Lucian

CHAPTER FOUR

The wicked headmaster sat behind a massive brown desk in the middle of his ridiculously luxurious office, rummaging through a pile of papers. As soon as he spotted us, he paused and his mouth fell open like he was just as taken aback by my presence. But the longer he stared at me, the more his confused expression turned into something dark and predatory.

Tipping his head back, he leaned further into his chair and lifted his gaze to the two guards who held me immobilized. "Gentlemen, what seems to be the problem?"

"Sir, this servant is causing trouble," one of them said. "She refused to remove her clothes, and then dared to attack us when we attempted to get her to obey."

A sinister sneer twisted the headmaster's lips. "I guess that explains the scratch on your face."

"Yes, indeed." The guard sounded confused. "We need your permission to exact a public punishment?"

He arched his eyebrows. "A blade and a bucket?"

I shuddered and instinctively struggled to free myself from their hold, even though I knew it would be impossible.

"Something to that effect, but a bit more bloody and brutal," the guard replied, brutally yanking me against himself. "As you can see, she needs to be taught a thorough lesson. The rest of them must see we won't tolerate such transgressions."

The headmaster's eyes held mine for several long moments and then slowly lowered down my body. His roaming stare made my skin crawl, but since I was unable to shield myself away, I had no other choice than to endure his unwanted attention.

After he was done, he looked at the guard and nodded. "I agree, but I don't think there's a need for another public execution. Why don't you leave her here so we can have a little conversation in private? I'll teach her obedience."

"But Sir..."

"No buts," the headmaster snapped. "Leave us. This instant."

The guard released a heavy sigh. "As you wish."

He then gestured to his colleague, and just like that, they let go of me and marched out the door, leaving me alone with this unpredictable evil man. I almost felt tempted to beg them to take me along so I could face my punishment, but bit my tongue instead, knowing I had no choice in the matter.

"Go ahead, take a seat," the headmaster instructed softly, gesturing toward the other end of the desk.

Aware it would be in my best interest to cooperate, I somehow made my wobbly legs work and took a few steps forward, lowering myself into the chair he pointed at. The bastard observed me the entire time, undoubtedly savoring my obvious discomfort.

"You seem quiet and shy, but you're quite a feisty little cat on the inside, aren't you, Raven?" he asked, a derisive smile slowly spreading across his face.

The fact he remembered my name from hundreds of others he must have heard in the last couple of days disturbed me more than I cared to admit. I remained silent, blocking out the fact I was mere inches away from the monster who masterminded the last night's brutal slaughter.

"All right. Let's not beat around the bush." He broke the awkward silence, tapping his fingers against the wooden surface of his desk. "Why did you refuse to follow through with the guard's orders?"

I swallowed hard, fighting to speak through a lump in my throat. "I...I couldn't..."

"You're going to have to do better than that, love," he scoffed, clenching his jaw. "Attacking the committee's employees is a serious offense. You're in big trouble."

Though his voice sounded pleasant and calm, it held a serious undertone of threat. There was no doubt he was going to extort punishment; a punishment that might have a devastating effect on my entire family.