She probably would’ve had a meltdown if she’d got into a fight. The combination of a raging sense of injustice combined with an equally intense feeling of shame would’ve created a shit storm of epic proportions that would have scared the hell out of educators. It was so hard to equate the snarling, scratching, biting little cyclone of a child with the same little girl that could talk about mummification so eloquently. I knew all about people’s fight or flight instincts and the ones I saw in teachers I often didn’t like. They shut down, erected mile-high walls, ones they kept up long after an event, and in some ways I was empathetic. They turned up to educate kids and instead were forced to go through something intensely traumatic.
But it was even worse for her.
She’d try to make amends, knowing the relationship was damaged but not wanting to believe it was irreparably so. But people treated her differently afterwards, she always said. There was no coming back from this.
“Right, well, let’s go into the conference room then,” the principal said, ushering us through.
Damn him,I thought mulishly as we all walked through.Damn him for being all conciliatory and polite because there were four big burly dudes joining the meeting. Damn them for being able to get the man to make adjustments just like that.But as my anger built, a safe place for me to be in until I had my child with me, a hand reached out and took mine. Reed watched me closely, so much seeming to reside in those green eyes that went unsaid. For a second, I felt a moment of recognition, that someone else was sitting with me on a roiling cesspool of emotion, that I wasn’t alone.
“Now, can I get anyone coffee or tea?”
“You can get me my daughter,” Ben said.
Yes, that. Exactly that.
“Everly has been going through quite a lot of upheaval recently,” Carmen said in her best dickhead whisperer voice. “She’s been accepted into a therapy program at Crowe Corp—”
“That sounds like it would be for the best,” the principal said, this whole conversation like a fencing match, where people with rapier like swords sought to find a weakness in the other. “Everly became quite unsettled in the school yard. Apparently, there’s been some talk amongst the students. Assertions were made about Lily and her… relationship choices.”
“What?” I jerked straight at that and then looked around the room. “What’s been said?”
“Some of the mothers have noticed that a pack of alphas is suddenly in Everly’s life. Apparently, there’s been some unwise conversations had. Some of those conversations were had around their children and…”
“And the kids repeated those comments in front of Evie.”
It was wrong to feel a rush of pride right then, wasn’t it? I didn’t want my daughter fighting anyone, period, and especially not for my sake, but… I could just imagine how she would have responded, not allowing any kid to back down or prevaricate. Once fighting words were said, it would’ve been on.
“The girls in question have been spoken to,” the principal said, “but the underlying problem remains. Beta schools are not set up to cater for alphas.”
“I’ll stop you there,” Carmen said crisply. “The anti-discrimination laws specifically mention that excluding children based on designation is not legal as what we assume they are may change during puberty.”
“And what will Evie be like when she does go through adolescence?” the principal said, looking harried. “She’s already taller and stronger than almost all of the other children.”
“Yeah, she is,” Damon muttered darkly.
“What will we do for her when she does start becoming a teenager? When she’s stronger than anyone inside the school? Who will stop her then when someone pisses her off?” I blinked at this prim man uttering a curse word. “Perhaps you can suggest some strategies, because, frankly, I’m out of my depth.”
“Not now,” I said and got to my feet. “Where is she and what is her punishment?”
“A day’s suspension,” the principal said, his lips thinning. “I didn’t want to do that, but raising your hand to another student… She can do it internally at the school or at home.”
“I’ll keep her home,” I said, then nodded to him and thanked him for his time in a tone that said I was anything but.
I didn’t want to deal with this man, this place, some of my daughter’s rage infecting me, threatening to destroy my adult calm. I started for the door, but Carmen shuffled closer, ready to do the real negotiations. With her connections in the city and her bankbook, she could often find a way through a situation. But the guys, they came with me, a massive force at my back as I strode down the hall.
“Mummy…”
Evie was up and off the bed and taking a step towards me, but then she stopped. Her brows locked in a severe frown as she scowled.
“Mummy, where…?” Her breath came in frantic little gulps then she launched herself at me, fists flailing. “Where were you! I’ve been here… And they… Mummy, they….”
I braced myself to weather the storm, moving to catch her wrists with my hands when others snapped out.
“No, cub.”
Ben’s voice was low, deep and even, but it stopped her cold. She flashed him a savage glare, then went to step around him, lashing out when she couldn’t get to me.
“I want my mum!” she shrieked, the sound slashing through the air. “I don’t want you! I want Mum!”