Page 52 of Depraved Boys

Most of the boys’ attention moved to Bruce, who cupped his face and bellowed like a skewered bull. Blood streamed through the gaps in his fingers, but I didn’t stick around to see if I had done him irreparable damage. Instead, I dove into the stairwell leading to the west wing and galloped away.

Right now, I needed to retreat. The hallways weren’t safe, and those guys I hurt would probably retaliate.

I spent the rest of the third period sitting on my bed, waiting for my hands to stop shaking and for the roiling of my stomach to calm. What the fuck was that, and why had those boys turned into such animals? I should have taken Uncle Trevor up on his offer to escort me to Mrs. Benazir’s office. No amount of fake mental fortitude could have prepared me for those boys.

Blowing out a long, shuddering breath, I wrapped my arms around my middle and growled. The next person who touched me inappropriately again would get a finger in the eye or a fist to the balls. I’d keep fighting back until they realized it wasn’t worth the effort.

Bells rang for lunch, and then for the afternoon periods. No one had reported me or any of the boys to Miss Claymore or Mrs. Benazir, and I still couldn’t get myself to stand.

I pulled out my bag of medicine bottles and swallowed my doses for the day. Whatever happened, I couldn’t afford to become ill from the raw meat.

Someone knocked on the door.

A palpitation resounded through my insides, and my stomach muscles clenched. It couldn’t be Ashley. She already had her key and probably wouldn’t face me after what she had done.

“Who is it?” I tried to keep the tremble out of my voice.

“Cormac, come to take you to dinner,” he said through the door.

I shook my head. “I’ve lost my appetite.”

“You’ve been in there for hours. I know you’re hungry. Do you want me to bring something up from the kitchens?”

My stomach growled. I pulled myself to my feet and walked to the door. “I’ll come with you.”

Cormac stood in the hallway, his shoulders hunched and his head bowed. “I had no idea the girls were planning something so heinous.” The sincerity in his words made my heart ache. “If I’d known, I would have intervened.”

A lump formed in my throat, and my eyes became damp. He was more of a sibling to me than my actual twin. “I know. Thank you.”

He raised his head, a mixture of anger and determination shining in his eyes. The intensity of his gaze made me step back. Then he placed both hands on my shoulders. “Don’t let it slide.” His voice went hoarse, and he broke eye contact. “That’s what Corrine did.”

“Cormac?”

His hands dropped to his side. He stepped away and turned his face to the wall. “If I endure this humiliation, the kings will like me.”

“What?”

He rubbed his temple. “It’s something Corrine once said. One of her bloody devil’s bargains.”

I placed a hand on my friend’s arm. “I’m not going to be like that. As soon as I see Mrs. Benazir or Miss Claymore, I’ll tell them everything.”

“What about the police?” he asked.

“I already made a statement at the hospital while it was still fresh in my mind. The constable told me I could press charges at any time.”

He nodded and set off down the hallway. “If one of them got arrested for this and word leaked to the press, the others would think twice before they carried out something so cruel and disgusting.”

Chewing my lip, I followed after him. The fallout from having my name in the papers as some kind of victim might be worse than the actual assault. It wasn’t like I could ask the search engines and social networks to keep my details off of the internet.

As soon as we stepped into the stairwell, his words fully registered, and my chest tightened. What about scholarships and university interviews? The people awarding them would Google me and find out.

I shook off those thoughts. If I worried about things like that, those girls would continue hurting others until someone died.

Cormac turned to me. “I should warn you that rumors have already spread throughout the academy.”

“I learned that the hard way,” I muttered.

We stepped into the dining room, and whispers filled the air. I tightened my stomach and braced myself for the worst. Heads turned, but no one spoke. My gaze flickered to the head table, where Miss Claymore surveyed the room.