Helen’s small grin vanished. She sucked in her own breath.

I leaned forward and whispered, “He wants to get back together with his wife and since she’s back, it looks like those two will reconcile.”

Her jaw clamped tight and I knew she blinked back tears.

I leaned close. “I might have to deal with you as a future mother-in-law, but I hope that you’ll never become my future stepmother.” I stood but I bent towards her again. “You’re a real bitch, do you know that?”

Then I swept out of the private box and hurried down the stairs and through the narrow hallway. As I entered the gym, the sounds doubled from what I had heard in the box, but I sighed in relief. I could breath. Then I twisted around and looked up. The plastic walls were clear and I saw her watching me. A somber expression was on her face, but I turned my back. I didn’t care.

The referee whistled, the ball hit the wall beside me, and I was jerked back to reality.

The game still went on.

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

I sat in a back corner on the opponents’ bleachers. I knew few of Mason and Logan’s friends and even fewer still that would want to sit with me. As the game progressed and Fallen Crest Public’s team won 32-24, I waited as everyone milled onto the open gym. When the team went back to the locker room, it was obvious their party crowd all waited around to figure out plans for the rest of the evening. It was just as obvious to see that Kate, Parker, Natalie, and Jasmine were the reigning Elite for their school. When they walked, everyone watched.

As I bypassed some of the opposing team’s fans, more than a few of them noticed the same. A group of girls grumbled at the FCP’s skanks, but when Natalie heard the comment, her head reared up and her eyes went feral.

She shoved through the crowd and stopped in front of their group. “Excuse me, bitch?”

Jasmine was the first to shove after her. She crossed her skinny arms and flared her nostrils. When a lock of her black hair got in her eyes, she flicked it back and looked annoyed. Kate and Parker followed suit but held back a step.

I felt Kate’s eyes on me but never moved. I was to the side and turned in a slow motion. For some reason I wanted to watch this.

The girl who had made the comment backed up a step. Her eyes got wide, but her friends rallied around her. They were all dressed in tight jeans and tight tops. Most of them wore pigtails that were loosely pulled back to look sexy.

Natalie smirked as she skimmed her up and down. “You call us skanks? You’re the Whores-R-Us of Nethlam. Who do you think you are?”

The girl’s mouth shut with a snap and she paled. Her friends giggled, but no one spoke against them. Natalie’s arm was hoisted to her hip in a dramatic pose. It was meant for intimidation, but I couldn’t hide my grin. Kate’s eyes narrowed as she saw it, but she didn’t say anything. Instead, she shuffled closer to Natalie and shoved forward. As she stood in front, her arms were crossed and she stuck her head forward. Then her lips lifted in a snarl and her eyes turned murderous. “Leave before I bash your brains in.”

One of the girls snorted.

It was all they needed.

Both Kate and Natalie grabbed for her and pushed her through the crowd. They slammed her into the nearest wall and lifted her in the air. The girl was pale and shaking as they got in her face. Her lip trembled and I wondered if she would puke in their faces.

The girls’ friends scattered. Jasmine and Parker kicked at their heels as they did. One of the girls tripped. When she fell to the floor, she looked over her shoulder in horror. When she saw that Jasmine and Parker hadn’t descended on her, relief flooded her and she pushed herself back up. She ran after her friends.

“You think you’re funny?” Natalie glared at the girl, an inch from her face.

“No—oo—no,” the girl stuttered. Her mouth opened and closed.

Natalie pressed harder against her throat.

“I—” the girl gasped. There was no sound after that. When her face changed to a blue color, I shoved through the crowd and yanked Natalie away.

Kate rounded on me but stopped short.

The girl fell to the ground. Her knees buckled as she landed with a hard plop on her bottom.

“What are you doing?” Natalie started to get in my face.

I shoved her back. “You were choking her.”

She quieted but not before looking at Kate for confirmation. Both of them edged back a step to regard me.

I knelt beside the girl. “You okay?”

Her hand massaged at her throat, but she nodded as she coughed for air. “…anks…”

I glared at the other two but couldn’t contain my animosity as I snapped at the girl, “Next time, shut your mouth.”

Kate and Natalie shared a look and I knew they wondered if that was meant for them, but I shoved past them. I didn’t care. As I walked away from them and merged with the crowd that was still gathered on the court, I let my hands fall to my side. They were clenched in fists and I shook them free. My fingers had stiffened, and they were white from blood loss.

Then I let out a deep breath. I hadn’t realized I’d been holding it. That was starting to become a pattern for me, but I knew what those girls were like now. They were rough and they were in your face. They used force while the girls at the Academy used whispers and gossip. I took another deep breath. I wasn’t sure which was better, but it didn’t matter. They were two sides of the same coin.

As soon as I stepped out into the concession area I had come in from, there were more loud shouts. People sprinted past me. Some shoved against others in their pursuit and alarm flared inside of me. Whatever Natalie and Kate had been doing, it didn’t compare to what was going on there.

“Where the FUCK are they?!” a guy shouted over the rest.

There was movement from the crowd around him. A wave of people pressed back. A girl tripped next to me, but I caught her and held her up. When I saw it was one of the girls who had left their friend inside, my hand let go as if scalded. Then I turned back. There were more shouts and curses.

The same guy yelled out in a low baritone, “I’ll rip them up! I don’t care about no goddamn restraining order. Let go of me—”

Another wave went through the crowd. People were pressed against all sides of me and I gasped for air.

“No!”

“Get him!”

“Stand down!”

“Fuck you all—”