Chapter 40
SADIE
Telling someone I won’t let a deranged person get me rattled is easier said than done.
I didn’t want Danny to stress about me too much, so I had to put on a brave face.
But my stomach has been coiled tight the whole morning.
I’m not sure if it’s because of Gwen or that her despicable acts simply triggered my PTSD again.
I’m so jumpy that when someone taps me on the shoulder while I’m in line to buy a snack, I jerk back.
“Relax, Sadie. It’s just me,” Jane says.
“Blimey, girl. You almost gave me a heart attack.”
“I heard about what happened yesterday. How are you?”
“Jittery as fuck, as you just witnessed,” I blurt out, and then regret it. “Please don’t tell Danny I said that. I don’t want him to freak out.”
“He’s already concerned.”
“I know.”
“But I think everything will be all right. A girl in one of my classes is a ChiO. Danny’s ex was kicked out of the sorority, and school administration is investigating the claims against her.”
“They are? We didn’t tell anyone what we found in her bedroom.”
Jane shrugs. “Someone did. Anyway, I thought you’d be happy to know.”
“I’d be happier if she had been expelled already.”
“I know. It’s possible she’ll only get academic probation. Better than nothing, right?”
“Not really” is on the tip of my tongue, but I keep my retort bottled in. Jane has been nothing but kind to me. I shouldn’t bite her head off because I don’t like her news. Don’t shoot the messenger and all that.
I plaster a fake smile on my face and say, “Sure.”
“It’s your turn now.” She nods toward the counter. “I have to run to my next class. See you later.”
“Yeah, see ya.”
I buy an orange juice and a protein bar, then rush out of the cafeteria. I lost track of time, and now I only have five minutes to cross the park and get to the Humanities building. I’m about to break into a run when someone yanks my arm.
“Hey!” I turn, coming face-to-face with the psycho. “What the hell? Let go of me.”
“You think you won this war, don’t you?” she asks, still clutching my arm in a vise grip. “You’re sorely mistaken. Danny and I are meant to be together, and no one will come between us, least of all some European trash like you.”
Goddamn it. The crazy in her eyes is real. My heart is racing as I pull my arm free from her grasp.
“You’re delusional and belong in a psych ward.”
My words have no impact on her as she continues her tirade. “This is your final warning. Stay away from Danny or you’ll regret it.”
She whirls around and walks away while all I do is stare at her gobsmacked. My pulse is pounding loudly in my ears, and my chest is tight.
For fuck’s sake. She did not just put me in a state of panic.
I should have done something, but save for punching the bitch in her throat, there was nothing I could do.
My speech to Danny this morning flashes in my mind mockingly.
I told him I doubted she’d do anything to me now that everyone knows what she did to my car.
What a fucking joke. No one can predict what deranged people will do.
I pull my cell phone out and look at the time. I’m already late for class, but hell, I’m in no condition to sit through a lecture.
If Gwen thinks she can simply threaten me and get away with it, she’s mistaken. It’s time I speak with the dean’s representative. If he can’t help me, then I’ll use every resource I have.
That crazy fucker needs to go.