* * *
“I can’t believe you’re out at another party,” Shay says to Eva. “The end of the world must be upon us,” she jokes.
Eva laughs. “Hey, I wasn’t that much of a recluse.”
“Yes you were, bitch,” she quips. “If I didn’t see you around school on occasion, I would’ve thought your parents shipped you off to boarding school or some shit.”
“Riri, bring that ass over here,” August demands.
I try to muster a scowl, but the sight of them all standing on the dance floor makes that an impossible feat.
“You better get out there,” Eva teases.
After hanging with her all night, I’ve decided she’s okay people. I wouldn’t call us fast friends, but she has potential.
I smirk, “Always make them work for-” My remark is cut off when I’m dragged into Rowan’s waiting arms.
“Do I need to find a better use for that mouth, Emma?” Rowan whispers in my ear as his hand possessively grips my pussy through my leggings. He rubs his palm back and forth, creating enough friction that my body comes to life.
I curse when he pulls his hand away.
“Not yet, Angel,” Karl says, yanking me into his chest.
“I’m not a yo-yo, you know,” I tease.
He spins me to grind against my ass. “No, you’re our everything.”
We’re all dancing and having a good time when Liam pulls out his phone. Whoever’s texting him must say something he doesn’t like because he grimaces. “It’s Colt,” he says, and I see Eva tense before she excuses herself. “We need to call him back,” Liam explains.
Karl presses a kiss to my neck, “Behave and don’t go anywhere unattended. We’ll be back,” he instructs.
I roll my eyes and point to where Erik and Antonio are standing, “Like I could go anywhere with my shadows on duty.”
“You and that smart mouth,” Rowan states, pecking my cheek before following behind the guys.
Once they disappear, I turn to Shay. “Who’s Colt, and why did Eva look like the devil was on her tail at the mention of his name?”
She tugs me off the dance floor and over to the bar, grabbing two bottles of water before finding a quiet enough corner. Erik and Antonio take up spots far enough away not to hear but close enough to be in reach.
“Colter is one of the Jacobi twins,” she begins, sighing when the name doesn’t register. “Seriously? You should know all of the powerhouse families by now,” she chastises but continues. “They aren’t an original bloodline, but their family is amongst the major powers in the world.”
“Okay, powerful family, got it. That still doesn’t answer my question,” I retort.
Shay’s eyes narrow, her lips draw into a thin line. “I didn’t get to the part. I was answering the first part of your question. Miss Impatient,” she snarks.
“My bad. Please continue,” I tease.
“Let’s just say Colter and Cooper are assholes of epic proportions. As to why Eva took off, I’m not sure. We haven’t spoken much until recently, and whenever I ask her what happened, she clams up.”
We talk for at least another hour before I realize the guys still aren’t back. Shay begins to yawn, and I look at my cell and see it’s almost three in the morning. “It’s late, and I don’t know how long it will be before the guys return,” I announce before texting the group chat saying we’re leaving. The guys make a stink until I remind them about security. I smile down at my phone when they say they’ll be over to tuck me in soon.
We’re almost to the car when the headlights of a car flash on. Erik positions himself in front of me, and Antonio is at my back.
The door to the car opens, and out steps my fucking mother. “You’ve played long enough. Get your ass in the car, you spoiled bitch,” Elise seethes.
Before I can tell her to take a long walk off a short cliff, a shot sounds, Erik crumples to the pavement, and Shay screams as Antonio holds a gun to her head.
“Why?” I snarl at Antonio, but Elise cuts off his answer.
“We don’t have time for your shit. Drop your phone and the pin, or your friend will join your bodyguard,” she instructs.
I grit my teeth, quickly stealing a glance at Erik on the ground, his chest is barely rising and falling, and a dark pool is trickling out from under him. I’m still unsure where he was shot or his chances of surviving.
“Hurry the fuck up,” Elise barks.
“Emma, don’t do it,” Shay begs.
I turn in time to see Antonio strike her in the face. “Shut up, or I’ll put a bullet between your eyes,” he growls.
Shay shows no fear. Her nostrils flare in annoyance. She looks at me, and I shake my head for her to keep quiet. Her lips scrunch in protest, but she remains silent.
“Do you promise to leave her alone if I get in the car?” I ask, facing my mother. I begin to pull the pin off my jacket and await her response.
“Leave the jacket, and I’ll leave her here,” Elise states, a smarmy smile pulling at her lips.
Dropping my jacket with my phone and the Selection pin to the ground, I approach the car. Elise moves and gestures for me to climb in. I look back at Shay one last time, seeing Antonio holding her still, her eyes pleading with me to stay, but I can’t. I can’t let her be hurt, not for me.
I climb into the backseat, Elise following promptly behind me. She closes the door and signals for the driver to take off. Just before we leave, she winds down her window.
“Kill her,” she instructs, and I scream, launching myself at her as I hear the distinct ricochet of a gunshot, and I watch my best friend fall to the ground as we speed out of the parking lot.
“You fucking promised,” I snap as my fist connects with her face. I’m dragged back into the chest of someone before the familiar prick pinches my neck.
Elise tsks, “You need to learn how to ask for things, darling daughter. I left her as I said I would. I never promised she’d be alive. Now sit back. We have a long drive ahead of us.”
My body won’t cooperate, my arms feel heavy, and my eyes droop. However, before I give in to the sedative working its way through my system, I mumble, “I’m going to fucking kill you before this is over.”
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.