Chapter 5

Maddy was two corridors away when she heard the shouting. Her enhanced hearing could pick it up through the walls but she could imagine that Shannon was able to hear it too. It was only as they neared the office that they got a true sense of what was really going on. Both of Maddy's parents were angry and the walls were literally vibrating with their voices as they yelled. At that moment, Tom staggered out of the office rubbing his ears. He spotted them and made his way over, seeming disoriented.

"And you guys thought my mum was scary!" he muttered.

"I'd better get in there." Maddy sighed, noticing that she was starting to feel shaky again. "Rhydian, will you come in with me?" He nodded and took her by the hand. Instantly her heart missed a beat. She would have given anything to cuddle into him right then and there, but there would be another time. Knowing no one would hear her knocking on the door, she decided to just open it and head in.

"Excuse me, lads. It might interest you to know this conversation is no longer private." The door opened with Maddy's hand just hovering over the handle. Emma was standing there holding it open, seeming shocked about seeing Maddy on the other side. "Maddy! How are you feeling, pet?"

"I'm doing alright." Maddy tried to force a grin, but knew Emma wasn't fooled for a second. "I'm definitely feeling stronger than I was."

"You're stubborn, I'll give you that." Emma said as she hugged Maddy close. "Just like your father." She beckoned Maddy and Rhydian into the room and closed the door behind them. Maddy noticed Shannon had turned to lean against the wall next to the door. She didn't know if Shannon could hear through it if they didn't yell or whether she was just waiting for them to come out. Either way, it was good to know she was just outside.

"Okay, now back to business." Dan turned back to the head, his tone threatening in a way Maddy had never heard before. "I want to know why my daughter was locked in a room on her own for over three hours without so much as a water bottle! Why did no one check on her? I want answers!"

"As do I, Mr Smith." The head calmly turned to Maddy. "Where are my manners? Maddy, you're probably still not feeling great. Have a seat." He gestured to the chair in front of his desk. Not wanting to seem rude, she sat down. Only too late did she realise that she'd been put in the hot seat. He'd sat her there so he could fire his questions at her more accurately. "So Maddy, as the only person who knows what truly happened today, I was hoping I could get a chance to ask for your side of the story." He adjusted his glasses and shuffled some papers in front of him, looking over some pages of notes. "Tom mentioned you left your bag with Rhydian and headed to the darkroom. Why don't we begin there?"

'Just remember you asked for this.' Maddy thought. She told the story. All of it. The head teacher, Rhydian and her parents were a very good audience. They gasped and muttered in all the right places and when Maddy talked about her fight with Scott she even felt Rhydian tense behind her. Once she'd finished, she looked around the room and took in everyone's faces. Everyone was stunned. This was clearly a lot more than they'd anticipated hearing.

"So, Scott Wilson has entered the fray." The head had stopped taking notes a while back and now rubbed his temples as he sat back in his seat. "But the way you described him just then doesn't sound a thing like him. You say he broke into the darkroom, threw photo chemicals and archived photos everywhere and proceeded to attack you. Yet I was reading his report only yesterday and it describes him as the most docile boy we've got here. He's on the chess team, in the school magazine and is frequently found in the library. In class he's quiet unless to answer a question and has never once been told off for talking. That's not the character of someone who would act as you're describing."

"Yeah, but the school magazine published a smear piece about Maddy's family online and made sure it went viral." Rhydian added. "Scott is on the school magazine. You just said so yourself." The head glared up at him and Maddy was instantly glad he was there.

"As it happens, Rhydian, I've been told of this alleged article and-"

"Alleged?" Dan jumped in, his voice showing pure disbelief. Rhydian pulled up his phone and clicked the internet icon before going to his saved pages.

"Here. I kept the page just in case we needed to show it off to people." The head took the phone and began reading, puzzling over the page thoughtfully.

"If that were a newspaper that article would be going in a frame on the wall." Dan said as he waited for a response from the head.

"I understand Mr Jefferies is looking into this, correct?"

"He is." Rhydian nodded. The head sat back and smiled in a way Maddy decided she really didn't like.

"Then I'll leave that in his capable hands." Everyone stared at him in stunned shock. "As for Scott, I'll call him in for a private word once I've reviewed the CCTV. Mr and Mrs Smith, if you want to join me for that then you're more than welcome. As for the kids, we're sending Rhydian home early for today after the way he grabbed Mrs Parish. His punishment can begin next week. I don't suppose you'll want to keep Maddy in school after this, either. You can take her home too and we'll be pursuing this further. I'll even say it's up to you entirely as to whether you allow her back while the investigation is ongoing. Mrs Parish has been sent home for the day and suspended from duties until further notice. Whether she'll be back or not will depend on what we find. Just know that unless or until you make the definitive decision to withdraw Maddy from this school, we will be e-mailing homework across so that she doesn't fall behind. Did I miss anything out?" Maddy had to admit it sounded fairer than she'd hoped. Now it just left her hoping her parents would call an end to the meeting soon. Her prayers were answered when her dad fished the car keys out of his pocket.

