Total pages in book: 164
Estimated words: 157308 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 787(@200wpm)___ 629(@250wpm)___ 524(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 157308 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 787(@200wpm)___ 629(@250wpm)___ 524(@300wpm)
“Orchids,” I finished. “I wondered where that one came from. It was unsigned. Those flowers were all my sister’s favorites. How did you know? Were you friends?”
“We were in the same class. She mentioned once that they were her favorites. I remembered.”
The wide, cavernous pit where my heart used to be widened further. Tears pressed behind my eyes. “Th— Thank you,” I croaked. “No one else in her class sent flowers. No one else c-cared.”
“Everyone else in her class is a selfish, empty-headed fuck who thinks decency is a town in France.”
“Yes.” I seized his arms. “Yes, they are. You know. You saw what they did to her.”
Rafael’s face tightened and he looked away. “I saw enough. I want you to know we didn’t all sit by and do nothing. When those shits started stalking her around campus, she asked for guards to escort her and the administration was going to say no. They didn’t have enough to guard one student. I helped,” he said carefully, “the dean find money in the budget to hire more.
“Wilder gave her self-defense gear. Lucien taught her some moves, and Cato threw Ian Bexley in a dumpster and tossed a match in after him when he saw Ian trip Winter coming down the stairs.” Rafael shrugged. “He lived—if that matters.”
My breaths came out too fast, making my head light.
“We tried to do more, but Winter told us to stay out of it. This was between her and the Royals, and she could take care of herself. We listened, and that was the biggest mistake we ever—”
I launched at him. Throwing my arms around him, I squeezed Rafael till he grunted, bawling into his chest. “Thank you, Rafael. You don’t know— I thought she was all alone. That no one here gave a shit about her, or tried to help.”
“We didn’t help.”
“You wanted to.” I gazed into tortured, raging eyes. “That’s more than can be said for everyone else on this campus, including the dean who had to be pushed into action. You wanted to,” I whispered.
Releasing him, I turned on Cato.
Rafael rushed, “Hold up—”
His brother’s low growl sounded its own warning. Uncaring, I hugged him, burrowing my face in his neck. He saw someone hurt my sister and risked jail or another psych ward to make him pay for it. If he wasn’t wearing a muzzle, I’d kiss him.
“Thank you.”
Cato was stiff in my hold. The growling stopped, though he didn’t move or lift his arms to hug me back. Leather pressed against my cheek, soft and tickling, rubbing up and down. What was he—?
Hands grasped my waist. “You’ve tempted fate long enough, darling.” Rafael peeled me off his brother. “And no more crying,” he said, holding my chin between two fingers like before. He gently wiped my tears on his sleeve. “Making a lady cry first thing in the morning means I owe you a favor to make it up. Whatever you want.”
“You don’t owe me anything more.”
“Where are you headed now?”
“The registrar.”
“We’ll walk you.”
The guys fell in step with me. We walked a wide path lined with old brick buildings and freshly clipped grass. Everywhere I looked, twosomes went about campus—one talking animatedly and pointing things out. Freshmen and their guides. Where was mine? Doing things she’d likely tell me about in unwanted detail later.
I snuck glances at the Dumont brothers on the walk. Rafael turned his music back on at some point. He shuffled on his heels, head bobbing.
I tapped his headphones. “I’ve heard things about you and your friends.”
“All true.”
“They can’t be,” I said with a chuckle. “Someone said your friend Lucien thinks he’s a one-hundred-and-fifty-eight-year-old vampire.”
“Looks great for his age, doesn’t he?”
“Come on. Be serious.”
“The guy who turned him was some lonely old shopkeeper who got tired of living an eternity alone. Lucien started working for him, they became friends, and he decided eternity was for two. They had a falling out and split ways a hundred years ago. Lucien’s been moving around ever since, collecting degrees. He finished architecture four years ago, so now he’s studying history.”
I waited for him to laugh.
Nothing.
“Okay,” I drew out. “So, what’s your story? People say some pretty wild things about your dad.”
“Like what?”
“That he’s a—” I cast about for the word. “A fixer, or something like that.”
“He’s not a fixer.”
I bobbed my head, throwing up my hand. “See? I knew it was nonsense.”
“Pops is a hit man,” Rafael dropped. “Totally kills people for money. I’m only telling you this because if you repeat it, I’ll deny it, and there are no bodies to link him to the crime either way.”
I gaped at him. Swinging to Cato, he snapped at me from behind the mask. I didn’t know what the fuck kind of reply that was.
Weirdos. Complete and total psychos like Katie said. Kind psychos who tried to help Winter, but it’s becoming real obvious why she didn’t accept their help.