Total pages in book: 187
Estimated words: 184867 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 924(@200wpm)___ 739(@250wpm)___ 616(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 184867 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 924(@200wpm)___ 739(@250wpm)___ 616(@300wpm)
“But you gotta learn to defend yourself, darling. Do you want me to teach you?”
“Defend myself?” I parrot.
“Yes,” he adds with a bright but slightly ominous smile. “Because they’ll never stop until they have what they want.”
They. He’s talking about Ares and … Caleb?
“What do they want, then?” I ask, pretending I don’t know exactly what I witnessed … and the warning Ares gave me.
But the deadly smirk on Blaine’s face makes my entire body erupt into goose bumps even before he says the word out loud. “You.”
My whole body feels like it’s running a fever.
“Now go on.” Blaine pulls me away from the wall. “Get to class.” He adds a gentle nudge like he’s egging me on to keep walking.
But all I can do is glance at him over my shoulder and see the sinister look in his eyes after that warning.
A warning of what’s yet to come.
CRYSTAL
When I get out of class, I immediately head into the girl’s bathroom and lock myself inside. My heart is still racing from that encounter with Blaine.
They’ll never stop until they have what they want.
Me.
I can still hear him say the words out loud, and they make me shiver.
I close my eyes and take a breather, squeezing my own knees until they hurt.
You can do this, Crystal.
You promised Dad.
I nod and take one last breath before I pick up my bag again and exit my stall. A girl with pretty long black hair applies bright red lipstick in front of the mirror.
I wash my hands and splash my face with some cold water.
“Rough day, huh?” she muses.
“You don’t even want to know,” I mutter.
I don’t know her, but I guess she can sense my unease.
“If it’s boys bothering you, I always make sure they get exactly what they give,” she says, winking at me through the mirror. “You can do this.”
“Thanks,” I say, smiling.
She sticks out her hand. “Lana.”
“Oh, hey. You’re Felix’s sister, right?” I say.
She frowns. “How’d you know?”
“His girlfriend, Penelope, she’s my friend. She’s dropped your name once or twice.”
A smirk forms on her face. “Did she now? Hope it was good.”
“Oh yeah, she called you a tough bitch not to be messed with.”
She laughs. “Sounds about right.” She holds out her lipstick. “Here. Put this on. Makes you feel like you can conquer the world.”
I stare at the lipstick for a second before I pull it out of the cap.
“Promise,” she adds.
Maybe it’s worth a try.
I put it on in the mirror and rub my lips together.
“See?” She stands behind me and then puts my hair in front of my shoulders instead of behind. “A queen in the making.”
I hand her back the lipstick, and she tucks it into her purse. “Destroy their hearts before they kill yours,” she says, winking. “Good luck.”
She leaves the bathroom while I take one more moment to admire the girl in the mirror.
This is me.
I’m me in all my beauty, pain, and endless devotion.
And no boy will ever take that away from me.
With my head held high, I march out of the bathroom to the cafeteria where I know they’ll be. It’s lunchtime, and guys like them always hang out with the popular crowd, so I know they must be in there.
When I walk through the doors, I pause and look around. My eyes settle on a group of guys sitting at a far too large table in middle of the room with just the three of them. And my heart immediately begins to pound.
One of them wears a white cotton tank top that’s almost see-through, and he laughs as his tongue darts out to lick his piercing, just one of many that adorn his face and tattooed body. Another one leans back against his seat, his chiseled face almost angelic as he brushes aside his long black hair off his black skull shirt. And then we have the most devious of them all; a black-haired guy with a sharp nose and equally sharp eyes, veins protruding through his skin as he leans into the table to explain something, his black shirt half-open at the top.
It’s them. Those Tartarus boys that make all the hairs on the back of my neck stand up.
They’re just chatting away like nothing ever happened between us. Like they didn’t threaten me because I saw them kill.
I just know it was one of them who stained my window with cum.
Was it a threat?
I swallow away the lump in my throat and head for the boys, knowing full well I’m walking straight into the lion’s den. The closer I get, the more that same aura of darkness falls over me, and I bury my hand in my pocket to fumble with the knife like it’s my only lifeline.
I march up close to their table and clear my throat. They only stop talking when I plant my hand on the edge of the table. Only Caleb and Blaine look at me even though I’m right in front of Ares, who’s seated to my left. He’s clearly ignoring me.