This Fearless Girl (St. Clary's University #2) - E. M. Moore Page 0,92

he is. It’s like trying to maneuver through a dark room with nothing to guide us. “Whatever is going on, I still think Stone needs to get the hell out of his father’s house.”

“And Marissa’s sights?” Lucas asks.

“Preferably sooner rather than later.”

31

The next morning’s training session is rough. Not only do we wake up at the butt crack of dawn, but my body isn’t used to moving like this. Yes, I have the stamina to hike for days on end but throwing punches—and now kicks—into hard things isn’t in my wheelhouse. Still, I put my all into it. There’s no way I’m going to have Finn send a message back to Cole that I’m not taking this seriously. For one, I sure am taking this seriously because when a gang leader tells you you’re in trouble, you listen. And two, I don’t want him to renege on our deal.

After saying goodbye to Finn, we each take showers. None of us attempt to make anything sexy out of it—though the thought did cross my mind after seeing Wyatt and Lucas train until they were sweaty. Who knew watching men punch and kick was a libido enhancer?

After getting ready, we meet in the kitchen to scarf down a quick breakfast before piling into the Audi to head to school. We’re a day away from going back into the mountains and we’ve barely had any time to think about it. Not that we don’t have our plan down—we do—but there are so many different things pulling at our attention. Honestly, I understand why my father was so obsessed about staying on track. School is the biggest inhibitor right now. It seems so ridiculous to carry around textbooks and pretend to pay attention in class when my mind is engaged elsewhere.

There are just some things that take priority over others, even if they used to be important to you. Staying alive is one of the goals that stays at the top of the list.

Stone is waiting outside the school when we get there. How he always beats us when we’re five minutes away and he’s forty plus minutes is beyond me. Yet, he’s always leaning against the stone building when we pull up, watching for us. As we move to join him, the pale pallor to his face sticks out. Dark circles mar his perfect features, and the dull shine to his usual discerning eyes makes my heart skip a beat. “What’s wrong?” I ask immediately, taking the old steps two at a time to get to him.

I reach for his face, and he sidesteps me, batting my hand down gently. I yank back like he’s shocked me. His reaction isn’t his fault. I’m not supposed to be touching him. I know better.

His jaw ticks. “I’m fine.”

Wyatt and Lucas crowd around him, forming a circle. “Bullshit,” Wyatt hisses.

“I didn’t get much sleep.”

He tilts his head, avoiding our eyes, but in doing so, I also spot a darkening bruise on the side of his face. Lucas and I both look at each other, then we stare back at him. “Not here, okay?”

“Then where?” Wyatt demands. “We barely see you anymore. Fuck, bro. Is it getting bad again?”

My chest squeezes. I don’t know what “again” he’s referring to, but I know enough that this can’t be good.

“Let’s go to the library. All of us. Or let’s just get the fuck out of here,” Lucas offers, glancing around at the students filing past us to enter the building for their first classes. They all seem so normal while there is nothing normal going on with us right now. A shiver starts up my spine, and I wonder if things will ever be normal again.

“Library,” Stone says, shoulders finally deflating. He meets my gaze, and a rock falls into the pit of my stomach. There’s so much regret in his gray-blue eyes, he’s teeming with it, but before I can figure out why, Lucille starts walking up the steps. She’s hard-core crying—huge, fat tears streaming down her face—while Todd holds onto her arms.

One of the popular guys from my high school walks up to her. “Lucille, you seen Meghan? She was supposed to call me back last night.”

This brings forth another fresh round of tears. Through choking sobs, she tells him that Meghan’s in the hospital. They stop right next to us as Todd rubs her back. Before long, it’s obvious she’s not really all that upset for Meghan. She’s pretending for the attention. The tears have long