Page 4 of Her Wicked Knights (Their Hallowed Queen #3)

Rev

I tip my head toward the back row, and Tripp follows me easily.

Colton takes the back right, as far away from Marsh’s desk as possible.

That leaves me to sit next to him, and Tripp to my left.

I’m grateful that Audrey was told Marsh is attractive—he’s definitely got a hot teacher vibe—because it pushes her to choose a seat at the front of the class.

Jake’s eyes flick to us in the back row, taking me in in the seat that usually he would occupy at Colton’s side.

I guess he gets the hint that he’s not fucking welcome back here because he settles behind Audrey, looking disappointed.

He made his bed, and now he has to lay in it... alone when Marley isn't there with him.

I wonder how far they've been, whether he's seen her without her clothes, whether he's felt her soft skin against his, whether he's tasted her...

I adjust my back against the seat and discreetly press the heel of my palm against my pants, trying to ease the swell between my thighs as I think of our girl like that.

Marley's always been our girl... the only girl in our friend group.

And as much as Tripp very obviously pined for her and Colton clearly wanted her, it was always so clear that she was off limits.

If we couldn't all have her, and obviously we couldn't, then none of us could have her.

But Jake went against that unspoken agreement, and now he's going to suffer the consequences.

I doubt he cares, honestly. Colton wouldn't, if he'd been the one to make the move first. He's gone bad for her, and I don't doubt he'd give up Tripp and myself for a chance to have her to himself.

I mean, he openly admitted to stalking her, watching her.

Swallowing, I appraise the filling classroom, the classmates that generally haven't changed over the years.

We moved to Serenity Hollow when I was in the second grade; Tripp was the one who brought me into the fold first after we met on the playground, and we've been friends since.

I think I may have been the last new kid to start at our school, and that was nine years ago, so it's not exactly a surprise that Audrey is capturing everyone's interest. I watch her as she taps on her phone a minute and then turns to Jake, and they get lost in a conversation I couldn’t care less to know anything about.

"Welcome back, everyone." Mr. Marsh says, sweeping into the classroom with his coffee mug in hand, his hair the picture of 'just rolled out of bed'.

I hum appreciatively; I may be a little hot for teacher, but I'm not in the minority.

Most of the students seem to have a crush on him.

.. or resent him for the girl's that are into him.

He's never done anything inappropriate that I've seen, but if he was the type to sleep with his former students, I'd probably be first in line. .. once we graduate, of course.

His sleeves are rolled up, showcasing the black ink that crawls along his arms, and I'm certainly not complaining about the view. It is weird, though, given how most people treat the beginning of a new year like starting a new job despite the fact they've been here for years.

"First things first..." Marsh says, clapping his hands together as he surveys the room. "We have a new student this year."

There's an outbreak of murmurs as Marsh indicates the redhead in the front row, and Audrey stands, tugging at her short skirt before waving at everyone. "I'm Audrey Graves."

"Audrey..." Marsh muses, watching her with amusement that seems to make Audrey preen. She nods emphatically. "After Audrey Hepburn, or Audrey Two?"

I watch as confusion and panic flit across Audrey's face when she doesn't get the reference.

Our eclectic little town thrives on its own quirkiness.

It's not Smallville, but it's a long way from Metropolis, too.

In the nearby towns of Salem and Triple Falls, they do things differently.

I was young before we moved here, but I remember even before then that we did things differently.

Now that I'm older, I've gathered it's the town that does things differently.

.. probably because of the town council, of which Marsh is a member.

They're big on community events like town dances and movies in the park; I think we watch Little Shop of Horrors at least once a year.

Deciding to put her out of her misery, Marsh chuckles. "You'll get it eventually. Go ahead and take your seat."

I note the pink on Audrey's cheeks as she sinks down into her chair. Next to me, Tripp shakes his head in disappointment.

"Well, I suppose since we've got fresh blood this year we should start with some town history." Marsh raises his hands, like he expects a reaction from that. And he gets it when there's a collective groan.

"We already know all about the town." Alina John groans from her seat a few places before me.

"Oh?" Marsh chuckles. "Then you won't mind telling me who the town of Serenity Hollow was founded by?"

Alina groans again but realizes she's not getting out of answering that. "The North's, obviously." She rolls her eyes to Jake, who shrugs when Audrey whirls around to look at him, suddenly intrigued. "The Archer's."

Next to me, Tripp stiffens ever so slightly as eyes turn to take him in.

"The Windham's."

No one turns to look at Colton, despite the fact that everyone knows his mother was one of them before she married and took his father's last name. That marriage dissolved years ago, but she kept Windham-Hayes as her surname. Colton only ever took his father's last name to begin with.

"The Cromwell's and the Bolton's."

I swallow as she falls silent, the last of the surnames ringing in my skull.

Bolton.

My mother Gisele was a Bolton by birth, but not by name.

