Revenge: A Reverse Harem High School Bully Romance (Montlake Prep Book 4)

by Nora Cobb

  I can’t stand by. I grab Arielle from behind and pin her in a firm grip as she writhes from side to side. Her face is red as she screams loud enough to crack the windows in the building. Ms. Petrenko backs away a few steps and takes her hand away from her face. There are nasty red scratch marks across her pale cheek.

  “Calm down. Arielle? Calm down,” Ms. Petrenko repeats with amazing restraint and calm in her voice. The woman is visibly shaken, but she holds the situation together.

  “Maybe we can walk out towards the hall,” she suggests.

  “Yes,” I reply, “let’s get her out of here.”

  Slowly, we escort a sobbing Arielle out into the hallway. I glance behind me at the shocked expression of my fellow classmates. This is not what I want to be remembered for at Montlake. I don’t want to be remembered as that guy who married the crazy girl.

  Unfortunately, Arielle isn’t done and lashes out again at Ms. Petrenko. This time Ms. Petrenko’s patience goes tumbling over the edge. She grabs Arielle and marches her out of the building, heading for East Hall.

  CHAPTER 19

  Arielle

  I hold my sore arm where Ms. Petrenko grabbed me after my latest bust up with Lucas in the cafeteria. How fucking dare she? She drags me across campus like a child by my arm to West Hall. I twist and turn to get out of her grip, but she won’t let go no matter how much I warn her to get out of my business. The bitch.

  The women behind the long counter stare at us as Ms. Petrenko hauls me across the room and plops me down into a chair outside of Cromwell’s office. I try to get up, but she pushes me back down into the seat. The chair pitches back and hits the wall.

  “Take your hands off me, you cow,” I snarl.

  Ms. Petrenko looks at me with a hard gaze as if she can threaten me. I don’t have any classes with her. I avoid math like the plague. She’s Lucas’ teacher. That’s probably why she grabbed me and not him.

  “Stay seated.” Her voice is demanding, as if she can be. She’s just a teacher.

  I stare at her beady brown eyes behind her thick glasses. She looks like a bizarre owl acting tough and rolling its neck around. Ms. Petrenko may think she’s cute in her knit off-the-rack dress, but she’s nothing but tacky. She might be younger than the other teachers, but that’s the only thing that saves her looks with that muddy brown hair and upturned nose.

  Ms. Petrenko knocks on Cromwell’s door as Ms. Schneider hustles over. The older woman’s words rush out of her mush mouth. “Do you need him? I think he’s busy.”

  “There was a disruption at lunch,” Ms. Petrenko explains.

  They give me the side-eye. Ms. Petrenko doesn’t conceal her contempt for me while Ms. Schneider barely takes a peek in my direction.

  Ms. Schneider taps on Cromwell’s door before opening it. “Sorry to disturb you,” she eyes us nervously, “But we have a disciplinary problem.”

  “After you, Mrs. Bellman.” Ms. Petrenko waves her hand in a flourish toward the door.

  I’ll get that bitch. I’m on my feet and in Cromwell’s office, barely holding back tears of frustration, but he doesn’t need to know why I’m crying. He only has to see me cry to turn into my puppet.

  Hastily, Cromwell moves the nine-inch hoagie off his desk and onto the windowsill behind him. The disgusting sandwich sits in the oily white paper with a few bites in it. No wonder he looks a hot mess, and not the fun kind. Cromwell brushes the bread crumbs off his suit as he clears his throat, trying to look like he should be the one in charge.

  “Ms. Petrenko, what’s happening here?” he asks in a gruff voice.

  “Mrs. Bellman physically attacked another student in the cafeteria, her husband.” Ms. Petrenko remains standing. “She struck him multiple times before I could pull her away.”

  “She hurt me!” I cry. “We weren’t fighting. Lucas and I were just playing.”

  “Playing!” Ms. Petrenko raises her voice. “You were grabbing at him so hard you almost pulled off his shirt.”

  I weep harder, and Cromwell holds up his hand to Ms. Petrenko. “Ms. Petrenko,” he says. “Please have a seat.”

  Ms. Petrenko scowls at the empty high-back chair in front of his desk as if she’d like to kick it before she sits down.

  “Okay, let’s start from the beginning,” he says.

  I jump in before Ms. Petrenko can form a word on her lips. “She’s been bullying me because Lucas is in her class with Natalie and she wants to see them together. She’s been taking their frustrations out on me.”

  A shocked Cromwell stares at me, and his cheeks turn pink when I mention frustrations. Ms. Petrenko rolls her eyes multiple times, but she’s going to lose this one. If she thinks I’m going to let her win so she can continue to help Natalie and Lucas, she is dumber than a lost freshman trying to crash a senior party.

  “That is not the point or reason why we are here,” says Ms. Petrenko. “Mrs. Bellman starts numerous arguments in the cafeteria, which lead to physical altercations. If anything, she’s bullying Lucas.”

  Bingo, bitch. I take in a deep breath. “Lucas is her pet. She’s on a first-name basis with both Lucas and Natalie. She only speaks to me when she wants to yell at me. They stand together and give me dirty looks. And then in the cafeteria, she comes after me.”

