Chapter 2

It ended with the dean and the police showing up. Both me and the Queen Bee got taken to the station.

Her two friends, who were hurt worse, were sent to the hospital.

Somehow, the Queen Bee had already called her family. By the time we arrived, her dad and a whole crew were waiting.

At the sight of her backup, she hurled herself into her dad's arms and pointed an accusing finger at me, her shouts never ceasing.

"Dad, that bitch tried to make me eat a dead rat! Don't let her get away with this!"

I quickly ducked behind the cop, putting on my best scared face. "Officer, I'm scared."

The officer gave me a "stop the drama" look, then pointed at the Queen Bee. "This is a police station. No more 'kill' talk."

The Queen Bee was about to protest again, but her father grabbed her shoulder and held her back.

"Officer, I'm Chloe White's father. She was beaten up in her dorm by a freshman who tried to force her to eat a dead rat. You have to do something about this."

The officer shot me an unreadable look and ushered us into the interrogation room.

After hearing everything, the officer glanced between us.

"Alright. Chloe started it, but Lily, you went way too far. Lucky nothing too serious happened. Since you're both students, we suggest you work this out privately."

I sank back in my chair, casually watching Chloe rant as her father repeatedly cut her off. Seeing her so worked up but powerless was downright hilarious.

"Lily Jones assaulted two students right after starting college. One has a serious head injury, and the other will be limping for weeks. How can we tolerate such a violent person on our campus? She's a menace," Chloe's dad snapped.

Chloe's gaze flickered. She gave up on her death threats and was now pressuring me to leave school.

"Here's the deal: either you bow to me and let me film you begging for mercy—or you pack up and leave school. If you don't, I'll sue your ass."

The officer frowned and knocked on the table. "Chloe, you started this. As an upperclassman, you kicked off violence. Now you're still going after Lily—isn't that too much?"

My eyes lit up as I looked at the young officer. Here was a man who understood justice.

Chloe's dad was annoyed. "Oh, so you're just backing this little bitch because she's pretty? My daughter was only trying to help a new freshman—how is that bullying?"

I couldn't watch the officer get pushed around. "Oh, dumping paint on my bed and putting dead rats in my blankets is 'helping out'? Well then, stuffing a dead rat in your daughter's mouth was my way of thanking her—letting her try a new delicacy. How about that?"

Chloe and her dad had nothing to say. With the officer's help, they signed the agreement through gritted teeth.

Before we left, the officer said earnestly, "You're schoolmates—try to look out for each other, okay?"

Unhappy with the result, Chloe grabbed her dad and stormed out.

I shrugged nonchalantly and followed them out.

At the crossroads, Chloe's dad blocked my path, smirking. "Kid, I figured you were just young and naive—if you'd apologized to my daughter, we could've let this go. But you chose the hard way. Don't blame me for what happens next."

I rolled my eyes, shouldered his bulky frame aside, and walked off, leaving him in shock.

I knew they'd try to get revenge, but I never thought they'd go this far.

It was the weekend. I was on a hiking trip out of town. As I walked out of a bathroom, something hit the back of my head. Everything went black.

When I woke up, my hands and feet were tied, and there was a dirty rag in my mouth.

I looked around, realizing I was locked in some warehouse.

Dim yellow light came from above. Chloe was setting up a camera, surrounded by several men.

When they saw I was awake, the guys exchanged lewd grins.

One of them snickered, "Oh, woke up fast, huh?"

Two men approached me, smirking as they rubbed their hands. "We're gonna have some fun—might even shoot a video."

I ignored them, my eyes locked on Chloe.

She strutted over, face full of hate. "Bet you never thought you'd end up like this, did you?"

I didn't move, holding her gaze as she marched up and slapped me hard across the face.

"Lily, aren't you such a badass? Aren't you the one who hits people? Come on, fight back!"

She slapped me again on both cheeks.

I tasted blood. We were sworn enemies now.

She pointed at the camera with a vicious smile. "Aren't you supposed to be the pretty one? Well, let's show everyone what you really look like. We'll record some nice videos and post them online—let's see how famous you get."

As her words hung in the air, two men moved in, hands rubbing.

"Damn, this chick's hot. We're really gonna have fun tonight."

With that, they grabbed my legs and dragged me in front of the camera, then started untying the ropes around my ankles.

Chloe snapped, "Leave those ropes! What if she runs?"

The guys laughed. "How are we supposed to have fun if her legs are tied?"

Chloe caught on at once. With a light cough, she retreated to a corner and busied herself with her phone.

They surrounded me. One tore at my shirt, another yanked at my pants, and one guy unzipped himself and shoved his body toward my face.

Once the ropes around my legs were off, I sprang up, locked my legs around his neck, and snapped it.

His neck cracked, and the other three guys—pants half-down—snatched up knives and rushed me.