Abomination Read Online Free PDF Page A

face. I caught her eye and she gave me a sympathetic smile.
    Straight after registration, a kid came in and told Wheely that Killer wanted to see me. He didn’t say Killer, of course. Wheely nodded. ‘Yes, all right. Off you go, Scott.’ He was eyeing the plasters too.
    Killer was setting out apparatus in the gym. He looked me up and down.
    ‘Now, young Scott – how’re you this morning?’
    ‘I’m fine, sir, thanks.’
    ‘That’s the way, laddie. Now.’ He produced a notebook and pencil. ‘Who were they?’
    ‘I dunno, sir.’
    He glanced up sharply. ‘You don’t know? A bunch of your classmates uses you as a football and you don’t know who they are?’
    ‘I’m new, sir. I don’t know everybody’s name yet.’
    ‘Uh-huh. You could point ’em out to me though?’
    ‘I don’t think so, sir.’
    ‘You don’t think so?’
    ‘No, sir.’
    ‘I see, or at least I think I do.’ He sighed. ‘You don’t have to put up with it, y’know.’
    ‘Sir?’
    ‘Bullying, lad. You don’t have to put up with it. Oh, I know – they threaten awful things if you split on ’em, but they’re kids, Scott, not the Mafia. We can sort ’em out quick-sticks once we know who they are, but we need names. You’ll be sure and come to me if you – er – remember any names, won’t you?’
    ‘Yessir.’
    ‘Yessir.’ He sighed again. ‘All right, Scott – off you pop.’
    He returned to his apparatus and I went back to my class, wondering why I’d acted as I had. A couple of days ago I was mad at Martha for taking it and not splitting, and here I was doing the same thing myself.
    I swear she’s put a spell on me with her sad grey eyes. They haunt me, those eyes.

16. Martha
     
    When Scott came back from seeing Killer, Simon muttered, ‘Grass us up did you, Snotty?’ and Scott said, ‘No.’
    Simon smirked. ‘You’re not as daft as you look.’
    ‘I will, though,’ said Scott, ‘if you don’t lay off Martha.’
    ‘Oooh!’ went Tracy. ‘Sticking up for the girlfriend, eh? You wouldn’t be so fond if you had to sit next to her, like me.’
    Scott looked at her. ‘D’you want to swap places?’
    Tracy sniggered. ‘Beam me up, Snotty.’
    So they changed places. It was nice to have someone next to me who didn’t move his chair as far away as possible. It still happened at lunchtime though, because he has a meal and I bring sandwiches and we use different parts of the hall. There’s always empty chairs near me.
    A good thing happened at hometime, but it was spoiled later by a bad thing. I was loitering near the cloakroom, waiting till everybody had gone, when Scott came up to me.
    ‘Come on,’ he grinned, ‘my turn to walk you home.’
    I didn’t know what to say. I mean, I was glad I wouldn’t be leaving the building by myself, but I daren’t let him walk me home. Suppose Father looked out the window? Or Mother? Suppose we were seen by someone from church? He sensed my hesitation and slipped his hand under my elbow, steering me out the door.
    We both expected the usual gang to be waiting, but when we got outside Killer was by the gate. He wasn’t doing anything, just standing with his hands in his pockets but the yard was practically empty. Scott let go my arm pretty fast when he saw the teacher.
    ‘G’night, Martha,’ murmured Killer as we walked past. ‘G’night, Scott.’
    ‘G’night, sir,’ we replied.
    He didn’t take my arm again, and we didn’t talk. I wanted to, but I couldn’t think of anything to say. I suppose it was the same for him. We kept sneaking looks at each other and when our eyes met we’d smile and look away. His cheeks looked hot and mine definitely were. When we reached the bottom of the hill, I stopped and said, ‘You’d better not come any further, Scott.’
    ‘Why not? I might as well walk you to the top.’
    ‘No. My parents might see you.’
    He shrugged. ‘So what if they do? We’re not doing anything.’
    ‘They know you don’t go home this