CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
Punishment“Fighting!” Mari started the engine and gunned her old ute out of the school car park. The suspension clunked on the curb edge and groaned as the wheels hit the road. “Fighting!” she repeated, her voice holding an unfamiliar pitch induced by shock.
Leilah gazed through the window, grinding her teeth and watching the sun kiss the pavements. She experienced a flash of relief as though her suspension might be a lucky escape.
“What have you got to say for yourself?” Mari barked. Leilah hid a smirk. Angry-Mari’s speech degenerated into a plummy English accent which amused her. As Māori as the very earth on which they drove, it seemed incongruous and faintly ridiculous. “It’s not b****y funny!” Mari snapped. “What will I tell your father?”
Leilah’s expression d
