Her breath reeked of stale cigarettes, and my nose upturned in the opposite direction. “If you go to the cops, it’ll be the last fucking thing you or your brother do.”
Slowly, I brought my gaze down and leveled her with a stare. “Is that a threat?”
Her hand reached up, and she grabbed onto my ponytail. My heart sped up, but I kept my gaze neutral. Do not act afraid. You've been in this position before. I fought the urge to yell out as she pulled my hair, my chin flying upward. “That’s absolutely a threat. Jason is already on thin ice, Princess. And so are you.”
A heavy breath flew through my nose as the final bell rang. I couldn’t even focus on the fact that I was late for first period. Not a single person was in sight; everyone was securely tucked inside their classrooms. And here I was, being handled by a bunch of girls who scared me more than I’d like to admit.
“So, what? Tank sent you to do his dirty work? A simple text would have sufficed. There’s no need for this. He’ll get his money.”
The girl tugged on my ponytail again, and a small yelp escaped me. Miss Big Foot cackled like a wicked witch behind her.
“Sky, that’s enough.”
My eyes moved over to the right where I saw Madeline slowly approaching. She looked from me to Sky and then to the other girl. “Her teacher is going to wonder where she is. The first bell has rung. I think you’ve made your point.”
Sky snickered at Madeline and then looked at me again, her grip on my hair getting tighter. “Is that so? Do you
get it? Don’t fuck over my man, Princess.”
So, this was Tank’s girlfriend? What guy sends his girlfriend to scare an innocent girl into paying her brother’s debt? And how did Madeline know her?
Sky tugged on my hair again and got closer to my face. I pressed my back even harder against the stone as a burning pain sliced through my shirt.
“I get it,” I bit out, and she finally let go of me. My body flew forward so the stone would stop digging in, and Sky and her friend turned on their heel and headed for the parking lot. Sky called out over her shoulder, “Thanks for pointing her out, Madeline. And I’ll see you on Saturday, Red. Tell your boyfriend to get ready to race.”
I waited until they were long gone to breathe out a sigh of relief. Madeline continued to stand beside me as she watched them leave too, not moving or saying a thing, as if this were a completely normal day.
“Lovely friends you have there, Madeline.” I felt behind me to determine how bad the rip was in my skirt. “What? Did you feel the need to get new friends after Christian ran your name through the dirt?” Anger had me spewing at the mouth just with the sight of her face. “Are you that twisted inside that you think bullying me is going to get you a spot back at his table?” Madeline’s cheeks grew pink when she finally took a second to look at me. “Newsflash, Madeline: you got yourself booted from the hierarchy here at English Prep, and I had nothing to do with it. So, for you to follow me around and stick your nose in my business is petty.” My face felt hot, and my stomach was bubbling with a fierce need to hit something. I was even more pissed that my skirt was ripped so badly my underwear was showing.
“You have no idea what you’re even talking about.” Madeline flung her platinum hair over her shoulder and walked back into school, and I was left standing on the side of English Prep with my skirt literally flapping in the wind.
Great.
Chapter Twelve
Ollie
“Fuckin’ yessss,” Jace—who was more of an acquaintance of mine—yelled out as Mr. Calhoun slapped the paper down on his desk. “A fucking plus.”
“Yes, yes, I get you’re very excited.” Mr. Calhoun continued to walk around the classroom, handing out tests. “And while I appreciate all words in the English language, the word fuck isn’t exactly appropriate, so watch it.”
I’d always liked Mr. Calhoun, and he was a damn good teacher—not too stuffy, a little lax on the rules, but still taught English so well that I actually paid attention and didn’t feel the need to sleep. I wasn’t going to lie; I slept through a lot of my classes. And if I didn’t get stellar grades, my teachers would have been pissed. But it was hard to yell at me when I still continued to get As in their classes, and not to mention, I was their favorite student. I could get away with basically anything. Next year was going to be a breeze, although, a lousy breeze because ninety percent of my friends—Christian included—would be away at college, and I’d be stuck here for one more year. Why my mother held me back one year, even though I was technically old enough to be in the same grade as Christian, was beyond me, and unfortunately, I couldn't ask her why.
“Great work, Hayley. As always.” I grinned as Hayley smiled at Mr. Calhoun when he handed her paper back and as Christian tried to hide his scowl at him giving Hayley yet another glowing compliment. He was such an overbearing, protective hot-head.
My phone vibrated as Mr. Calhoun laid the white paper down on my desk. “You too, Oliver. This was a great paper. I enjoyed reading your view on such a delicate topic.”
“Thanks, Mr. Calhoun. I did my best to impress, as always.” I heard a few girls giggle, and I smirked, but just as the smirk came on my face, it quickly disappeared.
The text on my phone had me pausing.
Madeline: Outside, right wing of school. Go now.
Me: Is this a booty text? I don’t do my brother’s leftovers, especially not at 8 in the morning. Sorry.
I glanced at Christian, and he was too busy talking to Hayley as I waited for a reply. What the fuck was Madeline doing? Why she would think I’d ever touch her pussy was beyond me.
Madeline: Fuck you, Ollie. It’s about Piper.