Page 133 of Depraved Boys

I rubbed my temples. Was this one of the missing memories from before the attempted murder disguised as a car accident? If so, how did I get from my room to sitting here with Cormac, to falling down the side of the mountain in Mom’s Renault?

After drinking a few cups of water from the cooler, I headed toward the nearest stairwell and up to the second floor, where Dr. Forrest taught Human Biology. Hopefully, he’d tell me that I had a stomach flu or something, and excuse me from classes for the rest of the week. I’d be able to study alone and get through more of Corrine’s diary.

“I love you so much,” whispered Cormac’s voice from the floor above.

My feet froze.

A female giggle echoed through the stairwell, but it didn’t sound like it belonged to Michelle or Cara or any of the other female scholars.

“You know I love you, right?” said Geraldine’s voice.

My jaw dropped, and I clutched at my chest. There was no way Cormac and Geraldine were together. He hated her. Geraldine had made the pull-a-pig announcement about Prakash and Corrine in front of everyone.

“I just can’t get enough of you,” she murmured in a voice as sweet as saccharine.

A bitter aftertaste filled the back of my throat. Most of my interactions had been with Bianca, who seemed more malevolent than her blonde friend, but Geraldine was also a bully. She had been the one to offer the boys ten-thousand pounds for my virginity.

“Geraldine,” he said in a breathy whisper. “When can we—”

“Not until we’re married. Please don’t push me.”

“Of course.”

My stomach twisted. Was this a Romeo and Juliet romance or a pull-a-pig game? I rubbed my belly and groaned. What if this was her revenge for all his efforts to stamp out bullying? He was already distraught from his sister’s death. Another terrible heartbreak would shatter his spirit.

“There is something you can do for me,” she said in a wheedling tone.

“Anything,” he growled.

“I always think about you when I’m alone in bed… pleasuring myself.”

He hissed through his teeth. “Really?”

I shook my head.

“But I need…”

“What do you need?” he said in an urgent whisper.

“Visual aids,” she replied in an excited voice.

Dick pics. I braced my hands against the wall and groaned against the dread and disgust rippling through my insides. With Cormac’s dick pics, Geraldine could create a pull-a-pig reveal that would rival Ashley’s.

I straightened, but another spasm seized my diaphragm and had me doubling over. I groaned. What was wrong with me? Did my stomach not agree with the Chinese herbs? Before I could shout out a warning, my stomach muscles quickened, and I wretched out a belly-full of watery bile.

“What’s that noise?” Geraldine used the disgusted tone she often employed while wrinkling her nose.

“We’d better go,” said Cormac.

Their footsteps receded up the stairs, then a door yawned open and clicked shut.

The bell rang, and I wiped my mouth with the back of my hand. Of all the times to get sick, why did it have to block me from rescuing my best friend?

“Willow?”

I raised my head to find Prakash heading toward me on the stairs, and a groan slid from my lips.

“We need to take you to Dr. Forrester,” he said.