Chapter Twenty-One
Ella
Three weeks later and everyone was still talking about Charlie. He’d transferred out of Darlington Academy within days of the announcement, his family moving to somewhere in the Midwest while his father’s company went to battle with an army of lawyers.
It was possible Charlie Anderson wouldn’t learn anything from the experience. Perhaps I should have chosen a harsher avenue of punishment, but he was never my biggest target.
No, Dash Charming won that prize between the two of them.
He stood on the pool deck in a tiny Speedo, flirting with a trio of chicks. They were mooning over him, as per usual after swim class. He’d gotten over the disappearance of his buddy right quick, happily taking over the mantle of king at Darlington Academy.
Except something about him felt different.
Like the way his smile didn’t reach his eyes. He also no longer seemed to be fucking his way through the student population. Or maybe he was just being more discreet about it. And he hadn’t spent much time around Ryan or Carmen lately, at least from what I’d seen.
Regardless, he wasn’t acting like the Dash I knew and loathed, and that perplexed me a bit.
With a shake of my head, I wandered into the girls’ locker room, deciding to contemplate him more later.
He was next on my list after I finished fucking with Carmen.
Tray had suggested I use her as target practice for my magic. A “two birds with one stone” sort of deal whereby I familiarized myself with some of the Midnight Fae texts and spells, then applied them to my wicked stepsister.
Such as the one I evoked two days ago that induced hair loss.
It’d been a tricky spell that required a strand from her platinum blonde head, but I’d managed to snag it during lunch after pretending to bump into her.
I had used that moment to also sprinkle some dust onto her skin.
Hence the hives she’d broken out in recently—an intense case that would cause scarring if she didn’t stop scratching herself.
Her appearance was the subject of conversation by all the girls in the locker room. Some felt bad for her. Others claimed karma. Most were just happy to watch her suffer.
“She’s gained a ton of water weight, too,” one of them was saying.
“Stress.”
“Oh, totally. I mean, if my face looked like that, I’d be stress eating, too.”
“Totally deserves it.”
“Wish it happened to her bitch of a twin.”
“Gretchen,” the girl beside me warned.
“What? Ryan’s a cunt. I’d love to see her suffer.”
Several rounds of agreement rang through the locker area. No one would have dared hold a conversation like this a month ago. But today? Several were participating.
Down crumbles the queen, I thought, pulling my shirt over my head.
The discussion continued while I put on my skirt, socks, and shoes. It was as I put up my hair that I realized the room had fallen silent with several sets of eyes on me.
I checked my appearance, noting everything was in place.
“What?” I demanded, glaring at them all.
“Didn’t you, uh, hear the announcement?” a petite junior asked. Her name began with a T. Taylor. Tiffany. Tia. Tribeca. Something.