Page 8 of Reign of the Queen
Tears fill my eyes and start trailing down my cheeks as I swivel around. I start walking away toward my house.
"Amelia, ignore them, come on back!" Rosie calls.
"Why'd you have to be so mean to her like that? It's not like it's her fault she's bigger." I hear Finn talking to them.
I start running toward my house, but I can't sprint quick enough because of my weight.
"RUN, COW, RUN!" I hear Melinda shouting as the other two make mooing sounds.
I snap back from the brief, horrible memory. When I think of Finn, it makes me sad for the boy he was and the man it seems he is becoming. Finn gives me this innocent look from down the table, but we both know he's not.
He's just as corrupt as the other three. His beautiful light ochre skin radiates with the sunlight streaming through the large windows behind him, making him appear to glow. His dark, wavy hair shimmers with the light streaming in. Those dark, soulful eyes of his make you feel like you're being drawn in and falling down a rabbit hole; but it's all a façade, just as much as the other three are and as much as I am now too. Evil knows evil, and the five of us sitting at this table are all tainted by it—one way or another.
"No, not really other than lacrosse." I smirk and meet his gaze. Was that a trick question? Is he suspicious of who I am already? Raegan kicks my calf under the table, and I smirk back at her. I look at her, letting her know I am fully aware I'm being baited.
"Lacrosse, huh, not an easy sport, very physical, so you like getting physical?" Mateo throws the lewd comment out there and smiles his devil's grin.
I give him an enticing smile. "Under the right circumstances, I enjoy bruising and breaking things too."
Jessie and what's left of the original table chuckle. The kings all sit there watching me, no sign of humor on their faces. I continue to eat, so I don't look like their presence has affected my appetite, but I'm starting to struggle to get this salad down my throat; it now tastes like cardboard.
"Stratford…what exactly does your family do?" The vision of patience, control, and elegance. Theo sits slightly forward, hands clasped on the top of the table.
Predator meets alpha predator. Of all the kings, he is the most dangerous to me. He's the planner, the thinker of the group. I know with his question and the way it's asked, he already knows the answer and is already doing research on me. He's just waiting to see if I'll slip up somehow.
I give him a short perusal, making it fully obvious I am checking out his features. They don't disappoint either. He has warm, tanned skin from many days of being out in the sun, dark blonde shaggy hair, longer on top and shaved on the sides but perfectly styled, beautiful blue eyes that remind me of the Atlantic in its coldness, framed by long dark full lashes. He has full eyebrows a shade darker than his hair color, full lips so red like he's been eating raspberries and a solid square jaw with a light splattering of facial scruff finishes off a face that should be breaking hearts on a screen somewhere. Not destroying lives in a high school.
"Interesting question, Theo, is it? Kind of rude actually, thought the south was all about manners?" I give him my most arrogant expression. I hear Raegan and Jessie both snort from their sides of the table.
With my most defiant, haughty look, I turn my body in his direction. "We are in finance and real estate holdings. We also buy and dismantle properties and companies, but I'm sure you already know that because any Google search would have given you that information." I sniff and stare at him, daring him to deny my accusations.
He doesn't even flinch, my disdain passing right over him without leaving the slightest mark. I can also see the other kings sitting forward, all of them intently listening to this discussion.
"Business brings your family to North Carolina?" He inquires like his rudeness is nothing to him, and he's entitled to know everyone's business.
"No," I answer, finishing my salad and pushing my tray slightly away. I look over at Raegan, I notice she's done with her food too.
"No? So, what brings you to Casbury then?" Finn asks from the end of the table, arms crossed across his broad chest.
"Not that it's really any of your business. My mom's originally from here, a change of scenery from New York, I suppose." I wrinkle my nose, showing them how distasteful I think moving from New York is. I push back my chair and give Raegan a slight nod. She nods back and pushes back her chair.
"Gentlemen, enjoy your lunch. We are off to get some fresh air." I turn and look directly at Jessie and give him my warmest smile. "See you later, maybe?" He smiles back and nods. I don't bother looking at any of the kings, dismissing them altogether.
Raegan and I walk away toward the tray waste dispenser with our backs straight and heads held high. Her shoulders slightly shaking from her holding in her laughter. "Brutal. You’re kind of a snobby bitch, you know?" She can't contain her giggle. We put the trays away, and I grab her wrist, dragging her out the large glass doors that lead to a grassy courtyard.
"Shhh, you, we don't need to add to the flame." I look at her, and then both of us end up giggling. "Ok, I was a little snobby."
"Yeah, a little? Ok there, your nose couldn't get any higher. I might have felt sorry for them if they weren't such giant dicks." We start walking the grassy courtyard arm in arm. "I've missed you, Amelia. This rotten place hasn't been the same without you."
"I missed you too; eight years is a long-time girl. I look out into the rolling North Carolina green hills surrounding Casbury Prep. Despite this school's internal rot, it is quite a beautiful sight. New York is so far away and yet, not far away enough, I guess."
Casbury Prep sits on sixty acres of beautiful green rolling hills, one side of the property facing the Atlantic coastline. The buildings on the property are over two hundred years old and gothic in style, some of the oldest in the country, full of stained-glass windows, stone archways, and cobbled pathways. Lush, green grass courtyards make up the space between the main academic buildings, the administration buildings, and the recreational facilities, including a large outdoor football stadium, baseball, and soccer fields.
It looks like something out of a movie; unfortunately, it would be moreMean GirlsthanHarry Potter. Everything a rich, entitled parent could want for their brats. A fitting playground for the rich and powerful families of this area and the southern United States.
Don't get me wrong, not everyone at Casbury Prep is wealthy. There are a few kids here on scholarships. Their parents either work at the facilities or they have been granted the opportunity to attend based on some community fundraising efforts. They are outnumbered by the privileged, a hundred to one here, so there aren’t many in a school with just over a thousand students. Once upon a time, I would have been part of their numbers, but funny how life changes things in a blink of an eye.
"Yeah, I know what you mean. I already hate that summer is over, and I have to be around these vultures daily again.” Raegan sighs.
