Page 81 of Savage Scream

“Do I have to separate you two?” Miss Dice huffs and I stifle my rumbling laughter as I glance at her, shaking my head.

“No Miss. Sorry.”

I glance at Dee, who is blushing but grinning broadly, while scribbling over her words, not wanting anyone to read her part of our conversation.

Fuck, I love this playful side of her. I imagine it would be like this a lot more if she were to stay and all of her worries vanished.

I really fucking want that for her. And if I’m being honest, I really want that for me, too.

26

DEE

Travis didn’t show up for community service again after school, so while Jared is chatting with Lexi, he lets me slide his phone from his pocket, and watches me at a distance as I bring up Travis’ number and hit call.

I’m working off the theory that if Bianca thinks it’s someone else calling, then she won’t answer it, if she’s nearby, but if she does answer it, I will just hang up.

It rings a few times before the call connects, and relief washes over me when I hear Travis’ voice.

“Hey, Crowley. What’s up?”

“Trav,” I rasp, turning my back to Jared and Lexi, realising that Lexi can see me talking on the phone. “It’s me. Can you talk?”

“Yeah, I’m doing good, buddy. You after some stuff?”

Shit. He can’t talk. Someone must be nearby. There’s background noise. Voices. A TV maybe.

“I just need to know if you’re ok,” I say quietly, and he chuckles.

“Yeah, man. I can get that for you. Cash upfront as usual.”

The background noise fades, and a moment later, I hear the click of a door closing.

“Ell. Hey sorry. Now’s not a great time.”

“Shit, Trav. Did you know about Bianca coming to the swimming carnival and luring me out?”

“What?!” he snaps. “What the fuck are you talking about?”

My heart starts to calm as his reaction confirms he didn’t know about his foster mum and her attempt to choke me.

“I got a message from your Instagram account, asking me to meet you outside the pool when we had the swimming carnival yesterday. It was her, Trav. She was leaning against a yellow mustang. She told me some stuff, and threatened me, and then fucking tried to choke me.”

“What!”

“Shhh,” I urge. “Calm down or they will know something is up.”

“You’re being serious right now?” he asks quieter.

“Yes. Jared scared her away… or well, maybe it was Rhys who did that, but either way, she vanished pretty quickly when my friends came out.”

My friends? Is that what they are?

“I’m gonna fucking kill her,” he hisses. “She stepped over the line with Cassie, and now you. She’s fucking crazy.”

He’s right, that bitch is as crazy as they come, but he needs to be careful, because crazy will get him killed.

“Trav, I need you to come to me. We can run, or at least hide, until the Kerrs are wiped off the earth. There’s so much about our past that I’ve only just learned, and I know Bianca will kill me the first moment she can, and I wouldn’t put it past her to use you to do it. You’re not safe with her, or any of them. I’m sorry about Cassie, I really am, but it’s better if you just come to me, and we can ask Griffin to help get Cassie out of there later on.”

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