My afternoon class was my elective. I chose Ancient History because it sounded interesting and was taught by Dr. Morgan, the general history teacher who I adored with his patched tweed jacket and rambling asides into the darker parts of history. I’d checked the textbook out from the library, but I needed to swing by my locker to pick it up. As I shoved my way through the press of students, Greg came up alongside me.
“Hey, honey. You better watch yourself. Rumor has it that Courtney is out for your blood,” he purred.
“Tell me something I don’t know,” I muttered, hugging my books closer to my chest.
“I want to know all the details about that party. They hold them in a secret location – no outsiders allowed. You’ve got to report back – who hooks up with who? What did everyone wear? I’ll do your makeup, of course, and we’ll see what we can do about that hair of yours.” He touched a dreadlock that had fallen out the side of my bandana and shuddered.
I tucked the dreadlock back inside my bandana. “Wecoulddo all that stuff, except that I’m not going.”
“You have to go. You owe it to me, your best friend.” Greg leaned against the door beside my locker, holding his hand over his heart. “Can you take a camera? Or maybe just your notebook… make a few quick sketches…”
“Maybe Quinn will take you instead of me. I think you’d make a hot couple.” I swung open my locker door.
“What the fuck?”
Something heavy and cold and wet slid from the top shelf and covered the front of my blazer. A foul smell rose up from the lumpy mess, death and blood and fetor.
Meat.
Someone filled my locker with rotting meat.
Chapter Ten
Bile rose in my throat. I stepped back. More of the vile meat slid from the shelf and splattered on the floor, splashing up my stockings. I wiped lumps of it from my blazer, fighting back the urge to scream.
Faces turned toward me, leering and jeering, sniffing and shuffling, laughing their hyena laughs as they circled their prey. Tears stung the backs of my eyes, but I wouldn’t give them the satisfaction of crying. I wouldn’t.
My vision narrowed, the world blurring into a haze of laughing hyenas, of sinewy panthers poised for the kill. My blood whooshed in my ears. I felt as though I’d stepped outside my body, as though I was no longer in control.This isn’t me they did this to. It’s someone else. I’m watching it happen to someone else.
Behind me, two voices rose over the rest – dragging me back inside my body, to the reality of my humiliation.Trey and Courtney.
Don’t turn around. Don’t give them the satisfaction.
The rancid smell filled my nostrils, and I coughed and spluttered, backing away from my locker. Blood and juices ran over my books, warping the pages and sticking the covers together.
“Hey, that meat isn't fresh,” Trey’s voice punctured my heart. Fresh peals of cruel laughter echoed along the hall.
“It’s rancid meat,” Courtney said. “Better not touch her, guys. She’ll rot your dick off.”
I stared at the dripping ichor on the walls of my locker, hot rage welling up inside me. My finger touched the burn on my wrist.
If they think I’m going to sit back and take this shit, then they’re dead wrong.
I picked up a handful of raw meat. The slimy ichor dripped between my fingers as I drew my arm back and spun on my heel, letting the handful fly at Courtney’s face. She wasn’t expecting it, because the wad hit her square in the jaw. Her mouth was wide open with laughter, which cut off mid-chortle to become a loud, piercing shriek.
“That went in my mouth, you bitch!” she screamed.
“Maybe you should have thought of that before you filled my locker with it,” I shot back, winding up for another toss. Blood boiled in my veins. I was soangry, I didn’t care about anything except getting her back, watching her suffer. Maybe I’d stuff some in her mouth, force her to eat it while everyone watched.
Another handful left my hand. Courtney twisted to the right, and the meat sailed past her and hit the person standing directly behind her.
Headmistress West.
Oh, shit.
The headmistress had crept up so silently, I hadn’t even known she was there. Now, bloody meat dripped down her face, staining her velvet gown. The entire hallway fell silent. My locker door creaked on its hinges.
I’m dead. I’m fucking dead—
