Page 33 of Heartless Heathens

“What?” I looked up to find his eyes narrowed in that way that let me know I was crossing the line with him.

He grabbed the ends of my hair and wrapped it around his wrist before pulling down and bringing me to my knees. The students chattering went from a whisper to a loud murmuring chorus of bees droning in my ear. The room was too big and I was small and there were far too many of them everywhere.

“Why are you doing this?” I cried out, the tear falling down the side of my face into my ear from the angle he kept my head at.

“Because if he cares about you at all, he’s gonna claim his wrongdoings. Otherwise I’m gonna make sure there’s only pieces of you left by the time I’m done with you, and I’ll drop them at his door myself.” He pulled my hair back tighter, a pained whimper left my mouth.

I heard a few snickers.

Sonny grinned as if he knew a secret.

He softened his hold on my hair and returned to his seat, but the room spun faster. All eyes were on me. My stomach churned and I suddenly felt nauseous beyond belief.

“I’m going to be sick,” I told Sonny and he frowned.

“Give me your backpack, Rugsley,” he told the student sitting in front of him and he handed it over without a single question, his eyes staying glued onto me.

Sonny crouched in front of me, opening the backpack and as if my body had been waiting for it to appear, my stomach emptied itself inside of it.

“Problem Mr. Santorini?” Father Frollo’s irreverent tone echoed out into the chamber.

“Yes. My pet seems to be sick. Likely her previous owner didn’t take care of her,” he said flatly and a chorus of soft laughter circled through the classroom. “I’ll need to be excused for the day,” he said with an apathetic tone, grabbing my arm and pulling me down the steps behind him.

“I’ll be sure to let your financial council know how well the year is starting off for you,” the headmaster chimed out.

Sonny bared his teeth but didn’t give the headmaster the satisfaction of a response before we left the lecture hall.

I felt my stomach turning in a sick way again. I ran as fast as I could, but I wasn’t able to make it out of the cathedral before I threw up all over the solid gold floor. I stayed there, knelt over with sweat breaking out of my skin for a few minutes before Sonny’s shadow loomed over my pile of puke. I lifted my face to see his hand hanging down to his side, his knuckles torn and bloody.

“Let’s go home, Pet. You can tell me on the walk why the archbishop gets this reaction out of you.” It almost sounded like a threat though none of the words he spoke were menacing.

It was just who he was.

Sonny Santorini was terrifying.

Father Frollo wielded a different kind of terror that could take away everything and reduce my life back to nothing but a bell and a secret.

Sonny was the kind that promised freedom.

Sonofabitch.

Not even a week into the school year and I was already out of commission because of a black out. My muscles ached and burned from the aftereffects of the seizure-like state my body went into.

I woke up alone, and that was probably to be expected. I was sure I’d missed my classes for the day already, but if I was lucky Sonny would have put some food away for me in the fridge. Every inch of my body was sore. I stretched my arms over my head and swung my feet out to reach the floor. My spine cracked in twelve different spots while I pushed myself up to stand but stumbled over.

It was like being hungover and then thrown under a meat pulverizer.

I rubbed my temple, feeling a headache starting to drill its way into my brain. First Tylenol, then food. Flashes of silver flew through my vision, and I grabbed on to the wall to keep me steady.

I had already finished my second plate of some quiche Sonny had left wrapped in the fridge when the door to the chapel opened. She looked a little less feral and a little more civilized today, but I still recognized her with that hair from last night, even now, while she hid behind Sonny’s giant frame.

“What is she doing back here?” I asked, charging towards him but he stuck his hand out to my chest to keep me from getting closer to either of them.

“Breathe or I’ll shove your medicine so far down your throat you won’t have a seizure for days.”

“Why is she back here?” I asked him, my nostrils flaring as I did my best to keep control of my erratic breathing.

“Romina here was just telling me she was Frollo's ward.” Sonny crossed his arms over his chest with a look of disbelief.