Chapter Forty-One

Havermouth High School, Five Years Before

Aislen made it to the grassy slope before the bell and sat in the normal position that Heath customarily occupied. She saw the Triquetra walk out of a building in a gathering of other jocks and cheerleaders. Was it a werewolf trait to always move in a pack? She wondered, as she watched them approach.

They were beautiful, she admitted ruefully. They were simply more athletic, their hair shinier, their skin clearer, their teeth straighter and whiter. There was something to their bone structure, to their long-limbed height and grace of motion that stood out amongst the human students, and, quite simply, outshone them.

And three of them were hers, she added to herself. Or sort of. Under whatever complicated, convoluted twisted arrangement that existed between them, whatever madness that had them wanting her… and they wanted her, she told herself. She was a telepath, and however poor a one she was, she could still tell that much. All three wanted her on some level.

The three new girls walked in amongst them, between Rhett and Cameron, and she inhaled, a sharp strike of jealousy twisting between her ribs.

Cameron saw her first, nudging Heath, and indicating towards her with his head.

“Oh look,” Lillian drawled to Diana as they made their way to the spot on the rise of grass. “The Triquetra’s whore has learned to sit like a well-trained bitch.”

“Well, you know, you just need to find the right type of bone to make a bitch sit up and beg,” Cameron replied with smug inuendo. “Three bones work better than one.”

Aislen opened her mouth to snap back, and saw Heath’s expression tighten, his chin lifting, and dropped her head instead, glaring at her lap. Heath dropped his school bag next to her and sat to one side whilst Cameron sat on the other. She did not look up as Rhett sat at her feet, wondering if they had deliberately formed a triangle around her.

“Here,” Cameron passed her a scone from his school bag. “They’re good.”

“Thank you,” she said. There was jam and cream in between and it was fresh and crumbly. It was odd, though, she thought, that whoever had made them had added herbs, from the little green flecks within the white mix and a slightly bitter flavour that lingered on her tongue.

“Heath,” Cameron passed another over her, brushing against her as he did. (Fuck she smells good. She’s done something to her face, I like it…) “Rhett?”

Rhett twisted to accept it before shifting his position, leaning back against Aislen’s legs. (Show them… Ours.) His attention was on where Lillian and Diana sat with the three new girls. The five were whispering and shooting Aislen looks.

When she met their eyes, they snickered and huddled closer, leaving her in no doubt that they spoke about her. The other cheerleaders and jocks close by listened in, and she saw several glance out of the corner of their eyes at her. She felt her skin crawl, and she struggled to swallow the scone, coughing slightly.

“Drink?” Rhett offered the bottle he was drinking from.

“Thank you,” she took a mouthful and almost choked on the straight alcohol.

“I’ll have some,” Cameron took the bottle from her as she wiped off her mouth on the back of her hand. “We’re going to ditch and go-- ” He started to say to Aislen.

“Careful,” Heath cautioned. “Mr. Owens is coming over.”

The group looked up as Mr. Owens stopped in front of them. “Good morning,” he smiled, but his eyes remained reserved. “Ms. Carter, can I have a moment of your time?”

Fuck, Aislen thought. “I guess so,” she said. As she stood, her head swam. The cheerleaders burst into laughter as she staggered, almost stepping on Rhett.

Heath caught her by the elbow. (Fuck, the timing…) “Aislen’s a bit under the weather today, Mr. Owens,” he said to the principal. “She was just saying that she has a migraine. Perhaps I should accompany her and make sure that she gets to the nurse’s office alright?”

“We’ll keep it brief,” a muscle twitched in the corner of Mr. Owen’s jaw. “Come with me then, Mr. Gale, Ms. Carter.”

“Keep it together, and keep your mouth shut,” Heath hissed to her as they followed.

Mr. Owens paused in the door of his office. “Wait out here, Mr. Gale, if you would,” he gestured to the row of seats pressed against the wall. Heath’s grip tightened on Aislen’s elbow, and she got a clear impression that he was reluctant to let her go in alone, both because Mr. Owen was set against the relationship, and because…

“Fuck,” Aislen exclaimed and then slapped a hand over her mouth as both Heath and Mr. Owen looked at her in surprise. “Sorry,” she mumbled. “I just remembered something that I didn’t do this morning.”

