Ruthless Royals

by Eva Hart

  “I’m not infamous,” I said.

  “On the contrary, you are. Some of us have heard of your little spectacle. When John told me that he had a daughter, I thought he was joking. But, it seems, that wasn’t the case,” she said to me.

  “Yeah well, this old man keeps hovering all over me, and it’s annoying,” I said to the principal.

  “Jules—”

  “John, I’ll take care of this,” Principal Kirtman said.

  “Alright.”

  “Anyways, Jules, we’re happy to have you here. While a month has passed already, I’m very excited to have you here in our school,” she said.

  “Yeah well, it’s not like I had a choice. Party pooper over here made me come,” I said.

  My dad looked at me with an affronted look, but then, Principal Kirtman spoke.

  “Jules, you should be careful about your words. You should know that you’re lucky to have a dad like john. He’s strong, caring, and wants to do what’s best for you. He enrolled you here to get an education, something apparently your mother didn’t provide. I had to make a lot of exceptions to have you here,” Principal Kirtman replied.

  “Whatever.”

  “Don’t just blow this off Jules. We want you to get an education here. Your dad is a wonderful man, and has served the school as a security guard. I’m happy to have him on the team,” she said.

  I looked over at my dad, who smiled at her. If I didn’t know any better, I would say she was purposefully making those quips. I caught them stealing glances at one another, but nothing more than my dad just being friendly. The subject changed shortly after once I heard my dad cough.

  “Anyways, thank you Lara for doing this. It’s very appreciated. I hope my daughter can fit right into this school,” he said.

  “You’re welcome john. You’re quite a reliable part of the team, so I’m happy to assist you,” the principal said.

  That’s when I picked up on it. The look she gave my dad, the tone of voice I noticed both her and my dad use. My dad has never addressed a woman like he did just now.

  That’s when I realized it: they were involved.

  That also explained why this lady thought I was the wayward daughter. She probably knew my mom as some washed-up singer who doesn’t know how to take care of her kid if it bit her in the backside.

  “Anyways, I need to make a call before we continue this,” she said.

  “In the middle of introducing a new student to the school? Sounds super professional,” I muttered.

  “It’s about you,” she said coldly.

  I sat in the chair, hearing her turn on the microphone system. Why was she such a bitch? Is it because my mom fucked this guy almost 18 years ago, and now I’m here to tell the tale? Who knows. But I heard the squeak over the PA, and the sound of Principal Kirtman’s voice.

  “Will Josephine Johnson please come to Principal Kirtman’s office? I repeat, will Josephine Johnson please come to the principal’s office,” she said into the mic.

  After a few minutes, a girl with tanned skin, dark brown hair, and big hazel eyes appeared. She was slightly curvy, but her perfect pressed uniform hid most of it. I could tell already this girl was such a straightedge. Probably wouldn’t be able to get away with jack shit. Principal Kirtman beamed as the quiet girl came over.

  “There you are. Josephine, this is Jules. Jules, this is Josephine, your new roommate. Could you show her around the school?” the principal asked.

  I locked eyes with the dark-haired woman. Great. I was now under the watchful eye of one of those prissy girls in school. I felt like she was a total busybody, at least that’s what the vibe she gave off was. But, when she spoke, I was immediately shocked by her words.

  “Sure! Hey there Jules, I’m Josephine, but you can call me JJ,” she said.

  “Hi,” I said, nodding to her.

  She extended her hand, and I grimaced. I took it, not really into all of the handshake bullshit, but after a moment, she pulled back.

  “Anyways, Principal Kirtman told me about you. Ready to check out the campus?” she said.

  “Sure I guess,” I said.

  Josephine walked out, and already I was regretting all of this. I looked around the spacious campus, feeling out of place. Josephine had a smile on her face. She was so nice, and I wondered who I managed to please to get this lucky.

  “Your name is Jules, correct? What prompted you to come here?” she asked.

  “Well my dad for starters. He kinda…forced me to come here,” I explained.

  “I see. Well, I’m glad to have you,” she said.

