still trying to warm me that something was up. I froze, physically unable to take another step.

  “Run back to your room, you little gutter rat!” That was Maggie, and then whoever they were talking to dissolved into a fit of laughter. Straightening my shoulders, I walked on, trying my best to ignore them so that I could get to my room.

  So I could hide.

  On my way into the building I passed Amelia and the harpies, but they barely looked at me. Relief flooded through my body as I hoped that maybe they were over whatever plan they had wanted to carry out earlier.

  Or maybe the rogues were just messing with me.

  I paused halfway up the stairs to consider this. I didn’t think that the rogues would tell me a lie just to make me leave the building for the day, but nothing that I saw in the bunker today made me feel positive that I could trust anyone on campus.

  Thinking hard, I finished the trip upstairs, pausing once I got into the hall to catch my breath. Everything about Taylor Prep screamed opulence, but I’d honestly rather be anywhere els
e on the planet. Even though I was surrounded by some of the nicest furniture and the best food I’d ever eaten, I couldn’t help but feel like I was trapped.

  And then the harpies drove me from my room. Not like it was much of a room anyway, with only a sheet hanging in the door to separate me from everyone else, but at least it was my space, and to be forced to go into the bunker to get away from them was the last straw.

  I had told the rogues last semester that I was going to come for the council, and I meant it, but then I got scared. Scared that I wouldn’t really be able to take them on, or that I was fighting a losing battle.

  Slowly I started down the hall, keeping an eye out for anyone who may try to stop me. I couldn’t keep living like this. No matter what happened, I had to figure out who the council was and stop them. That meant that I needed to get closer to the rogues. The thought gave me chills and warmed me at the same time.

  I struggled to even be in the same room as them without wanting to touch them, to feel their bodies against mine…it was ridiculous to think that I could handle working with them. Or worse, against them.

  Would I be able to turn in Brett, Kaleb, or Jackie if it came down to it?

  That wasn’t something that I wanted to think about right now, and I shook my head to clear it.

  Finally, I reached my room and I carefully lifted the sheet to peek inside and make sure that nobody was waiting for me. I’d just seen the harpies downstairs, so I knew that they wouldn’t be in my space, but there was always the chance that the boys would be.

  Nothing.

  And by that, it wasn’t that the rogues weren’t in my room, it was that nothing was in my room.

  “What the hell?” I slipped past my sheet, letting it fall silently behind me. Everything in my room was gone. Everything. My bed, my desk, my dresser, even the lamp that I used to read late into the night was missing.

  Gasping, I ran into the bathroom, but was greeted with the same sight. It was like someone had come into my room and stripped it bare for cleaning.