Chapter 28
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
JENSEN
I’d managed to keep the staff away for a few days, not wanting Rory to go back to Hunter’s. Rory hadn’t brought up Marco again, and we hadn’t either. The thought of him touching her made me violent, and I still couldn’t believe she’d let him touch her.
I wanted to blame her being drunk and him taking advantage, but she seemed quite clear on what had happened. It really didn’t help that Tyler was on board with Marco becoming his ball rubbing buddy from the messages I’d seen him sending Marco.
It was Monday morning and we were all getting ready for school. Rory had somehow kept her talking to a minimum since getting here on Thursday afternoon, and thankfully, her bruises were almost healed. Which was lucky, because Josie wasn’t going to let her hide out for much longer.
She’d allowed her space, thinking it would help her come back into civilization, but she was getting worried now. When Josie got suspicious, she didn’t let things go until she knew everything was okay.
Caden had brought Rory’s uniform here, but Josie wanted her home tonight.
“I don’t want to go back to school,” Rory grumbled, her voice sounding back to normal as long as she didn’t push it too much.
“Just don’t kill anyone and you’ll be fine. Half the school is terrified of you now, so that’s a plus,” Tyler grinned, pulling her against him and smacking a kiss on her cheek. “Claire’s kind of losing it though, so watch her.”
“I should tell her she’s my sister. That would really piss her off,” she joked, and I scrunched my nose. Rory had told us about Claire over the phone while she was locked up, and I honestly still didn’t believe it.
It was probably just Max causing trouble, and if I were Rory, I wouldn’t believe a thing without a DNA test.
“Maybe hold onto that kind of ammo until you have proof. You never know when it will come in handy,” I stated.
“I don’t particularly want people knowing I’m related to her but it would totally be worth exposing.”
“Claire’s your sister?” Caden asked in disbelief.
“I really do have the worst luck,” Rory chuckled, but it sounded forced.
“How do you know she’s your sister?”
“Max. Apparently, Claire is my mom’s biological daughter that she thought died, but Max made her vanish. Mom has no idea she’s alive,” Rory said tightly.
“I think you need to do DNA testing for sure,” Caden answered, looking thoughtful. “Do you think she knows she’s adopted? Do some digging before setting anything into motion. Do it the right way.”
“Since you’re a professional bully, tell me what you’d do,” she replied, eyeing him seriously. They’d been civil since she’d gotten here, but they had a long way to go before things were fixed between them.
“I’d dig up as many facts as possible and make sure I have proof.
Once you have facts, you dig into other things like the hotel business and her adoptive parents.
You want dirt on them. Don’t let her get to you, she’ll try setting you off to get you in trouble, so hold onto it and remember the plan.
The more information you have, the more damage you can do,” he said casually.
He was getting a kick out of this, and I couldn’t lie, we all would.
“Deep down, she’s probably shitting her pants,” Lukas pointed out.
“Despite her tough bitch bullshit, she knows you’re the reason Gunther got killed, and now Mandy.
Max’s body was never found, so she would believe you killed him and got away with it.
As far as the school’s concerned, you’re a dangerous criminal who isn’t afraid to kill someone for pissing you off. ”
“But don’t use that directly or you could potentially incriminate yourself,” Caden stated, checking the time on his phone and sighing. “We need to head off or we’ll be late. Ty can come with me, and Rory can go with you and Luke, if you want?”
Tyler didn’t look happy about being separated from Rory, but Rory nodded.
“Sounds good to me. What are our new teachers like?”
“You still have Mr. Franklin for English Lit and Mrs. Stuart for Chemistry. Mrs. Munro is our homeroom and Calculus teacher, she’s pretty chilled.
Miss Valentino is the Spanish teacher. Mr. Gillard is the art teacher, and we unfortunately have Claire in that class too.
Mr. Gillard likes her, so don’t expect him to like you.
He’s tight with her parents,” Caden said and rolled his eyes.
“Miss Valentino is really nice,” Tyler piped up, making me scoff.
“She only likes you because you fucked her.”
That made Rory’s eyes narrow, and Tyler shot me a dirty look. “Thanks for that.”
“You fucked a teacher?” Rory demanded, earning an exasperated look from him.
“I fucked most of my female teachers last year. How do you think I was passing?”
“I’m going to kill her,” Rory said bluntly, and I winced.
“Let’s not make jokes like that anymore.”
“Who’s joking?” she growled, glaring at me. “You guys are just cool with teachers fucking kids?”
