37. Envy
Chapter thirty-seven
Envy
On my knees, on lit coals, begging, pleading- Envy Fate
While the others stalk out different places on the island, I organise for Gael to pick me up.
I don’t go to any tourist trap or beautiful scenic spot. I head straight down to the local surf spot. I’ve thought about this a lot over the last few weeks, getting close to her is impossible. I need a direct approach, something to get past those mile high walls of hers.
Gael parks the car on the top of the cliffs and gets out, leaning on the bonnet and watching intently.
“Who’s out there?” I ask, hoping to lead the conversation to Kelly.
“See that guy there, he’s mad, like insane crazy. Takes all the risks, but, man, the guy has skills when he’s on a board. That’s Ezy.”
“Ezy?”
“Ezekial Boothe, but everyone calls him Ezy.”
I watch as he seems to effortlessly glide on the wave, traveling an amazing distance before he disappears under white water.
“Is Kelly out there?”
“Kelly Raines?” Gael smiles widely. “Oh, yeah, Kell’s is out there. Where else would he be? He hasn’t got blood, he’s got ocean water.”
“Which one is he? ”
Gael points to a surfer sitting not far from some others. I can’t see anything about them. They are too far away, but there is an innate languidness to his body shape that makes me think he’s as content out there as we are on the stage.
“When will he be coming in?”
Gael looks at the waves and shrugs. “Depends.”
I nod.
I’ll wait.
I’ll wait forever.
Kelly comes out of the water an hour later. They all wander up the cliff path, chatting and laughing. I sit and wait, listening to their conversations and learning as much as I can about them.
My stomach churns. I don’t know how this meeting will go, but I’m sending every thought into the universe right now.
Kelly spots me, and his face hardens.
Not a good sign.
“What are you doing here, Fate?”
Gael looks at me with a frown that transforms into dawning realisation. “You’re Envy!”
I frown at Kelly but give a short nod. “Kelly, I need to speak to her.”
“Yeah, that’s not happening. Ever.”
“You don’t understand.”
“What’s to understand? You screwed her-”
“We never screwed her. We tried to save her,” I snap back. “If you could just listen.”
He shrugs. “Don’t really care.”
I snarl and follow him as he walks into the jungle, disappearing from view.
“Two minutes!”
“Nope.”
“Raider listened to us. Locke listened. Lia and Bailey listened. Bethany listened. They helped us.”
Kelly pauses. He turns slowly. “My brother, sister, and cousins helped you?”
“Yes. You should try answering a phone once in a while,” I snap at him, losing my temper.
He shrugs. “Why?”
“Because someone might want to reach you. ”
Kelly is about to say something flippant when he obviously remembers his cousins, brother, and sister, and the words go unsaid. He keeps walking, and I know I’m losing him.
“Stop!” I shout.
He ignores me.
“Please, Kelly! I love her.”
He snorts, whirling around to glare at me with pure icy wrath. “You love her? If you’d have loved her, you would have helped her escape. You wouldn’t have fed her to the wolves.”
The truth of those words burns, but I can’t stop here. I rush down the trail, following the big alpha and his glacial fury.
“You don’t understand-”
“What’s to understand? You fucked her! Stole her chance at stardom. Fed her on a silver platter to her monster of a father. You stole her whole life from her!”
“It was never like that!” I howl. It totally feels like it was like that.
Kelly pauses. “What was it like, then? Suck the life out of her for her lyrics? Get rich? Get famous and fuck her off?”
“It wasn’t about the lyrics. How dare you imply that it was! It was never about money or fame or power. It’s about her.”
“And when she revealed she was an omega, she still wasn’t enough?”
Kelly steps into me and shoves me. It’s a hard push but only rocks me back. I clench my hands into fists so I don’t launch at him.
I snarl, the pain of all this making me impatient. “You don’t get to judge us. You don’t know what was happening.”
“He sold her to a pack. A pack of old rapist, piece-of-shit alphas. That’s her future, and instead of rescuing her, instead of following her plan, you just abandoned her.”
“WE COULDN’T!” I roar.
Kelly only laughs.
I’m losing him, I think to myself. If he disappears, so will she, I know it. There won’t be another chance.
I remember Locke’s text message, and the words he whispered when he pulled me aside. I clear my throat. Please, let this work. “Stop,” I purr in pure desperation.
Kelly stops so fast I slam into his back. “How did you learn to do that? You can’t do that! Only an omega can…”
“Turn around Kelly Raines. I need to show you something.”
Kelly turns and faces me, his expression one of deep caution.
With a nervous flutter, I let all my masks fall away .
Kelly inhales sharply. His eyes don’t leave my face, but I feel like this alpha sees all of me. “I’ll try my best.”