4. Chapter Three
Chapter Three
Teagan
A deep, hollow feeling seeped into my bones as I sat in my first class of the day. Vivian has been missing for nearly four days now, and from the sounds of it, no one seemed to give a shit. I wasn’t even sure if it had been reported yet.
She was one of my closest friends and had also been my roommate. She was the complete opposite of me in every way, and I missed having her around. She pushed me outside of my comfort zone and made me feel like I mattered when it didn’t feel like I did most of the time.
Not only had she vanished off the face of the earth, but our professor did, too. Which was precisely why I was glaring at my desk in my video editing class like it had somehow offended me.
Professor Bridgerton took the front of the room, folding her hands in front of her as she glanced from person to person to ensure we were all working. When her gaze settled on me, she arched an accusing brow. It wasn’t like the university was falling apart or anything. Resentment coiled around my gut like a snake, squeezing until a venomous rage seeped into my veins.
St. Valentines University was extremely strict, and I knew it would be idiotic to start rebelling now, especially when I was so far in my course. But shit. They should have at least given students some time to cope with whatever was happening behind the scenes. Because something was definitely happening.
Class couldn’t end quickly enough, and as soon as it did, I hurried toward the cafeteria. My stomach was twisted into knots, and food was the last thing on my mind, but it would be nice to chill out with the girls for a little while before my next class began. They understood what I was going through, at least a little bit. Even if they hadn’t been as close to Vivi as I had.
She’s not dead, I told myself. She was just… missing. Maybe she’d met someone, or perhaps she ran away. I scoffed, a bitterness curling around my insides. I’d run away too after some of the shit Professor Valentine had put her through. But what really raised the red flags, was that he was missing, too.
What if he did something to her?
My chest ached at the painful thought. Maddox Valentine had been nothing but cruel to my best friend, tormenting her in class, berating her for every little thing, doing things that just bordered on inappropriate. It was like some kind of sick obsession.
If that wasn’t enough, Zovalee was missing too. I blew out a breath, making my way toward our usual table. My gaze landed on Charlotte first, but before I could take note of any of the other girls, a body stepped in front of me, blocking them from view.
Stumbling to an abrupt halt, I craned my neck, bringing my gaze to a pair of piercing green ones.
My throat instantly felt dry as a tremor rippled through my body in waves, instantly taking note of the new danger that had presented itself. King Santiago. He was even more intimidating standing toe to toe with me. Now that we were face to face, the sharp angles of his jaw were much more prominent.
I glanced around, looking for his twin but didn’t spot him anywhere. Several people were staring though, causing my skin to flush from the unwanted attention.
“Can I help you?” I asked, my voice coming out meek and timid, which I internally cursed myself for.
“Maybe you can, little sister.” He smirked, his voice much smoother than I would have expected.
I recoiled from the nickname, scrunching my nose up in disgust. “That’s disgusting. Don’t ever call me that again.” My heart was hammering against my ribcage, my fight or flight instincts kicking in.
He cocked his head to the side, his eyes penetrating through my own—like he could see into the depths of my very soul. “Disgusting?” he repeated. “The only way it would be disgusting is if you were thinking about me naked, Teagan.” He paused, his smirk widening into a manic grin. “Are you?”
Humiliation burned through me, his words clearly having the desired effect, because his smile only grew more and more until it was full on unhinged. “Absolutely not,” I snarled. “If you need—”
He took a step closer, his woodsy cologne surrounding me. “You sure about that?” He reached out, pinching a strand of light brown hair between his fingers. “Just say the word and we’ll leave right now.”
I swatted his hand away and leveled him with a hard glare, despite my nerves going haywire inside of me. “Did you need something?” I snapped, ready to get this shit over with so I could spend time with the girls before my next class started.
“Yes.” Another voice sounded from behind me, making the hair on the nape of my neck stand on end. His voice was just as smooth with a harder edge to it. I knew who it was without needing to turn to confirm it. Phoenix’s body heat seared into my back, letting me know that he was far too close for my liking. “Our father has arranged a camping trip for tomorrow.”
I glanced over my shoulder, my eyebrows drawing together in confusion. “In February?” I asked skeptically.
His blue eyes raked down my figure in slow, deliberate movements, making me feel exposed despite being dressed to the nines in Fall attire. There was something deeply unsettling about these two; I just couldn’t put my finger on what it was. Maybe it was the way they devoured me with their eyes, or the way they spoke in general. The rumors circulating around about them also didn’t help matters.
Phoenix’s lips twitched in amusement. “There will be electricity.”
Right. His father was even more loaded than my mom was. Normal camping was probably beneath them.
“My mom hasn’t said anything to me about it…” I trailed off, casting another glance around the cafeteria. Sure enough, people were still staring, putting me even more on edge.
“It was a last-minute arrangement,” King chimed in. “If you don’t believe us, you’re more than welcome to call your mother and ask her.”
I had no intention of doing that. My mom didn’t need any added stress on my part. I’d originally been happy for her when she told me she was seeing someone again, but I hadn’t expected her to get married as quickly as she had. Phoenix and King might have been… odd. But they’d have no reason to lie to me about something as trivial as this.
“Where?” I demanded.
King grinned, clearly pleased with my compliance. “Meet us in the parking lot at nine in the morning.” He glanced at his brother over my shoulder—the two of them having some kind of silent conversation. “Don’t worry. We won’t be going far.”
Something felt off about this entire situation, but I chalked it down to paranoia. I’d never even spoken to these guys before today, and they haven’t been cruel to me. Just… weird and a little crude on King’s part. Their father seemed friendly enough at dinner, so it didn’t seem far-fetched that he’d plan something like this.
Especially after the bombshell they dropped on me last night. Maybe it was his way of trying to include me and let me know that this was the real deal.
“Fine. Whatever. Are we done here?”
King exchanged another look with his brother before finally stepping out of my way. Relief rolled through me, and I quickly sidestepped him, making a beeline for my table.
I slipped into the seat beside Kenzi, trying to calm my rapidly beating heart. Our table was filled with sorority girls—some of which I couldn’t even remember the names of. I didn’t know Kenzi extremely well, but she was nice enough and we talked here and there in passing and at parties.
Her weary gaze bounced from me to the two boys that were striding out of the cafeteria, eyes following their every movement like they were gods.
“Is everything okay?” Kenzie asked me, swiping her manicured finger over her red apple.
I forced a small smile. “Yeah. Why do you ask?” I realized immediately that my question was idiotic at best. I knew damn well why she’d be concerned.
Kenzie frowned, her eyebrows dipping in confusion. “Because of Phoenix and King. From what I’ve heard…” She grimaced, a shudder running through her.
Normally, I wouldn’t care about the stupid rumors surrounding this place, but now that these assholes were my stepbrothers, it didn’t only concern me. It concerned my mother, too.
“What have you heard exactly?” I pressed, keeping my tone calm and quiet. I didn’t want to alert the other girls. Not when they had enough to worry about between Zovalee’s disappearance paired with Vivian’s. Everyone had their own shit going on.
Kenzie blew out a breath. “You didn’t hear this from me, but Phoenix had a girlfriend his freshman year of college. They seemed perfect for each other. They dated throughout most of the year, and then she just… disappeared.”
“Yeah,” I said wearily, having already heard that rumor told in three different ways. “That seems to be a common theme around here lately.”
She nodded in agreement. “Just be careful, okay? They give me bad vibes.”
Me too, girl. Me too.