AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“I’m well aware.” Rory’s voice is cool, breezy. He turns to the younger gremlins surrounding us, addressing them in particular. “I know a significant part of why you support me is because of my father. It’s unfortunate that it has come to this, but right now I’m asking you to choose between us. My father has done nothing of note for you or this school in a long time, whereas my door is always open for each of you every single day. Still, if you’d rather leave this group I’ve set up, then now is the time to do so.”
Nobody moves. The gremlins still look to Rory unwaveringly as their leader.
“Good,” Rory says, and I hear the underlying note of relief. “I’m glad. I know all of your families well, and they’d be proud of you for taking a stand. I trust you all implicitly, and I know you’ve returned the same faith to me. We won’t let each other down.”
It makes me think that the gremlins have become tools of war, obeying their master Rory. Because no matter what Rory insists,theseare his weapons. The troops he commands. He used them against me during my first year here, and they were vicious little brutes. I’ve seen them used against Arabella and Li when Rory’s taken a disliking to them, too. It’s bullying by any other name, but this time it sounds like war.
The only difference is that I’ve seemingly progressed through the ranks enough to now be Rory’s right-hand woman, and therefore out of the gremlins’ firing line entirely.That’snew.
“Gillespie,” Rory says, looking at Duncan, who seems to be some kind of spokesperson for the rest of the gremlins. “Do you have anything to report?”
Duncan nods gravely, his eyes a lethal gleam. “We found out that what your girl’s been saying is true.”
Again, all eyes fly to me. My mouth dries, because I can’t remember what I’ve been saying that merits this remark. And also — is this how they see me? As Rory’sgirl? As though, without Rory, I wouldn’t even be a proper person in my own right?
“Jessa,” Rory amiably corrects, as though he detects my flaring irritation. “She’s right here and she has a name.”
Duncan glances narrowly at me, and I suppose it’s a testament to how much the gremlins respect Rory that he slowly nods at me, that the only thing he says is my name and not a comment about how Rory’s gone soft in the head.
“Jessa was right, regarding the games. We got it out of Callum when you were gone. He did it deliberately. Said he’d been aiming for Luke. He was bragging about it at lunch.”
Finlay curses furiously under his breath. “That jumped-up fuckin’ wee weasel,” he snarls, appealing to Rory. “Gimp needs sorted. He’s bang oot o’ order.”
“So, let me get this straight,” Danny murmurs, closing his eyes as he tries to make sense of it all. “The son of the leader of the opposition is trying to kill the former prince at the behest of the Prime Minister and his puppet king, and the only thing standing against him is the Prime Minister’s son and his crack team of extracurricular students.” His eyes flutter open again. “Frankly, my head’s in a spin.”
“If Callum Wells has an issue with me,” Luke says in a remarkably placid tone, “then he can speak directly with me.”
“He doesn’twantto speak with you, old friend,” Rory patiently explains. “This is a lad boasting about sending a giant metal ball hurtling through the air to smash into your skull. You’re lucky he has such naturally shit aim.”
“What do you want us to do?” Duncan asks, giving Rory his full attention.
Rory doesn’t even need to think about it. “Take him down. Make him pay.”
The hair rises across my arms. Rory’s words ring with chilling finality.
Duncan nods.
“This is it,” Rory continues, looking at each of us in turn. “We aren’t maintaining peace anymore. The waters from here on out are going to be choppier. There are pockets of agitation already springing up in Lochkelvin. We stamp these out immediately and go on the attack. Lochkelvin is our stronghold, and we’re going to hold onto it with everything we’ve got to make sure Luke’s final months here are as easy as they can be.”
“We had something else,” Duncan adds grimly, glancing down at a sheet of notes in front of him. “According to one of the first years, Hodgson’s apparently been advising the younger students to ‘keep an eye out’ for anyone who thinks Benjamin Moncrieff shouldn’t be king.”
Finlay blows out a long, low breath. “Aye, watch oot for a’ those folk still livin’ in reality,” he snipes, which makes a few of the gremlins around us titter.
“That isn’t good,” Rory agrees. “The more teachers we lose to this cause, the poorer our overall education. Your parents don’t pay for you to listen to propaganda in class. I’ll speak to Hodgson myself.”
I shoot Rory a surprised look, wondering how exactly he’s planning on convincing a professor to drop this charade. My efforts with Dr. Moncrieff have been a disaster, after all, but perhaps Rory has more morally questionable tricks up his sleeve.
“Is anyone else acting up? Who are the big fish of this movement other than Callum Wells?”
“Arabella,” I answer quietly.
Rory’s mouth twists to the side. “She’s had more than enough chances. She’s never going to change — not now. She’s in way too deep.” He looks across at Luke. “She sicced the mob on you, by the way. Couldn’t keep her trap shut. You were lucky you got out in time.”
“So what do we do about her?” Duncan asks, with a dark glitter in his eyes that makes me think he wants the answer to be violence.
“Girl’s a menace,” Rory states carefully, “but there’s nothing she can do in Lochkelvin other than make noise.”
I slant a glance at him, wondering if he’s underestimating Arabella significantly. Even Finlay looks confused.
