Chapter 5

The noon chimes rang, a deep, melodic toll that echoed across the university quad.

Alma closed her Constitutional Law textbook. She tossed the warm, melted ice pack into the plastic trash can by the nurse's desk.

She smoothed the front of Caden's oversized team jacket. She adjusted her expression, letting a soft, nervous look settle over her features. She walked out of the clinic.

At the exact same moment, behind the campus athletic center, Caden stood in the shadow of the bleachers.

Roisin FitzAlan leaned against the brick wall. She was a junior who spent more time in detention than in class. She had a silver ring pierced through her eyebrow and smelled heavily of cheap cigarette smoke.

Caden pulled a folded stack of twenty-dollar bills from his pocket. He held it out.

"Brenda, Shawna, and Tammy," Caden said, his voice flat. "Make sure they understand."

Roisin flicked her cigarette butt onto the concrete. She snatched the cash from Caden's hand and shoved it into the pocket of her leather jacket.

She grinned, showing a chipped front tooth.

"Consider it done," Roisin said. She whistled sharply. Two other girls stepped out from behind the dumpsters. They walked toward the main building.

Inside the girls' locker room, the air was thick with hairspray.

Shawna and Tammy were standing in front of the long mirrors. They were changing into their designer tracksuits.

"Did you see her face?" Shawna laughed, applying a thick coat of lip gloss. "Brenda almost knocked her teeth out."

Tammy giggled. "She looked like a drowned rat."

The heavy metal door of the locker room suddenly slammed open. It hit the wall with a deafening crash.

Roisin walked in. Her heavy combat boots thudded against the tile floor. Her two friends followed, pulling the door shut behind them.

There was a loud click as Roisin locked the deadbolt.

Shawna dropped her lip gloss. It rolled across the floor.

"What are you doing?" Shawna asked. Her voice shook.

Roisin didn't answer. She crossed the room in seconds. She lunged straight for Brenda, grabbing the sorority president by the throat and slamming her hard against the metal lockers. The impact knocked the wind out of Brenda.

"You're the boss, right?" Roisin hissed, watching Brenda gasp for air in pure shock. "Consider this a demotion."

Roisin shoved Brenda to the floor, leaving her gasping, then turned to the others. She grabbed a fistful of Shawna's blonde hair.

Shawna screamed.

Roisin slammed Shawna face-first into the mirror. The glass rattled.

Tammy stumbled backward in terror. Her back hit the cold metal lockers.

One of Roisin's friends stepped up. She kicked Tammy hard in the back of the knee. Tammy collapsed onto the wet tile. The girl grabbed a large plastic water bottle from a bench and dumped the freezing water directly over Tammy's head.

Tammy gasped, coughing as the water soaked her designer tracksuit.

Roisin leaned close to the mirror, pressing Shawna's cheek against the glass.

"Caden says hi," Roisin whispered into Shawna's ear. "He said you touched something that belongs to him."

Shawna sobbed. "It was Brenda! Brenda did it! We just watched!"

Roisin pulled a pair of sharp metal scissors from her jacket pocket. The blades glinted under the fluorescent lights.

She pressed the cold metal flat against Shawna's cheek. She grabbed a thick chunk of Shawna's hair near the root.

Snip.

A six-inch lock of blonde hair fell onto the wet floor.

Shawna shrieked hysterically.

"You have until the hour is up to find Alma in the dining hall," Roisin said, her voice dead serious. "You apologize in front of everyone. If you don't, tomorrow I cut something else."

Fifteen minutes later, Alma walked into the crowded dining hall.

She held a plastic tray with a bowl of soup. She walked past the empty tables in the back. She deliberately chose a table right in the center of the room. It was highly visible.

She sat down. She pulled Caden's jacket tighter around herself.

The double doors of the dining hall banged open.

The loud chatter in the room died instantly. Hundreds of heads turned.

Caden walked in. His face was a mask of cold fury.

Behind him, Shawna and Tammy stumbled into the room. Their tracksuits were soaked. Shawna's hair was a jagged, uneven mess on one side. Their eyes were red and swollen from crying.

Caden walked straight to the center of the room. He stopped at Alma's table.

He didn't say a word. He just turned and glared at the two girls behind him.

Shawna and Tammy walked up to Alma's table. Their bodies were shaking violently.

Every student in the dining hall was watching in dead silence.

Shawna and Tammy bowed at the waist.

"We're sorry," Shawna cried loudly, her voice echoing in the quiet room. "We're so sorry we bullied you this morning. We'll never look at you again. We swear."

Alma's fingers tightened around the plastic soup spoon.

A rush of pure, intoxicating power flooded her veins. It took every ounce of her self-control not to smile. The physical sensation of dominance made her stomach flutter.

But her face showed only shock and fear.

Alma looked up at Caden. Her eyes were wide, pleading.

"Caden, it's okay," Alma whispered softly, making sure her voice sounded shaky. "Just... let them go. Please."

Caden looked down at her. Her forgiveness made him feel like a god. He had protected her, and she was merciful because of him.

He turned his head slightly toward the crying girls.

"Get out," Caden spat.

Shawna and Tammy covered their faces and ran out of the dining hall.

Caden pulled out the chair next to Alma and sat down.

Instantly, the students at the surrounding tables looked down at their food. No one dared to stare.

Caden reached out. He gently brushed his knuckles against Alma's uninjured cheek.

Alma didn't pull away. She leaned into his touch slightly, playing the role of the grateful, rescued bird.

At a table near the window, Brenda sat frozen. Her face was chalk-white. She dropped her fork onto her tray. She didn't make a sound.

Alma lowered her head and took a sip of her soup.

Behind the rim of the plastic bowl, her shoulders finally relaxed. The tension left her spine.

The message was delivered. She was untouchable.

She walked out of the dining hall with Caden by her side. The afternoon sun hit her face. The first phase of her survival plan was complete.