  “Least one of us is glad to have me here. This was not what I was thinking would happen to me because of my wayward mom,” I said.

  “Well, if you need anything, I’m here. And don’t worry, if you need to confide about hardass Principal Kirtman, let me know,” she said.

  Wait, so she wasn’t just kissing the principal’s ass? I looked at her, and she beamed.

  “Trust me, we all know she’s a total harass, and I’d love to tell her she’s a bit harsh at times, but I would rather not deal with that fallout of that. anyways, let’s get on with this tour. We have a huge campus with multiple libraries and study spaces. We value academics over everything else,” she explained.

  I could certainly see that. while JJ was a bit boring, she seemed alright so far.

  She showed me the courtyard, which was pretty empty minus a few people. After that, we went to the library, which was where a couple of pretty girls were sitting and studying. We then went to the computer lab, where an orange-haired boy with glasses was furiously typing on the screen.

  “Seems like your average campus. Complete with the nerd typing at the computer,” I said to JJ.

  The orange-haired boy looked at me, and I smiled back at him, but then JJ nodded. She reddened slightly at the way orange-haired boy looked at her. Maybe he’s her boyfriend or something.

  “I mean, I like the way that it feels,” she said.

  The two of us walked down one of the hallways, but then, Josephine stopped. She looked at the blonde in front of her and I stopped too.

  “H-hello there Tabitha,” JJ said.

  “What’s up JJ. Who is this?”

  “This is Jules. She’s new here,” JJ explained.

  “Hello there. I’m Tabitha. Head of the student council. It would be best if we don’t cross paths,” she said coolly.

  She looked familiar. Maybe I saw her in a movie or something. I extended my hand, smiling back at her with a fake grin.

  “Hello there. Pleasure to meet you too. I mean, I can’t guarantee that. Hopefully I’ll get to see you around more often,” I said with a smile.

  I could tell she was pissed I didn’t run away in fear at her words. she was trying to send some sort of warning, and it failed. JJ seemed nervous because of her, and she looked over at JJ for a moment, thinking about what to say.

  “Indeed. Well, I have to finish preparations here. JJ. You should finish up soon too and go back to class,” Tabitha admonished.

  “W-will do,” JJ said.

  We walked off, and JJ relaxed after.

  “That’s Tabitha. She’s the daughter of a super model and an actor. You might know him from a couple of those action movies that were released last year. Tabitha Hess is their daughter,” she said.

  “Oh that’s why she looks familiar. She seems interesting. I mean, she seems to think she’s hot shit,” I said.

  “That’s just how she acts. She’s one of the most popular girls in school,” JJ explained.

  “No shit. So, is it all for show? Or should I be worried?”

  “No, she runs this school. I suggest you don’t get on her bad side. She rules this school along with a few others,” JJ explained.

  She didn’t scare me. JJ continued to show me the different classrooms. When we got to fourth period, which was Drama I, Josephine showed me the theater. I looked around, whistling.

  “I didn’t inherit the tal
ent my mom has, but this is pretty nice,” I said to her.

  “Indeed. We do a lot of shows here, but our drama department is pretty successful. Let me show you the back,” JJ said.

  We walked to the back, but that’s when I heard it. The sounds of moaning. I smiled to myself; so not everyone here is all pristine or innocent either. Josephine quickly blushed, and as I walked over to the prop room, I noticed a girl bound to the hook on the wall. Her arms were tied up, and I noticed a tanned, muscular back and a mop of blonde hair hiding the girl who was moaning.

  Holy shit, this guy was really going at it. He bit her neck, and I heard him growl in her ear.

  “You like that you little slut? Tell daddy how much you like it, or you won’t get your fill,” he said.

  “Y-yes daddy, I love it,” the voice breathed out.

  I swear, it sounded so fucking cringy. Josephine was red as a tomato, but I was unaffected by this. I figured disrupting them would be kind of funny. I mean, he seemed to be really railing into her, and if they wanted an audience, they got an audience.

  “You know, if you’re going to fuck someone on campus, you should probably lock the door,” I quipped.

