I Am an Invisible Stalker (Guardians #2)

Chapter 9

Eliza's POV

"Why?" Franky turns from me to Denise, who is still leaning against her cherry red locker while sipping on a cup of coffee-to-go and scrolling through her phone. "What did your charge do this time?"

"Nothing." I shrug and glance up and down the teenager-infested hallway. Three other Guardians are present, but all of them are too busy evading the jostling tide of students to pay attention to either me or Franky. Perfect. "I simply need you to put the Princess in danger, so I can save her."

"Ha!" Franky jumps a step back, ignoring the students now passing through her. "You're just like everybody else. You want to use me to make yourself look better, then leave me to deal with the mess I never wanted to create in the first place."

"No. I promise I'll take full responsibility. I just need you to get me an opportunity to save the Princess."

"Why?"

"Does it matter? Can't you just help me?"

I don't expect my plea to work; especially as Franky dubiously glances between me and the Princess. But when the ghost takes a big step forward, I know that my request worked. I open my mouth to thank her. Before I can produce a single sound, however, one of the passing students unknowingly kicks Denise's bag—the bag still carelessly lying on the ground. The bag slides across the waxed floor and lands right in front of Franky. The ghost, however, doesn't seem to notice the new obstacle.

"Watch out," I warn her, but it's too late.

Franky stumbles over the bag, but just like on the first occasion I met her she regains her balance before she can tumble to the ground. Like before she also kicks the bag away from her. The bag once again slides across the floor, but miraculously most of the students avoid tripping over it.

That is, all but one.

The bag stops right underneath the feet of a small blonde girl—the same girl Franky freaked out by brushing against her. The girl trips over the bag, but opposite to Franky, she isn't quick enough to respond. She lands on her butt, while the papers in her hands scatter up into the air.

But that's not the only thing that happens.

Denise, who hadn't been paying attention to anything other than her phone, jumps at the exploding mess of papers. She tightens her fingers around the paper cup of coffee, which causes the plastic lid to fly off the cup. The lid follows the coffee, which splashes upward, staining the front of Denise's shirt.

"Ah!" Denise gapes at the mess that used to be her light pink shirt.

I, on the other hand, am unable to keep an amused snort from squeezing through my nose. While this wasn't what I had in mind, I can't deny how amusing it is.

"Denise!" Before anyone can respond, Denise's two patsies flank either of her sides.

"You!" Rose—the more outspoken one—glares at the small blonde girl, who is now struggling to gather her lost papers. "Why is it always you, Iris?"

The girl—Iris—jumps to her feet. "I'm so—"

Before she can finish, Rose grabs Denise's cup and marches forward. While the surrounding students already formed a wide circle around Iris, they now jump out of Rose's path. Iris has only time to edge a couple of steps back before Rose dumps the remaining coffee over her head. Like a mud-filled waterfall after a night of heavy rain the coffee spills down Iris's hair, coloring the blonde locks in a sewage brown. But her hair isn't the only thing that gets ruined. From her hair, the coffee drips onto her light blue shirt, which soon colors the outline of her bra. Iris immediately covers her chest with her arms.