Page 355 of Knox Academy Omnibus
I hang up and look at the time. It's just in time for lunch. I take Mackenzie and show her where the dining hall is and find Elsie quickly.
“Hey, this is Mackenzie and she’s new. Monty wants someone to show her around after lunch but I have a meeting with him. Could you possibly do it?”
“Sure,” she replies, eyeing Mackenzie up.
“Thanks. You win top best friend status, Baxter is demoted.”
“I’m telling him you said that.”
“I hope so.”
I leave Mackenzie with Elsie and disappear before Kalen shows up. He’ll want to tag along, but I like the feeling of being independent.
I knock on Monty’s office door before I open it. He’s sitting behind his large desk.
“Ready for round two?”
“What do you mean?”
“While we were at that hearing, I had Dirk and Cap pick up Kathryn.”
“Dirk?”
“He’s not a bad guy, Amelie. And he’s your family. You should give him a chance.”
“Because the rest of my family have been so good to me you mean?”
“Look.” He sighs. But he’s cut off by a knock at the door before he can continue. “Come in.”
In walks my uncle and Kathryn, the girl from the bar. I’m still unsure of what use she can be because there was so little in her file, but there’s something about her that makes me want to give her a chance. She’s hot in a grungy Kesha sort of way, with her blonde hair and cowboy boots. Clearly she’s got changed since her court hearing.
My uncle nods at me, and I nod back. Kathryn looks around the room. She doesn’t seem to have as much attitude as Mackenzie.
“I’m going to take Dirk for a walk around campus. I trust everything here is okay for you to handle?” Monty asks.
“Sure.”
I wish he’d told me this before I showed Mackenzie around. I would have done them both at the same time.
“I’m Amelie,” I say, once Monty and Dirk leave.
“Kathryn. I remember your face.”
“You do?”
“Yeah it was months ago now, but you came into the bar and you sat with a guy. Samuel or S…”
“Sawyer.”
“Yeah, that’s him. He hasn’t been around in a while actually.”
“I’ve been keeping him busy,” I tell her and she laughs. Her memory is super good, and I’m starting to see that Baxter knows more about this girl than her one news article. He would never allow someone he knows nothing about to get close to me. I just have to figure it out.
“Are you going to explain to me what I’m really doing here? I’m sorry to be blunt, but a fancy lawyer doesn’t offer his services for free and then get me a deal to serve a few years here. There has to be a catch.”
“You’re right. I want you to work for me in a private organisation.” Damn, where were those words earlier? Private organisation sounds so much better than ‘club’. Mackenzie was right to tease me for being ten. “Long story short, you initiate, you pass, you get in and there’s no way out.”
“And what do I have to do? It’s not some weird sex place or anything, is it?”
