The Alpha's Forever Mate

CHAPTER: 12

"You are late," said the physics teacher as Violet slipped into the seat Yana had saved for her. "Lates are marked as absentees in this class," he said, narrowing his eyes at her. "Three absences are a failure. Organize your time better in the future," he warned.

Before she could say anything in her defense--the late bell had not even chimed yet--he put up a slide on the overhead projector about 'Forces in Fluids.' The information all seemed far more advanced than what she had been learning in middle school, and she hurried to start taking notes. A few people laughed at her getting admonished, then glanced back at Carl Johnson to see if he noticed their reactions. He didn't. He was too busy scowling.

"Are you okay?" Yana whispered.

Violet shrugged and smiled at her, not sure how to answer.

"Don't mind, Professor Freemen. He is horrible to everyone unless he is looking down at your shirt. Sometimes even then," Yana shared with her.

Try as she might concentrate on the force of fluids, Violet kept thinking about Carl Johnson. He had no reason to be setting his followers on her. She meant, she had glared at him into submission, but that was only because she was awesome and he was not. And surely that did not justify this kind of treatment that she was being meted. Maybe she had unwittingly interrupted something in the forest. He had been committing some sort of evil act and Tiara had been his lookout. That made sense. Though it did not explain why he had been missing class to hang out with Ryan's lookalike earlier. Violet was sure she had not imagined that. He had been weird when she asked about Ryan as well. No matter how Violet looked at it, how she slid the pieces of the puzzle around in her brain, none of them clicked into place. She needed more information.

She screwed up her nose at Carl Johnson from across the room, even though he was not looking.

"Something on your mind, Miss Davies?" asked Professor Freeman. "Something more interesting than my class?"

Everyone turned in their seats to stare at Violet. Well, everyone except Ryan Johnson. Blake Evans gave her a cheeky salute from his seat next to Tiara.

Violet's cheeks burned red and she stared down at her notes. "No, Sir."

"Then, with your permission, we will continue," the Professor said.

It was the worst class ever. Violet wondered if she could switch out of physics and into something else.

"He is Professor Snap," said Yana later on when they were gathered in the common room. "Without the s*x appeal and flimsy excuse for being mean."

They had skipped dinner at the dining hall and had taken the prime spot on the sofas while the place was relatively empty. It was safer that way, with the whole school against her. She stretched out on the cushions, scrolling through the list of school activities that she was supposed to pick from. She was not really an activity person, but it was compulsory, so she was looking for some activity taking the least amount of time and effort, so she could keep up with her computer repair work. She could not see herself learning the flute or playing tennis.

"Polo, that is the one with horses, right?" Violet asked.

Yana nodded. "Can you ride? No? There is water polo too. That is horse-free."

"Where is the club for eating free food and taking naps? That is the club I want to join." There was another club Violet had heard about that sounded like a good fit for her, and she kept it in the back of her mind as Yana and she discussed the possibilities until Mark and Rose came in from dinner.

"No way," said Mark, edging toward the door.

"But you are the president, aren't you?" Violet asked. "You have control over admitting new members."

"It is not even an official club. You cannot put 'hating Carl Johnson' down on your school transcript." Mark spoke in a hushed whisper, even though the only other people in the room were some seniors studying at the big table.

"So I will do it just for fun's sake," Violet said.

"You want me to be fed to the sharks. You want me to end up at the bottom of the ocean, sleeping with the fishes. Because that is what will happen if word gets out about this club," Mark told her.

Violet rolled her eyes. Mark had a fear of the ocean. "You are not going to sleep with the fishes, Mark."

"Fishes don't sleep," Rose said, scrolling through her tablet as she sat down at the end of the sofa. "They just rest."

"See," Violet told Mark. "You should let me join the club and tell me everything you know about Carl Johnson, and then together we can destroy him."

Yana gave her a long look, tilting her head to one side as she studied Violet, but did not say anything.

"Carl Johnson is indestructible. He is the destroyer. He makes people disappear." He turned toward Yana. "You remember Raven Knight from fifth grade?"

Yana shook her head.

"Exactly," said Mark. "She disappeared without a trace from fifth grade. All Raven Knight did was laugh at Carl Johnson's painting of a dinosaur, and then the next day she vanished. Never heard from her again after that."

"He did suck at art," said Rose.

"What about Raven's family?" Violet asked Mark.

He shrugged. "I do not know. They were from Scotland, or somewhere. But if you google them, you get zero hits."

"Is she the only one?" Violet asked. Although she knew, she wasn't.

"I don't know. I only remember Raven Knight. Maybe he just got better at it after fifth grade. Maybe nobody made the mistake of laughing at his art after that. The point is, I am not messing with Carl Johnson. You are on your own," Mark told Violet.

He was not wrong. The more she looked into Carl Johnson, the more it became obvious that people just loved him. And not just people at school, people everywhere. There were sites dedicated to his eyes and also his physique. But that did not help Violet. She was not interested in rumors about whether he was dating this model or that socialite or whatever. Violet needed the TRUTH...