Broken Wings 2 - Midnight Flight Andrews, C. (books for students to read TXT) 📖

me. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Mindy cross the field toward us. Gia finished what she was doing and sat back on the ground, embracing her legs and lowering her head.

“What did she ask you?” Mindy fired at me, still crossing.

“What?”

“What was the question that she already knew the answer to?”

“Who's talking to you?” Robin snapped at her.

“What was the question?” Mindy repeated, ignoring her.

“I didn't say there was any specific question. It's just a feeling I have about her, that's all,” I said quickly, maybe too quickly.

“Yeah, well, it's a good feeling, a true feeling, so watch your mouth,” Mindy advised. “And watch what you say about any of us.”

“Who are you to tell any of us what to do and not to do?” Robin demanded. “Maybe you should be the one who should watch her mouth.”

“What? What's that mean?”

“How come you know so damn much about this place?” Robin stepped toward her. “What did you do to be brought here anyway?”

“I don't think it's any of your business,” Mindy said, and turned to walk back.

Robin shot forward and grabbed her arm, spinning her around. “That's a lot of bull. You seem to know about everyone else and everything else. We should know something about you. Unless there isn't anything to know. Is that it? Well?”

“Leave me alone.” Mindy turned to walk away again, but Robin seized her arm again, this time more firmly.

Mindy tried to break free, grimaced with pain, and screamed. They both struggled in the middle of the new field of tomatoes. Natani came hurrying out from behind the barn and the buddies were crossing the yard, M'Lady Three leading the charge. Neither Mindy norRobin appeared to notice. Robin wouldn't let go of her. She was turning and twisting her as if she were a big rag doll. They continued to wrestle until Robin threw Mindy to the ground. She fell over a few newly planted tomato plants. Robin reached down to pull her up again.

“Stop it!” M'Lady Three shouted. The three buddies ran forward and M'Lady Two wrapped her arms around Robin and lifted her up and away from the sprawling Mindy.

“It's her fault!” Robin screamed, kicking and squirming. “She's been taunting and teasing us ever since we got here.”

Mindy stood up and brushed herself off. Three of the new plants were smashed. Natani knelt beside them and handled them gently.

“Nice work, stupid,” M'Lady Two told Robin. “That's a capital crime at Dr. Foreman's School for Girls, destroying food, food we all need.”

Robin relaxed with fear and M'Lady Two released her.

“I didn't destroy food. I... she ...”

“Blaming someone else for things you do is worthy of five demerits,” M'Lady Two said.

“All right, both of you, march back to the house,” M'Lady Three ordered. “The rest of you keep working.”

We watched Robin and Mindy walk ahead of the buddies. M'Lady One looked back at Teal and me so we started to dig again. Gia returned to work and finished placing another plant. All the while I noticed how little interest she had taken in what had occurred. She hadn't come to Mindy's aid when Mindy and Robin were struggling and she offered no help afterward, didn't try to defend her. They really had no friendship.

The realization that the two of them could be here so long together and not become significant to each other depressed me further. Was that how it would soon be for the three of us? We would just slide down this tunnel of anger and fear until we hit bottom and sank into some swamp of disgust?

Two of the smashed plants were too damaged to remain in the ground. Natani dug them up and carried them away. He returned with new ones and planted them himself. About a half hour later, Mindy came back to the field. She glanced at us and returned to work. Gia didn't speak to her at all.

“Where's Robin?” Teal asked nervously, looking back.

The ranch house was ominously quiet. We could hear bees buzzing at the corner of the cow barn and the pigs slushing about their pen, grunting. About midday, M'Ladies One and Three came out to tell us to report to the pottery barn.

“You're not only going to try to make your own bowl and dish again, you're going to make a new dish for Gia and you're going to stay there and do it until you do it right, even if you have to stay there all day and all night. And Dr. Foreman, remember, is giving you all your schoolwork to start today,” M'Lady Three told us. “So you better not waste a second moaning and groaning about how hard your life is.”

“Permission to speak?” I asked.

“What do you want?”

“Where's Robin?”

“She's where you go if you do something Dr. Foreman considers way over the line.”

“Where's that?” Teal asked. M'Lady Three glared at her. “Permission to speak?”

“That, Teal, is the Ice Room.”

“Where is the Ice Room?” she asked.

“Wherever you keep your worst nightmares,” M'Lady Three replied. “Now get moving. You're wasting precious time.”

“I can't imagine anything worse than what was done to us last night,” Teal muttered. “She is stupid. After what we told her, she goes and loses her temper. She could have gotten me into trouble again, somehow.”

“I'm sure she's sorry now,” I said.

Teal looked hatefully at Mindy. “I don't trust her either. I don't trust anyone.” She glanced at me and I shifted my eyes away guiltily. “Anyone.”

We marched back to the pottery room. Natani wasn't there, but we knew how to proceed. It took us the remainder of the day to produce five pieces of pottery our buddies approved. Just before they returned to inspect, Natani came in and without speaking helped us. Actually, he was the one who produced the finished products. He left before the inspection.

“All right,” M'Lady One told us. “Return to the barracks. You have your school work waiting. You have an hour to make use of before dinner. Every minute of time