Total pages in book: 27
Estimated words: 24205 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 121(@200wpm)___ 97(@250wpm)___ 81(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 24205 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 121(@200wpm)___ 97(@250wpm)___ 81(@300wpm)
I could point out this was wrong, but Lucian wasn’t so inept he didn’t know the concept of morality.
“Who was the guy that killed her…the boyfriend?”
“One of mine. He's been keeping an eye on you since you started school, preparing for tonight. Regina was a convenient way to get closer.”
He continued to speak with an ease that was both disturbing and surreal. The way he described manipulating my life, as if it were nothing more than a board game and those around me merely extras, left me feeling like I was losing my grasp on reality.
“And the symbols on the wall?” I asked, gesturing to the cryptic signs daubed in blood.
“Those are mine, too. Ours,” he replied, a possessive pride edging his words.
“That wasn't my idea, but sometimes the others get into the full swing of things, and it's good for them to let loose.”
Let loose? The phrase reverberated in my head. There was something deeply unsettling about the nonchalance he spoke with when it came to his …friends? Peers? Indulging in their darker impulses, as if they were children playing a little too roughly in the schoolyard.
We arrived back at my dorm, and Lucian opened the door. The sound of voices greeted us. Such familiar sounds of life inside struck a dissonant chord with the night's grim symphony. I stepped over the threshold, each footfall heavy with dread as I navigated the narrow entryway that led to the main room. Lucian’s solid presence hovered at my back. The first thing I noticed was Matthew’s eyes were gone. So was the box they came in.
I took the last few steps into the main portion of the dorm.
My heart pounded a frantic rhythm against my ribs, each beat a silent prayer that the scene before me would contradict the chaos that had unfolded. I was expecting the worst and got something beyond my scope of understanding.
Mara was there.
She was perfectly fine. She sat next to Thorne, their proximity not signaling captivity or distress. I stared at her, noting the blatant guilt twisting her features.
The betrayal was more piercing than any blade could be.
“No fucking way,” escaped my lips in a whisper that was half disbelief, half rage. My gaze locked onto hers, searching for an explanation in her eyes, seeing only her guilty conscious and sadness.
All at once, puzzle pieces from the past few months snapped into place with blinding clarity.
From the very beginning, she’d been awfully accepting—almost encouraging—of Thorne and Lucian, which wasn’t typically like her.
Them knowing our plans.
The 911 call.
Insisting we leave Regina behind.
Everything pointed to her being an accomplice in this shitshow. My gradual understanding left me feeling exposed and foolish. A tidal wave of hurt, anger, and confusion threatened to overwhelm me.
This was the woman I had laughed with, cried with, shared all my secrets with—and this entire time, she was assisting the architect of my undoing. How much of my life had been a lie carefully woven by those I trusted most? The answer was clear, as sharp, and cold as the winter night outside.
“Winter…” Mara's voice trembled with the start of an apology and pierced the heavy silence. As she struggled to string together the words that I wasn't sure I could bear to hear, Lucian stepped in front of me like a shield.
“Shut the fuck up,” he spat, the venom in his voice a harsh contrast to the calm demeanor he had maintained until now. Then, almost as if flipping a switch, his tone softened to an eerie calm, his gaze shifting to Thorne. “Get her out of here,” he instructed, his voice carrying an authority that brooked no argument.
Thorne rose without a word, his movements swift and sure as he led Mara away. Her tear-filled eyes met mine for a fraction of a second, a silent plea for understanding that I couldn't begin to process. I found myself grappling with the magnitude of all the deception.
Leaning against the wall for support, I felt the room spin as betrayal settled like a stone in my gut. Lucian moved closer, his presence enveloping me, his hands framing my face, his grip gentle yet commanding.
“Why? Why do this to me?” The question hung between us; my voice as heavy as I felt.
His thumbs brushed across my cheeks as he tilted my head back, compelling my attention to him and him alone. He was silent for a moment, his gaze studying me from behind the impassive mask. When he finally spoke, his voice was low and resolute. “I did this for you. For us.”
“Why couldn't you just talk to me like a normal—” I began, the plea breaking as he cut me off.
“What the fuck is normal?” A bitter laugh tinged his words. “Normal has never applied to me, and deep down, you've always known that.”
His eyes, even through the slits of the mask, held mine with an intensity that felt like a physical touch. “And you're not normal either, Winter. If you were, you wouldn't have stood by me the way you always did.”