I rubbed my temples as he left. I’d do my due diligence and talk to the principal, but I was ready to get out of there. I hadn’t liked high school the first time through. Kids whispering rumors about why I didn’t have parents. About why I changed in the bathroom instead of the locker room.
I shook my head and stood. The quicker I got it done, the quicker I could leave and organize my thoughts at home. Hopefully, I’d find something in all of my notes that would point me in the right direction.
* * *
I walkedout of the school a few minutes after the last bell rang, and it amazed me how fast the hallways had cleared. The last of the buses were pulling out of the parking lot, and the kids who’d driven themselves were already long gone. I’d parked in the ‘guest’ lot which was right next to the teachers’ lot, so my car wasn’t the only one out there, but it still felt deserted.
I stopped next to my car, digging in my purse for my keys and mentally cursing myself for not having gotten them out while I was still inside. I caught a glimpse of a reflection in the driver’s door window, and something about the looming figure told me that whoever was behind me didn’t have honorable intentions.
I started to turn, my body automatically falling into the stance I’d learned in my self-defense classes years ago, but I wasn’t fast enough. A fist collided with my jaw and pain exploded across my face. My lips smashed into my gums, and I tasted blood. My body jerked around, slamming against my car with bruising force. My vision went blurry, and I fought to keep from passing out. I didn’t know what this guy wanted, but I didn’t think for a moment that an unconscious me would have a better chance of making it out of this without any further injury.
“Nosy bitch,” he growled as he grabbed my hair.
I let out a pained cry and grabbed at his arm. My nails slipped off the jacket he wore, the fabric too smooth to give me much purchase. Instead of holding me away from him, he trapped me between the door and his body, the weight of him preventing me from hitting or kicking him.
His face was masked, and all I could make out was that he was white and had brown eyes, neither of which was going to help when I called the cops on his ass. I let the anger bubble up inside me, burning away the slight edge of panic that wanted to come forward.
The fact that this behemoth of a man smelled like rotten cabbage helped. Nothing in my past was that gag inducing.
“Let go of me, you bastard,” I said through gritted teeth.
“This is your only warning. Stop looking for the girl.”
I barely had time to process the words before he slammed my head into the car. My knees buckled, and my arms dropped, giving him an open shot at my ribs. He hit me twice, forcing the air from my lungs, and then he let me fall to the blacktop.
I gasped, sucking in blood-flavored air that made me cough. Pain wracked my body, and I closed my eyes. I blocked out sight and sound, focused on the necessities. Air, for one. Breathing. Important.
One breath at a time. That was how I’d gotten through it before, how I’d been able to block out the agony to do what I needed to do. It took a minute, but I was finally able to get enough oxygen that my lungs weren’t burning. It still hurt, but I was able to open my eyes. As I ignored the pain in my side, the throbbing in my jaw and head made themselves known but being able to breathe helped me push past it.
I braced my back on the car and pushed myself up until I was standing. The world spun for a moment, and I waited for it to pass. As soon as it did, I climbed into the car and drove away. I was halfway home before it even occurred to me that a hospital would possibly be a better idea. Then I realized that going to the hospital would mean calling the police, and I was no longer sure that was the best course of action. Whoever that man was, he’d proven that someone didn’t want me to find Meka, and I doubted that a kid had that much pull. If I went to the cops, I could be putting her in more danger.
I knew enough basic first aid to know that I could patch myself up and keep an eye out for things like dizzy spells and nausea. I didn’t want to go into a store like this, especially not now that I could feel blood oozing down the side of my face, but if I remembered correctly, the office had a first aid kit.
I dreaded trying to explain to Adare what happened, but when I walked into the office, she wasn’t there. I saw a note on the desk telling me that she wasn’t feeling great and had already gone upstairs. I made a mental note to check on her later, then started looking for the first aid kit.
I didn’t realize that I hadn’t locked the door behind me until I heard the door open. I spun around, a letter opener in hand, only to find Jalen standing there with a shocked look on his face.
“What the hell happened to you?”