“I know where she’s going,” one of the other Weird Sisters sing-songed. “She’s going to see Ari Reyes, the Drake prince.”
“Everyone in the whole Academy is talking about the two of them,” the other Weird Sister said.
“Well she won’t be seeing him anymore,” Nancy snarled. She glared at me. “Ari Reyes is mine—got it, you little freak? So you stay away from him from now on!”
The old me would have cowered and begged her to let me go and promised anything she wanted. But to my surprise, I did none of these things. Instead, I lifted my chin and stared her in the eyes.
“If Ari is yours, hadn’t you better let him know?” I asked. “He’s never said anything to me about it so I don’t think he has any idea.”
“I’m his princess—his fated-mate,” Nancy snapped. “He just doesn’t know it yet. And you’re going to get out of the way so I can make him see the truth—that I’m the one he wants.”
I shrugged coolly. “I can’t promise to stop seeing him, but I’ll be happy to pass the message on. I’m sure Ari will be surprised to hear it.”
“You little bitch!” Nancy’s eyes narrowed and her face grew white with anger. “He’s only with you because he can’t see you!” she snarled. “Because you’re always hiding behind that rat’s nest of hair all the time. Well, we can fix that.”
Up until now she’d been holding her hands down by her sides. Now she raised them and I saw a silver gleam as what she had in her right hand caught the light—a pair of scissors. No—not even scissors—these were huge, heavy, old-fashioned looking things and the blades were nearly nine inches long. Shears would probably be a better name for them.
“Let’s see how much Ari likes you when he can see the freak side of your face as well as the pretty side.” Nancy grinned nastily as she grabbed the front of my hair and raised the scissors.
Up until then, I’d been feeling surprisingly calm about the whole situation. I wasn’t even afraid, though they had surrounded me. But though I had been feeling better about myself, I still wasn’t ready to show the scarred side of my face to anyone and everyone who looked at me. Losing my long black hair would be like losing my armor—my last line of defense.
I wasn’t ready for that—not yet and maybe not ever.
“No!” I screamed as the sheers began to cut and the first few strands of my long black hair fell. Throwing myself back against the wall behind me, I kicked out with one foot, catching Nancy in the midsection and sending her backwards with a surprised grunt.
“Oof!” She landed on her back and the heavy pair of silver shears fell from her hand.
The two girls on either side of me let go of my arms and ran to her.
“Oh Nancy—that bitch! Are you okay?” one of them panted.
“I can’t believe that little freak kicked you!” the other exclaimed, as though I was the horrible person in this scenario for defending myself.
Nancy’s face was twisted into a sneer of pure rage as she sprawled on her back like a bug in the middle of the hallway.
“Why did you let go of her?” she demanded, glaring at the other two. “Don’t let her get away—I’m not done with her haircut yet!”
I didn’t wait to hear any more. From the moment I kicked her, I had been frozen to the spot. But now my paralysis seemed to break and I ran as fast as I could for the West Tower.
If I can just get there, I thought wildly to myself. If I can just get to the Drake’s Den, I’ll be safe—I know I will!
Because only Ari and I could enter it, I knew I was right. But I had to get there before Nancy and the Weird Sisters could catch me.
I ran flat out, my breath tearing in my lungs as my feet slapped the flat flagstones of the floor. I rounded the corner and saw the Curve of the West Tower up ahead. And just to one side of it was the secret corridor that only appeared when I was looking for it—the short, hidden hallway that led to the Drake’s Den.
“Get her!” Nancy was screeching behind me and I knew they were right on my heels, but I didn’t dare to look back. I felt a hand snag in my hair and pull a few strands loose but the sharp little pain only made me run faster. The hallway—if only I could reach the hallway!
I nearly skidded right past it in the slippery-soled Mary Jane shoes that were the standard uniform-issue for girls at Nocturne Academy. At the last minute though, I managed to grab the corner of the wall and slide myself into the narrow, secret corridor.
“Where did she go?” I heard someone say.
Looking to my left, as I stood there panting, I saw Nancy and her two cohorts looking around the main hallway in bewildered confusion. In fact, they looked right at me but didn’t seem to see me at all.
I frowned, trying to get my breath back. What was going on? Were Nancy and her crew unable to see me because of the magic of the castle which concealed the Drake’s Den from anyone unauthorized to enter it?
It seemed the likeliest explanation. I could still see the three of them, looking all around. They were probably seeing just the blank stone hallways, unaware that just feet from their faces was a secret corridor where I was hiding.
They searched for a while as I watched, fascinated, and then Nancy finally shrugged.
“Well, who knows what mouse hole the little freak ran into? It doesn’t matter anyway—we have what we need. Come on.”
She beckoned with the big silver shears and the other two girls followed her without question, leaving my line of sight as their footsteps echoed down the hallway.
I stared after her for
