29. Alistair
ALISTAIR
In the dark, we drive the fucker all the way to Priory Forest, where all the good parties take place. Not the kind of half-assed, damp-ass parties these fuckers from Phantom throw.
We carry Nathan out of the car, his body weighing a ton. Near The Edge we dump him, his head hanging over the balance, where Eve once jumped to her death.
A fitting punishment for threatening her sister, if you ask me.
Dylan unties him and shoves him farther over the edge. “And remember, fucker, if you talk about this to anyone …” Dylan points a finger at his temple and pretends a gun goes off. “Your brain splatters all over the walls of the university.”
“I have a broken leg, and I’m missing a bloody fucking finger!” he screams. “What the fuck do you expect me to do, huh?”
I shrug. “Go to a doctor for all I care. Tell them you accidentally cut it off when you were trying to saw a tree or some shit.”
“Saw a tree? In what fucking world would I ever do that?” he retorts. “No fucking rich kids cut down trees in their spare time.”
I step away. “Beats me. I’m trying to help you. Be grateful.”
“Help me?” he squeals. “You fucking lured me to your fucking basement, tied me up, and beat the shit out of me. What the fuck is wrong with you?!”
Dylan laughs. “A lot, thank you for the compliment.”
“You’re fucking sick bastards,” Nathan spits, clutching his hand as it oozes blood.
“Damn right, we are,” Dylan replies. He throws his arm around my shoulders. “Let’s go.”
“Wait!” Nathan yells as Dylan and I turn around. “You’re just gonna leave me here?”
“Yup, that was the plan.” I glance at him over my shoulder. “Unless you want us to finish the job.”
He slams his mouth shut, his hand tightening around his finger like he’s trying to stop the bleeding.
“You’ll fucking pay for this. You know that, right?” he yells as we walk off.
“Whatever you want, pretty boy,” I reply, not even giving him a single look.
This fucker has stolen enough of our time.
It wasn’t even worth it because we’re still not any closer to the answers.
“And now we’ve got one hell of a job to clean up the mess we made,” I muse.
Dylan frowns. “What? Why?”
“Because those fucking posters won’t take themselves down.”
A smug grin forms on his lips as he stares me down. “Don’t tell me you actually care.” When I don’t reply, the grin on his face only grows deeper. “Alistair King … having a crush on a girl who’s supposed to be our fucking toy?”
I thrust my elbow into his side, making him groan, but I fucking love that sound. “Don’t get your fucking hopes up I’ll ever look elsewhere for my fix, though.”
Our eyes connect, that stupid grin of his giving me all the energy I need right now. “I know.”
But I don’t know if I would call it a crush …
Or if it’s just morbid curiosity.
* * *
Penelope
I hide away in my room for the next couple of days, only coming out for the bare minimum of classes I need to attend before I get kicked out of school.
Nothing in this world is worse than having to go out there and possibly run into one of them .
Those three boys of the Skull & Serpent Society are even more fucked up than I thought.
But what’s even worse is the fact that I wasn’t even scared of what they did.
I wasn’t scared when I saw Nathan tied up to a chair like a goddamn victim.
I wasn’t scared when Felix hammered him to the point of breaking his legs.
And even the goddamn finger he held up in front of my face wasn’t enough to scare me away.
There was only a single thing I feared at that moment … My own exhilaration.
The power.
The way Felix literally asked me, me out of all people, if he should stop.
Every time I close my eyes, I can see him in my mind, slamming that hammer into Nathan’s knees, cutting off that finger, blood dripping down his fingers and onto my skin as he looks at me and tells me he would’ve killed him for me.
My fingers instinctively reach for my skin, erupting into tingles. I’ve already washed off the blood, but I can still feel the stain on my body, growing and growing until there’s no point in denying the fact that I’m slowly falling into the trap they so easily laid out for me.
Because God, when he kissed me, I swear it felt like the world stood still.
Why?
Why did he do that?
And why do I even care?
I sigh and lie down in bed. It’s past midnight, and Kayla’s fast asleep. Staying awake now would only hamper my ability to study.
So I close my eyes and force myself to stop thinking about it.
I can’t do anything cooped up in here anyway.
Suddenly, something creaks in the corner of the room, and my eyes burst open.
The window is open, but I can’t remember if I opened it.
I crawl out of bed, shivering from the cold draft that enters, and I quickly shut it tight.
But when I turn around to walk back to my bed, I stop in my tracks like a train driver smashing the emergency button.
Because a figure in a dark hoodie hovers over Kayla.
