Yup, I’m going to go to jail for knocking out some snot-nosed sixth grader.
“Who is it?” I press, trying to remain calm.
Turning, Jamie’s lips thin. “Killian Porter,” she hisses.
Porter. Why does that last name sound so familiar?
Clenching and unclenching her fists, she huffs, “He says his brother went to high school with you.”
“Brian Porter?” I question. He’s the only Porter I know, but I can’t understand why his shit stain of a younger brother is harassing my sister. “Okay,” I prompt, hoping for more details. I remember Brian from high school, but as far as I can remember, we’ve never had any significant interactions.
“Killian said his older brother’s missing, and it’s because of you. That ever since we moved here, you’ve caused nothing but trouble, and now his brother is probably dead because he crossed the founding families, so their family is ruined,” Jamie explains, answering my unspoken question.
What the fuck?
I’m way past tired of people blaming me for their problems. It’s getting old fast. I don’t think I’ve ever spoken five words to Brian. Shit, outside Jameson’s class, I never saw him, and now his douchey younger brother is trying to intimidate Jamie. “Why does he believe I’m responsible for that?” I wait to hear whatever poor excuse he gave her.
She rolls her eyes and responds, “It has something to do with the Selection. Supposedly, you ruined everything. Our whole family did when we moved here.”
“Me?” I ask, scrunching my face in confusion. “How the hell did he arrive at that conclusion?”
She shrugs. “Killian just keeps saying that his mom was always crying, and his father was always stomping around the house livid, blaming Brian for being a traitor.”
None of this makes any sense. What the fuck does Brian’s behavior and sudden disappearance have to do with me? Massaging my temples, I try to tamp down my annoyance. A task that grows harder each day I’m back in this town. “How’d this lead to him bothering you?”
“Well, he calls himself teaching my whore of a sister,” Jamie mutters.
The tops of my ears burn red in loathing. If Brian isn’t truly missing, he will be once I get my hands on him. “The jerk thought I was easy prey, cornering me in a hallway after gym on Friday. So, I kicked him in the dick.”
Spluttering, I cough to clear the spit that flies down my throat and cackle. “Jams,” I scold, but it falls flat. It’s hard to take your older sister seriously while she’s holding her side, laughing as she puts her hand up for a high-five.
I know this isn’t the reaction I should have, but I have time to work on that. Plus, I’d argue that she was in her right to defend herself. None of my siblings will take anyone’s shit.
Jamie’s palm and mine connect, and I hug her. We spend the remainder of the night talking and watching television. I make a mental note to ask the guys if Brian’s missing and why I would be responsible for any of it.
EMMA
Rubbing my bleary eyes, I internally curse myself for staying up so late to read Rowan’s journal.
After Jamie left my room and went to bed last night, I immediately snatched it off my nightstand, hoping to find more answers within its pages.
Standing, I stretch, then rush to use the bathroom. I’m unsure which twin is doing the cha-cha slide on my bladder this morning, but their message has been heard loud and clear.
I flush the toilet, wash my hands, and brush my teeth. Karl’s coming over this morning to talk.
Shutting my eyes, I breathe, remembering the text I sent him after I read he was found. It’s one of the shortest entries so far, immediately setting off alarm bells. I read entry after entry until my eyes refused to remain open. There was no mention of the condition Karl arrived home in. Until then, Rowan made it a point to share so much detail. The absence of it made it nearly impossible to sleep. Hence the dark circles staring back at me as I stand in front of the mirror in my closet.
“Angel,” I hear Karl call from inside my bedroom, pulling me from my trance. I throw my hair in a messy bun and head out to meet him.
“Karl,” I whisper, scanning him for any obvious scarring. I find none, but remember that he didn’t play in the homecoming game.
My cheeks heat. The memory of his face between my legs, in the bathroom of the football stadium, vividly plays in my mind.
He smiles, a knowing grin painting his face. “I know, Angel,” Karl groans, closing the distance between us. “I know,” he repeats, cupping my face.
I find myself leaning into his hand, basking in the warmth of his touch as I peer up into his hazel eyes. “They took you,” I whimper as his thumb brushes my jaw, wiping away tears I didn’t realize were falling.
“But they couldn’t keep me. I’m okay, Angel. The important part is that you’re safe, and now we have you back.”
I choke back a sob, hating his answer. “It matters,” I shout, pulling from his embrace and pushing him. But the asshole doesn’t even budge. Instead, he tilts his head and smirks, pissing me off even more. I want to shake the shit out of him. Why is he always so dismissive of his safety? I scream in frustration, pounding my fists against his chest. “They fucking took you, and no one thought I needed to know. And here you stand, grinning like a cat who caught a canary.”
The smile melts from his face. “They were only trying to??”
“Keep me safe,” I seethe, finishing the regurgitated statement I was long past tired of hearing. “Fuck all of you and your goddamn need to keep me safe. It’s bullshit, and you know it.”
Dropping my arms, I step back, knowing I need space to calm down. Karl reaches for me, but I back away. Because fuck him and fuck them. Actually, fuck every person who thinks I’m incapable of making decisions for myself.
“Why doesn’t anyone comprehend that I should be included in any conversation pertaining to my safety? Do you honestly believe I would put myself at risk?” I rasp, my face twisting in anguish. I’m no longer angry or annoyed. Hurt and disappointment unfurl in my chest like a poisonous gas, suffocating me slowly, making me question everything. “Do none of you trust me? Is that it?”
Karl’s eyes widen. “Of course, Angel-with our lives,” he declares, clasping my hand before I can step out of his reach and pressing it against the spot where my initial is carved. “If anyone feels your rage at having their choice taken from them, it’s all of us. Rowan being forced to make the split decision to let you go or save me set off a domino effect of forced decisions we’re still trying to fix.”
I freeze, my eyes close, picturing the journal entry before blinking back open. Rowan’s words were coated in fury, resignation, and hope. “He chose right,” I exclaim, making Karl frown.
“Seeing you-getting back to you fueled my fight. So, when I came back and found that you were gone because they picked me instead of you, I was beyond pissed. They fucking chose wrong!”
He must see the horror on my face because he rushes on, “I was the one who fucked up. You told me to stay. I promised you I’d be safe and would come right back to you. I allowed my ego to put us all in a precarious position, and you paid for it. Anything that happened to me once I was taken was my cross to bear-not yours.”
Inhaling, I dig my nails into the palms of my hand to prevent me from slapping the idiot upside his head. “If you ever sacrifice yourself for me, I’ll bring you back to life to kill you myself.”
Karl’s features darken, and his nostrils flare like he’s trying to compose himself. “It’s a death I’d welcome before I see any harm come to you or our babies-a sentiment I know all of us share. We’d sooner welcome the Apocalypse, ending humankind as we know it.”
My lips thin, and the tightness in his jaw slackens, morphing into another freaking smirk. “Luckily for you, none of us plan to let even death separate us. “
I glare, trying to pull from his hold, but his grip only tightens. It’s not enough to hurt. It’s just enough to give me pause. “Yet here you stand, ready to die and leave me,” I mutter.
Karl tugs me into his chest and cups my face in his palms, angling my head until I meet his eyes. “Never,” he growls, lowering his lips to mine.
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.