  Suddenly, the dark-haired man whipped his head around, glaring at me. JJ was hiding around the corner, and the guy looked at me, smiling.

  “Well, maybe I like an audience. If you want to join, you’re welcome to,” he said.

  “Nah., I have a campus tour to attend, but I appreciate the offer,” I said, flashing him a grin.

  I walked off, and I quickly heard the sounds of cussing, followed by dressing. I walked over to JJ who was trying her best to blend in with the curtain.

  “Oh I’m so sorry. I didn’t expect Luca to do that,” she said.

  “It’s fine. It’s not your job to control what these boys do around here. I just like watching them get uncomfortable. But he didn’t seem all that mad I ran into him in there. Must be used to it,” I said with a smile.

  The issue was quickly dropped. I could tell JJ was embarrassed, but she didn’t try to report it or anything. I wondered why. I mean, she was one of the lackeys the principal had, but I noticed when it came to some people, she didn’t put up a damn fight.

  During lunch, I sat alone. Most of the students didn’t want anything to do with me. Probably because I was so different. I heard the sound of a tray pulling up next to me. I turned, and there was JJ, smiling at me.

  “There you are. I figured I’d sit with you today,” she said.

  “Let me guess principal Kirtman put you up to this,” I muttered.

  “Sort of. She asked me to, but well…I wanted to as well,” I said.

  “It’s alright. Say, who are those guys over there? I recognize the dark-haired guy with tan skin from the prop room earlier, but who are the other two?” I asked.

  I noticed all three of them staring at me with a look of interest. They weren’t averting their gaze either. I also noticed Tabitha near them, glaring at them as they did it.

  That’s when JJ tensed. She looked at me and then shook her head.

  “You don’t want to get involved with them,” she said.

  I noticed the brown-haired boy I ran into was accompanied by two people who were at his side.

  The first one was a pale boy with short, black hair and brown eyes. I could hear the small drawl in his voice. He seemed cute, but I could tell he was pretty close with the guy we busted earlier.

  “That’s Phoenix to his right. He’s from a wealthy family with lots of money. They are politicians, and he’s slated to follow in his family’s footsteps,” JJ said.

  “I see. And middle is…Luca, right?”

  “Yeah. He’s untouchable though,” JJ explained.

  Untouchable? What did she mean by that? did she mean as in…I couldn’t fuck him. I mean, he was hot, but I wasn’t going down that pathway just yet. At least, not on the first day.

  “And what about the blondie on he left? Whose that?”

  “That’s Thorn Holloway. He’s an orphaned son of Maria Holloway,” JJ explained.

  “Shit, we got some big guys here,” I said with a whistle. I’ve heard of Maria Holloway. Mom and I used to watch her shows. To think her son was even here was surprising.

  “Anyways, enough about that, tell me about yourself Jules. What are you like?” she asked.

  “Well, I certainly am not the good-girl daughter my dad probably pretends I am,” I said.

  “I can tell, but you seem so different from the transfer students we get. I mean, what was it like out in Vegas?” JJ asked.

  “It was pretty fucking crazy,” I replied with a grin.

  I talked a little bit about myself, but my eyes kept going towards those three guys. There was a gaggle of girls around them, and I noticed Luca and Thorn in particular had girls practically salivating at their feet.

  It was totally awkward to watch, but I could tell that they seemed to enjoy it. How interesting. JJ dropped the subject of them, but that night, I wanted to know more about it.

  That night, when JJ and I sat down at dinner, I decided to ask about it.

  “So those three guys. Could you tell me more about them? They made you uncomfortable earlier, so I wanted to make sure you were okay,” I said.

  Dinner was spent in our on-campus apartment. My dad set this up, so I had someone watching over me. He probably didn’t trust me living alone after all that’s happened. But JJ looked at me with a pale face.

  “You mean…Luca, Phoenix, and Thorn, right?” she asked.

  “Yeah. They seemed interesting. I just noticed that when I asked about them, you gave me a quick explanation and then dropped it,” I said.

