“Outside of Seattle.”
“Hmm. I might have to call that school.”
“Go ahead.” I stare him straight in the eye. “I transferred here because I heard that this school was one of the best, but if you can’t control your male students—”
“I want to know if you had any kind of behavioral issues at your previous school,” he says.
Is that a threat of some kind? His tone certainly suggests it.
“I haven’t, but you’re free to go ahead and make that call,” I snap. “There’s something I want to know. I want to know if other girls have complained about harassment done to them by either Liam or by any one of the Mutineers.”
“Other girls?”
“Oh, yes, because I am lodging a formal complaint against both Liam and each of the Mutineers.”
“I don’t recognize that term. Mutineers.” The principal wrinkles his nose.
“You do know them,” I say hotly. “Brett, Tyler, Corey, and Shane.”
"There are several students with those names—"
“They’re all seniors,” I say, growing more and more frustrated by the second. “Brett Russo, Tyler Tremaine, Corey Jarvis, and Shane Dalton.”
"There hasn't been a single complaint lodged against any of those four."
“No? Why is that? And you mean, before now.”
"There hasn't been a single complained lodged against any of them."
“Until now,” I say through gritted teeth.
“And what did any of them do that is so egregious?”
I open my lips to tell him about Brett and him forming me to flash the school, but then again, didn’t he already say that I would be the kind of girl to give consent and then revoke it? He’s already made up his mind about me. He won’t believe me that Brett did that without permission, or he’ll spin it that I asked Brett to, or that I just did it myself to get attention because that’s all I am—an attention-seeking whore. There’s nothing I can say that will get him to side with me, so I say nothing.
“That’s what I thought,” Mr. Malone says smugly. “I’ll tell you what I’m going to do, Erika Armstrong. I’m going to send you home for the rest of the day so that you can think about your choices. Then, you can come back on Monday with a fresh attitude and knowledge of your place in the world. How does that sound?”
I say nothing.
“Because if you don’t have a fresh attitude… I don’t know if that scholarship will remain in your name.”
I nod curtly, spin on the ball of my foot to pivot, and march out of there.
My heart pounds as I rush out of the office and out of the school. As soon as the door closes behind me, the crappy pay-as-you-go phone I bought the second day after I ran away vibrates. I wait a few rings before answering.
“Pine Grove Hill High School. Lydia speaking. How can I help you?” I ask, being certain to alter my voice.
“I need to speak with the principal there. From your website, that’s Mrs. Castel, yes?” Jonah Malone sounds even more pompous on the phone.
“Mrs. Castel is in a meeting presently. I can have her call you back—Oh. Wait. Her meeting looks like it is wrapping up. If you can wait five minutes…”
“I don’t prefer to wait.”
“Yes, well, she is busy at the moment. May I ask what this is in regards to?”
“A student from there transferred to my school. Erika Armstrong. She—”
“Oh, we were all devastated to lose Erika,” I cry. “She was such a bright student, so involved in activities. If there’s ever a student who is going somewhere, it’s Erika.”