“I’m calling it the apocalypse party because graduation is the final showdown between us and the senior Eldritch Club.” Tillie reached across the table to grab a piece of bacon from my plate. The meat crunched between her teeth.
“Hey, I wanted that.” I stuck out my lower lip. “You can’t even taste it.”
“Ghost bacon is better than no bacon.” Tillie took another bite. “Students are going all-out. My body is ready for all the booze, all the drugs, all the wanton debauchery I haven’t yet partaken in – it’s happening in the pleasure garden on Friday night. If this is gonna be the end of life as we know it, I’m going out with a bang.”
“Good. I just need your enthusiasm to rub off on everyone else. Every single student needs to be at this party, and they need to listen to me.”
“On it.” Tillie bounced off to chat with a group of students on the next table over. They darted glances at me, and this time it didn’t look as though they were afraid of me. Ayaz’s arm casually draped over my shoulders might’ve helped with that.
It was weird, going from standing at the sidelines while the students avoided me like the plague to being the one instigating the biggest party of the decade. As Tillie continued her rounds, word of what to expect at the party passed in whispers. No one wanted to be responsible for the teachers finding out.
Of course, the teachers knew. They were planning a party of their own, which was about to be thoroughly crashed.
* * *
Friday, last period.
The note landed on my desk, folded into an elaborate origami dragon. When Dr. Atwood turned away to write something on the board, I unfolded it, my heart hammering as I read three words in Andre’s neat script.
SADIE DID IT.
Between classes, the teachers all rushed back to the faculty lounge to refill their coffee cups from the barista machine. Sadie was the one responsible for making the coffees and cleaning the machine, so all she had to do was spike the beans and all the teachers would be singing lullabies. I’d worried that she’d get caught or wimp out at the last minute, but my fears were unfounded – Sadie was made of strong stuff. She had to be, to survive Miskatonic Prep.
All we had to do was wait.
We didn’t have to wait long. Midway through a discussion of essay topic prep for finals, Dr. Atwood lurched forward. His eyes widened. He grabbed at his desk to steady himself, but his legs collapsed beneath him and he slid off to the side.
“Mmmmmmmf.” He tried to make a noise, but his lips had stopped working. His fingers jerked the air. A few more moans and twitches, and then he lay still, the only sound he made faint, labored breathing.
I leaped from my seat to bend over him, slapping both his cheeks in turn. He didn’t move or open his eyes or acknowledge me in any way. I turned back to Trey and gave a thumbs up.
“School’s out!” Trey yelled. Students whooped and tossed their papers to the floor. They streamed into the hallway, heading for the dorms to prepare for tonight’s party. John Hyde-Jones kicked Atwood in the head as he walked out.
Trey ran to the door and peered down the hall.
“Quick.” Trey slammed the door shut and leaned against it. “Dr. Halsey just walked past. She’s trying to herd the students back to class. I don’t think everyone is out yet.”
I fished in Atwood’s pockets, pulling out a set of keys on an old-fashioned brass ring. One of the keys was shinier than the others – brand new. The key to the new lock on the weight room.
I dropped the entire loop in my pocket and stood up. “Ready.”
Trey shoved the door open. I followed him into the hall. The place was chaos – Dr. Halsey had succumbed to the drug and lay across the corridor while students decorated her prone body with rolls of toilet paper. Paul and Nancy drew matching dicks on her cheeks with a Sharpie. Someone had a boom box pumping sweet 90s jams while Courtney and Amber did some kind of sexy hip-hop dance. Barclay had lit a joint under the smoke alarm, so that was buzzing. A few teachers who were still standing tried in vain to contain them. As I watched, Mr. Dexter’s legs collapsed from beneath him and he toppled against the lockers.
Another one bites the dust.
At the top of the gymnasium stairs, we met up with Quinn and Ayaz. “I came from Mrs. West’s office,” Ayaz said. “She’s unconscious.” He thrust her key ring into my hands.
“What were you doing in her office?” He wasn’t supposed to be there – we were going to go straight to her chambers from class.
“She called me from class.” Ayaz’s dark eyes were unreadable. “Luckily, she passed out just in the nick of time.”
I shuddered at the thought of the Deadmistress laying her hands on my Ayaz again. She must have believed that she still controlled him. But I had to push aside the overwhelming desire to head to her office and kick her in the face myself – Ayaz had bought us some extra time, and we couldn’t waste it.
“Even Morgan is out cold,” Quinn said. “I saw her sleeping on a sofa in the faculty lounge. I guess she wanted to cover her tracks. Smart woman.”
“Good.” I held up both keys. “Let’s go.”
“Go where?”