Heath’s thoughts were that the scone that Cameron had fed her was baked with butter laced with marijuana, which explained why her head had gone light and she was having trouble focusing.

“Well, Ms. Carter?” Mr. Owen’s prompted, and she realized that she had been staring vacantly.

“Okay,” she said, flustered. “Okay.”

“Mr. Gale,” Mr. Owens’ tone was stern, and Heath grimaced, but released her and took a seat, his posture all attitude with his elbows on his spread knees. “This won’t take long,” he waited for Aislen to enter the room. She saw her school bag sitting on his desk with a mix of concern and relief. “As you can see, some lost property was returned to the school this morning,” he said as he sat.

She took the bag and riffled through the contents, relieved to find her art supplies untouched.

“Thank you,” she said to him. “I misplaced it yesterday.”

“Oh, I know,” he replied. “You misplaced it at a property to which the police were called to investigate a disturbance to the peace, and where they arrested several students from this school, as well as the teenaged son of the homeowner, due to underage drinking and drugs on site. The homeowners are away for the week, and apparently their absence was taken advantage of.”

“Umm,” Aislen swallowed thickly. Her mouth was parched, and she wasn’t sure if it was because of the scone, or nerves. “Yes, I was there for a little while, and then I left with Heath, Cameron, and Rhett. I guess I left it behind.”

“Of course, you did,” Mr. Owens agreed solemnly. “There appears to be a concerning trend forming, Ms. Carter. Several of your teachers have commented on a drop in attendance to classes, lack of homework handed in, and a lack of attention or interest when you are present, which seems to have coincided with your… friendship, if I may call it that, with Heath Gale, Cameron Edison, and Rhett Salem. What do you think of that?”

“I don’t know,” she mumbled, looking at the hem of her skirt and tugging it down uncomfortably. It was too short, she thought fretfully.

“Mr. Grayson says that you are a talented artist and believes that you could have a real chance of gaining entry to an art school in Rideten, which could lead to a career in arts. He wants the school to use our resources to provide you with a full-ride scholarship for the three years you would be there, were you to be accepted.”

Aislen looked up. “He said something about that to me the other day…” What day had it been? She wondered. She couldn’t remember, her thoughts were vague and hazy.

“Yes, that is so,” Mr. Owens’ eyes searched her face. “But for us to do that, we need you to prove that our money is well spent on a reliable candidate, Ms. Carter. We need you to maintain your grades, hand in homework and other assignments on time and improve your attendance. Can you do that?”

“I guess,” she doubted it. The Triquetra seemed to delight in disrupting her routine as it suited them.

“We need a bit more than ‘I guess’ from you,” he said firmly. “Perhaps you need to consider the impact that your friendships are having on your future, Ms. Carter. You are at an impressionable, easily influenced age, and the three boys that you are… associating…” There was emphasis behind the word that left her in no doubt that he knew she was fucking them. “ith at this time, is not in your best interest.”

“Ms. Grace said the same thing,” she remembered.

“Ms. Grace is a very sensible, wise person,” he replied.

She sniggered, remembering the last time she had been in his office, and the flash of memory that he’d had of bending Ms. Grace over his table and spanking her. Very sensible and wise, she thought, shaking with laughter.

“Ms. Carter?” His voice sharpened. “Is something funny?”

She pressed her lips together, and shook her head, wide eyed, fighting back the giggles that burst forth anyway. She gripped the arms of the chair, howling with mirth.

“Ms. Carter,” he snapped. “Are you under the influence right now?”

She was laughing so hard that she was weeping as she shook, and then nodded her head. She needed to get out of there, she thought. “I’m sorry,” she said, rising to her feet and clutching the bag to her. “I just… I need to go. Before you spank me too,” she was unable to keep it to herself any longer, and saw his anger fall away and his face sag in shock.

She closed the door behind her and sagged against it still laughing.

“Aislen?” Heath stood. “What is going on?”

She saw Rhett and Cameron coming down the hall. “Quick, quick,” she said to Heath, taking his hand and pulling him towards them. “We should go before Mr. Owens recovers enough to give chase.”