Variant by Robison Wells

Author:Robison Wells
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi, azw3
Publisher: HarperCollins US

Chapter Twelve

At seven o’clock we filed into class. The Society and Havoc kids were all chattering in whispered voices and pointing over at Lily’s empty seat. Some of them seemed concerned, others self-righteous, giving one another I-told-you-so looks. I tried to ignore them and looked straight ahead.

Everything about this school was wrong. Lily was missing, maybe dead, and yet here we were, about to have a lesson on field surveying, and later we’d go to a dance. I needed to get out. I needed to run, get help, tell someone about the school, and get the police.

And yet, in some ways, escape felt wrong, too. Yes, I needed to do all of those things, but should I do it on my own? Could I really leave the others behind and just hope they’d be okay and that I’d be able to get them out later? Could I do that to Jane?

She was sitting in front of me now, hunched forward, her arms propped on the desk. Her hair really was beautiful. The rich red wasn’t quite copper, but more the shade of autumn leaves. It made her red uniform sweater look garish and cheap.

Maybe Mason was right. I needed to concentrate on getting out of here, not on girls. Jane should be the least of my worries.

Laura came in the room quietly and fiddled with her computer for a few minutes.

“Welcome to class,” she said. Her expression was serious, but there was a kind of brightness to her eyes, like she was hiding a secret. “Before we begin, I have an announcement that was delivered with today’s lesson plans.” She tapped her keypad and the class quieted instantly.

Laura’s eyes didn’t move from the screen as she read. “We regret to inform you that Lillian Paterson was killed last night, hit by a car on the highway.”

“Murdering bastards,” Mason whispered. Jane dropped her head, burrowing her face into her arms. My muscles tensed, and my hands clenched under my desk.

Laura continued, “Please remember that crossing the wall is cause for detention.”

I raised my hand. “I have a question.”

She looked surprised and unsure of what to do, so I just went ahead.

“We all drove in here, and I only saw one road within fifty miles, and the only place it goes is here. So how did she get hit by a car?”

Laura frowned. “We don’t know the circumstances, but—”

I interrupted, anger swelling in my chest. “There are only two possibilities: She was hit by a car on our road—but that makes no sense because no car came here—or she walked all the way to the main highway in one night. Which is it?”

Other kids were chattering around me, but I stared at Laura and waited for her to answer.

“We don’t know the circumstances,” she repeated.

“Yes, we do,” I snapped. “The note says she was hit by a car. So, Laura, explain it to me. Take a guess.”

She seethed, her lips tight together. “Maybe there are other roads in the forest.”

Without even realizing

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