The Protector (Complete)

Chapter 7

"Miss Klassen? Miss Klassen?" The young voice was particularly loud as it echoed in the classroom. "Miss Klassen?"

Glancing up from the papers she was correcting, Greta studied the eager student who had slid into the classroom at a run. "What is it, Isabella?"

"Miss Klassen, look." Isabella ran to the desk and thrust a letter onto the stack of papers on Greta's desk. "Look. Look. Look."

Greta smiled up at the excited sixth grader. "Calm down, Isabella. I'll look." She took the opened envelope and removed the letter. She had started to read it, but wasn't surprised to hear Isabella tell her everything it said.

"I was chosen to participate in the Computer Olympics. Can you believe it? I get to go. I've wanted to go all my life, and this year I was chosen. Can you believe it? I get to go with Sofia and Patrick."

Greta returned the letter to the envelope and gave it back to Isabella. "Isabella, I'm not surprised that you were picked. You have a way with computers. As for not being able to go before, you know you have to be in sixth grade."

Isabella laughed. "I know, I'm just so excited. Are you going to be the teacher who is taking us? Please say yes. Please say yes. Please say yes."

"You know I am," Greta said with a laugh. "We will be leaving on Wednesday."

"And we won't be back until next Wednesday. We'll be gone for a whole week." With a squeal of delight, Isabella left the room as a near run, almost colliding with three desks and another student on her way out.

Greta smiled at Isabella's excitement. She had already dealt with Sofia and her excitement which closely mirrored Isabella's. Patrick, the third student going with her, had reacted with reserved excitement. She wasn't surprised. Seventh grade boys, although super excited about something, certainly couldn't let on that something as lame as computers was exciting.

Thinking about Patrick's reaction had her going back to Alexander's reaction. He definitely didn't react like a sixth grade girl. Unlike Patrick, though, Alexander had no problem letting his feelings about her going show. He had been mad. Greta was sure that if there hadn't been other people in the restaurant, Alexander would have thrown his plate at the wall and raised his voice to blister her ears. Instead he simple scolded her in several different languages for agreeing to a trip without getting his permission first. It wasn't until Greta threatened to leave the restaurant that Alexander stopped his rant.

For some reason, which she wasn't going to think about, she didn't want Alexander to be disappointed, so she agreed to stay at the hotel he had paid for until she left for Prague. Once she came back, she promised him that they would go find a house for her, and she wouldn't put up a fight. It seemed to soothe Alexander enough so that she was able to leave the restaurant with his permission.

Perhaps Alexander was finally starting to realize that she was capable of protecting herself.

She didn't give it anymore thought as her last class of the day came into the room. She had students to focus on and a trip to a foreign country in a bit over a day.

What she didn't know was that down on the first floor there was a meeting between her protector and the school. And her protector wasn't happy.

"Alex," Karolynn said, "Greta is the best teacher for the trip. She speaks Czech fluently. She has even been to Prague, lived there for half a year. She is perfect."

"And she is mine," Alexander hissed. "I am her protector, and I wasn't even told about this trip until last Friday, and not by anyone from the school."