Page 7 of Broken Princess

“Mrs. Dane, it sounds like you’re talking about Chess, and I’m talking about real life.”

“And we’ve already started your first lesson. In this world, those in charge always move people, events, and situations around. Because for them, lifeisone big game of chess.”

I let her words sink in. “They made me a pawn without my knowledge.”

The butler shows up with a chessboard and sets the pieces on a portable table between us. I frown as she sets up the game.

“Jordanna, have you never played the game before?”

“My dad was trying to teach me before he passed.” He had been hounding me for years to play, and I was always too busy sketching or painting or hanging with my friends. Then he finally made it mandatory daddy, daughter time. Two months later, he was gone. I haven’t been able to look at a chessboard since.

She rotates the board slowly in a circle so I can see both sides of it. “In this game, strategy is everything. Something you should consider before you even sit down to the board. And the most important thing to remember, is, even a pawn can become a queen.”

We spend an hour going over the pieces on the board and the ways they can move in a game. Then Mrs. Dane gives me an assignment. I’m supposed to buy a notebook, and observe the people on campus. That’s it. People watch, in the same way I do when I’m drawing. But instead of sketching, I have to write down their descriptions. Who they spend time with, how they react in group settings.

When I ask her the point of this exercise, she tells me Logan and his friends rule the school, but every clique or group of friends has the same type of power dynamic. She says less popular or less powerful people have no reason to mask all their thoughts and actions. By observing less guarded people, I can learn to identify weaknesses in power structures. Or I might find they have secrets to uncover. She’s confident I should be able to find at least one detail I can use to my advantage.

“Do you think taking the long way around campus is going to help?”

I’d hoped to avoid this confrontation for as long as possible. Bella’s on the wrong side of the quad, which means she went out of her way to be here. And since she walked right up to me, I’m the person she was waiting for.

“What do you want, Bella?”

“Awe. Is the wittle baby all out of bitchy comebacks? I guess Logan fucked all the sass away like he said he would. It probably didn’t take much effort, either. Did it? Since you weresoadamant about saving yourself, I’m guessing it was two strokes to finish you off.” Cocking her head the side she says, “I wonder what the moms of your little purity fan club would say if they could see you now. Think I should drop them a line and give them an update?”

She’s just hateful enough to do it. “Isn’t it enough that you won, Bella? Can’t we just let it go and move on with our lives?”

“Let it go? Move on? That’s where you’re confused. I don’t want you to have a life tomove onto. I wanted you gone, but you’re still here. So no. Nothing’s over charity. But, this time when I’m done with you, you’ll be begging for a transfer out of the country.”

Her threat is filled with such unwarranted vehemence that I take time to consider her words. She’s been this way since the first day of school, but this is more than a game. She really wants to destroy me as if I did something to her. “This can’t be about the seat issue at the beginning of the year, so please, tell me. What did I ever do to you, to make you dislike me so much?”

“What you did, is, you wereborn. That’s all there is to it.”

“Well, I hate to disappoint you, but I have at least another seventy years before that’s undone. I suggest you get over it.”

“Don’t get too comfortable, charity, your days here are numbered.” She tosses her hair and turns, walking back the way she came.

Mrs. Dane said to think of Vandi U as one big chess game. I need to figure out who the players are and who are the pieces on the board. She also says operating from a place of emotion puts me at a deficit. Bella is definitely a player in the game, she’s also a piece on the board. Everyone in their group has a purpose. Pawn, knight, bishop, queen. Then there’s the beautiful prince at the top. Logan.The King.He’s well insulated by his friends, and I’ll have to move them all out of the way to defeat him.

Everyone has a weakness. I just have to focus less on my immediate surroundings and problems to find them. That also means I’ll have to push myself out of my comfort zone and frequent the same places the other students do. This time, I’ll be floating around the fringes of their group, trying to pick up on anything that I can use.

Art class feels different. The smell, the lighting. It’s all different. Lately, everything I draw has black, gray and muted tones, and I know it has a lot to do with the fact that Logan and his friends took something I loved and made it dark and twisted.

Gredin, the skater kid from last semester is in this class. He smiles at me as he passes causing me to wonder if there’s a diabolical motive behind his attention. Great, I’m paranoid too. Logan’s stunt has me distrusting everything. Gredin’s still looking at me, so I avert my gaze as if scanning the room. I hope he turns back around soon. I can’t deal with the scrutiny right now.

My hands shake as I lower my bag to the floor, taking a seat at the back of the class. The students enter, filling in the surrounding seats. The room around me shrinks, spots appear before my eyes, and I become hyperaware of the sound of my pulse and the feeling of my heart ricocheting in my chest. I force a shaky breath in through my nose and out through my mouth, and close my eyes, willing myself to calm down. I haven’t had a panic attack in a while. This class is not gonna be the thing that brings them back.

Slowly, my heart rate returns to normal and I no longerfeel like I’m drowning in cement. When I’m back in control, I look towards the front of the class, pick up my pencil with shaky hands, and try to draw.

Logan

I step into the frame of the door, blocking Jordanna’s exit. For two weeks, I’ve been avoiding her, and she’s been avoiding me. I’m supposed to be showing everyone I’m unbothered by her presence. This ambush is like ripping the bandaid off.

“I didn’t think you’d have the guts to come back here.” I flash a smile. “But I don’t know why I’m surprised. All the ladies come back for more, no matter how badly I treat them. Guess you’re just like them, after all.”

“Oh, there he is. I was wondering when you were gonna finally grow some balls and say something to me,” she snarls. “But guess what, I’m not afraid of you, or your friends, Logan. That little stunt you pulled. The game you played? You lost. I’m still here, so deal with it.”

The students who were lingering around, leave. They’re smart enough not to stay around and risk getting caught in the crossfire. I grip her arms, giving her a shake to shut her up, because I can’t deal with hearing her voice.

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