Her mother Mary had her out of wed-lock, and it didn't end well for her when she gave birth to a dark-skinned daughter, given that her betrothal was meant to be to one of the sons of a founding family.

Once that went out the window, she was shunned from the town and forced to raise her child without any support, financial or otherwise.

I don't know a ton about my mother considering I never met her, but I've got her skin tone, her eyes, her... everything. And it's for the best, given that I'd have nothing to do with my father if I could.

"Perfect. Seems you weren't bluffing, Alina.

" Marsh grins. "Now who can tell me what year that was?

" Marsh's eyes sweep the class before landing on Carson in front of me, who was clearly not paying attention.

"Mr. Evans? This is your second year in the eleventh grade.

Surely you know when the town was founded? "

Carson sinks into his seat, cocking his head to the side as he thinks. "1999?"

"Astounding how incorrect that is." Marsh rolls his eyes before sweeping the classroom again. His gaze gravitates toward mine. "Rev. Do you know when the town was founded?"

"1653." I answer easily, earning an appreciative clap of Marsh's hands.

"Yes! Nicely done, Rev. Wanna take a stab at the date it was founded?"

I don't have to take a stab at it. I already know. "October 13th."

Marsh stares at me for a minute, not bothering to hide his surprise. "It seems some of you actually pay attention in class." He muses. "Who knew?"

Tripp smirks, and I feel my stomach tighten under the praise.

As the minister's son, I suppose I get a wicked thrill out of being contrary to whatever he preaches.

Serenity Hollow was founded by families seeking just a little less holy righteousness than the early colonies were offering.

When they broke from the settlement due to differing theologies, the founders were lauded as heretics, sinners, devil worshippers.

It's funny, though, because they were by all means puritanical in their beliefs too.

"Imagine..." Marsh says coolly. "Breaking from the colony that was founded to practice their religion in peace because you no longer wanted to practice that religion?

That takes fortitude. And starting your own town.

.. that's not for the weak. They thought they were cursed at first, when things started to go south.

The Cromwell's only heir, a baby, died within weeks of arriving at their new home, the Bolton's cabin burnt down when it was within days of completion and took the life of the founder, Margaret Archer died in childbirth, and one of the Windham kids wandered into the woods never to be seen again.

The North's took on governing the town, but they didn't seem to be exempt from tragedy either.

The elder North contracted a disease and died within hours of onset.

Some say he was poisoned by his wife, so that their son could take over.

Others say that it was just another casualty of the curse.

.. death took a member from each of the families because they spurned the church. "

"Or it was the seventeenth century and life expectancy was a fraction of what it is now." Colton's voice is hard, making it clear that he's not buying into any of the bullshit about curses.

Marsh points at him. "Excellent point, Hayes."

I don't miss the fact that he calls Colton by his last name, but me by my first name. I wonder if I'm looking into that too much.

"Yeah, for old people." Audrey says, swiveling around in her chair so that she can lock her gaze on Colton. "How do you excuse the baby and the woman who died in childbirth?"

"Childbirth claims a lot of lives." Colton shrugs, and I wonder if I imagine the way he glances at me from the corner of his eyes. "Even nowadays, it's dangerous. Four hundred years ago, they didn't know how to provide proper medical care."

"And the kid that wandered into the woods?" Audrey pushes, clearly favoring the theory that the founders were cursed.

"Bear?" Colton shrugs. "He could have been eaten by predators. He could have walked off the side of a cliff. Could have been picked up by some creep passing through."

Clearly not buying it, Audrey spins back around to face Marsh. "Is there any more evidence to support the curse theory?"

Marsh considers that a minute. "Yeah..." His tongue flicks out over his lips, and I think his eyes gleam with excitement. I can tell he's about to nerd out.

"Have you heard of the Salem Witch Trials?"

I can tell he's being theatrical for the fun of it because Audrey nods. "Of course."

"But did you know they extended throughout several towns in Massachusetts? Ipswich and Topsfield and Andover?"

Audrey shakes her head.

"There's allegedly a journal somewhere, written by witches. It documents every curse levied upon man from the beginning of time."

"Sounds legit." Audrey scoffs.

Marsh only smirks, shrugging as his gaze rolls to Jake.

"Only one person has ever claimed they saw it. They claim the curse was written in there."

"And we believe this one person?" Audrey rolls her eyes. "Let me guess, it was a rich white man?"

"Nailed it." Marsh chuckles, turning away to hide the smirk on his face, as if Jake hasn't already noticed.

He slinks in his chair, clearly annoyed by the call-out.

Next to me, Tripp snickers out loud, though I wonder if he doesn't see the irony of laughing at that.

Tripp is also a rich white man, though I suppose he's nowhere near as privileged.

Despite all their money, the Archers don't come across as privileged. .. unlike the mayor's family.

"And we take his word for it cause he's got a dick?"

"Language, Miss Graves," Marsh scolds, looking disgusted by the audacity. "And no. We take his word for it because the man who claims to have seen it is Johnathan Nathaniel North."