Free Dead Is the New Black by Marlene Perez

they're the good guys? That dagger didn't exactly make me think of white knights and chivalry," I said.
    "Nicholas would never do anything to hurt me," she said stubbornly.
    I wasn't so sure, but I supposed I'd be snippy, too, if my boyfriend was an overgrown furball. There was a lot of stuff for me to digest: a soul-sucking vampire on the loose, my sister's boyfriend being a werewolf, and a secret society, which meant that the town's founding fathers (and mothers) probably weren't human. Nightshade was even weirder than I had thought.

Chapter Nine
    As worn out as I was from the events of the previous night, on Friday morning my cheerleading career was off to a flying start. Samantha met me and the other new cheerleaders in the gym to give us our uniforms and teach us some of the routines. I had a hard time getting used to walking down the halls of Nightshade High in my cheerleading uniform. I tugged down the short skirt when I saw Wyatt Pearson staring at my legs.
    When I saw Ryan and waved at him, my sweater rode up and bared a sliver of midriff skin. I felt exposed and slightly ridiculous. Ryan's smile of appreciation did make me feel better, though. So did the way he put his arm around me as he walked me to class.
    "I'm not ready for this," I said.
    "For class?" Ryan said.
    "For the pep rally," I said. "I can't cheer in front of the whole school."
    He brushed a stray lock of hair away from my face. "You'll be great," he said. "But I'm not sure I like the way all the guys are checking you out."
    "Nobody even knew my name before now," I scoffed. "It's just the uniform."
    "No," he said softly. "It's you. And I knew your name."
    I smiled at him. "I know."
    The bell rang, and Ryan sprinted to his class. I watched him go before I went into mine.
     
     
    The only good thing about the pep rally was that I got out of class early. I met the other girls in the gym after sixth period. Miss Foster wasn't there yet.
    Everyone was gathered around Samantha. She frowned when she saw me. "You're late, Daisy."
    "I had a test," I explained.
    She handed me a small, brightly wrapped box. I noticed that the other cheerleaders were holding similar packages.
    "What's this?"
    She smiled at me. "Just a little something. Open it!"
    I looked at her warily. She didn't look like a vampire, despite her pale skin, black wardrobe, and bloodred lips. She looked like someone I could trust. Too bad I didn't believe it, not for a second. I didn't know whether or not she was the vamp, but I did know that Samantha Devereaux wasn't ever nice, not without a reason.
    The other girls tore through the wrappings. I opened mine slowly and found a beautiful silver bracelet. Dangling from it was a small black symbol.
    "It's an ankh," Jordan said. She was right. It was the same symbol as the one on Samantha's pendant.
    The girls clustered around Samantha. "I love it," Penny cooed.
    I stood there, lost in thought as the squad thanked Samantha. Why was she suddenly handing out presents? And why an ankh?
    Samantha looked at me expectantly. I focused and realized she was waiting for a thank-you.
    "Thanks," I said. "It's lovely."
    "Well, put it on," she said. "We don't have much time. I want everyone to wear them to the pep rally."
    I had intended to slip it into my pocket, but our uniforms didn't have pockets. Samantha took it from me and fastened it on my wrist.
    She stepped back and surveyed me for a long moment. "That's better," she said.
    Miss Foster arrived as we were warming up. She was dressed in bright white designer sweats with red trim. "Let's get ready, girls. In formation." She blew her whistle.
    Samantha said, "Good luck, Daisy!" Before I could respond, she added. "And don't forget, you're a base during the pyramid formation."
    I was surprised she didn't make a snide remark about my weight. There were two categories of cheerleaders, flyers and bases. The flyers were the tiniest of the tiny and the bases, well, weren't. I was going to be on the bottom of the