“Fuck off,” Wolf growled.
Alvin’s wiry smile widened and I shot Wolf a warning glance. He needed to relax.
Wolf’s hands tightened into fists by his side, clenching and unclenching as he tried to take soothing breaths. Madrina warned him last time—one more fight and he’d be gone, sent to a prison cell or worse—the latter, I wasn’t sure, he never went into detail of punishment. By the fire in his eyes, there was no doubt that Wolf wanted to strangle Alvin. Kill him even.
“Don’t worry, Big W, I’ll let you watch as she screams my name.” He winked, the scarf twisted between his fingers as if the material was my body and he was having his way with me. Wolf growled and lunged forward. I flung myself in his path, stopping him from the attack.
A loud crack resonated through the stairwell. I swore my heart stopped at the sight of Finn lunging forward to hit Alvin. I hadn’t heard him approach us, let alone punch someone, and I wasn’t sure why the hell he did such a stupid thing until he looked at me. It was like someone lit a flame inside him and those deep jade eyes held mine until Headmistress Madrina’s voice interrupted.
“Office, now!” she pointed at us.
“Miss Hart, since you’ve arrived at this school I have heard nothing but disappointing news from your teachers and fellow students.” The material of her pale pink shirt clung to her rolls as she paced behind the desk. “Miss Taylor has informed me that you’ve taken a turn for the worst, and until now I wasn’t sure what to believe. Fighting and fornicating are not allowed in this academy.”
“Fornicating?”
“Yes.” She pinched the bridge of her nose. “Do you not understand who we are? We are role models and your behavior, Miss Hart, is grounds for expulsion.”
“The hell it is!” I jumped to my feet. “This is bullshit. I never slept with anyone. Danielle is—”
“You will watch your language young lady.” Her palms clutched the edges of her desk. “For this act, you’ll be under strict watch for three weeks. You are to go to class and straight to your room. Your phone privileges are suspended as well.”
“That’s outrageous!”
“I have an academy to run. I can’t have you running around here disrupting the peace at every turn!”
My fists clenched at my side. Headmistress Madrina pivoted on her heels and hit the buzzer. Two men dressed in dark suits entered and escorted me out before I could plead my case. Did they have no sense of the law?
One of the men grabbed my elbow. “Get your filthy hands off me!” I wrenched it from his grasp and stomped forward, catching Finn’s eye as he entered the office.
The guards practically pushed me into the hallway. The only one left waiting was Wolf. I feared what she’d do to him. Hopefully nothing harsh. He hadn’t technically done anything wrong—the model of self-control. Though I was sure he would have given Alvin his fist if Finn hadn’t gotten there first.
Once out of the main corridor, the guards left me alone and I walked in silence.
The sun was low in the horizon, most of the students had made their way back to the dorms by now, preparing for dinner or whatever else they did. Not me. My mind was solely on Wolf. At least until I spotted April under the tree, staring at her wrists.
“April,” I breathed.
She jumped up and ran without a word. No way. No way would I let this continue any longer. I sat in the dark for too long. For someone so frail, she had the speed of a soccer star.
I grabbed a hold of her arm and yanked her back to me, pushing the sleeve of the thin black sweater away. Up close, her wrists were red. The cuts were so fresh they had barely scabbed. The flesh was broken and sore, red with sadness and anger.
“Great.” Could this day get worse? I mean seriously. Today sucked.
She tore her arm away and sneered. “At least I’m not screwing every guy with a dick.”
My jaw clenched. “You know that’s not true!” I wasn’t a slut. I kissed a lot of boys, but I didn’t sleep around.
“No wonder you and Dad are so close. You’re both incapable of meeting someone and not fucking them!” April swept the hair from her face. Venom seeped through her words, each one cutting me like a knife.
“Don’t you dare talk about Dad like that.” I pointed my finger at her. Our dad was a hippie and yeah, he had his faults, but he was still our father. “We’re here because of you! Because he loves you and wants to save you!”
