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She shoves me back to the floor, my bruised knees are already used to the position. “We pray for each other, and we take care of our own. We banish evil out of this town like fire. We raise our hands to the flame.”

Jesus Christ. She sounds like Mama.

She recites the Bible. “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil.” Psalm 23. I’m deeply familiar with it.

I brace myself, eyes closed, fully aware that this psalm serves to banish evil. “Do you know what else my daddy taught me to do?” she asks me, her eyes crazed.

She grabs my hair and yanks my head back, grabbing my jaw and forcing my mouth open. The force is so strong I can’t respond. “We use holy water to expel demons out of the body.”

I choke as she pours the water down my throat, and for a few seconds, I can’t breathe. My lungs cease and my stomach fills with fluid, and I try not to panic or inhale as I suck in liquid.

She growls beside my face and whispers, “Leave. We’ve had enough death here. I’ve already dealt with someone like you, and I’ll do it again.”

“Get off her,” a dark voice growls from down the hall. She releases me, and I keel over, coughing and spitting up the water I just inhaled.

I can’t see anything, just stars and darkness as I desperately try to catch my breath.

“She’s fine. I wasn’t gonna kill her, Remy,” I hear her say. “But she needs to go.”

Remy?

Their voices sound far away as I fight to remain conscious, and my legs nearly give out on me. I can’t stop coughing.

“Get out of here, Cindy,” he growls.

“That’s rich coming from you,” she spits. She kicks me one more time. “We are not done here, demon.” Footfalls patter away along with cackling that echoes throughout the empty halls.

I keep my eyes closed as I’m finally able to cough out some water and suck in a breath. I lay on the tile floor, focusing on expelling the rest of the water from my lungs and stomach.

It’s not long before his hands are on me, and he’s rubbing gentle circles on my back. “Let it all out, Didi.”

His hands are soft, comforting, and my body relaxes enough to cough out more water. Finally, I throw up everything, heaving and shaking, and not once does his hand leave my back. Once I’m finished, I rest my head on the filthy floor, completely mortified. He shuffles around me, swearing to himself, and I hesitantly open my eyes, only to see his large black boot right in front of my face.

“Are you all done?” he asks.

I manage to choke out, “Yeah.” The school is empty, which I am grateful for, but this is utterly humiliating.

He reaches down and picks me up like a feather and helps me to my feet, then grabs my hand to steady me. “Can you walk?”

I yank my hand away. “Yes, I can walk.”

He keeps a steadying hand on me anyway, and all the emotion I have bundled up comes pouring out. My knees grow weak, and I stumble, nearly collapsing again, and before I know it, I’m in his arms.

“Let’s get you out of here,” he says.

He carries me through the hallway, and I notice how Remy stomps when he walks. Unlike Tommy, who seems to glide on water. Their differences are so stark, it’s hard to imagine them as friends. I focus on the smell of his musty leathers and how close I was to death. One more second and she would have waterboarded me straight to hell. She wasn’t stopping until I was dead.

Once outside, he finds a spot on the grass and sits me down. I lay my head on his lap as I gather my senses. “Why would she do this to me?” I finally ask him.

His hand finds my forehead. “Everyone in this town is narrow-minded. The Jesus freaks are the worst. She’s jealous and angry. Tommy and I both screwed her a few weeks ago. He had her first, then I had her right after, which is probably why she hates you. The holier they are, the wetter they get when they do something naughty.”

I want to puke at his cruel, disgusting words. Still, heat spreads between my thighs because I understand exactly what he means, and I hate myself for it.

“Why would you do that if you hate her?”

His lips twist. “I have my reasons.” He nudges my shoulder. “You think you can ride?”

I blink up at him, at his dark silhouette against the pale sky. I have no energy to say no.