The room fell silent.

Harry could sense the pair of eyes of every person in the room staring at her incredulously. She could see a few, and guessed the rest looked the same.

She focussed back on Dupret. His perfect hair clumped on his head and chunks dangled down his forehead, hanging in his eyes. His striped shirt sported dark patches, which stuck to his bare skin, highlighting the definition of his right pectoral muscle. His expression was murderous.

She hadn't thought what to do next. She should have turned on her heels and strode away the moment the glass was empty, but she had missed that chance. Now, if she were to turn and walk away, she'd look like she was fleeing.

His hand flew towards her wrist. She attempted to pull it back, but Dupret held tightly, squeezing until Harry was hardly able to stop herself from squeaking. She needed to get away. She didn't need two damaged arms, and she didn't want to find out how far he'd go. Surely he wouldn't hurt her in a full room of people, would he? No one seemed to have an issue with the way he was handling her, so she wasn't prepared to take that risk.

"Sam, I think you need to go home and get yourself cleaned up!" a stern voice broke the tension in the room.

Dupret released her wrist so that her hand flopped back by her side. She would likely have another bruise to join the rest tomorrow. She turned to see why the voice sounded familiar. The friendly face of Matt Smith smiled back at her. People returned to their drinking and merriment as he pulled up a stool beside them.

Patting Dupret on the shoulder, he whispered something in his ear. The fury drained from the other man's face to be replaced by a calm exterior. His gaze rested on Harry,  studying her like that puzzle once more. His quizzically glanced between Matt and her, and then left the room without a word.

"Wow, how did you do that?" Harry asked Matt as soon as the door had closed, signalling Dupret's exit. She could feel her insides shaking, as they had after the confrontation yesterday, and her pulse pounded louder than the noise of the rowdy conversations of the people at the tables spread around the pub, enjoying their Thursday night meal.

"Ah, Sam and I play footy together. He's got a bit of a temper is all. He's very used to getting his own way."

"So I've noticed," she replied seriously, hoping Matt couldn't hear how deeply she was breathing as she tried to calm herself.

Matt grinned at her and she found herself smiling back. Her heart slowed back to normal speed. She was so thankful he'd shown up.

She thought about asking him about the deal between Dupret and the previous principals, but at that moment she saw David's head popping through the door. He'd probably gotten worried that something had happened to her. He didn't need to be any more concerned than he already was, so she gave him a wave and held up a twenty dollar note to show him she was in the process of paying.

His head slipped back out of the doorway. She assumed he had returned to his active supervision of Charlie. Since she hadn't appeared to be under his arm, Harry gathered he would have left her locked in the high chair, and he wouldn't have wanted to leave her unattended for long. Even if he was only looking into the adjoining room, they still didn't know the locals well enough to trust anyone not to take her, or let her out, or even just begin playing with her with who-knows-what germs on their hands, as people had done several times in the city. They had always been a bit precious about their pride and joy with strangers, and the night before had made them more protective than ever.

She gave Lewis the twenty and waited for her change.

She turned back to Matt, "I don't know what you said, but I really appreciate it. I don't know why the town loves that man so much. He gives me the creeps."

Matt looked upon her, his amber eyes shining warmly. "He does a lot for the kids of the town here. Most of the people in this town are really friendly and they've always been known for how good the kids are here, until recently. Since they started having a run of real delinquents. He does a lot of work to keep those kids on track. I think that you'll eventually find that he is a great ally for the school.
"Still, I couldn't stand and let him hurt you, all because his temper had gotten the better of him. Especially after what you went through last night... I can't believe you actually came to school today. You are already the hero of the teaching staff."

Harry's face flushed. She held out her hand as Lewis returned with her change.

She thanked Matt again for the rescue and the polite conversation, then picked up her drinks and returned to her family meal.