“Not enough to stay in one place though, right?” April asked. “If he loved us sooo much he would’ve settled down. But no. He sent us away because he only cares about himself!”
My fists clenched at my sides. “That’s not true. I liked moving.”
“No,” April stepped closer. “You like being liked. Hell, you’ll do whatever Dad wants because you can’t stand not pleasing people. Like that freak with the scar. She didn’t like you, but you were persistent as hell I bet. You probably smother her to death like Dad and me. You blame me for Dad sending us away but you should look in the fucking mirror once and while.”
Tears swelled behind every blink as my younger sister glared at me, a darkness billowing behind her iris, and with every breath, I felt myself cracking until I was sure I’d fall part.
“After a certain point, your ‘charm’ fades away and all that’s left is an empty, useless shell of a person no one likes.”
April stormed off, leaving me alone in the courtyard, trying to swallow her words. They echoed in my mind like a nightmare refusing to cease. Like a nightmare you wake up from, only to revisit it the moment your eyes shut.
Wolf was officially avoiding me.
We had one class together. He usually sat close to me and muttered jokes the whole time, but not anymore. Now he sat on the other side of the room. When the bell rang, he took off like a bat out of hell before I could get near enough to talk to him. He stopped sitting with us at lunch too. Once, when I called his name in the hall, he ignored me and kept walking.
The rumors about me were escalating. According to the gossip, I now had a sex addiction and some kind of STD. Kate and Desiree refused to tell me the details, but they were bad. They had to be. Why else would Wolf avoid me?
Instead of sitting inside my room for another lousy evening, contemplating life and its useless meaning, I put on a pair of skinny jeans and an olive tank top, and went to tea. I hated these people, but I couldn’t stand sitting inside for another second.
Danielle stood at the door, dressed to the nines in a one-shoulder, powder blue, satin dress. Her heels made her six inches taller and an inch above James. With strawberry blonde hair and an innocent face, you’d never peg Cinderella for a malicious bitch.
“Nice outfit.” She eyed me. “Where’d you shop, slut barn?”
“Real creative.” I stepped close, leaving little space between us. “I know you spread the rumors and I will find a way to get you back. Count on it.”
A smile flickered over her tight pink lips. “Oh honey, it’s hard to take trailer trash seriously.”
I bit back the string of curse words on my tongue and pushed past her, my shoulder knocking her off balance, and took a seat. Already Beth was seated beside me with an old book in her lap.
Beth’s dark hair was tied back with a blue ribbon. Despite the lukewarm smile she gave me, her whisky eyes said she knew the truth.
“How are you holding up?” Only a few people were sitting, most socializing, but Beth took her seat first so she could read.
“I’m not gonna let her get to me.”
“Good.” Her eyes down turned for a moment and she leaned in. “I’m sorry, Norah. I wanted to say something, but I’m so close to graduating and leaving for good.”
“I understand.” And I did. But going unnoticed, gliding somewhere in the middle so no one hurt me wasn’t an option.
The chairs in front of us moved and Finn and Pearl sat down. Her pale hand settled on his and she beamed up at him, the brightest smile plastered over her face. I looked away, unable to
watch Pearl fall for a guy who clearly didn’t love her back.
Danielle wasted no time calling everyone to their respective seats. She took hers, leaving an empty chair between us. Once everyone sat down, she stood, folding her hands together.
“Despite the events of this week, I urge everyone to put aside their differences and celebrate. Today we are welcoming a new addition to our group. A princess.” Gasps erupted throughout the table and the widest smile possible crossed Danielle’s lips. She beckoned for the doors to open.
A girl, who should’ve been my sister, walked through the double doors. I mean, I guess she was my sister, but her appearance threw me off. Her usually frizzy hair was in perfect auburn ringlets. Instead of baggy clothes, she wore a long sleeve, bright pink sweater dress with white tights, and heels. Heels that made her a few inches taller than me and long sleeves that hid the scars. The makeup she had on complemented her skin, but she still looked unnaturally pale, especially in such bright clothes.