  Ms. Petrenko’s mouth gapes open while Cromwell shifts in his seat. I can’t let her get a word in yet, so I continue.

  “And she hurt me dragging me across campus.” I sob as I reach out for a tissue, and Cromwell hastily pushes the box to the edge of the desk. “She’s complaining about me horsing around with my husband, but her hand clamped down hard on me. She shouldn’t touch me like that.” I rub my arm as I speak. “I’m sure I have a bruise. I’ll let my mother check when I get home.”

  I don’t need to say another word, as Cromwell sighs loudly. He knows what my parents will do when I tell them about this stupid-ass meeting. I glance at Ms. Petrenko as she gives me filthy side-eye. It’s her own fault. She wanted to tattle, but I had the better tale.

  “This isn’t the point,” she insists. Her voice rises as her hands flay about. “Their constant bickering in the cafeteria is bringing down student morale. The other students are watching them fight and swearing they’ll stay single forever.”

  “If we’re a problem,” I ask coolly, “then why isn’t Lucas here with me?”

  She has nothing to say to that as her face pales. Ms. Petrenko looks at Cromwell for backup, but he won’t offer her his support. He wouldn’t dare unless she can out-donate my parents.

  “Arielle, dear,” he says kindly, “Please step outside for a moment.”

  I nod my head and keep my wounded gaze on the floor. I clutch the tissue in my hand and step outside the office door. Once I shut it, I press my ear to the old wood and listen.

  “This is serious,” he says, “Arielle could press charges because you manhandled her.”

  “Press charges? Manhandled? She was battering that boy, and he was defenseless because he refused to strike a girl. I was concerned she would actually hurt him.”

  Cromwell scoffs. “A hockey player? Lucas Bellman’s team won the championship. Who’s going to believe a girl half his size can hurt him?”

  “That cat has claws, Eugene. She’s not as innocent as you pretend she is.”

  There’s a bang, but I can’t tell who did what in there.

  “But she has a serious point and it’s obvious you’ve been playing favorites in this matter. You’ve been coaching the Page girl beyond academics.”

  There’s a pause before I hear her voice. “What does that matter?”

  “It matters to people like the Bellmans. I can’t have another scandal at the school, especially not so soon after your favorite student and that adult website.”

  “I don’t play favorites.” Her voice is straining. “Natalie asked for my help during a difficult time, and I helped her as I would any student.”

  “And what about Arielle Blackwater? Have you offered to help her dur
ing her own difficult time?”

  She sighs. “There’s nothing I can do for that one. Corporal punishment in school was banned decades ago.”

  There’s another long pause. I rest my hand on the door and lean in to hear better but all I can hear is my breath.

  Now, he sighs. “I’m sorry to do this, but you’re terminated. Please leave the campus immediately.”

  Ms. Petrenko scoffs. “Is this a joke?”

  “I’ll write you a standard letter of recommendation, but as of now, you are no longer an employee here at Montlake.”

  “You are serious. I can’t believe what I’m hearing”

  I hear another bang from inside, and all eyes go to the door as I step away from it. “You are trespassing.”

  “This is an illegal firing,” she raises her voice. “I will sue.”

  “Do as you please, Ms. Petrenko, but you won’t have a job here. The Blackwaters will protect their interests.”

  “She’s no innocent, Eugene, and you better hope she doesn’t prove that to you.”

  The door swings fully open, banging the wall behind it. I jump into the chair next to the door and try to look like I heard nothing. But you’d have to be deaf not to hear their argument through that door. Ms. Petrenko marches out of Cromwell’s office and scowls around the room. No one dares to make eye contact with her. The sheep stare at their monitors as if they enjoy doing repetitive administrative tasks.

  Ms. Petrenko looks down on me, and I feel her gaze digging deep into me. I don’t care what she does, but my limbs start to tremble. It pisses me off, but I can’t control the shaking and it tells her how I really feel. I didn’t think he’d fire her.

  Ms. Petrenko waits until we finally make eye contact. Reluctantly, I lift my eyes and look up at her. Ms. Petrenko purses her lips but says nothing. I wait for her to say something, and then I’ll tell her off in front of all these people. My lip trembles but I’ll prove I’m right. Ms. Petrenko shakes her head in disgust at the sight of me then strides out of the office. Good, I’m glad she’s gone.

  I jump when I feel a hand on my shoulder. Cromwell pats my back gently as he smiles down on me like a benevolent Santa with a shiny, bald head.

  “It’s okay, Arielle,” he says, “you can return to class.”

  My voice shakes, but it’s not fake. “Thank you, Principal Cromwell, for helping me.”

  He smiles as if we’re close friends. “Give my regards to your parents. And my door is always open to you.”

  I nod and then quickly leave, ignoring the glares of the women in the office who heard everything. When I enter the hallway, I walk slowly to the exit. I want to allow Ms. Petrenko enough time to hop on her broom and disappear.

