Page 63 of Twisted Elites

“She’ll have you sent home for consorting with Miss Evergreen.”

He snorted. “A small price to protect the young boys at the academy from your groping hands.”

“You make me sound like a—” Her face tightened. “It wasn’t like that, and you know it.”

“That’s how it looks now,” he said.

Sebastian stood over Miss Claymore, giving her a pitying look. Part of me wanted to throttle him for feeling bad for her after everything she had done, but the anguish in his eyes assured me that he would never play that game again—despite what the knights, the queens, Cormac, and even Miss Claymore had told me.

Miss Claymore’s shoulders slumped, and she let out a long breath. “I’ll get counseling. Just keep that video to yourselves. The Board of Governors allowed me back until they could find someone else to curb the bullying.” She raised her head, revealing a face streaked with mascara-tinged tears. “For the sake of the other students, let me stay.”

“Leave,” said Sebastian.

“Are you going to report me?” she asked.

“He will if you don’t get out this instant.”

“A-alright.” She pulled herself to her feet and adjusted her thick dressing gown. “But if you get me fired and I hurt myself, it will be on your conscience for the rest of your life.”

My jaw dropped, as did the hand holding the camera. I turned to Sebastian, who winced, then to Leopold, who scowled. Miss Claymore strolled to the door and let herself out.

For several minutes, nobody spoke. I remained behind the bathroom door in case Miss Claymore burst in and tried to get my smartphone, while Leopold placed a brand new wedge under the door.

“What do you want me to do?” I whispered.

“Upload the video to youtube, back it up in the cloud, and send it to Mrs. Brunswick,” Sebastian said with a snarl. “This time, she’s gone too far.”

My phone rang. It was an unknown mobile, and probably Mr. Byrd telling me he would destroy whatever item of mine he had pilfered. The asshole had kept it for nearly two weeks, and I hadn’t even noticed it was missing. I clicked the answer button, ready to give him a piece of my mind, and snapped, “Yes?”

“Hello?” said the voice of an old woman. “It’s Mrs. Ochill from number fifty-four.”

A bolt of panic shot through my chest. “Is everything alright?”

“Someone’s been prowling around your house. I called the police, but when I told them it was unoccupied, they said a squad car would be around in the morning.”

My mind whirred. So, the prowler couldn’t have been Miss Claymore. I doubted that Mr. Byrd would travel three-hundred miles to sneak around an empty house. “Right. Thanks for telling me.”

The old woman said goodbye and hung up.

Sebastian placed a hand on my shoulder. “What’s wrong?”

“We need to go to Cummersdale.” I turned from Sebastian to Leopold. “The prowler has returned.”

Chapter 16

Since it was early on Saturday morning and Mr. Blunt had removed the clamps from the jeep, we piled into Sebastian’s car and set off for Cummersdale. Clouds streaked over the moon and stars, plunging the mountains into intermittent darkness. At times, the road seemed too narrow, with trees arching over us like creeping specters. When the road widened into two lanes, the trees disappeared, revealing deep, fathomless valleys that made my stomach lurch.

Visibility was abysmal, with the headlights illuminating a mere few feet ahead. The times when the road seemed to end abruptly were the worst, as it indicated a treacherous, hairpin turn. Sebastian took the sharp bends with great care. Leopold drummed his fingers on the dashboard, and I held onto the edges of my seat, squirming with impatience and trepidation.

I forced deep breaths in and out of my lungs. Sebastian was a careful driver, but tonight’s encounter with Miss Claymore had been harrowing enough to affect anyone’s reflexes. As much as I wanted to reach out and ask him how he felt about the deputy head’s parting words, I couldn’t distract him.

“At least this proves one thing,” Leopold said, cutting through my musings.

“What’s that?” I asked.

“Claymore wasn’t behind the break-in at your cottage.”

“You think it was a random burglar?” asked Sebastian.