“No, his friend Eric picked him up.”
“Kieran has friends?” It was a stupid question. Of course he had friends. I was just used to seeing him as Solange’s boyfriend, or before that, as the annoying agent from the annoying secret society. Which I was now a member of. When, exactly, had life become so ridiculously complicated?
Oh yeah, when I’d had to Taser my best friend.
“Lucy, are you coming?” Hunter was waiting for me by the door. “Theo’s right, you need dinner. Cafeteria’s that way.”
“Aren’t you eating?”
She shook her head. “I want to call Kieran, then I need to put in some time at the gym.”
“I hate you.”
“Why does everyone say that when I mention going to the gym?” she muttered as she walked away.
When I got to the cafeteria I felt lost in a way I hadn’t felt in a long time. I’d gone to the same school and had the same friends and driven down the same country road to see them nearly every day for years. I never really noticed that until now. But recent events had kicked me out of my safe cocoon. In the past few months alone I’d been captured by hostile vampires, been held in a dungeon, gotten stitches in the back of my head, and electrocuted my best friend. None of those things made me feel as awkward or helpless as this tidy cafeteria with its antique floors and stained glass windows and the pause in the hum of conversations as everyone stopped to watch me in the doorway.
I wasn’t used to being the one who hesitated uncertainly.
No way in hell I was going to be that girl now.
I forced myself to step forward, trying to smile with a breezy nonchalance I was nowhere near feeling. I struggled to ignore the itchy weight of so many eyeballs tracking my every move. The Helios-Ra student body wasn’t exactly large—there were only about thirty students per grade—but most of them were here right now, whispering about me between mouthfuls of meatloaf and mashed potatoes.
Even though I was starving, I suddenly couldn’t stand the thought of bringing my plastic tray to an empty table and pretending I didn’t notice all the staring. Ordinarily, I would have just introduced myself to the first friendly looking group, but I didn’t have it in me yet. Tomorrow. After I talked to Solange and Nicholas and Kieran.
I grabbed a protein bar and a banana for later and decided to text Solange again. I knew she must be fine, since no one had called to tell me otherwise. But I should probably apologize for the Taser thing. And let her apologize for trying to bite me.
“God, you’re still here?” someone sneered. It was a girl who’d given me attitude the first day I’d moved into the dorms, only she was with two guys this time. I could practically smell the testosterone and it wasn’t coming off them. I nearly groaned out loud. I so wasn’t in the mood for this. And I’d watched enough 1980s John Hughes movies to know this wasn’t going to go well.
“I can’t believe they’d let a vampire spy in here,” she said. There were a lot of stakes on her belt. “You know you don’t belong here, right? I mean, you’re not stupid enough to think this is normal? Especially with all of the agents coming in to protect the town from all of your friends.”
The other students fell silent around us, openly eavesdropping.
“You know what? I’m a little tired from beating people up all night to deal with your issues.” I wondered how much detention I’d get for starting a brawl in the cafeteria.
“We’ll be watching you,” one of the guys warned, looming.
“I’ve been loomed over by the best,” I informed him. “You need to practice.”
“Oh yeah?” He stepped up closer, purposefully bumping me back.
I had a lovely daydream of breaking his nose.
In fact, I was making a fist before I’d even realized it.
“Whoa.” Hunter’s friend Jenna was suddenly beside me. “Ben’s an ass but he’s not worth scrubbing toilets for a month.”
I paused. “Detention is toilet duty?”
“For hitting another student, yeah.”
I lowered my fist reluctantly. “Gross.”
“She’s a traitor, Jenna,” Ben insisted, looking vaguely surprised that she wasn’t automatically on his side.
“And you’re being a Neanderthal.” She narrowed her eyes warningly at him. The freckles on her nose didn’t make her look any less intimidating. She turned to me, ignoring them. “Want to go for a run?”
“Yes.”
And that was scarier than any bully.
I was sweaty and panting painfully at the end of the track when one of the teachers pointed at me.
“Lucky Hamilton?”
“Close enough,” I sighed. Clearly, I was going to have to reeducate everyone on campus. I hadn’t gone by Lucky since my first day of regular school.
“The headmistress wants to see you.”
I winced. “I didn’t do it.”
He quirked a smile. “Her office is on the ground floor, the brick building there.”
Jenna wiped her face with a towel. “Tough luck, Hamilton.”
“Shit,” I grumbled. “Classes haven’t even started yet.”
“She probably just wants to warn you that Hunter and I are bad influences.” She grinned.
I snorted. “Please, Hunter gets straight As.”
“And she’s dating a vampire.”
“Details.”