Page 40 of Raised By Wolves

HOLO ISN’T STUPID; he knows the other kids think he’s weird. He takes his shoes off and walks barefoot down the halls sometimes. He doesn’t talk enough.

And he definitely stares too much.

But that’s what animals do: they watch things. They stay alert to threats.

He’s been trying to act more normal, though. He wants to be accepted by the herd. So when he sits down at an empty lunch table—Kai’s nowhere to be seen—he doesn’t lift his head and look around constantly, the way a grazing deer does. The way he used to. He pays a lot of attention to his sandwich instead. The menu said it was turkey, but he’s never seen a turkey in a round gray slice like this. And the white, greasy smear on the bread—what the heck isthat?

He’s so busy inspecting this soft, almost colorless food that when the lunch tray goes flying up and away from the table, he doesn’t react right away. He’s too surprised.

Then Logan says, “Whoops, you dropped your lunch.Freak.”

Holo’s furious at himself. He let his guard down and allowed Logan to sneak up on him. But he stays calm. “Why did you do that?” he asks. He’s still trying to understand human ways.

Logan’s cheeks and ears are red. His big fists are clenched. “Because I don’t like you.” He steps closer.

Holo stands up. The top of his head barely comes to Logan’s shoulder. He sees what looks like a fading bruise on Logan’s cheek.

Someone hurt him, Holo thinks.And he doesn’t want to be the lowest-ranking animal, so now he’s going to hurt me.

“I said I don’t like you,” Logan repeats. “And I don’t like your sister. You don’t belong here. What are you going to do about it?”

Holo’s pulse quickens. He says, “What do you think I should do about it?”

“I think you should crawl back into whatever forest hole you crawled out of,” Logan says. “You fucking freaks.”

Holo scratches his head. He doesn’t really like his short hair. He thought it’d help him fit in, but he was wrong.

“You gonna growl at me now?” Logan taunts. When Holo doesn’t say anything, Logan shoves him hard in the chest. “You gonnabite?”

Holo takes a deep breath. He feels the blood rising in his veins.Never be the weakest in the herd.“No,” he says quietly. “I’m going to do this.”

He tucks his chin, lowers his head, and charges. He rams Logan in the guts with his skull. Shocked, Logan goes reeling backward, arms swinging wildly as he tries to catch hisbalance. He can’t do it. He falls onto his back with a thud. Lands on Holo’s turkey sandwich.

Holo stands over him, quiet but furious. “You wouldn’t last a day where I come from,” he says through gritted teeth. “You’re weak. You’renothing.”

CHAPTER 29

EVERYONE’S FUSSING AND shouting, and they’re saying it’s my brother’s fault. That he started it. Logan Hardy’s getting up from the ground, cursing. And—crying?

I wrap my arm around my brother’s shoulders and push through the crowd. I’m trying to get us out of here, but there are too many people. I can’t even tell which direction to go. My adrenaline levels are through the roof.Where is the damn door?Someone’s screaming in my face. Someone tries to pull my brother away from me.

Then Mr. Chive blows his ear-piercing whistle. “Quiet!” he shouts, shoving his way toward us. “Enough!”

Everyone backs away, and now we’re surrounded by a ring of kids who stare at us like we’re wild animals. I can hear their low, mean murmurs. “Freak.” “Fucking animals.”

Chive yells, “I saidquiet!” Then he turns to me and Holo and shoves his finger toward our faces. “This behavior is unacceptable! We’re calling your parents!”

I say, “Where have you been, Chive? We don’thaveany.”

Suddenly Principal Simon’s right next to me, her face twisted in anger. Spittle flecks her lips. “This iswaybeyond growling,” she shouts.

No shit, lady.

“Kai—Holo—you’re suspended for the rest of the week!”

Her hand closes like a vise around my bicep. She grabs Holo with her other mitt and leads us outside. “Chief Greene is going to be even more disturbed by your behavior than I am!”

I clench my jaw so I don’t say something I’ll regret. Holo looks like he’s about to cry.

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