“I’d like you all to meet April Hart. I, for one, am very excited. This is proof that fairy tales are not dead, that new stories are born every day. The impossible is surely possible. Please make sure to congratulate her before you leave.” Danielle raised her teacup in the air. “Please join me in a toast to our newest princess!”
Now, I was officially sick. Bile built in the back of my throat as everyone cheered for my sister, as she went from invisible to royalty in seconds. Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Finn. His attention fixed on me and my lack of enthusiasm. But I couldn’t clap. This was all so incredibly wrong.
April sat beside a boy I noticed a few times, mostly lurking close to Danielle, following her like a sick puppy. He had sandy blonde hair, a goofy smile, and a boyish, underdeveloped face. He pulled her chair out and pushed it in after she sat. Never once did my sister look my way. What the hell is going on here?
After what seemed like hours, tea ended and Danielle stood at the door with April as everyone greeted her, congratulating her on the title. My arms crossed over my chest as Alvin passed me with a wink. God, I wanted to strangle someone.
“Never saw that coming.” My attention snapped beside me to Finn. “She looks happy.”
“She looks terrified.”
“Eh, she’ll be fine,” Finn shrugged. How could he be so casual about Danielle’s schemes? This had to be a joke or torture. “Didn’t you say she wanted friends? Well, now she has some.”
“Not these friends.” I motioned to Jen as she fingered one of April’s curls. “They’re selfish, evil—” I stopped myself, by the look of doubt of Finn’s face, knowing he didn’t believe these girls were as bad as they were. He’d been brainwashed, but not me. And I wouldn’t stand for their game.
“Danielle’s selfish and a lot to handle, but she wouldn’t intentionally hurt someone.”
Finally I broke my stare from April and turned to Finn, bewildered by how stupid and ignorant he was. Not only did she drug or poison her boyfriend, but she had it out for me from the second I walked into this hell of a school. “She started the rumors.”
His eyes filled with pity, not the good kind. “Danielle hates controversy.”
“That’s her cover. Seriously, Finn, who else would’ve done this to me?”
“Lots of people. Wolf is at the top of my list.”
My jaw dropped. “No, he’d never do this. Not to me.”
“He’s a villain, Norah,” Finn said. “He’s capable of anything. He acts without thinking.”
I wrinkled my nose, disgusted by Finn’s judgment. Wolf and I were more alike than he knew and I’d never turn my back on him. Wolf wanted to keep what happened between us a secret. We made out, end of story. It wasn’t news worthy, though somehow I guessed it was, since it turned into a mess of rumors and lies. And even if he did act without thinking, why the hell would a guy start a rumor and then risk expulsion.
“T-there you are!” Pearl appeared beside him. She gazed into his eyes with such adoration, I almost felt bad—almost. “Isn’t t-this exciting? Your-r little sister.”
My gaze stayed heavy on Finn. “Say, how’d you get your voice back again?” She fingered the shell necklace dangling into her cleavage. After ignoring me, I pushed further. “Let me guess, Danielle helped?” Probably using something wicked like with James and the pills. Speaking of which, where was James?
Jen and Claire appeared at Pearl’s side. The thick gold chain around Jen’s neck gleamed under the light of the massive chandelier and her eyes were coated in thick, dark eye shadow.
“You should seriously do yourself a favor and burn your wardrobe.” Claire stuck her hand on her hip and elongated her neck, as if that’d somehow make her more than bite size.
“That’s funny, I don’t remember asking for the opinion of someone who still shops in the toddler section.” I said.
Yeah, she definitely did not want to mess with me now.
Pearl laced her thin, pale arm in Finn’s. “Ready to go?” she asked him, then turned to the rest of us. “F-finn and I are rehearsing a routine f-for the ball”
“You two make such a cute couple. Totally meant to be,” Claire said.
The tips of my ears heated as Pearl bounced on her heels in excitement. Finn didn’t say a word, nor did he reject their new title as a pair. Instead when he said good-bye, he took my hand a planted a kiss on top—much like James had done. The edge of a folded piece of paper jabbed into my palm. As he pulled his hand away, I curled my thumb over the paper and slipped it into my pocket.