I run to my cabinet to grab my bag and fish out my knife, but as I point it at him, he lifts his head and plants his finger on his lips. “Shh …”
My eyes widen, and I mutter, “Alistair?”
He approaches me, and I shiver again as his frame towers over me. In the dark, he’s quite intimidating, especially because he can apparently sneak into my room without me even noticing.
He reaches for the knife, but I refuse to let go as his hand snakes around my wrist tighter and tighter. I try to aim for his chest, but the closer I get, the more he pulls until I bump into him.
He slowly turns my wrist sideways until I have no choice but to let go.
“What were you doing to her?” I say through gritted teeth.
He leans in and whispers, “Checking if she was asleep.” His grip tightens around the small of my back as he pulls me into his embrace. “Sit down.”
I frown, confused. “Why?”
But before I can even say anything else, he’s already pushed me down onto the bed.
His curly hair blocks his eyes, but I can still feel his stare bore into me from underneath that black hoodie.
“Do you do this often?”
He tilts his head. “Only when I want to.”
I suck in a breath. “How many times have you been inside this room?”
“Countless.”
A shiver runs up and down my spine.
“When I was asleep?”
He nods.
I should be terrified. Scared out of my mind.
Instead, I’m intrigued.
I thought he didn’t like me, and that he only agreed with Felix’s scheme so he could get some free ass, but maybe he’s been hiding his true intentions. I wouldn’t put it past a guy like him.
He’s the kind of guy who lurks in the background, always waiting for the right time to take what he wants.
And that time is apparently now.
“If you want to talk, can’t we do this during the day? It’s the middle of the night. I need sleep.”
His neck muscle flexes. “The night is more private.”
Private? Oh boy.
“What do you want?” I ask, swallowing.
“I want …” His hand rises to meet my face, the tip of his index finger barely grazing my cheek, but his touch still leaves tingles on my skin. “I want to apologize.”
My jaw slowly drops.
Am I dreaming, or is this real?
“For those posters.” His fingers slowly crawl across my skin as though he’s admiring every inch of it just by touch. “They hurt you, didn’t they?”
I nod.
“Will you forgive me?” he asks, his voice raspy.
I frown. “I …”
I’m bamboozled by his sudden request. I never thought these guys would actually feel remorseful over their bullying. But maybe Alistair has been hiding his emotions for the sake of the group.
His lip twitches. “I don’t know why I care.” His finger moves toward my lips. “But I want to know.” His voice cracks. “Desperately.”
“I … can forgive you,” I mutter, transfixed by the way he’s touching me.
His finger drags my lip down until my mouth opens.
“Can you forgive me for what I’m about to do?” he asks, sliding his finger onto my tongue.
His free hand slowly lowers his zipper, and it’s at that point I realize what he wants.
“I need to know why,” he mutters, pulling out his dick, the girth still making my pupils dilate. “Why it’s you.”
Why it’s me?
What does he mean by that?
But before I can ask, he’s already lowered my head over the tip.
And I don’t know why, but I start licking.
Maybe it’s because I feel like I owe it to him for fucking up Nathan.
Or perhaps I’m grateful for him saying he’s sorry about the pain he caused.
Or maybe, just maybe, I’m overcome with desire at the thought of sucking him dry.
The groan that follows another lick makes me viscerally aware of my surroundings. Kayla is right next to us, and she might hear.
“She’s still sleeping. Don’t worry,” he mutters, his hand sliding through my hair, “she won’t know about the fun we’re about to have.”
He pushes deeper into my mouth, and I struggle to take his girth. He’s not long but wide, big enough to fill up the edges of my mouth, and my eyes begin to water as he thrusts inside.
He groans with delight, and I’d be lying if I said it didn’t make me wet.
Focus on doing what you need to do, Pen.
This is just an exchange. Nothing more, nothing less.
“Lick,” Alistair commands, but it’s so hard when he’s inside me. “Faster.”
Still, I do what I’m told because of the way he says it. His voice isn’t harsh but smooth like you just want to do whatever he tells you. Like he’s in complete control and knows it.
And I can’t help but stare up into his eyes as I take him deep, struggling not to cough.
“That’s it,” he says. “Look at me when I’m inside you.”
The satisfying moan that leaves his mouth makes my body tingle.
Like I’m becoming … greedy.
And I lick him as best I can in the dark of night, knowing no one is watching me except him and only him.
His every groan sets my body on fire. It feels so powerful to be the one in control of his pleasure. I never thought it could affect me as much as it does right now, when I’m all alone with Alistair with no one to intervene. Like a big dirty secret I need to keep hidden.