Bitter Demons Read Online Free PDF

was normally at the top of the final pyramid.”
    Brooke’s head snapped toward me. I saw the tightness in her jaw, the anger in her eyes. I’d never seen that kind of look from her before.
    “No,” Mrs. King said. “You’ve got the right shoes. I decided to give you a more prominent role in the new routine. I think you’re perfect for the top of the pyramid.”
    What? Where did this come from? I hadn’t asked for a more prominent role. I didn’t want it. It seemed like everywhere I turned today, someone was pushing me into the spotlight.
    I opened my mouth to protest, but Lark put her hand on my arm and shook her head. “Just do it,” she said. “You might as well try it once and see how it goes. Besides, Mom told me about last night. Well, not everything, but she told me you know you’re the Prima Futura and we can stop keeping it a secret. People need to start seeing you as a leader.”
    I swallowed nervously. I’d never thought of it that way. Was that what their ritual was all about? To make me more popular and beautiful so that the town would start to see me as their golden child? Somehow, it didn’t feel right. I hadn’t earned any of it.
    But to turn down the new position on the team might throw up some red flags. Maybe the Order would begin to question my loyalty. I couldn’t afford for that to happen, so I just smiled and pretended to be excited about the new routine.
    Our first run-through went surprisingly well. I was nervous to be up so high in the air, but once I got up there, my body knew exactly what to do.
    “Try to look more confident, Harper,” Mrs. King yelled up to me. “You’re going to be fine!”
    I steadied myself at the top of the pyramid and lifted my hands into the air with a smile. On cue, the girls below threw me into the air. I tucked and landed safely in their arms, then flipped up onto my feet. The routine was exhilarating. My heart rate soared and I was actually having fun. Just when I started getting into it, though, Brooke bumped into my shoulder.
    I cried out and bent over in pain. She’d hit me exactly where the dagger had gone into my skin that night at the old hospital. Mrs. King stopped the music and rushed over.
    “What happened?”
    I looked up at Brooke’s face. She’d plastered on a look of confusion and sympathy.
    “I don’t know,” she said in a voice so sweet it almost didn’t sound like her at all. “Harper went the wrong way on the turn. She bumped right into me.”
    I glared at her. What was her problem? If she really cared that much about being on top of the pyramid, she could have it. Damn.
    “Maybe I’m not cut out for the lead position,” I said.
    “Nonsense,” Mrs. King said, helping me off the court and onto the bleachers. “You looked perfect up there. Maybe there’s something wrong with the memory spell. Let’s run it again without Harper and see how it goes.” She turned to me. “You just take a rest and then you can jump back in on the next run-through.”
    There were no more problems with the routine for the rest of the afternoon. After my shoulder stopped throbbing, I ran through the routine with the team three more times without bumping into anyone. I knew it was Brooke that went the wrong way that first time, and it wasn’t a problem with the spell. She’d done it on purpose just to hurt me.
    She really had changed.

She Was Nothing
     
    I groaned as I looked into my bag. My cool new outfit had gone back to its horrible original state. I must have lost my concentration when Brooke hit my shoulder.
    I knew I couldn’t change with all these people around. I stalled for time as everyone else changed, then when no one was watching, I slipped down into the secret training room downstairs. Luckily, it was empty. I quickly changed into my old clothes and sat down on the hard cement floor. It took me a little while longer to connect with my power than it had this morning. My shoulder was still sore and it messed with my