When I got back to my room, something was not right. Starting with the fact that none of my belongings were there. I poked my head into the closet where Danielle was surrounded by shoes—wedges, stilettos, flats, even a pair of crispy white Keds. In front of her were her famous glass stilettos. They weren’t full of diamonds or even shaped amazingly, but there was something so pure and innocent about the shoe as it sat on her hand.
“Where’s all my stuff?”
“It’s been moved. You’re rooming on the fifth floor now, alone,” Danielle said. “April will be staying here. Did you see the shoes she had on tonight? Lovely. You know what I love about shoes? They transform you. One single pair can turn you from geek to chic in seconds. Suddenly, you have a confidence you weren’t sure existed.”
“Is that what happened to you?”
She nodded slowly, her eyes feverish on the glass slipper. “These shoes changed my life. I’m never going back, Norah.” Her attention meandered to me, those pale eyes like tiny daggers. “I’d take the whole world down before I went back to the hellish life I had.”
My throat tensed. “What does this have to do with me and my sister?”
She set the shoe back in its rightful spot. “April doesn’t have an ounce of princess in her. You know that, I know that, even Madrina knows. But she’s a princess, nevertheless, and you want to know why? Because I made her one. I’m not an idiot, Norah. I know about your sister’s sickness. Despite her hatred for you, you’d do whatever it takes to keep her safe. But I also know April. She’d easily betray you. So you can either cooperate with me or you can watch your sister fall into a pit so deep that even you won’t be able to save her.”
“Is that a threat?”
“No.” She smiled. “It’s a promise.”
She stood up and walked to the exit of the closet. On the floor was a bag, she picked it up and swung it over her shoulder. “Leave the key on the nightstand.”
And with that, Danielle left me alone, my mind swirling as if I were plastered against the inside of a gravitron ride at a carnival.
“What a bitch!” Kate held her books to her chest as we walked to class the following day. “She really is the devil’s daughter.”
“It’s amazing what people do for revenge.” I scratched at my neck. Thanks to Kate’s potion, the marks were gone but my skin still felt irritated and dry. At least I didn’t have to wear a scarf anymore. “Oh, and to add to the drama that was yesterday, Finn slip
ped this note into my hand.”
I handed her the tiny fortune cookie-sized paper that read Don’t be sorry. I’m not.
“You think he means the fight?” Kate asked.
I shrugged. “Who knows. He made it clear Pearl and him were a couple. Not that I care.” After he accused Wolf of spreading the rumors and said Danielle wasn’t an evil manipulative bitch, I questioned his thought process.
We stopped in front of the classroom. On the wall was a colorful poster advertising the annual Christmas ball.
Kate groaned and tore it down, crumbling it into a wad. “Traditions here blow.” She tossed it into the wastebasket. “See you at lunch?” I nodded and turned into the room. “Hey, Norah?” I stopped and looked back at my friend. “I’m really sorry. I wish I could help.”
“You already are.”
Giving into Danielle wasn’t something I wanted. But I also couldn’t chance April’s stability. If I was the reason she hurt herself again, I’d never be able to live with myself. As a little security blanket, I stole the pills from Danielle’s medicine cabinet and replaced them with my allergy medicine. I was determined to find out what they were, but I wasn’t sure I felt comfortable talking to Kate about it.
Listening to the gossip of the other princesses, I knew Danielle and April did everything together—eat, drink, shop and their classes were all the same. We had two together: Dining and Etiquette, which April sucked at as much as me, and Dance. She was paired with the blond boy from tea.
I yawned all through my classes. The bed in my new room was horrible. It had to be made for someone who enjoyed sleeping in the woods, which I did not. The mattress was lumpy and rock-like and the comforter scratched me. The walls were made of stone, lacking life and color. And it was cold. Very, very cold.
Finally lunch came around. I grabbed a coffee from the line and plopped on the chair, letting my head fall into my hands. All day people had stared at me as if I was a weird science experiment.
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