Murphy A. E. - Naked or Dead

Copyright 2019 by A. E. Murphy

All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

Name? He slides the pointed nail of his forefinger down his roster, stopping at the empty row at the bottom of the page.

Lilith Deville, I reply as I move to the only empty space in this dreary classroom.

My new classmates murmur around me, whispering questions of who I am, where Im from, and why Im here in their stupid preppy bullshit of a school.

I wasnt aware Id be getting a new student today, the teacher mutters, a frown marring his aged, yet handsome features. I wonder if he knows that his red tie clashes with his orange hair or if he simply doesnt care. Where have you transferred from, Miss Deville?

A place where teachers couldnt wear ties, I respond loudly. Ties became nooses in my old school.

High rate of suicide? he asks, sounding and looking concerned as his hand adjusts the clothing piece in question.

Not suicide, no.

My meaning isnt lost on him, his polite smile falls. He clears his throat and those whispers around me become more desperate. Eyes level on me and glance away, others stick to me like glue, some dont even venture near me at all.

Well, as Im your first teacher of the day, welcome to Lakeside Preparatory Academy. Im Mr. Bromley.

I nod and pull the shit I need from my bag.

Do you have a buddy for your first day?

Im good.

Its a big school. He looks at a girl over in the back corner, I clocked her as soon as I walked in. Perhaps Blair would

I said Im good, I repeat, clicking the end of my pen incessantly.

More whispering. Somebody calls me a bitch.

I dont care.

Well, alright then. Everybody, eyes back on the board.

Hey, the guy beside me whispers, tapping me on my bare shoulder with the eraser on the end of his pencil.

I look at him, his dark hair and pale skin, his stubble that hes likely super proud of despite the fact its patchy, the trail of acne scars visible along his neck. Hes cute, exactly the kind of guy my sister would have dated. I hate him already.

I catch my reflection in his glasses, a faceless outline with wild hair and a stiff posture, then take his pencil that is still suspended between us and snap it with both of my hands.

His lips part and his brows furrow.

What the fuck? he mouths, looking at the broken pencil that I just dropped to the floor. Youre not going to make any friends with that attitude.

Good, I reply, smiling a fake-ass smile that Ive perfected over the past few months. I dont want friends.

Psycho, a girl behind me whispers but she straightens nervously when I turn to look at her and the desk that separates us.

All I have to do is stare and her wide gray eyes almost pop out of her head as her body slowly slinks off her chair like a slug over an edge.

Satisfied, I turn back around and look at the board. Mr. Bromleys eyes are on me, his lips are a thin white line. I hold his gaze letting him know what Im about.

Im not here to learn. Im not here to make friends. Im here because I must be and here is where Ill stay until Ive gotten what I need.

My dad always said you can say more with a single look at the right time than you can with a thousand words. Actions speak louder than words.

Loki, right? I ask the guy whose pencil I just snapped.

He keeps his gaze ahead as Bromley starts talking us through some local history but I know he heard me.

Who is the most arrogant guy in school?

He frowns and wets his lips. Why should I tell you anything?

Because the longer it takes me to get answers, the longer Im in this hell hole of a school.

He rolls his eyes. Why do I care?

I look at the girl behind me. Clay eyes, I hiss, craning my neck and twisting my body in my seat.

Me? She points to herself, her eyes wide again.

Whats the punishment for sexual assault and harassment here?

Her lips part, her eyes swim with confusion. Why?

Just answer the question.

Suspension pending investigation

Loki shifts in his seat, catching the gist of my threat. Hes really annoyed. Nok.

Knock?

Yes, he huffs. Nok is the most arrogant guy here.

By far, the girl behind me agrees.

I dont remember seeing that name on the list of pupils here. I scour my brain but nothing comes to mind.

Full name? I ask abruptly and his hands squeeze into fists.

Nokosi Locklear.

I know that name. Its exactly the person I was told about.

Hes like the only Native American that attends here, hes not hard to spot.

I rotate to look at her again and raise a brow. This school is meant to be progressive and youre telling me theres only one Native American?

You have to be rich to get in.

And white apparently, I mutter and then snort, Well fuck.

What is it? Loki asks cautiously.

I dont reply, instead I burn the name to memory and mentally curse that my first target is the only minority in the school. Thats a racism charge if I ever saw one. Fuck.

Never mind. I have shit to do. I dont care who I upset.

Did they teach you respect in your last school, Miss Deville? Bromley barks at me, annoyed at my ignorance and chatter. Because in our school we wait until were on our own time to speak to our friends.

Silence is my answer. I put pen to paper and scribble my name all over the lines in different types of handwriting. It at least looks like Im doing something.

Anybody else you can think of that stands out as an arrogant asshole? I ask just before the bell rings but neither of them answers.

Never mind, I have my starting point.

Nokosi Locklear.

His reputation precedes him.

Now to find him.

A task easier than I anticipated I discover, after second period during first break, when a small riot breaks out in the halls, right where one hall joins another.

Students charge past me, eager to follow the crowd, teachers blow whistles and an alarm sounds overhead as security tries to get to whatever is happening just before the next bend.

NOK! NOK! NOK! they all chant and the sound of something or somebody slamming against a metal locker echoes over their heads.

I cant be bothered to squeeze through so I toss a metal trash can upside down, letting the contents spill all over the floor and grab the shoulder of somebody nearby for leverage before standing on the flat bottom of the can.

I see a brown fist connect with a white cheek, and as though a filter of slow motion takes over my eyes, I watch a spray of blood fly through the air. White cheek guy hits the floor with a thud and does not move. Nobody steps forward, everybody freezes. But then he groans and tries to get up and the roar of the crowd is deafening.

The guy who I assume to be Nokosi grins at them all, making the cut on his lip bleed worse. He raises the fist he just KOd the guy with and kisses his bulging bicep.

This guy is a piece of fucking work. Hes also extremely beautiful. He also knows it.

Ive never seen such a sharp jaw, and longer hair on a guy never once appealed to me. It does now.

Long, black hair, tied back with a single hair tie.

He has a tribal-looking tattoo on the arm he just kissed and it is almost as stunning as he is. So intricate, patterned, perfect. I pull out my phone and try to get a picture of it but its grainy at best. There are too many bodies between us. Too much space.