Malice

29

“Take her back,” Nora growls, looking at me like I’m nothing. “We can’t have her missing school now, can we?”

Ghost nods, appearing almost eager to do Nora’s bidding. I don’t have the energy to try and analyze that or process their interactions. I’m too numb inside. I can’t feel anything at all.

“Don’t worry,” he says with a smirk. “I’ll take good care of your little girl.”

Little girl. I’m no one’s little girl. Not Nora’s. Not even Je

Carley’s the only person who’s ever acted like a real parent to me, and now she’s in danger because I can’t escape the chaos that insists on haunting my life.

Ghost walks up to me and grabs my arm. “Let’s go.”

I let him lead me away without protest. I don’t even look at Nora or check to see if Je

Not while she needs me to cooperate.

We make our way out of the house and into his car. As he pulls out of the driveway, I stare out the window in complete silence. I’d always dreamed of having a different mom than Je

Definitely be careful what you wish for.

My mind is still trying to make sense of everything she told me, from the fire that killed her family, to her sister’s escape with me, to the fact she wants to go to war with the Angelles. That in and of itself proves how crazy she is. I can’t imagine anyone going up against that family and wi

Did the Angelles really have something to do with the fire that killed her family and Benjamin’s accident?

Does Saint know about any of this?

My gut tells me no. He genuinely didn’t appear to know anything about Nora when I returned the picture to him, and the fact that he doesn’t even know why his father wants me out of Angelview also indicates he’s in the dark about all this.

That’s a strangely relieving thought. I don’t know what I’d do if I discovered he’d known about all this from the start. I might actually try to kill him.

“You’ve had a fucked-up day, little girl,” Ghost drawls from beside me.

“Shut up,” I hiss, not looking at him.

That only appears to fuel him more, though, because he chuckles and says, “You should feel lucky over how much your mother’s been willing to do for you. Not a lot of parents would go after everyone who crosses their kid like Nora has. She was willing to burn that whole fucking campus to the ground for you, so be grateful, bitch.”

I force my gaze over to his, my stomach twisting until I feel sick. It very much sounded as though he just alluded to Nora being the one who set the fire to Saint’s dorm.

“How far is she willing to go, Ghost?” I whisper cautiously.

His smile is slow and bloodthirsty. “Bugged rooms, private escorts … you figure it out.”

“Sh-she bugged my room?”

His lips twitch, but he doesn’t say a word.

And suddenly, Ghost showing up at the strangest times starts to make sense. They’ve been watching my every fucking move, and my stomach pitches violently at the thought. I drag in a deep breath, but it doesn’t help. Nothing will help me now.

“How far are you willing to go?” I finally ask.

“For her? Anywhere,” is the only thing he says.

“Nora is just doing all this for the money,” I blurt out. “If she’ll use me, her daughter, she’ll use you too, but you already know that. It’s only a matter of time before you become expendable.” Maybe if I can put a wedge in between him and Nora, he’ll come around and help me somehow. It’s a long shot, but I’m not sure how many other options I have against her at present.

She’s threatened Carley.

And she has Je

Ghost’s shit-eating smirk disappears, and he looks at me with venom behind his dark eyes. “Watch your mouth, bitch. You don’t know a fucking thing about me and her.”

Definitely a long shot.

“Why are you so loyal to her?” I rasp. “And why are you so confident she won’t turn on you?”

We’re turning into campus when he finally decides to answer me. “Because I saved her.”

“What? What does that mean?” Saved her from what? When? Why does that mean he’s loyal to her?

He shakes his head. “Not going there. Don’t even try.”

Damn it. He’s proving no help at all.

He pulls up in front of my building and twists around in his seat to face me.

“I’ll be in touch. And don’t forget to keep your mouth shut unless you want that crackhead bitch to suffer just like...”

Dread pools in my stomach. “Just like what?”

He looks positively gleeful as he answers, “The little surprise I had left for you in the rec center. Enjoy.”

“What does that mean?” He doesn’t answer. Just stares at me, amusement dancing in his eyes. “Ghost! Damn it, tell me what that means!”

“Go look for yourself. I think you might find a weird ass sense of satisfaction from it.”

I highly doubt that, especially if it’s a surprise he’s arranged.

“Ghost…”

“Get the fuck out,” he says with a wave of his hand. “Quit stalling and go see what I left for you.”

I don’t know how to respond, so I just slink out of the Charger without a word. He gives me one last sneer, then takes off into the night. I glance toward my dormitory door, tempted just to go to my room and hide from whatever it is he’s done. But then I start to worry that he might have hurt someone.

What if they found out about Loni and he’s done something to her just to prove a point?

The thought is so terrible and frightening, that I immediately take off ru

The doors are locked, of course, but I’m still able to slip in with my student ID. I pause once I’m inside, wondering where in the world I’m supposed to look. It occurs to me suddenly, and I feel nauseous as I creep toward the pool. I stop outside the doors to the cavernous space, petrified of what I’m going to find when I step through them.

Just, please for the love of all that is holy, don’t let it be Loni.

Taking a deep breath, I put both hands against the door and push it open. Stepping over the threshold, I gaze around in uncertainty. What am I even looking for? There’s nothing that sticks out immediately, so I move further into the room, the scent of chlorine overwhelming me the closer I get to the pool.

I stop. There’s something in the water.

Not just something. It’s someone.

I tell myself not to go closer. Not to look. I don’t want to know what’s in there, but my feet move as if they have a mind of their own. I inch closer and closer to the edge of the pool, and when I spot the huge mass floating on the surface of the water, I scream.

It’s Jon Eric.

At least … it’s what’s left of him.

I scream again and scramble back.

No, no, no. This isn’t happening. This can’t be happening!

I choke down vomit as I pivot and run for the exit, nearly falling on a damp spot on the floor. Just as I reach the door, it opens without me touching the handle and I collide with a tall, solid figure who catches me before I bounce back and onto the floor.