Chapter 16
The vibe was depressing with Nix’s friends even a full week after the revelation about Dew. Classes hadn’t been halted and no memorial had been given. Everything just continued on as though Dew had never existed, and even though he’d turned out to be an asshole, that bothered Nix.
It bothered Grady and Khloe as well, though they tried not to show it around him, probably out of respect for what he’d been through. The last thing Nix wanted was for them to feel like they had to walk on eggshells around him though.
Part of him even felt responsible for their pain.
He must have done something to push Dew over the edge, but he’d gone over their interactions and nothing had come to mind. The only thing he could think of was the lie he’d told about them knowing the name of the hacker. The problem was, Dew wasn’t the hacker. He was involved, sure, but as a mere sidekick, what reason could he have had to take his own life?
Or even expose Nix at the art gallery? That had seemed personal. Malicious. Had Dew secretly hated him? He couldn’t stop asking himself that.
The three of them stepped out of the library and lumbered down the steps with little energy, the mood sour. They’d stuck to their study group after class, but it’d been awkward and quiet. Khloe’s eyes were puffy and red, and Grady had tried too hard not to notice, quietly offering her tissues.
They’d welcomed him into their friend group at the start of the semester, and now everything was a mess. Nix was actually surprised they hadn’t told him to get lost.
“Where did Juri say he was again?” Grady asked, holding onto the strap of his backpack tightly, as though he feared someone would run by and try to snatch it. It was the grief and anxiety, no doubt, and how he was trying to conceal it to not upset Nix.
Nix really wished he wouldn’t.
“He texted saying he had a meeting with a professor,” Khloe answered, giving Nix a fake smile when he looked at her. “He didn’t mention which one.”
“Guys,” Nix exhaled, “I’m sorry. You don’t have to keep pretending like everything is okay. I know Dew meant a lot to you. You were all friends for a long time.”
“We don’t blame you,” Khloe said. “Dew’s actions were his own, it’s just…hard.”
“It feels like we never really knew him,” Grady added. “You know what I mean?”
Yes, he did, because that’s exactly how he’d felt when he’d first discovered Branwen was Iris. Since he still hadn’t managed to overcome those feelings, Nix wasn’t a good person to give advice in this situation.
“I just don’t get it,” Khloe nibbled on her bottom lip. “Why’d he do it? Why lock you in a waif pen or swap those paintings at all? What possible reason could he have? And hacking into the Club House? Dew?”
“He got a C in computer sciences our freshman year.” Grady ran a hand through his hair. “Just goes to show you can never really know a person.”
Her eyes landed on him. “You’re not hiding anything important from us, are you?”
He held up a hand. “What? No! Are you?”
“No.”
They turned to Nix.
“I’m not either,” he assured them.
Grady sighed. “Well, it’s not like you could tell us if you were. Not if it had anything to do with the club, anyway.”
Everyone on campus had heard the Night of the Nightshade had been moved up, and that Nix and Juri were both now members. Aside from a few glances and whispers when he passed, his life on campus hadn’t changed much though.
“I’m glad to hear you understand the rules, Mr. Monroe.” Hendrix appeared suddenly, two men dressed in suits with him.
Nix eyed them but didn’t give any other reaction. Even the Demons had to be polite, the least he could do was keep his cool in the Order member’s presence. He had a bad feeling about this though.
“Mr. Bardin,” Nix greeted him. “Are you here to see Beck?”
“No, nothing like that. I try not to bother him while he’s at work.”
“Right.” He glanced pointedly at the two men with him.
“Oh, these are my security detail, don’t be alarmed,” Hendrix said. “They follow me everywhere after what happened with the Emperor. I’ve tried to convince Lake and my son to hire them as well, but young folk. They never listen. Are these your friends?”
Grady and Khloe seemed every bit as uncomfortable as Nix felt. Knowing how much Grady despised the club, Nix found himself stepping in front of them.
“You guys can head to lunch without me,” he suggested.
“We can wait,” Grady told him.
“I’ll catch up.” Nix gave him a pointed look. He didn’t want to involve the two of them in his mess any more and whatever reason Hendrix had for being here, it couldn’t be good.
“Let’s go.” Khloe tugged on Grady’s sleeve until the guy gave in.
“It’s your favorite dish on the menu today,” Grady said as they walked off. “It always goes fast, so you better hurry up.”
“Will do,” Nix called back, grateful that he was trying to give him an excuse to cut whatever bullshit Hendrix was about to start short. Once they were alone, he turned back to the older man. “Is there something I can help you with, Mr. Bardin?”
“I was hoping to continue our talk from the other night,” Hendrix said, taking a step closer. They were at the bottom of the stairs, with students moving to and from the library. They’d attracted some attention, but not a lot, probably because most of the student body didn’t know who Hendrix was. Aside from his son being a professor there, he had nothing to do with Foxglove Grove.