  CHAPTER 20

  Lucas

  After school, I’m anxious to go home and hope that Arielle will remain at her parents’ house. I can’t imagine her wanting to come back to ours after the shit she pulled in Miami. Troy jogs out of North Hall and across the quad to catch up. He puts a hand on my shoulder and rubs it.

  “How you doing, champ?”

  I laugh. “Coach Stanford used to call me that. But now he’ll probably call me that guy married to the crazy wench.”

  “Today was bad,” Troy grimaces, “but you did win the championship and in the end, let’s hope you’ll be remembered for that instead.”

  “Thanks for the vote of confidence,” I reply. “I need to ask you something. I need help getting proof that Arielle tried to roofie me.”

  “I don’t know how I can help you with that,” he replies. “The only person who knows anything about that is Anthony. And though he wasn’t willing to roofie you, that doesn’t mean he’s going to turn against Arielle.”

  “You think he’s that pussy-whipped by her?”

  “No, it’s not that I think that. But Anthony’s hate for us exceeds whatever decent feelings he may possess.”

  We enter the parking deck, but I want to talk more with Troy, so we walk up the ramp. My eyes narrow as I look at the paint on my Camaro.

  Troy curses loudly. “What happened to your car, Lucas?”

  My prized Camaro is keyed down the sides. Jagged scratches have lifted the paint, and gouges are in the tinted glass. I’ve had the car since I was sixteen. I take better care of it than myself. It’s an inanimate object, but it symbolizes freedom whenever I can’t stand anybody anymore and have to get away. When I open the door, a pile of foul, stinking garbage falls out onto my shoes. Before I can even fully comprehend what’s going on, I hear Natalie and Jacob running up the ramp toward us and expressing dismay at this fucked-up mess.

  “What the fuck happened to your car?” asks Jacob.

  I shake my head. “It’s pretty obvious, and it’s also pretty obvious who did this.”

  “Do you think it was Arielle or maybe Anthony?” asks Natalie.

  I lift my foot and shake an old pizza crust off. It leaves a streak of red sauce on the toe of my shoe. “My bet is Anthony,” I reply. “But I still have to talk to him.”

  “Why?” asks Natalie. “Are you going to confront him about this?”

  “No, I need him to admit that he was trying to drug me.”

  Natalie shakes her head. “He won’t listen to you, but I can talk to him and get him to confess.”

  Jacob immediately steps forward. “I don’t like that, not after what he’s done. Anthony’s a loose nut, and you need to stay away from him.”

  “Unfortunately,” Natalie presses her lips together. She’s never liked being told what to do. “We have to take a risk, and I’m the best candidate to get the information we need.”

  “I don’t like it either,” says Troy.

  Natalie shakes her head. “So long as the three of you are close by, Anthony won’t try anything. Trust me.”

  CHAPTER 21

  Natalie

  The news shocks me. “How can she be gone?”

  I am near tears as Jacob and I collect Ms. Petrenko’s belongings from her desk in the classroom. She only had enough time to grab her purse before security escorted her to her car. Security is the maintenance crew since Cromwell hasn’t hired anyone to officially serve in that role. Maybe he should have. I would have liked to see some burly man turn Arielle every way but loose for fighting in the cafeteria.

  News spreads faster than gossip as the admins from West Hall tell the teachers the details. Many employees are understandably upset by Ms. Petrenko’s illegal dismissal. The teachers are in the cafeteria to stop bullying, not to end up bullied themselves.

  After school, Jacob drives me to Ms. Petrenko’s apartment building in West Lake. Old feelings well up inside of me as we pass by landmarks I used to go to almost daily before my parents died, and I moved in with Uncle Phil. The downtown ice-cream parlor is busy with people lined up to the curb. The bench outside the coffee shop is filled with people having lively conversations, and families are walking dogs in the county park around the reservoir. I sigh loudly and my shoulders slump as I remember a laid-back past.

  “Is this your first time back?” asks Jacob.

  I shake my head. “I’ve come by to go to the movies with my friend, Lydia, but I’ve been avoiding West Lake lately.”

  “Why?”

  I turn forward and gaze straight ahead at the road. “Because soon I’ll be off to college and then it will all be over. This part of my life will be memories, and there won’t be any reason to come back. I have to continue forward, even on those days I want to hide in bed. Does that make sense?”

  He nods. “Yes. It does.”

  Nothing else needed to be said. We understand each other perfectly.

  “How are things with your father?” I ask.

  Jacob keeps his eyes on the road as he considers what to say. “Dad isn’t budging, but Mom is trying to intervene. I spoke to Coach Stanford, but don’t say anything. He’s trying to help me with a plan B.”

  “I won’t mention it, and I’m glad to hear you have a plan.”

  “Yeah, N
atalie,” he laughs. “You gotta be like a shark and keep moving forward.”

  “Only you would say that,” I laugh. “But it’s true.”

  “You can quote me in your marine bio classes.”

  “Thanks.” I roll my eyes. I can’t stay sad around Jacob for long.

  I recognize the building Ms. Petrenko lives in. It’s a garden apartment that’s set back from the road in a quieter part of town. There are a few businesses nearby tucked away on a main road and single-family homes separated by wide manicured lawns.