Darkly Devoted (Book 1, 2, 3)

DD Chapter 12 - Probably Out Doing Drugs

Chapter 12

AT SCHOOL THE next day, the entire class was abuzz over some overwhelmingly juicy gossip. Vivienne felt jerked back to reality as there were whispers about a boy being attacked in the football field.

"He's been in the hospital all night. They say he might be in a coma," a girl whispered to a group of students gathered in the back row of the classroom.

"Who?" Vivienne asked, marching up to the group even though she had no idea what their names were. "Who's alive?"

The students were momentarily stunned into silence at the new girl's gall. They glanced at each other from the corner of their eyes as though they weren't sure whether to answer Vivienne's question or to tell her to get lost. The girl responded first. She had kind eyes, Vivienne noted.

"You're Nicole's friend, aren't you? I saw you sitting with her at the gym the other day. She probably didn't get a chance to tell you. Her brother, Michael, was also attacked in the field yesterday. Remember, we all got sent home early?"

"Oh," Vivienne whispered. "I hope he's all right. I should make sure Nicole is taking it well."

"Nicole's in the girls' bathroom. She's been there all morning. Don't worry; she has plenty of friends around here." The girl who had been so kind a minute ago suddenly sounded impatient with Vivienne's offer of help.

Vivienne wisely decided to take that as a cue to go back to her seat. She pretended to look down at her Calculus homework, but she secretly strained to listen to their conversation.

"Nicole is saying she's going to join the purge. She's going to find that demon-turd that attacked Michael. What kind of animal attacks a thirteen-year-old boy? If you ask me, Zissa and her group should go down there right now and exterminate them all."

"Children! Quiet down!" the Calculus teacher yelled. "We are still having a test on Friday!"

"Nicole's going to start preparing now? Is there enough time?" Another voice asked. "She's not going to make it past the first cavern."

"What's she supposed to do? The poor girl's a complete wreck. They're saying the Grand Master is coming to school tomorrow for a special assembly."

"If she's going to join the trials, she better be cutting class right now, getting ready," a third voice chipped in. "You don't just walk into Satan's Hollow armed with feelings."

Class began, and the whispers promptly stopped. Vivienne couldn't concentrate on the numbers on the chalkboard. All she could think about was Nicole and wondered if she might have finally found an ally.

After class, Vivienne tried to find Nicole, but she had no idea which girl's bathroom Nicole was hiding in. Vivienne barely had time to check two before she realized she was late for her next class. She knew Nicole shared gym class with Zissa, so she decided to go. Even if Nicole skipped AP Biology and Calculus, she would attend gym class to prepare for the trials with Zissa.

Vivienne's attention turned to the bleachers, where she saw Zissa, flanked by Sam and Nicole.

Vivienne decided she had no choice. She walked up to the trio with her most conciliatory smile. As Zissa noticed her coming, she turned around and flipped her long chestnut hair. Sam regarded Vivienne with shark-like eyes. Seeing that Zissa was pretending not to notice Vivienne's presence, Sam decided to bite first.

"Where's the loser doing here? Are you here to oogle over Ashlar, too?"

"She's not here to oogle," Zissa snapped at Sam, which shut her up promptly. Poor Sam, she had broached a touchy subject with the queen bee. Sam's face turned red, and she began stuttering in fear.

"I mean, of course, A-Ashlar won't look at her twice. Of course not. He would never want her skinny, flat butt," Sam continued to mutter under her breath, which only made Zissa's frown deepen. "Ashlar will never get over you. You're the love of his life!"

"More like the love of his death," Zissa snapped back. Her attention shifted from Sam to Vivienne. "Get out of here, loser. Just because we bumped into each other in the forest, it doesn't make us friends."

"I didn't come here to speak to you," Vivienne retorted, deciding that she wasn't going to be bullied by the beautiful and fearsome popular girls anymore. "I just wanted to talk to Nicole and to see if she is okay. I want to see if I can help."

Vivienne turned her sight to Nicole. The small girl looked even more fragile at that moment. Her eyes were red, and she was hugging herself so tightly that her knuckles were white.

"Help?" Zissa demanded. "What can you do to help? Do you have any idea what you are talking about? What do you think attacked Michael in the field? Really? Tell me if you have an inkling what this is all about."

"I know about Satan's Hollow," Vivienne retorted. "I've been to the lagoon at the end of the stone pathway." Vivienne took a step towards Nicole and tried to get her attention. "Please, I'm not the enemy."

"We're going to destroy the Lethes this year," Ashlar boomed, showing up with the remains of his tank top now wrapped around his neck, being used as a towel. His body was more shredded than that of a gorilla, and he had the beastly arms to match. With every word, Ashlar sent spit flying in all directions. But that was not a concern since he was also dripping sweat in waterfalls over his washboard abs.

The girls had all stopped their gossip and nail-filing to stare. Vivienne suddenly understood what Zissa saw in Ashlar despite his coarse manner. He had the confidence of Hercules and the twinkle in his eye of Loki.

"I know," Nicole said with a wave of her hand. "Zissa just says things. She doesn't mean any of it. You're just making her uncomfortable, especially with all the snooping around. There are things about this town outsiders won't understand."

"I know what happened to your brother," Vivienne said, picking her words carefully. She needed to approach this matter gently if she was going to recruit Nicole's help. The people of Remin were suspicious of outsiders, and now Vivienne finally understood why. "I just want to help you find the monster who did that to Michael. It hurt a friend of mine, too."

"What happened to him?"

"He's dead," Vivianne said with difficulty. "The same animal that attacked your brother killed others close to me. That's why I want to go down into the caves. I want to make sure this never happens to anyone else again."

"Are you sure you know what you are asking?" Nicole finally said. "Most people who go into the caves never come out."

"The harvest is coming, isn't it?" Vivienne asked. "That's what everyone keeps talking in hushed voices about. It's the purging of the monsters in Satan's Hollow. I want to help. I know about the trials and about the water that recedes once a year. I want to go in there and hunt down those animals."

Nicole smiled bitterly. "You know a lot. I'm surprised someone told you that much. Most of the people in this town are very secretive about that kind of thing. You don't seem like a bad person, though. " She sniffled loudly and wiped her nose with her sleeve. Her eyes were bloodshot red. "If you want to help, I can show you how. Meet me after school at the fair tomorrow."

"Why not today?"

"Didn't you hear? There's an after-school assembly today. It's mandatory."