Michelle Hercules

“Why are you so modest all of a sudden? You were going to take it all off for us before.” I shrug.

Fury sparkles in her narrowed eyes. “Fine. Do you want to see them?” She drops her arms and then reaches behind her back.

My jaw drops. I wasn’t expecting that she would give in that easily. I’m a bit disappointed, to be honest, but my cock doesn’t care. It’s already getting harder from the anticipation. My attention is completely riveted to her rack, so I’m too late to avoid the missile she hurls in my direction. Something sharp connects with my temple. My head jerks back, and pain explodes in my forehead.

Clenching my jaw, I touch the sore spot, and my fingers come down smeared with blood. What the actual fuck. How did she manage to cut me? She’s only a Norm. My vision becomes tinged in red as the wrath of a thousand gods runs through me.

“I’m going to kill you,” I say tightly.

The girl’s eyes widen, and she finally seems to realize she messed with the wrong Idol.

I’m about to turn her worst nightmare into reality when movement at my back makes me stop.

“What the hell is going on here?” Principal Fallon asks.

Ah, fuck. Fun is over. For now.

“I’m already logged into his class. All you have to do is solve the math problem.”

I lean back in my chair, linking my fingers behind my head. Now all I have to do is wait for her to crash and burn. No way she can solve that problem, not with her shitty Norm education.

But she’s going for it, her answers popping up on the projector screen faster than I thought possible for anyone with her background. She’s done in less than a minute, and I have to blink a few times to make sure I’m not seeing things.

“I’ll be damned. She did it.” Phoenix laughs.

Mr. Atkins is staring befuddled at the screen. “Huh? Well, look at that. It seems your scholarship wasn’t wasted after all. Well done, Miss Woods.”

“Rufio, Morpheus, Phoenix, and Bryce. Man, I think I’ve been too focused on showing you the ins and outs of the school. What you need is a lecture on Idol hierarchy. Rufio, Morpheus, and Phoenix are all level fifteen and the kings of school.”

Crap on toast.

“What about Bryce?”

“Oh, he’s in a league of his own. He’s a fucking seventeen.”

Long and sharp nails dig into my skin when Drusilla grabs me by the chin and forces me to look at her. “Leave Gifted Academy, or we’ll make your life hell.”

My blood reaches boiling temperature. I yank her hand off me and stand up. “Don’t fucking touch me.”

Drusilla’s green eyes widen, but the gesture only lasts a second before her gaze narrows to slits

Seemingly not satisfied, he brings his mouth close to my ear. “I’m not so sure about—"

He stops talking abruptly and takes a whiff of my neck. My eyes close involuntarily as a chill runs down my spine. Rufio gasps—a sound I could never imagine he was capable of making—right before he lets go of me as if I’ve electrocuted him somehow.

Miss Piccolo turns on the machine just as I'm turning to see what the hell is wrong with the guy. The tennis ball ends up hitting my right shoulder, and I yelp.

"Daisy!" Toby exclaims, and then he runs toward me.

Clutching my shoulder, I watch Rufio stalk away from the tennis court without a glance back. Wow, he couldn't keep up the lie for even an hour.

"Daisy, are you okay?" Toby steps into my line of vision, forcing me to forget about Rufio for a moment.

"Yeah, I'm fine."

A scream in the crowd cuts off what Miss Piccolo was about to say. Everyone in line turns toward the noise. A mousy girl is now covering her mouth with both hands as she stares at the crumpled form of the pink-haired Fringe.

"Oh, for fuck's sake." Miss Piccolo runs toward the girl on the ground.

I exchange a worried glance with Toby before doing the same.

"Stay back." Miss Piccolo pushes the students out of her way and then crouches next to the unconscious girl. "What happened?"

"I don't know," the mousy girl replies. "One moment Stella was laughing at the Norm chick, and then the next, her nose started to bleed and she passed out."

I'm finally close enough to see the Fringe's blood-smeared face. Alicia also bled through her nose before she dropped half dead on top of me.

Unable to resist, I ask, "Did her eyes roll back into their sockets before she fainted?"

Stella's friend furrows her eyebrows. "Yes. How did you know?"

It’s a dagger. But not any ordinary dagger. The blade is made of lightning glass, the only material in the world that can kill an Idol

All of a sudden, we’re all acting out of character. I don’t know what’s most bizarre: Morpheus showing concern for Fringes, which he never did before; Phoenix being excessively cruel in his pranks; Rufio exerting self-control; or me losing my mind over a Norm.

And the catalyst of it all? Daisy Woods.

I don’t believe in coincidences. She’s here for a reason, even if she doesn’t know it yet

"Drusilla would’ve destroyed you."

"Why do you care? Isn't that what you and your buddies have been trying to do to me since we met?"

It seems my question caught him by surprise. His eyes widen and his mouth gapes. After a moment, he finally answers. "I didn't want to lose my newest tutor."

"What?"

I cross my arms over my chest.

I don’t miss when Bryce’s gaze drops to my cleavage. I’m not wearing a super low-cut top, but my breasts can make anything sexy. For most girls it would be a blessing, but to me, it’s a curse. I don’t have time for, nor want, the attention of boys.

“Eyes on the road, please,” I say.

Red spreads across Bryce’s cheeks, and to say I’m shocked is an understatement