Page 7 of Depraved Boys

Ashley giggled. “What name should I call out when I’m in the throes of passion?”

“Leopold. Leopold Brunswick And this moody bastard is Prakash Kashaayah.”

“How exotic!” Ashley cooed. “Are you Indian?”

The boy’s words sank through my well of embarrassment and hit my brain. Brunswick was the name of the oldest bank in England, and I’d heard the name Kashaayah from history class. It was a company formed in the eighteen-hundreds after the Indians drove out the British East India Company from the tea plantations of the Amala mountains. Was Prakash a descendant of the founder?

“His friends call him Kash,” added Leopold.

“Friends,” snapped Prakash. “Not random girls roaming through the hallways.”

I furrowed my brow. Did he have a problem with us?

Ashley’s lips pursed at his rudeness, but she quickly masked that expression with a wide smile. “It’s a pleasure to meet you both. Do you know where a girl can have a bit of fun?”

“There’s a party on Friday at Hessington Hall.”

Prakash turned away and rolled his eyes.

I hugged myself and stared at the parquet floor. While Ashley was making friends, I was invisible. Again.

“What’s going on here?” said a stern voice. A boy our age with caramel-colored hair and cheeks flushed with anger strode toward us. He was about five-ten with the slender grace of a greyhound. “Brunswick, you’ve been warned about harassing girls.”

Leopold waved his hand. “One man’s conversation is a lesser man’s harassment.”

The new boy turned to Prakash. “Are you going to stand around and watch your friend hurt these girls?”

I lowered my brows into a frown. What was the big deal? Leopold was only making conversation.

Prakash’s face tightened. “Leo, we have biology.”

Leopold bared his teeth and glared down at the newcomer. “Keep brandishing your status as a prefect over us, and—”

“And what?” The prefect straightened himself to his full height, which was still half a head shorter than Leopold and Prakash. It reminded me of a pony squaring up to a pair of bored, thoroughbred stallions. “I’m listening.”

Prakash grabbed Leopold’s bicep. “It’s not worth it.”

Leopold’s mask of fury melted, then his features morphed into a grin. “I see what you did there.” He wagged his finger. “But it’s not going to work. See you later.”

Ashley leaned forward and pouted. “Can’t wait.”

The two boys strolled down the hallway, and the red-faced prefect glowered at their backs. He growled, “Are you alright?”

“They weren’t bothering us,” I said.

“You were bothering us, though,” Ashley muttered.

As though he hadn’t heard Ashley, the prefect’s face softened. “Maybe not Kashaayah, but Brunswick was definitely sexually harassing you. My name’s Cormac Gibbons. One of my roles as a prefect is to police bullying.”

My eyes widened. The headmistress had mentioned taking measures to stamp out bullies. “I’m Willow Evergreen, and this is Ashley.”

He shook my hand. “Mrs. Benazir told me to watch out for you.” His gaze flicked to Ashley. “And this is your twin?”

“Who was getting on fine before you interrupted,” she said more forcefully.

Cormac smiled. “Sorry for seeming harsh. Bullying here isn’t just a case of shoving and name-calling. It’s far more insidious.”

“What are you talking about?” she snapped.