  “That’s all I’ll say. If you know what’s good for you, and you don’t want to get in trouble, I highly recommend that you stay away from them,” she said.

  “Why is that?” I asked.

  I was curious, but then JJ spoke.

  “Jules, all three of those men are the most powerful guys on campus. They are the elites,” she explained.

  “What the hell is that? I mean, do they have some sort of power or something?” I inquired.

  “Yes. The Elites run this school. They are the three most popular guys out there, and they wills top at nothing to make one’s life a living hell. I’ve seen it a few times, and they are untouchable. Not a single person can mess with them. I’m telling you as a friend to stay away,” she said.

  I could tell she was serious. I quickly dropped the subject, seeing how uncomfortable it made her. While I understood the sentiment, a part of me wondered who they were. I was curious, but I knew asking about them wouldn’t prove useful here.

  Instead, I changed the subject. Those three guys did arouse my curiosity, but what were they really? I guess the only way to find out would be to wait and see.

  Chapter 3

  I groggily woke up the next morning, rubbing the sleep from my eyes. Another day, I guess. I grabbed a quick bite to eat before I went to the first-period class which was biology. When I got there, my heart skipped a beat.

  In front of me was Phoenix and Luca., they sat together at the lab benches, but around hem were a bunch of girls. When I got a good look at them, I realized just how attractive they were.

  But, behind the pretty face was a lot of dirt. I did some digging on both of these guys the night before. Phoenix here wasn’t originally from California like most of the students here. His full name was Phoenix Buckheart, and he is 18 years old and originally from Louisiana. He’s here because he’s been at this school since sixth grade. His family is basically the Southern Kennedys but in Louisiana. His father is a potential presidential athlete. I heard him compliment one of the girls, and that southern drawl was magnetic, puling each of the girls in even when I could hear the snarkiness behind it. I could tell he was just humoring a few of the girls.

  He was also the captain of the football team, and right now, he’s slated to follow in his dad’s footsteps in the world of politics.


  Then there was Luca Marchesi. He’s rumored to be the son of two former rival mafia families, and he’s been here since eight grade. His story is simple: he brings contraband into Kingswood. There was a rumor that the heroin that Caty Graham OD’s on the previous year was purchased from Luca. But, due to the family ties, he was practically untouchable. I learned from most of the information that Luca was bad news, and the most dangerous of the three of these guys.

  Phoenix was an overachiever, and he was both incredibly smart, but also incredibly powerful. Both of these guys had bad news practically written all over them, and I wanted nothing to do with either of them, that’s for sure.

  “Hey look, isn’t that the girl that saw you and that bitch from third period?” Phoenix teased.

  “Yeah it is. And her name is Angela,” Luca said.

  I could see their eyes practically boring into my skin. I shrugged it off though.

  “Maybe it was me. Why does it matter?” I said.

  “Well, come on over. You’re new, might as well find out about the new kid. After all, you probably have already heard about the three of us,” Phoenix teased.

  I could tell he was trying to get under my skin, but I scoffed.

  “Nah. I’d rather not. I’m not going to be here for very long,” I said.

  I didn’t know the validity behind that statement, if I was going to be honest. I didn’t hear anything from my dad since I started here, but I thought my mom would come back to get me, whisk me away from this pretentious hellhole and bring me back to Vegas.

  I mean, it was a nice thought, and while my dad did try to warn me, I didn’t believe him.

  “Right, well whatever then Miss Voyeur,” Phoenix said.

  “Maybe I am a voyeur, but at least I’m not trying to have kinky sex in the theater,” I purred.

  They looked at me with surprise, and I could tell that Luca was thinking about how to retort back at me, but he didn’t have anything. Suddenly, the bell rang, silencing all three of these guys.

  “Sorry, I have to go. Class is starting. Maybe next time you can catch me at an earlier time, and we can talk a little bit more,” I said with a smile.

  I liked how they were shocked someone even spoke to them in a way that wasn’t kissing their goddamn ass. I wasn’t an ass kisser for just anyone, and I’d make sure that they knew this.