“Hey, I was seventeen,” Tyler protested.
“How old were they? Fifty?”
“Slow down, I only fucked the hot ones.”
“So you think they’re hot?” she asked with a straight face.
“Don’t pick a fight,” Lukas grunted, pulling her against him to nip her lower lip. “Let’s go to school, keep our heads down, and get home. That’s today’s only goal.”
“Sounds like I have a bitch to slap and a teacher to kill, but whatever,” Rory huffed, sliding her hand into his.
I didn’t miss the fact that Rory put a gun in her bag, but I kept my mouth shut as we headed out to the garage. Knowing the Soldiers could show up and try to take her at any time made me kind of glad she had one on her for defense, but it also made me nervous.
If she shot at people in public, she’d get dragged back to prison. They’d love any reason to throw her in there with charges that stuck this time.
Lukas climbed in the back so she could sit up front with me as I drove, and it was nice to have her with us again. It had felt strange without her.
At least Caden and Tyler were also spending more time together too, even if things were still strained.
Rory
The guys hadn’t been joking, people practically dove out of my way to escape me as I walked through the school. A few waved, probably trying to show they were waving the white flag and were cool with me now, while others still shot me dirty looks like I had the plague.
“Don’t kill anyone,” Jensen murmured like I needed reminding, and I rolled my eyes as he slid his arm around my shoulders, making sure I stayed close.
“Miss Donovan, I’d like a word with you,” Mr. Ernest called out as he walked faster to catch up before we could enter the main hallway to homeroom.
“Headmaster, how lovely to see you,” I said dryly, knowing he’d wanted me out of this school the second I was arrested and that I was only still here because Josie had threatened him. “I promise I’ll behave, if that’s your concern.”
“One of many,” he grumbled, motioning to the main office. “Please. It won’t take long.”
Caden’s back was straight like he was going to pummel him for me, and I motioned for the guys to head to class.
“I’ll be fine.”
“You’ve got rocks in your head if you think you’re going alone,” Lukas scoffed, stepping closer to her. “I’ll come with you.”
The guys relaxed a little at knowing someone was going with me, and Jensen let me go as they headed to class, taking my bag with them. With the guys gone, Lukas threaded his fingers through mine and came with me to the headmaster’s office.
Once we were shut inside, we sat and waited for Mr. Ernest to take his seat and get to the point.
“Welcome back,” he started, and I sighed.
“Bet you didn’t think you’d be saying that. Don’t pretend you’re happy to see me. Tell me what you want to say so I can get to class.”
He cleared his throat, looking nervous. Was he scared of me now? That could work in my favor at a later date.
“You’re still slightly ahead of your fellow students, which is good.
Hopefully it makes settling back in here a little smoother for you.
If you have issues with any of the students harassing you, let me know.
As you’re also aware, the media aren’t allowed on school grounds, so if they give you any trouble, I’ll handle them immediately.
Your teachers are all well aware of the situation, so don’t hesitate to ask them for help if you’re struggling with anything. ”
“You could have said that outside. It’s not like the entire school didn’t watch my arrest on TV,” I said dryly as I went to stand, but he put his hand up to stop me.
“I’m not done. I’d like to remind you that violence will not be tolerated here at Ashburn Valley Academy. If you become a problem, you will be removed. Do you understand?”
“Did you get Josie to approve this little speech? You know if you try to throw me out for defending myself, you’ll be the one leaving, not me,” I warned, narrowing my eyes on him.
“If the girls give you trouble, you come to me. That’s all I’m saying,” he said firmly, some of his bravery vanishing when Lukas chuckled.
“If the girls lay a hand on her, you think she’s the only threat to them? We’ll handle it since you’re too chicken shit to do it anyway. You going to throw us out for violence too?”
“Mr. James—”
“You don’t get to fuck with her,” Lukas snapped, putting his hands on the desk as he stood, leaning forward to lean over him.
“I’ll be sure to pass this conversation over to Josie since it seems like you’re more worried about everyone else’s safety over Rory’s.
You turn a blind eye to violence here every day, but you won’t for her anymore? ”
“There’s no need to get hostile. Do you understand that your little group is publicly affiliated with gangs? None of you should be here, but you still are. If I think you’re dragging that gang violence into my school, then I will absolutely remove you.”
“Try it. See what happens.”
I liked when Lukas got pissed like this, it was hot.
“Are you threatening me?” Mr. Ernest sputtered.