“I’m sorry, but I was actually on my way to lunch,” Nix began, only to have the older man wave him off.
“Forget the gross cafeteria food. I know a place. Why don’t we go grab a bite, my treat, and we can talk over a hot meal.” Hendrix glanced up at the darkening sky. “Looks like it’s about to rain.”
“It does that often.” Nix couldn’t recall the last time it was this difficult for him to grasp patience. He should be freaked out and worried about upsetting Hendrix. The smart thing to do would be to roll with the punches and accept his offer for lunch.
But Nix didn’t want to.
He didn’t want to stomach being around the man that had potentially tried to kill West and frame Yejun for it. Not to mention he’d have to be a total idiot to take a risk like that just to keep the peace. What peace? If the guy was already targeting them, what did it matter if Nix told him to fuck off?
Actually…Now that he was thinking about it…
“I’m going to have to decline, Mr. Bardin, but thank you for the invitation.” Nix went to move away, stiffening when one of the goons with Hendrix blocked his path.
“Please, call me uncle, that’s what all the Demons call me.” Hendrix was all fake smiles despite the obvious threat his man had just posed. “And, really, I must insist. If this is because you’re afraid of my nephew—”
“Cousin,” Nix corrected, holding his ground when that caused Hendrix to falter. “My understanding is that you and Lake are first cousins. If you’ll excuse me, I really must be going.”
“You’re on the wrong side of things here, kid. If you’re sticking to Lake for power, you’re going to be disappointed. That boy will never sit on the throne. I won’t allow it.”
“It’s a good thing it’s not up to you then, isn’t it.”
“Excuse me?”
“That’s what I’ve been trying to do since your unpleasant arrival.” Nix wasn’t sure where the confidence came from, knew somewhere in his subconscious he was most definitely going to regret it, but the words poured out of him seemingly of their own accord. “I have nothing more to talk to you about, and certainly not on my own. Cornering me like this isn’t winning you any favors.”
“You won’t be saying that once you realize you’re being treated like property,” Hendrix sneered. “It runs in that family. His father controlled his mother that very same way. This is merely history repeating itself. What I’m offering you is a way out from underneath that psychotic boy's thumb.”
“Psychotic?”
“Surely, you’ve noticed. You’ve been with him long enough to have picked up on the signs. Something's not right with Lake. That’s why I keep insisting he be removed from the line of succession. No one wants a psychopath on the throne. I heard you were smart, Mr. Monroe. Surely you understand where I’m coming from.”
He thought Lake was the psychopath here?
Better question, did he truly believe Nix was so gullible he’d fall for this empty spiel?
“Don’t you think it’s kind of pathetic?” his voice dropped low as all that pent-up anger he’d been bottling up for weeks trickled to the surface.
Nix was pissed that Hendrix thought he could come here and talk to him.
He was pissed that he thought Nix would buy into his crap.
And he was furious that the bastard kept trying to weaponize Lake’s dead parents.
“What?” Hendrix’s face began to turn a bright shade of red. “How dare you—”
“You’re a grown man picking on a bunch of college students,” Nix continued, completely ignoring all of the warning signs because, apparently, he’d lost his gods' damn mind. “You barely have a claim to the throne, yet you’re clinging so desperately you’re willing to harm a bunch of kids to do it.”
“How disrespectful—”
“You want respect?” Nix snorted. “Try doing something respectable first.”
In hindsight, he really should have seen the slap coming.
Hendrix didn’t hold back, his hand whipping out so quickly Nix didn’t have time to even consider evading. In the next instant, he found himself on the ground, his hand cupping his burning cheek protectively.
He didn’t have the chance to react either—not that he had any idea what he would have done after being hit by Hendrix, an Order member.
“What the fuck do you think you’re doing?!” Yejun’s voice cut across the path and the Demon came racing over. Even if he hadn’t yelled, his fury was palpable, to the point even the protective detail with Hendrix hesitated and glanced at one another before moving to do their jobs.
They threw themselves between the raging Demon and Hendrix, but that only gave June an outlet for his anger.
Nix actually winced when the bodyguard on the right took the first hit and there was a loud cracking sound as his nose was broken. Blood spurted out, spraying across Yejun’s face, but if he noticed, it didn’t slow him down.
Yejun stabbed the second bodyguard in the side with a pen—Nix hadn’t even seen him holding one a second ago, had it been in his pocket?!—and then again in the upper thigh when the man curled in on himself protectively.
The first guard recovered and landed a blow to June’s solar plexus, doubling him over, and before Nix realized what he intended, he was on his feet.
“Hey!” He caught the guard by surprise and punched him, then kicked him for good measure before the man could catch his bearings. Nix swore when he was forcefully spun around, the second guard now focused on him. The hit irritated the already sore spot from where Hendrix had slapped him and he hissed at the burst of pain.
