Page 13 of Did They Break You

Cortland Adler is easily the tallest boy at West River High. He transferred last year from the middle-of-nowhere West Virginia, to here. The middle-of-nowhere North Carolina.

He’s the golden boy at West River. I’m not sure why he ever bothers talking to me.

“Yeah?” I tuck a lock of hair behind my ear that slipped free from my braids. My palms are sweaty and as Cortland’s gaze slips from my eyes to my body, I hug my books tighter.

I’m in jeans and an oversized T-shirt. Because Silas will be home.

I think about the stash of clothes I’ve got in Sloane’s locker down the hall. I might not have made my bed but at least I remembered to put those secrets away.

Cortland clears his throat, then swings his backpack around to his chest. He tugs at his zipper, and I glance at his hoodie. Black, with a wolf. West River’s mascot. Beneath it are the words, “Welcome to pack territory.” I have one of those hoodies. All the cheerleaders got them.

I’m still staring at the way the soft black material frames his broad shoulders when I realize he’s saying my name again.

I blink, straightening as my face flushes hotter and sweat pricks on the back of my neck.

He’s offering something to me.

Beat up and worn with a cracked spine. A book.

Pet Sematary.

I swallow hard.

“I uh, I just found it at the library and Ms. Jones said they don’t offer this kind of material at West River.” He mimics her stern voice and I bite my lip to keep from laughing. “So, I figured it was yours.”

He adjusts his backpack on his shoulder again, still extending the book to me.

I stare at the cat on the worn cover. No, they certainly do not offer Stephen King at West River. I got it from the thrift store one day after practice. There are no bookstores in town, so when Silas won’t be home, I check out the used books at Thrifty’s, using the money he gives me after every fight. Guilt money.

Cortland gestures toward me with the book. “But maybe it isn’t yours, sorry, I just thought…”

My stomach flips and I clutch my books tighter to my chest to reach for the novel. For a second, our fingers brush against one another and a shiver slides down my spine.

Then he releases the book and I add it to the stack in my arms.

His smile widens, his lip ring moving as it does.

“How’d you know it was mine?” I ask, my heart skipping a beat at the thought of him seeing it and thinking of me. I don’t remember leaving it in the library yesterday but I was in a rush to get home. To clean the toilets, take out the trash. Silas has been gone four days and I’ve reveled in every hour of his absence.

Cortland slides his hands into the pockets of his pants, his long lashes nearly grazing his cheekbones as he looks down between us.

“I think you’re the only girl in this school who reads horror.” His eyes flick to mine. “Or only person at all, to be honest.”

I laugh at that, thinking of Sloane. She likes painting her nails and watching romcoms. Horror has her squealing like a kid, half-hiding under the covers. That’s the point, I’ve told her. To get freaked out.

Just as I open my mouth to say something, Chase McGowan and Maya Bell come up behind Cortland, shoulder-to-shoulder with him.

“Ah, Remi Ocean. You’re looking mighty fine today,” Chase says, his gaze lascivious as he rakes his eyes down my body. He slaps Cortland on the back, and I see Cort’s jaw tense.

Maya flips her long, dark hair over one shoulder and loops her arm through Cortland’s. “Don’t be late to practice today, Remi,” she says, glaring at me. “Your performance sucks as it is.” She glances at her nails as my flush spreads down my neck, to my chest. “That pawprint you paint on your cheek can’tmake up for talent. There are so many other girls who’d kill to take your spot.”

I don’t doubt it. Cheerleading is okay, I’m decent at it, and being on the team helps me pass as someone who belongs. But I only do it because Mom got me into it, when I was a kid. And it keeps me away from Silas.

I take a step back from the three of them, Cortland glancing at Maya with a furrow between his brow. But Chase still has his arm on his back and Maya has hers looped through his. They’re flanking him.

I know what they’re really doing. Claiming him.

From a wealthy family, athletic and good looking, Cortland was always going to be theirs.

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