Forbidden

~Chapter Seventeen~

~Chapter Seventeen~

           

Meaghan stared blindly at the tray of food in front of her, the hum of the school cafeteria like an annoying fly buzzing in her ear. Her shock had lasted from last night to now, at lunch the next day, causing her to get no rest whatsoever. That morning, she had had to meticulously apply purple make-up to the bottom of her eyes, making her appearance believably tired. There was nothing she could do to fix her still-glimmering blue irises, though. No mortal toxic could diminish their liveliness.

            She couldn’t understand how Jenna and Hayley’s plan had backfired. That water should have brought with it Erin’s…Meaghan shook her head, noticing Brock’s dark glare in her direction. They must be dealing with a much more committed Purity than they had originally concluded.

            But what is her position? Meaghan mused, stabbing at a piece of limp turkey. The quiet ting of the fork against the plastic plate was comforting. As she mulled over her question, the sharp clang of the tines provided a welcome distraction, enhancing her focus.

            “Geez, Megs, what are you trying to do? Murder your plate?” Laughter brought Meaghan out of her hypnotic thinking. Ethan was grinning teasingly at her, innocently batting his eyelashes. Meaghan rolled her eyes.

            “You read me like a book,” she responded, twirling the fork in midair. Ethan’s smile dimmed as the laughter increased from her statement. Meaghan grinned at him, tilting her head flirtatiously to one side; Ethan winked back. Brock slapped his forearm, hissing in his ear.

            “Dude, stop. That’s River’s girlfriend, remember?” Meaghan could make out his words as clearly as if they were standing right next to her. She grimaced, hoping her senses would calm before the bell rang. The last time that had happened, her eardrums had been tingling painfully for days afterwards.

            Brock stood up, grabbing his tray. “I’m gonna go sit with Erin,” he announced. “She seems kinda lonely. Anyone else?” Immediately, his football cronies jumped up in agreement.

            “Hell to the yeah!” Ethan cried, sliding out of his chair. “I’ll hang out with that hottie anytime!” The musicians yelled out their agreement, accented with about five hundred obscenities.

            Meaghan frowned. This would be a fantastic opportunity to spy on Erin and answer her questions, but her alias would never dream of sitting with her! “No, thanks, guys,” she said, huffing a little too much to be realistic. “I’m fine here.”

            “We’re good,” Jenna and Hayley replied simultaneously.

            Brock shrugged, but his face curled up in a relieved smirk. “Suit yourselves. See you later.” Ethan blew kisses to each of the three girls before following Brock to Erin’s table. Hayley giggled; Jenna groaned.

            As soon as the boys were out of earshot, Meaghan whirled to face her friends. “I don’t understand,” she murmured, her words barely audible. “How did that not work?”

            “Sorry, boss,” Jenna hissed in reply, her voice as hushed as Meaghan’s. “We tried. I don’t understand either.” Hayley simply nodded once, her emerald eyes wide with confusion.

            “We must be working with a much more powerful One than we thought,” Meaghan continued, voicing her earlier thoughts. She took a sip from her carton of milk before thinking aloud once more. “However, I can’t hack into her thoughts. Actually, I can’t hack into her thoughts or any of the other Purities’ thoughts.”