I glared at Quinn. “You said Ayaz would give me an explanation for what happened. I need to know.”
The guys exchanged a heated look – some kind of challenge for supremacy. Ayaz lost. He stepped back and shook his head. “Sure, Hazel. It’s as you said, the chemical gives students hallucinations. That’s why the wing is closed.”
“Shouldn’t the whole school be closed down? That staircase isn’t even closed off. What’s stopping any student wandering down there, like I did, like Quinn did, and getting themselves killed?”
“They don’t want anyone on the outside to know about it, because the health board would shut the school down and that would be too much scandal for the families, especially after the fire.“
“Why would that have anything to do with the fire?”
“Some people – namely some of the families of the victims – feel as though the school was opened too quickly. The alumni want to keep the school open at all costs, but some people in our circles think the place is bad luck, haunted by the ghosts of those dead kids.”
“That’s why there’s this whole mistrust of the scholarship students thing,” Quinn added. “Because it means there are students here the alumni don’t control. Any wrong move, any scandal, and the school’s reputation will be tarnished beyond repair.”
“So if I go to the headmistress with this story…” I trailed off. I knew exactly what would happen.She’d deduct all my merit points for breaking the rules.
Trey nodded, as if he knew exactly what I was thinking.
“And why are you guys trying to help me?” I demanded. “How did you go from hating me to following me and giving me your merit points?”
Trey grinned. “We just wanted to make this year more interesting.”
I didn’t buy that, not for a minute. But I could see by the glance they shared that they’d already agreed not to tell me. I tried again. “And Loretta? You said she’d been kicked out. Why has she come back?”
Another pointed glance between them. Quinn shrugged. “Yeah, we don’t get that, either. All I know is that Courtney made a case for her to the school board, and she was allowed back.”
“Courtney? Why would she...” I rubbed my head. Pain throbbed against my skull. “I think I need to visit the nurse.”
“Nope.” Trey scooped me into his arms. “We’re taking you to Ayaz’s room.”
‘I can’t go there. I’m not a monarch…”
But it was too late. My vision swam as weariness and delayed terror washed over me. I sank into Trey’s arms. Quinn’s eyes widened as he reached out and clasped my hand. “Stay with us, Hazy. We’re not going to let them take you.”
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Ayaz’s room was on a similar scale to Trey’s, but it couldn’t be more different. I expected rich red and emerald and gold – the colors of a Middle Eastern sheik. I expected artwork on the walls – thick wooden frames housing the works of the masters. No prints – Ayaz could afford the real thing.
Instead, the walls were a pale grey, completely devoid of decoration, and the Scandinavian-style furniture was simple and practical. A low bed stood on top of a dais. The stairs around the outside doubled as bookshelves. I longed to scan the titles, suspecting they might hold the only true hint of Ayaz in this room, but no way was I getting down on my hands and knees in front of Ayaz.
Unless he asked me to.
Whee, where did that thought come from? I rubbed my temple as my mind swam with vague images and sensations.I think… maybe that smell got to me worse than I thought…
Trey laid me down on the bed, pulling off my shoes and blazer. He traced his fingers along the inside of my leg, dancing over my skin.
“What are you doing?” I murmured.
“I’m removing your stockings, so Ayaz can make sure you don’t have any rat bites on your legs, or… other things.”
“Oh, okay.” I flopped back on the pillows, my head screaming. My shin sizzled with heat where his fingers trailed.
Trey glanced at Quinn. “No protests? No threats? Dude, I’m seriously worried now. She’s given up fighting us.”
The room spun. My eyelids fluttered shut. Good, that stopped the spinning.
A warm hand pressed against my chest, over my heart, and I murmured in approval.That feels nice.
“Hazel, can you hear me?”
