“Actually, it’s much worse than that,” Phoenix said.
I looked at them, trying to figure out what to say. I mean, the board of educators here was probably a series of crusty old men who only cared about themselves, and if they could get better faculty, they would.
“If you don’t join us, we’ll bring this straight to the board of educators, maybe even inform them of this whole affair. After all, it’s been going on for a while, correct?” Phoenix said.
“I…I don’t know really,” I said. I mean, I know the principal and my dad were pretty close, but I didn’t know their relationship.
“We have the answer to that,” Phoenix said with a devilish smile.
I looked at them, feeling my heart race for but a moment. I could tell that whatever they were about to hold over my head, I felt my body tense with every word they said.
“How do you know?” I asked. I could see the smug looks on all their faces.
“Videos,” Thorn said.
“What he means is, we actually got the videos from your dad himself,” Phoenix said.
“What do you—”
“Hacking, duh,” Thorn said.
“Yeah. We hacked his computer. We wanted to find some dirt on both of you, and well, we discovered those. But, here’s the thing, she’s actually married too. They’ve been separated, but he was definitely having an affair with her, and she with him. I mean, I guess two turds are made for each other then,” Phoenix said with a laugh.
I felt my hands grip in response to him.
“Don’t insult my father like that,” I said.
“Or what? You gonna complain to mommy and daddy? Well Jules, your dad is in some serious shit if you don’t make a choice, and if you decide to go to your mom, we’ll release his videos, and your videos too. Both of you will be the talk of the school, and your father will lose his job,” Phoenix said.
I felt my body start to burn hearing those words. I didn’t want my dad to lose his job, nor did I want him to have to fall in to the trap of the elite’s bribes.
“I don’t want my dad involved in any of this. I’ve been trying to keep the bullying mostly to this, but I also don’t want him to worry about me. He’s got a lot going on already,” I told him.
“Oh don’t worry Jules. We’ll make sure it’s between us. In fact, we will keep it away from Dane and Tabitha too, and we don’t woven use you for our little games with them either. If you choose to stay here, to be a part of the elites, then you’ll be rewarded,” Phoenix said.
“But why me? I mean, isn’t Tabitha a better person for the elites?” I asked.
“She doesn’t have what we need. We’d rather not get directly involved with her. She is nothing more than some dumb whore who we keep around for a little bit of fun and games,” Phoenix said.
“Yeah, I mean she does have good pussy, but that’s about it,” Luca said snidely.
They all laughed, and I grimaced at the words that were uttered. I mean, I didn’t see others like that, but these elites didn’t give a flying fuck about anyone but themselves. It made me frustrated, but I listened to them.
“So you want me to be a part of it?”
“Well, it all depends. This is actually your dad’s computer, and you should figure out whether or not you want to take it,” Phoenix said.
I listened to them. I mean, this was their ace in the hole, right? But then, Luca said something that made me tense up, and when the words were uttered, I started to shudder.
“And, you should also know Jules that if you fail to make a decision to stay here, if you fail to follow what we say, we’ll have your father arrested too,” he said smugly.
I immediately realized their game. They wouldn’t stop until I agreed! I realized that…that this wasn’t going to be good at all. This wasn’t good at all. I looked at all of them with anger on my face, and with hatred in my eyes.
“You kidding me?” I asked.
“No Jules. We aren’t. now make a fucking choice. Either you follow what we say, or we’ll leak everything. Your father had sex with the principal, and they’ve kept a secret relationship despite knowing how taboo it is. If word gets out…you’ll have a dad in jail. It’s a violation of school rules, and an abuse of power. Minimally, he will be fired, but since Kingswood is one of the most elite schools in the area, he’ll be arrested for this,” Phoenix said.
I felt at the mercy of their words. I realized that they were going to hold me in this position, that they would force me to make a decision, one way or another. As I looked at them, I could tell that they were satisfied with this, but at the same time, I could see they were waiting for my answer too. Which way would I go?
Would I cover for my dad, a man who betrayed me and did nothing for me? Who had sex with a teacher and only focused on his own personal gain? Or would I do something for myself for once, make my own choice, and not cover for my dad? I realized as I looked at all of them, my future here at Kingswood, my future with the elites here, and everything would change because of this, and I knew that, even if things got worse from here on out, I would need to make a choice. I wondered what they would do to me, if anything at all, and a part of me felt anxious to find out.
Things were changing here at Kingswood, and what they offered me here
