2 Chapter 2

Miss Baxter slid her finger down to the center of my chin and used it maneuver my head so that I was looking directly at her. Her eyes bored directly into mine in such a way that I felt I had no choice but to shift my gaze to the floor. Some sort of ingrained response to ancient dominance rituals of our cave-dwelling ancestors, I suppose. Whatever it was, I already knew that I wasn’t the alpha here.

I thought back to her last two rules as I contemplated the floorboards. Confidence. Try your best.

I looked up just a little. “Yes, Miss Baxter. I’ll be playing Beethoven’s ‘Für Elise’…if you think that’s appropriate.”

“Oh, Julie, it’s one of my favorites. I’m sure the other girls will absolutely love it.” Miss Baxter released her hold on me—if you can classify a finger laid across my chin as a hold—and I felt myself breathe just a little easier.

“I’ll give you thirty minutes to get settled and then send someone ‘round to collect you for practicing.”