"Em, do you want to take the kids home or look over the CCTV footage with them?" he asked. Emma's reply was instant. She snatched the car keys from Dan, her voice carrying a hard edge.

"Kids, get in the car. Rhydian, you can come back to ours for a couple of hours. Maddy, you can invite Shannon and Tom round after school too. We'll have a bit of a relaxation night."

"That's a good plan." Maddy nodded. "I like that plan a lot." She went to get up but moved too quick and felt herself slide sideways. Instantly, she felt Rhydian's arms wrap around her and haul her back up. Dan held the door open and he ushered her out. Once they were able to step out into the corridor again, Rhydian eased Maddy back so that she was leaning against the wall next to Shannon. As soon as Shannon saw the state of her, she reached into her bag and pulled out a chocolate bar. Maddy took it hungrily and started tearing into it, her hands shaking as she did.

"Her blood sugar must be low." Emma muttered. "Wolfbloods burn through energy quicker than humans. That's why we gorge on food. Let's get her home and we'll get it sorted." Rhydian nodded and looped Maddy's other arm over his neck to stop her from collapsing again.

"Thanks, Shan." Maddy said weakly. "Hey, do you and Tom want to come over tonight? We're just going to take some time out to relax."

"Love to." Shannon flashed her a reassuring grin. "I'll let Tom know what's happening. He had to go and eat something so I'd better go find him." With that, she walked off to track Tom down. Maddy, Rhydian and Emma went the other way, heading towards the car park. They bundled her into the car with Rhydian jumping in after her and pulled away.

Back in the headteacher's office, Dan and the head regarded each other with a cold sense of contempt, both of them knowing it was there and both keeping it thinly veiled. Eventually, the head decided it would be best to make the first move.

"Again, Mr Smith, let me extend my sincerest apologies for what happened on the quiz night. How someone managed to tamper with the questions goes beyond me. Have you managed to get the records set straight now?"

"Let's not change the subject, Mr Whiteside." Dan's voice was low and unforgiving. "Where do we go to watch the CCTV?"

"You'll need to see the ICT technician." The head rose from his desk and opened the office door. Looking out into the corridor, he spotted one of the staff walking past. "Ah, Miss Fire, have you a minute?" Miss Fire turned to them, an expectant look on her face. "Would you mind showing Mr Smith here to the ICT technician to review the CCTV footage. Tell them I will be up in a minute. I just need to sort the cover for Mrs Parish's last class of the day."

"Certainly, Mr Whiteside." Miss Fire looked Dan up and down in a way that visibly unnerved him.

"I apologise, Mr Smith. It's just all a bit impromptu, you understand? You have my word, I'll be straight up after you."

"Don't leave me waiting." Dan left with Miss Fire, allowing the head to breathe for a minute. As soon as they were gone he locked the door to his office and spun on his heel, heading to the storage cupboard. He flung the doors open to reveal the unconscious figure of a man in there, bound and gagged in case he woke up during the meeting. Untying him, the head dragged him out into the middle of the room where anyone could find him.

"Someone has to be held accountable, Mr Whiteside. And you won't be the last, will you?" the man whispered before unlocking the door and making an exit. As he walked down the corridor, no one questioned him as he headed outside to the car park. He looked just like the head teacher after all. Why would they? He pulled the car keys he'd stolen from the true head teacher from his blazer pocket. Once he'd found the car he climbed in and drove away. As he did, he noticed a family photo of the man from the cupboard along with his wife and kids all laughing together as they bunched close for the photo. He swiped it aside as a look of disdain crossed his face, memories of hatred and resentment flooding his mind. As he drove, he couldn't help his eyes burning a dangerous shade of yellow.

Author's Note: Sorry for the long delay. A lot has happened while I've been gone. First off, my computer finally crapped out and died properly, so I have a new one now. It took a while to obtain so that was the main reason behind it. The second thing is that I got a new job and there's been some turbulence surrounding that since it's a much heavier working schedule meaning updates will more likely happen as and when rather than a regular schedule for now. Don't worry, though. There will be some double-updates coming in the future to bring everything back on track. Hope you all enjoy it.