The Devil Child

Chapter Twenty Four

 "You seem on edge," Tom offered to the silence after they pulled out of the school parking lot. Behind the wheel, Tom seemed more tense, unlike his usual relaxed self. The sleeves of his oxford shirt were pushed up to his forearms, and his hair was sticking in odd directions after he'd run his hands through it.

"I have a lot going on right now." Polly bit out, closing her eyes. The darkness of her eyelids welcomed all of her problems. The compact. The person following her. Doctor Higgins. Her neglectful parents. Jenny appearing in her nightmares.

Polly was on edge. She felt stressed, sleep deprived, and she certainly didn't feel safe. She felt like she was one step away from being kidnapped, or worse, killed.

She thought her past was behind her. She thought.

"Don't we all," Tom added, and then sighed. "If you ever want to talk, I'm here. I know I'm not your first ideal person to talk to, but I'm still someone."

Polly was suddenly very grateful for Tom. She didn't know much about him, but he was genuinely a nice person. He cared about Minny enough to care about her.

"Thanks. Maybe I'll take you up on that offer." She tucked her legs beneath her body, running her hand over the dashboard. "Thanks for this," she added, sneaking a look at him.

She never imagined she'd be sitting in Tom's car, as if they were friends. Before she was locked up at camp and schooled from there, she'd gone to public school, and she was an outcast. She kept to herself, didn't bother talking to the popular students. But here, it all felt different. She felt like belonged, and she felt that the gap between popular student and outcast wasn't very large at this school.

In fact, she felt as if it didn't exist.

"No problem. I know Minny must feel trapped, you know? And today was his first day. I can only imagine what it must be like to suffer at the hands of parents."

Polly nodded, knowing fully well what it felt like. It felt like suffocation.

When they pulled up to the prep school, there was a few minutes until the school let out. Tom rummaged through the glove box before pulling out a package of mint gum, catching Polly's gaze as he did so.

"Want some? I keep it in here for Minny, since it's his favorite. But I'm sure he wouldn't mind you having some."

Polly took one. "You keep it here for Minny?"

Tom snorted. "Of course. I'm not keeping it for myself; I hate mint. C'mon, I think I see people leaving the school."

Tom lifted his tall frame from the small car, and Polly followed. The prep school loomed over them, looking expensive and unbelievably cold. It held personality, but the school itself looked as if it was home to a prison rather than a school. There was nothing fun or colorful about the education received here, Polly knew that for sure.

She watched as a stream of boys wearing identical uniforms run out of the front doors. She looked for Minny, but couldn't find him in that group, so she continued to look, her gaze catching that of a girl walking down the steps.

With her head held high and her caramel curls falling down her back in a wave, Polly instantly felt inferior. The way the girl held herself screamed important, and the way she wore a simple uniform was so much more regal than Polly could ever dream to be in her fox print tee shirt.

The girl flattened her skirt against the wind, and then raised an arm to wave to someone in a car. Her bracelets jangled together, and for a moment, Polly was lost in her confidence and her beauty.