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would discover my secret. Not to mention the fact that I didn’t want to take a shower out in the open in a place where a lot of naked men might appear at any moment. What was I going to do?
     
    No answer presented itself and I decided I would have to think about it later. Turning away from the disheartening sight of the communal shower, I made my way down the narrow hallway that led to the main fresher area again.
     
    But when I rounded the corner, I found that my way was blocked. Broward and two of the other cadets I’d seen him with that morning were standing shoulder to shoulder, cutting off my escape. I looked behind me but the shower area was a closed room. There was no other way out of the fresher and no one else in the fresher area to ask for help. I felt my stomach clench like a slick fist and my heart started pounding frantically against my ribs.
     
    I was trapped.
     

Chapter Four
     
     
    “Hello, freshie.” Broward gave me an ugly smile as he stepped forward. He curled one beefy hand into a fist, his knuckles popping menacingly.
     
    “Leave me alone.” I took a step back. “How did you even find me?”
     
    One of the other cadets, who had bulging green eyes and red hair answered. “We couldn’t get your room address from ole’ Kinky Hinky but we did manage to find out your dorm building.”
     
    “And what do you know?” Broward grinned. “We’re neighbors, freshie. My room in on the floor right below yours. Isn’t that sweet?”
     
    “I didn’t do anything to you,” I said, trying to keep my voice from trembling. “I wasn’t watching you and the headmaster on purpose—I swear it. I just happened to be in his office and I heard your voices so I went to take a look. That’s all.”
     
    “What happened with the headmaster?” The red-haired cadet frowned and looked at Broward. “What’s he talking about, Broward?”
     
    “Shut up, Nodes,” Broward growled, his face turning a dull scarlet. “Freshie here doesn’t know what he’s talking about.”
     
    “You said he just lectured you,” the other boy, who seemed to have some kind of chronic skin condition, said. “You said—”
     
    “Never mind what I said, Dawson. Just shut up.”
     
    I suddenly understood that his friends didn’t know about the paddling—I had just made things about a million times worse for myself. And now Broward was coming for me.
     
    How I wished in that moment that Kristopher’s physical education tutor had allowed me to take the hand-to-hand combat courses along with my brother. But though he had agreed to the fencing lessons, he had drawn the line at what he called “letting a lady grapple on the floor like a dog fighting for a bone.” Now I wished he had let me grapple a little, lady or not. If he had, maybe I would be in a better position to defend myself at the moment. Then again, maybe not—there were three of them and only one of me. Not to mention that they all outweighed me by a hundred pounds at least.
     
    I was going to die. Either that or I would be so seriously injured that I would be taken to the campus medical facility and my secret would be discovered. I had to do something, but what?
     
    “Stop!” I held up a hand and made my voice as deep and imperious as I could. To my surprise, Broward actually did stop and stood there staring down at me with a frown on his face.
     
    “What? You have something to say before I rearrange your face?” he demanded.
     
    “Let’s settle this like men.” I drew myself up to my full height and lifted my chin, looking him in the eyes.
     
    “Oh?” He cocked one thick brown eyebrow at me. “And how do men settle things, freshie?”
     
    “Give me a sword,” I said.
     
    “A sword?” The redheaded Nodes let out a burst of trollish laughter and Dawson joined him.
     
    “Listen to that, Broward—he asked for a sword.”
     
    “Hear me out,” I said sternly, ignoring the hilarity my words had caused. “I’m sure you study fencing