Page 54 of The Secrets of a Sin

I didn’t want to be next.

As I am slowly approaching a classroom that is still in session, a deafening growl vibrates through the door and fills the hallway with its wrathful timbre. It sounded animal-like, primal, in a way that caused my hair to stand up at attention. My feet slow to almost a stop, and that’s when manic shouting and screams erupt from behind the classroom door. The sounds are frantic and piercing my ears, but I quickly find myself rushing towards the door and tugging the handle open.

“Get off of him, you freak!” Someone shouts in hysterics as my eyes take in the horrific scene before me. Mr. Ben is sprawled on the ground with another student thrashing their arms and fists at him with savage blows. She’s straddling his hips, but with her wild movements, it’s hard to make out who it is. The other students stand back in complete horror and shock as the girl strikes him harder and harder with her hands, and all he can muster are pained groans. He appears helpless as he raises his arms in defense and tries to buck her off, but she only snarls in return.

“Stop it!” Another girl screams while a group of them brush past me and rush out of the room, most likely to get help. Still frozen just barely inside the classroom, I watch as a spurt of blood splatters onto the ground beside them while she begins to become more unhinged and delirious.

Why isn't he stopping her? Surely, she can’t be strong enough to take on a full-grown man.

“Goddammit, Priscilla, stop it! You’re going to kill him!” A girl moves forward with tears coating her face and distraught hand movements. The mention of the name Priscilla has my eyes widening to the point they may fall out, and finally, I move my feet towards them. Mr. Rossi notices me coming closer, and the distressed expression in his eyes slices through mine.

“What the hell are you doing, Priscilla?” I cry out, hoping that my voice calms her, but I also have a feeling it might aggravate her more. She doesn’t let up or even acknowledge that I’m right next to them. So, as I contemplate whether to intervene or not, I peer into her eyes and notice how glazed over and savage they look. Like she’s possessed.

“You gonna stop me, little mouse?” She asks in a collected tone, but her arms continue to swing with such violent intent that I’m afraid I might get hit too. As I’m still processing her words and the whole scene in front of me, her face slightly turns in my direction, and my lungs seize harshly in my chest. A deviant smile emerges from the depths of hell and manifests across Priscilla’s face. Whoever she was, wasn’t human. She was something evil, something that made the crucifix around my neck sting the flesh on my neck to the point my throat began to sizzle.

Her grin tilted up further, then within seconds, her head dropped down until her mouth latched onto his upper arm.

“AHH!” He cries out under Priscilla’s bite as she digs her sharp teeth into the skin of his shoulder blade. I couldn’t believe what I was witnessing. I was too shocked and horrified to move a muscle, but my eyes couldn’t seem to tear away from her grip on him. As he flailed around on the ground, kicking and screaming, he found a way to shove his knee between her legs and buck with all his strength, managing to shove her off. With a loud grunt, her ass smacked the floor beside him, and all I could see was the fresh coat of crimson that dripped off her chin. The sounds of heavy footsteps enter the classroom, and suddenly, a mob of teachers and students rush towards Mr. Rossi while others try to restrain Priscilla.

“We need the first aid kit.” A teacher mumbles as they pull him up onto his feet and sit him in his desk chair. “Someone go get it!” They shout again and this time someone darts off.

Why couldn’t I move?

I was still stuck standing in the same spot while everyone else seemed to be moving hectically around me. They were shouting, crying hysterically, and trying to help Mr. Rossi in any way they could, but here I was, not doing a damn thing. I didn’t stop her. I didn’t try to intervene or push her off him. I just stood there. I let her savagely attack him until he bled.

“He deserved it.” Priscilla spat, causing everyone’s head to turn in her direction, including my own. Father Henry stands behind her as he secures her hands behind her back, and she willingly lets him apprehend her. “He deserves every bit of what's coming to him.” Her clouded eyes swivel from him to me as if she knew I was startled, then her tongue breaks out of her mouth, and slowly crawls across her chin until she’s coated in crimson. While everyone else who watches the perverse act gasps, I remain unbothered. She was staring at me for a reason, she wanted to see the fear and disgust in my eyes, but I never gave her the satisfaction.

It was just another day at St. Catherine’s for me. Once you’ve discovered a dead body, you’ve seen it all. But it wasn’t what Priscilla did that had my interest peaked to the maximum. It was what she said. How he deserves every bit of what’s coming to him.

What did he do?

* * *

As the cops and ambulance began to arrive, they started ushering the students and some teachers out of the classroom to clear the area out. Everyone still appeared to be on high alert and slightly traumatized, but while I was following behind a classmate, someone grasped my arm in a gentle squeeze.

“How’d I know you'd be here?” I heard Detective Pierce’s voice before I saw him peering down at me with a somewhat irritated look across his face. I rear back in response as he pulls me to the side and finally releases my arm.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” I glare, taking in his professional ensemble of buttoned-down shirt and black slacks that remind me of our first encounter. His eyes glance over to the side of us like he’s waiting for us to be alone, then moves his stare back to mine.

“You seem to always be around when something happens at this damn school.” He snarls lowly. “And why would that be?”

What is trying to insinuate here? That I’m somehow the cause of it all?

My face instantly reddens, and I cross my arms over my chest in disbelief. “What are you trying to say, Detective?” I spit. “You think I asked to be here? To see Phoebe’s dead body or watch my teacher get assaulted? No. I just happened to be at all those places at the right time when I wished I wasn’t.”

He watches me closely like a cop would, trying to see if there’s any indication that I could be bluffing. “What did you see here?” He nods toward the classroom with his shoulder.

“I heard screaming as I was walking through the halls, so I checked to see what it was and saw Priscilla on top of him. Punching, scratching, biting. She wouldn’t stop.” My eyes drift off somewhere over his shoulder, and I’m brought back to him when he clears his throat.

“And why do you think she would attack him?” He questions with a serious gleam in his eyes that’s completely reversed from the last time I saw him. The playful, nice guy was gone. Now he was in full asshole cop mode.

“I don’t know.” I answer truthfully. “But she did say something. She said he deserved it.” I peer up into his eyes, and he slowly sighs.

“Come with me.” He turns and heads for the classroom door. I trail behind him, and once we both step inside, both of our attention drifts over to the cop who’s berating Mr. Rossi with question after question until he breaks.

“Did you fucking touch that girl over there!?” The blond cop screams in his face, causing Rolland to rush over to his side, leaving me in utter confusion.

“What the hell is going on over here?” Rolland asks the cop who’s scowling at Mr. Ben, whose head is hanging low as if he’s guilty. At first, I think there’s no possible way he could have done something like that, but the way Priscilla attacked him makes me think there was a slight chance he could have. Given her previous interaction with another man who tried touching her didn’t end well either.

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