Unleashed Read Online Free Page A

I tell,” Corey said. “I could have you suspended.”
    “I guess we’ll owe you one,” Kate said, touching his arm.
    Claire picked up Steph’s wet towel and tossed it at Kate.
    “I’ll be right back,” Claire said and stomped off. What was Kate’s problem? You’d think she would’ve learned by now.
    She threw open the front door of the school and kicked the nearest garbage can. Mrs. Summers stuck her head out the office door. “Everything okay?”
    “Yeah. Sorry,” Claire mumbled.
    “What do you need?”
    “I have to use the bathroom. And…” She went out on a limb. Mrs. Summers, the school’s secretary, had never let her down before. “Can we borrow some towels from the girl’s locker room?”
    Mrs. Summers shrugged, making her shoulder-pads and red, curly hair bounce. “Help yourself. Just make sure you wash and return them by Monday.”
    “Thanks. We will.” Claire smiled and walked to the back of the school, making a mental note to bring Mrs. Summers cookies on Monday. She took a left into the locker room, leaving the lights off as there was just enough light spilling in from the natatorium that she could see the towels sitting on a shelf nearby.
    She must not have been paying attention to where she was going because all of a sudden she tripped. She thrust her hands out to break her fall, but not before smacking her head against the tiled floor. Moaning from an instant headache, she rolled over and sat up to see what had tripped her.  An odd figure lay several feet away. A blanket? No, too hard. Was that a hand?
    Claire tried to stand to turn the lights on, but her head spun. She sat back down on the floor. The natatorium’s faint light wasn’t enough to make out details, but something looked very wrong with the heap in front of her. And felt wrong, too.
    She moved closer, crawling on her hands and knees, while her eyes tried to adjust to the darkness. She reached out and touched the hard form. Her fingers grazed what felt like skin, but it was cold, as cold as the tiled floor.
    She leaned forward, but still couldn’t tell what she was looking at. She pulled her cell phone out of her pocket and turned it on in the direction of the object. Only inches from her face, dull light illuminated the frozen, milky, white eyes of a girl, a dead girl.
    Claire screamed and scrambled backwards, dropping her phone with a clatter that shattered her nerves. 
    She didn’t remember much after that. She knew she was running down the hall, feeling emotions she swore she’d never feel again. Along with them came violent memories of her father that threatened to bring her to her knees.  She was screaming or was that terrifying sound only inside her head?
    Claire heard Mrs. Summers calling her name as she raced past the office. The front door opened, but Claire didn’t know if she was the one who had opened it. Everything was a chaotic blur until she smashed into something warm and solid. Arms came around her and held her tight.
    “Hey, what’s wrong?” a male voice said. Calm and smooth. Ethan’s voice.
    She buried her face into his chest to hide her wet eyes. “We need to call the police. A girl. It’s horrible.”
    “Claire? Are you all right?” Mrs. Summers asked behind her.
    Ethan’s arms held her close. “She said we need to call the police.”
    “What’s happened, Claire?”
    She felt a palm press on her shoulder. She turned her head and whispered to Mrs. Summers, “There’s a dead girl in the locker room.”
    Mrs. Summer’s face turned the same shade of white as her blouse. “Are you sure?” 
    Claire nodded. She knew death too well. Something horrible had happened to that girl.             
    Mrs. Summers rubbed her back. “Take care of her, Ethan. I’ll call the police.”
    She turned and walked away.
    After she left, Ethan said nothing. He simply held her and stroked the back of her head while she tried to stop shaking. It almost felt like old times.
    Pull it together,