Wildefire by Karsten Knight Page A

dwarfed most people. She was an Amazon of a woman who commanded respect from all, like her or loathe her. Ash hadn’t heard much about her predecessor, only that he had been fairly earthy-crunchy, loose about school rules, and even looser when it came to rules forbidding “close” relationships with students.
    Headmistress Riley, on the other end of the spec-trum, was a beacon of justice and school policy, without being completely draconian. When she arrived at Blackwood, curfews were set earlier, to the chagrin of all lovers and romantic hopefuls on campus. Penalties for all school rules—curfew violations, cheating, copying, dis-respect, vandalism, disorderly behavior—were made no harsher for the first offense. For all subsequent offenses, however, the gloves came off and the axe came down.
    During Ashline’s entrance interview, the headmistress had shared her philosophy with Ash very succinctly.
    “Everyone messes up,” she had told Ash. “You’re in high school—it’s going to happen. All I ask of my students is that they learn from their mistakes. But a student who repeats her follies is selfish, incorrigible, and—worst of all—cannot be taught. And a student who cannot be taught through the simplest of life lessons has no place at this institution.”
    At the same time, Headmistress Riley, despite her authoritative nature, had the presence and compassion to make regular visits to the dining hall to get to know her 87

    students. Of course, in situations like this, having that sort of friendly relationship with the headmistress made it all the more shameful when the guillotine dropped.
    “Mr. Hanssen,” she announced, and pinned her eyes on Rolfe.
    Rolfe looked like his favorite surfboard had just been fed through a wood-chipper. He wiped his clammy hands on his cargo shorts and followed her into the office. As he reached the threshold, he whispered to Ash, “Tell my parents I want an open casket.”
    Ash attempted unsuccessfully to stifle her laughter, and even Raja couldn’t help it when the corners of her lips perked up.
    The next half hour passed in near silence as they were, one at a time, called in to face the firing squad.
    The door to the headmistress’s office, complete with its unsettling frosted window, let out just enough sound that they could hear the muffled but still firm voice of Headmistress Riley as she passed her sentences. And as each student exited, they walked silently past their classmates, divulging nothing about their punishment.
    After Lily followed Rolfe, Ade passed through the foyer looking grim and simply said “You’re next” to Raja before he disappeared out into the hall, probably off to take an epic afternoon nap.
    The chair in the office squeaked, announcing that the headmistress was on her way to collect her next victim.
    “You want a blindfold?” Ash asked the girl across from her, and offered a sympathetic smile.
    88

    “I’d prefer a flask, if you have one,” Raja said. Then she added, “Though I suppose that would be distasteful, given the reason we’re here on a Friday afternoon.”
    The headmistress appeared in the doorway and summoned Raja with a flash of her hand. The door snapped closed behind them.
    It seemed like no time at all before Ash heard the groan of chair legs against the hardwood floors the footsteps plodding across the room. Raja stealthily slipped through the door and out into the hallway without casting Ash so much as a sideways glance.
    Ash was still watching Raja scurrying around the corner when she sensed the presence behind her.
    “Ms. Wilde.”
    The office was exactly as Ash remembered it—the leather armchairs, the miniature chandelier, the large world globe sitting quietly on its axis in the corner of the room. The air smelled vaguely of tangerines and licorice.
    The sobering looks from Raja and the others had done nothing to diminish Ashline’s dread, but at least the cushy black leather chair was more comfortable than her