Secret of Light Read Free Page B

vengeance, and the storm outside the windows perfectly reflected her state of mind, roiling with all the events of the day. Delaney lay curled in his creaky wicker bed on the floor.
    â€œI look forward to getting to know all of you this year. Please don’t hesitate to approach me at any time if you have questions or worries.
” The voice of Mr. Gill echoed in her head, and Darrell remembered how his eyes had lit up as he looked at her.
“It’ll be great working with you again, Darrell.”
    Yet his words twisted and swirled around the image of the smirking face at the back of the dining hall. Arthur Gill and Conrad Kennedy. Two more differing male figures she could not imagine, and yet they had bothmarkedly changed her life this past summer. Conrad was a bully, a thief, a smuggler — and worse. She had last seen his sneering face as he was hauled off the beach by the RCMP in handcuffs.
    That should have been the last of him. What’s he doing here?
    And Arthur Gill, the art teacher who had been her inspiration over the summer and was now the head teacher for the first form. He was a talented artist in his own right, and she had been so looking forward to working with him for a full school year. But would that change now that Conrad had appeared?
    Darrell sat up, her crawling thoughts leaving her unable to get comfortable in any position. She snapped on the tiny book light she kept beside her bed and picked up her sketch pad and charcoal from her bedside table. In the glow from the small bulb she saw Delaney lift his head. He met her eyes and his tail thumped once, and with a few gentle creaks he settled back into his wicker bed, head on his paws.
    â€œAt least you can sleep,” Darrell muttered, and then jumped at the sound of another voice.
    â€œMaybe he can, but I can’t.” Kate’s whisper carried from her bed across the room. “Too much to think about.” She grabbed her quilt and scampered over to settle like a small nesting bird at the foot of Darrell’s bed. Leaning back against the window, she gestured at a lump in the middle of the third bed in the room. Gentle snores emerged from the pile of covers. “Lily doesn’t seem to be having any problem,” she commented dryly.

    Darrell grinned and glanced over at the third resident of the room. Lily Kyushu, who had shared a room with Darrell and Kate in the summer term, had quickly established a reputation for herself as a fast swimmer and a noisy sleeper. “Yeah, with Lily there, it feels like nothing’s changed — and then I remember this summer and I feel like nothing will ever be the same again.”
    Kate nodded. “I know what you mean. So much happened in such a short time it’s almost easier to pretend it didn’t.”
    Darrell dropped her sketchbook into her lap and rubbed her forehead. “It’s only our first day back and already things are not the way I expected.”
    â€œYeah. We’ve got a new school year — and one seriously disturbed student.”
    â€œNo kidding.” Darrell fidgeted with the charcoal pencil, twisting it through her fingers with practiced ease. “I don’t know how we’re supposed to think about learning anything with that bully in the group.”
    â€œWell,” said Kate sensibly, “we don’t even know if he’s in our class. I didn’t see him after orientation, and there has to be some kind of mistake for him to be here in any case. Besides, if he
is
going to this school, he’s sure to flunk out anyway.” She ran her fingers through her short, red hair so it rose above her forehead in spikes. “Anyway, from the list that Mr. Gill gave us, it sounds like it’s going to be a busy year.”
    â€œYeah, I just hope some of it will be fun,” Darrell answered absently, her mind on Conrad.
    Kate rubbed her eyes. “I guess we’d better try to get some sleep,” she said