Glory Alley and the Star Riders (The Glory Alley Series) by C.DEANNA VERHOFF Page B

that way. ” She rais ed her palms in a n intimidating martial arts stance .
    Glory raised her fists in the old-fashioned way , stepping forward to meet her, savoring the thought of pound ing something , anything— yes; Mandy’s face would do nicely . P owerful feelings strained at the leash, wanting to tear into pampered flesh.
    “C ’mon on, Mandy ,” Glory encouraged, showing a curled fist. “Let’s see what ya got under that fancy designer coat.”
    Pain flashed through Glory ’s head . The next thing she saw were black stripes of rubber running over the bus floor .
    “That’s what I got under my designer coat,” Mandy replied .
    Glory saw little stars circling around her head . Slowly, she pulled herself off the floor , feeling dizzy, holding her mouth . Dang, she hadn’t even s een it coming .
    “ T oo easy,” Mandy laughed sounding delighted . She pointed. “The girl doesn’t even have shoes . A nd look — she’s wearing her pajamas ! ”
    “Mandy Filmore ! ” she heard Olivia hiss . “ Insults are one thing, but knocking her senseless is another . Glory ’s younger and smaller than you . ”
    “Shorter, but not smaller,” Mandy pointed out. “I bet she outweighs me by thirty pounds.”
    “You know what I mean.”
    “Boo hoo,” Mandy said . “ A ll mouth and no brains, typical Alley style. ”
    Fuming, Glory lunged .
    The pair of them fell to the ground, but somehow Ma tthew was there, pulling her off Mandy . Olivia and Clash sandwiched themselves between the two aggressors .
    “Ladies, ” Ma tthew said, holding Glory back . “The school has a zero violence policy . Do you want to be sent to a federal opportunity school where you’ll be doing marching drills until your eighteenth birthday s ? ”
    Glory dabb e d her lip . Fingers came back bloody . “ You threw the only punch, Mandy, ” she pointed out . “A nd I’m the one bleeding, so I’m in the clear. One word from me and it ’ s federal school for you . ”
    “That’s true,” Ma tthew said, looking at Mandy. Mat t hew and Mandy had been an item at one time, but nobody seemed to know if they still were. “You better say you’re sorry.”
    “No way,” Man dy said.
    “I got the fight stored right here . ” Clash held up h is Sliver. “ How ‘bout I replay it for the director?”
    “Sorry.” Mandy said, rolling her eyes. “ Alley .”
    “ Shove your phony apology where it stinks , Filmore.”
    “Take it as a compliment ,” Mandy said. “A t least I acknowledged your existence.”
    “ You’re so full of yourself I’m surprised you can breathe . ”
    “ You’re the one who came at me with a bad attitude . Sure, I threw the first punch, but only because it was clear you were determined to battle me . If I’m brought before the director I’ll plead self-defense. ”
    “D on’t worry, ” Glory said, still holding her lip . “ I’m not going to say anything . Clash won’t either . We’re not like that.”
    “ You got spunk, A lley ,” Mandy replied , looking relieved. “ I suppose that ought to count for something . I won’t say anything either, but don’t think we’re friends.”
    “Not if you paid me. ”
    Mrs. Spud’s voice came over the speaker. “What’s going on back there ? ” She was eyeing their reflections in the big rectangular mirror mounted over the windshield . “ Miss Alley, why are you holding your mouth like that ? ” The students on the bus all looked to Glory in expectation.
    “I tripped and hit the corner of the seat,” Glory said , noticing her front teeth felt loose . She tested all of them . Maybe a little wiggly, but they’d probably tighten up on their own.
    Mrs. Spud tsk - tsked, then pointed to the list of rules printed over the windows . “Rule number three:  No standing in the aisle when the bus is in motion . That’s not there just for decoration. Now everybody please take a seat. ”
    They did as told, but Glory ’s nostrils were still flar ing from the