And then West was there, pulling the guy off of Nix by the scruff of the neck like he weighed no more than an empty backpack. He actually tossed him to the side like one as well, before going for the first guard who was fighting with Yejun a few feet away.
Neither June or the guard seemed to have noticed West’s arrival, and it cost the guard.
West twisted his left arm behind his back hard enough there came a pop, followed by the man wailing in agony. He continued to contort the appendage anyway, turning with the man until he was facing Hendrix.
Hendrix yelped and sidestepped to avoid the guard crashing into him when West threw him forward, but collected himself with a huff.
“He slapped Nix,” Yejun said, out of breath and every bit as pissed off as the moment he’d gotten there.
“Who did?” West demanded, glaring daggers at Hendrix. He pointed at him. “He did? I’ll fucking kill you.”
It was probably pretty scary to have a man who was all set to become a professional fighter charge at you, even for someone with as high a social status as Hendrix. If he’d used logic, he most likely would have realized West couldn’t make good on his threats without risking repercussions, but apparently logic was completely out the window today for all of them because Hendrix panicked instead.
“West!” Nix noticed the blaster before the others, but he wasn’t fast enough to do anything to stop the gun from going off.
West jerked and then went still, clearly shocked.
He wasn’t the only one.
Hendrix’s eyes widened and he stared at the weapon he still held in his hand, aimed at West. After a second, he started to shake, dropping the gun to the ground as though burned by it. “I didn’t…”
West groaned and then dropped to one knee, pressing a hand to his right side.
“Call an ambulance!” Nix ordered Yejun and rushed West. He covered his hand with his own, applying more pressure to the injury. “Hold on, you’re going to be fine.”
“This?” West grunted. “This is nothing. If you’d been at the match the other day, you would have seen when I got kicked in the balls. Now that hurt.”
“This isn’t the time for jokes,” Nix reprimanded, turning to Yejun to make sure he was calling for help. “How did you even know to find me here?”
“Grady came looking. Said he got to Yejun first, but just in case I should head over too. Glad I did.” He chucked his chin over his shoulder toward his best friend. “June can hold his own, but he’s got nothing on me.”
“Dad?” Beck stepped out of the library and frowned at his father. “What—” Then he spotted the rest of them. The books he’d been holding ended up on the stairs as he sprinted down them. “West?! What happened?!”
Nix almost ended up on his ass, Beck practically shoving him out of the way when he landed at West’s other side.
Beck eyed the blood pooling through Nix and West’s fingers and then looked back at his father. “Did you…Did you shoot him?!”
Hendrix shook his head and then retreated, the two bodyguards stumbling in their attempts to follow behind. No one tried to stop them as they ran off, too focused on West. It also didn’t matter, since students who’d witnessed the commotion had started filming as soon as Nix had been slapped.
Footage of Hendrix shooting one of the Demons would be making the rounds shortly if it wasn’t already.
Knowing there was solid evidence to ensure Hendrix couldn’t get away with this should have given Nix some sense of relief, but he was too concerned about West to let that feeling settle. He slipped an arm beneath West’s and helped get him to his feet, grimacing when the Demon elicited another pained sound.
“Careful,” Beck snapped, ignoring the shocked look Nix sent his way. “Let’s go to my car, it’s nearby. I can drive you to the hospital,” he said to West in a gentler tone.
West shook his head. “June already called an ambulance.”
“That’ll take too long!”
“They’re already pulling into the school,” Yejun disagreed, moving to ease Beck out of the way so he could take over. “If you want, you can follow us, but we can handle this.”
The sound of sirens came then and Yejun and Nix urged West to start walking toward the lot on the other side of the library. He was still bleeding, but he was able to move, albeit slowly, and he grinned at Nix when he caught him staring.
“Relax, Nixie,” West said. “I’m fine.”
“Hendrix isn’t going to be,” Yejun growled. “That prick—”
“Don’t lose your cool, June,” West warned. “There’s no need to get us into any more trouble.”
“Didn’t you notice all the cameras?” Nix said. “Hendrix won’t be getting away with this.”
“He’s right,” West nodded. “We don’t have to do shit. Just sit back and—” He hissed, the pain cutting him off.
“Stop acting tough and keep your mouth shut.” Nix spotted the ambulance as it pulled up. Somehow, seeing it made it seem more real, and the fear managed to slip through the adrenaline rush that had been getting him through this up until now. “And don’t die.”
“I’m not gonna die,” he promised as two paramedics got out of the ambulance and ran toward them. “I haven’t fucked you all week.”
Nix and Yejun handed him off to the professionals, trailing after as they loaded West into the back of the vehicle.
“Who’s going with him?” one of the medics asked, securing West.
“You go,” Yejun suggested, pushing Nix lightly toward the opening. “I’ll catch a ride with Beck.”
“June…”
“Go,” he insisted. “I’m right behind you, Firebird. Don’t worry.”
Nix took a deep breath and climbed in, his only option right now to trust them.