![]() Sam leaped through the hole in the office wall and ran toward the woods, where he and I had spent so many summers hiding out and playing when we were kids.Ĭould I trust Sam? How could I not? Even if he had suddenly grown furry legs and hooves, he was my best friend. What was in that file? Why had that lion/counselor/monster lady been so intent on killing me? With the sprinklers going, it would soon be ruined. I spotted the red folder nestled nicely in one of the tree branches. “No time to talk! More monsters will be coming. “Wh-what-how-?” I pointed feebly at his cloven hooves. ![]() “Thank the gods you’re safe!” Sam shouted over the sound of the fire alarms. I wanted to sob and laugh at the same time. I wanted to curl into a ball and hide under the shattered counselor’s desk. But something about his appearance was wrong. His backpack was slung over one shoulder. Standing in the doorway was my best friend, Sam, his eyes wide with alarm, his curly blond hair disheveled. I turned as the office door splintered and blasted inward like it had been hit with a battering ram. The fire alarm and sprinkler systems went off, dousing me with cold water.Ī loud thud made me jump out of my skin. Roche seemed to disintegrate into smoke and dust, and then the tree broke through the ceiling, still rising, reaching for the sun. Its branches lifted her up, wrapped themselves around her waist, and tore at her as they writhed and grew. Roche howled as an oak tree erupted through the floor. We both watched as the liquid metal ate through the floor, then through the concrete below, and then through the dirt. Roche saw it and scrambled back against the far wall. I opened my hand to drop the coin, but liquid metal spilled out instead. My left fist, still clenched tightly, suddenly felt like it was gripping hot lava. I shouted, instinctively dropping to the ground and rolling to my right. Roche lunged at me, claws extended and fangs exposed. Why hadn’t my parents given me a pocketknife? Or a mini-canister of lion spray? Can you even buy lion spray? Or do you just buy bear spray and hope for the best? I clenched my left hand, suddenly aware I was gripping my lucky coin. ![]() The crazed look in her eyes made my knees turn to jelly. “No matter.” Her tail flicked back and forth. I backed up, nearly falling over my chair. Lane came running in, trying to help me, I’d only get her killed. Besides, this creature had already gotten rid of the principal and the counselor. “Otherwise we might not have found you in time.” Her voice was the only thing that hadn’t changed. “I’m so glad you used your friend’s cell phone,” she purred. Roche became a fully formed lioness, standing upright on her haunches, ready to tear me to pieces with those gleaming claws. Her head peeled back like a hoodie and out of her mouth grew a new head: a feline snout, black lips and white fangs, and large, hungry gold eyes. She sprang across the office in a blur of yellow and blocked my path. “What the-” I bolted for the door, but Ms. Her fingernails grew, transforming into claws. Roche exhaled, and a chillingly familiar metallic scent wafted through the room. “Took care of…” My heart climbed up my throat. They would have interfered with our conversation, so I took care of them.” No human could have moved that fast, and that thing in the hall had seemed…more like a wild animal somehow. “Because you’re very special.”įor the first time, I realized that her hair was the same color as that flash of movement I’d seen in the hallway-but that couldn’t have been Ms. “Wh-what does a red folder mean?” I stammered. The folder on top of mine had an intricate gold seal and the word CONFIDENTIAL stamped across it. Roche was a stack of red folders like the one she was using for my notes. The details of the office came into sharper focus. The second hand on the wall clock ticked. Your lack of a phone explains a great deal-such as why we didn’t detect your presence sooner.” “And what does it have to do with the cafeteria incident?” “Why do you care if I have a cell phone?” I asked. Roche was staring at me, like she was enjoying my discomfort. Anyway, Lexi accidentally left her cell phone at my house the day before and I still had it, so I used it, because…” I faltered. “Lexi is a friend of yours? Why did you make the call from your friend’s phone and not your own?” Roche’s eyes gleamed with a strange light. “I didn’t know what else to do, so I grabbed Lexi’s phone and dialed 9-1-1.” “The incident report says that no one else felt anything.”
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