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CHAPTER FIVE
“THIS WILL STING A BIT.”
Yuri was tending to my bleeding scratches in the goldfish bowl. He opened the bottle of antiseptic
and applied it to a swab. The medicinal odor transported me to the sick bay at school, conjuring up memories of playground battle scars, grazed knees and scratched elbows. I remembered the warm, cozy feeling of being taken care of by Matron, bandaged and rewarded for my bravery with a boiled sweet. Then the sting of the antiseptic on my skin brought me back sharply to the present, where the injuries I presented were not so easily remedied. I winced.
“My head feels like she hit me with a fucking hammer.”
“It’s a nasty bruise. You’ll have a lump tomorrow. We’d better keep an eye on it.” Yuri shook his head. “I never should have left you alone with her.”
“I didn’t give you a choice.”
He grunted. “That’s true enough.”
“Thanks for not saying, ‘I told you so.’ It’s noted and appreciated.”
Yuri shrugged. “I don’t need to, mate. The professor will say it for me. He’s asked to see you in
his office.” “Ah.”
“Rather you than me, by the look of him.”
I started getting up.
Yuri watched me carefully. “Don’t rush. Take a minute. Make sure you’re ready. Any dizziness or
headaches, let me know.”
“I’m fine. Honestly.”
That wasn’t strictly true, but I didn’t feel as bad as I looked. Bloody scratches, and black bruises
around my throat where she’d tried to strangle me—she’d dug so deep with her fingers, she’d drawn blood.
I knocked on the professor’s door. Diomedes’s eyes widened when he saw me. He tutted. “Po po po. Did you need stitches?”
“No, no, of course not. I’m fine.”
Diomedes gave me a disbelieving look and ushered me inside. “Come in, Theo. Sit down.”
The others were already there. Christian and Stephanie were standing. Indira was sitting by the
window. It felt like a formal reception, and I wondered if I was about to get fired.
Diomedes sat behind his desk. He gestured to me to sit in the remaining empty chair. I sat. He stared at me in silence for a moment, drumming his fingers, deliberating what to say, or how to say it.
But before he could make up his mind, he was beaten to it by Stephanie.
“This is an unfortunate incident. Extremely unfortunate.” She turned to me. “Obviously we’re all
relieved you’re still in one piece. But that doesn’t alter the fact that it raises all kinds of questions. And the first is, what were you doing alone with Alicia?”
“It was my fault. I asked Yuri to leave. I take full responsibility.”