It had been a week since Mandy Wiles disappeared. I mean, no one's complaining, right? She was self-absorbed, arrogant, and an uber-bitch. She'd nearly destroyed my career in the medical field. She would've, too, if it hadn't of been for that little devil, Jimmy. Even with that being said, it was still terrifying for us. Not everyone was over Trevor's death yet, and now another bad thing had befallen on one of our classmates. A lot of people assumed Mandy ran away or something, but we all silently knew it wasn't true.
Bullworth Academy was a little on edge, to say the least. Dr. Crabblesnitch was even considering issuing a curfew, which would have been easy for me to abide by, but everyone else nearly rioted. The headmaster decided, in the end, that we would just have to be more careful, which he'd hurriedly end with, "Not that there's anything to be worried about."
Everyone seemed to avoid talking about it, especially the teachers. The majority of them just believed the rumor that Mandy had run away, and that Trevor had just had a heart attack or something. I tried to believe them, I really did, but it all just seemed too staged for me. Something was definitely going on, and no one knew exactly what.
For instance, I had been walking to the library just two days ago when I saw that new substitute teacher, Mr. Gunne. He gave me a weird smile and analyzed me like a wolf trying to pick out the best piece of meat he could get. I felt my skin crawl and I tried my best to ignore him. It was odd enough that we'd had a substitute teacher in the first place, but for him to stay an entire week was just beyond weird. I wasn't even sure if he was old enough to have a degree. He looked my age, although, I am also a prime example that intelligence cannot just be simply measure by age.
I had sat down at my regular seat in the library, the table right next to the fireplace. I nestled comfortable in my sweater and opened my Biology book, studying for the big test we were having today. Suddenly, I heard Mr. Gunne's voice.
"Do you mind if I speak to Miss Trudeau alone?" he was speaking to Algernon. I always sat with him at a table.
He nodded glumly and picked up his books, clumsily rising from his seat and walking over to another vacant table. I got nervous and tried to ignore Mr. Gunne. He was really disturbing, and I really didn't want to be talking with him in the first place. Much less alone.
He cleared his throat. I could feel his eyes boring a hole in me. I looked up at him and met his expecting face. Disturbing or not, his face was surely above average of other human males. "Yes, Mr. Gunne?"
He smiled lightly and sat down across from me. "What can you tell me about Mandy Wiles?"
I furrowed my brows. "Why do you want to know?"
He casually shrugged his shoulders and relaxed into the back of the wooden seat. "I was just trying to piece for myself why she would run away."
I shrugged. "Well, she's the head cheerleader. Insanely popular. Bulimic. Her boyfriend's the star quarterback, Ted Thompson."
He got closer in my face. "Are there any negative feelings you harbor towards Mandy, Miss Trudeau?"
I was taken aback. I squirmed uncomfortably underneath his intense emerald gaze. "I mean, we don't get along or anything. We're on different spectrums of the social ladder."
He was silent for a moment before a look of anger filling his features. "And would there be any reason for you to be wrapped up in the disappearance of her?"
I narrowed my eyes. "What are you trying to say?"
He fired back at me with pure hatred. "I'm trying to say, Beatrice, that you seem just the type to bully Mandy into running away. You would always be jealous of her. You'd make her feel bad just because she was indeed better than you. Or maybe, she didn't just disappear after all. Maybe you did something to her that you'll regret forever. Something that could surely ruin your chances of finding the cure for cancer."
I squeaked. I couldn't believe what I was hearing. Was he accusing me of murder. I got up and tucked my books underneath my arm. "I think I should be going."
He nodded, a heavy smirk apparent on his lips. Any traces of anger were gone. "You have a good day now, Beatrice."
Yeah, terrible, right? I was beyond upset. I felt like I'd just been accused of killing my own mother. Yeah, sure, I hated Mandy Wiles, but I didn't have the heart to kill her. Heck, I couldn't kill anyone! It was just absurd that Mr. Gunne would dare come at me with those accusations. He acted like he had something over me.
And how had he known all of that stuff about me? How did he know that I wanted to be a doctor and find the cure for cancer? I hadn't even said a word to him during the entirety that he's been at Bullworth. I was practically praying for Hattrick to come back.
Today, I was headed to Art when Mr. Gunne pulled me aside yet again, a harsh hand digging into my shoulder. He pulled me into a vacant classroom and sat me down at the desk. He got in my face and accessed me again, resting his elbows on the surface.
Finally, he spoke in a hushed whisper. "I need you to do something for me."
I narrowed my eyes again. "Why would I help you after you accused me of murder?"
He pushed up off the desk and shook his head, a sneer on his face. From his back pocket, he pulled out a photo that shocked me to the core. It was a picture of me stabbing someone. That someone was none other than Mandy Wiles. I furrowed my brows. He looked smug and proud of himself.
"What the hell is this?" I hissed, trying to keep my voice down.
He cocked his head to the side. "Computer manipulated graphics."
"What are you trying to get at?"
He sighed a fake sigh. "Oh, I don't know. I might just go show this picture to the police."
"They would know it's fake."
"Are you so sure about that, Miss Trudeau?"
He had me dumfounded. I slumped in my seat. "What do you want me to do?"
The most devious smile I had ever seen to grace a human's face spread across his chiseled features.
