Without Mercy - Lisa Jackson [20]
Later, when Shaylee had entered school, they’d taken the bus together, even sitting across the aisle from each other, as Jules knew it wasn’t cool to share a seat with a kid seven years younger, especially her sister.
In junior high, they’d grown farther apart, and then in high school Jules didn’t have much time to spend with her kid sister; she had better things to do. Especially when she discovered boys and ultimately Cooper Trent.
Whoa! She put on the mental brakes.
She didn’t want to dredge up memories of the one man who’d gotten a good hard look at her soul.
Diablo curled into a ball on her lap and began to purr. Jules stroked his smooth fur and stared at the flickering flames. Her headache had receded a bit, thank God, and after a few minutes and no answers, she ended up in the kitchen again, where she made herself her favorite budget dinner: ramen noodles with frozen vegetables heated in the microwave.
“Yummy,” she told Diablo. “Just like in college. Consider yourself lucky to have Tasty Tuna Treats.”
The cat didn’t seem impressed and followed Jules, carrying her bowl, upstairs to her desk and computer. She wasn’t much of an investigator, but there had to be a way to learn more. Analise and Eli hadn’t been much help, but she had faith in the Internet. If there was dirt on the academy, she’d find it.
And then what?
“One step at a time,” she reminded herself as she set her bowl on her desk and ignored the steaming broth. “One step at a time.”
So this was the room. Shay’s new “home.”
Twin beds separated by a wide aisle, two minuscule closets, two L-shaped desks that met in the middle of the room beneath the single window. Neat. Clean. Sleek. And with all the personality of a jail cell.
Home sweet home, Shay thought sarcastically, but really her room was just about what she’d expected. So far, Blue Rock Academy, or BRA as she’d begun to think of it, wasn’t disappointing.
“This is your bed,” Dr. Williams said, pointing to the empty twin. Nona’s bed was neatly made, a navy blue quilt stretched with military precision over her thin mattress. A cross was mounted over her bed, a well-worn stuffed pink koala propped on the pillow. Otherwise there was no wall decor. “You can put your things in your closet, and Nona can answer most of the questions you have, but if there’s anything else you need, I’m available day and night.” She offered her fake-o brilliant smile before giving a few last instructions about wakeup calls, prayer meetings, and class schedules. Then with a wave she said, “I’ll see you at morning service,” and left the two girls alone.
Once the door closed, Shay tossed her backpack onto the bed. “Is she a workout or what?”
“Actually, she’s great,” Nona said, sticking to the company line. “Talented and smart.”
“If you say so.”
“All of the professors are dedicated. Really into helping kids.”
Shay just stared at her. Was this girl for real?
Nona walked to her desk chair and offered her sickly smile, then glanced to the top of the door. Shay followed her gaze to what appeared to be a sprinkler set into the ceiling. Or was it? She glanced at Nona, who casually lifted one eyebrow. “I’ve been here since last May, and I can tell you that I was really messed up. Drugs. A boyfriend who, now I see, was abusive. I hated it here for the first few weeks. But after a while…” She shrugged. “I lost my bad attitude and saw this academy for what it really is.”
“And what’s that?”
“Salvation. I was on the wrong path. I would have been dead before I was twenty-five if I hadn’t come here.”
Shay wasn’t buying it. She glanced up at the cross.
“You come here with Christ or is he a new friend?”
Nona winced. “I took Jesus into my heart once I realized how much I needed him, how he was there for me, how through his love, I was brought here.”
“Uh-huh.”
“I don’t expect you to believe me. Not now.”
Not ever!
“But you will. Don’t you believe in God?”
“Of course I do,” Shay said without a trace of sarcasm. “But in my world, God isn’t judgmental. Isn’t the old fire-and-brimstone, vengeful