Lily
Iwrestle with myself, trying to put into words what I’ve learned in my last year in this town.
Claire’s courageous, willful, and it’s going to get her in big trouble.
She’s been here for three days; she doesn’t know about the legacies who rule Thorn Falls.
She’s already entangled with fucking Keller, without any clue how this game works.
I can’t believe she filmed, then threatened Cross.
“You can’t threaten those people. Don’t even try.
Oh my god, Claire, this could have ended badly for you.
” I chew on my lower lip. “They’re all powerful here.
Not only in the school; in this town. They can literally make you disappear if they want to.
Don’t piss anyone off in Thorn Falls. Especially not those who live in these houses. ”
“He was going to make you kiss him,” she grumbles.
Ugh, who the fuck cares? I’ve had his dick in my mouth. I owe him a hell of a lot more than a kiss.
Instead of saying that, I sigh. “It’s…a game, all right?
” That felt accurate enough. “And I don’t mind any of it.
Come on. I’ll take you home. Damn, you’re lucky Keller likes you.
I thought Cross would eat you alive on the spot.
He likely would have, if he wasn’t reluctant to step on someone else’s territory. ”
I’ve been a subject of Cross’s attention, and his teasing smile, his molten gold eyes filled with amusement and daring were completely absent when he watched Claire tonight. He had the look of a lion considering whether a gazelle was worth tearing into.
“I’m not Keller’s territory,” she protests.
“Right.” I manage to say it with a straight face, and I don’t even snort. “Just like I’d say I’m not Cross’s if anyone asked. I don’t belong to anyone. But as far as they are concerned, they’ve decided to play with us.”
I was so certain that rumors would fly after the botched blowjob last winter.
That people would talk shit about me, tease me, harass me.
There was none of that, not even a funny look.
And it’s not like Rothford doesn’t have bullies; it does, and most of them are legacies.
Just ask Liv. She’s always in their sight.
But I’m not. Not while Cross has marked me as his toy to play with.
This place doesn’t follow the same rules as the rest of the world.
I try to explain it to Claire. “And they respect that. None of the other people in those houses will really fuck with you since Keller registered an interest. It’s, like, common courtesy for them. And trust me, it comes in handy. Come on, let’s walk a little faster.”
As we chatted, we’ve walked most of the length of the legacies’ private drive. I can spot the Shark House, their outdoor pool lit up like a beacon.
I feel my skin prickle and heat as it always does when I think about what I did in this place. The humiliation. The fear that Cross would consider my end of the bargain unfulfilled and retaliate. The regret. I’d been such an idiot that night.
I’m lost in my memories when Claire pulls me out of my own head.
“Hey, Lily? How long can someone hold their breath underwater?”
“What?” Given the fact that I was specifically thinking about blowjob, the question feels a little too insightful.
Claire looks perfectly innocent though. “A few seconds, right? Thirty or so.”
“I mean, that depends on the person. A minute max, for a normal person. But people who train for it can hold it longer.” I shrug. “Why do you ask?”
She points across the road, towards the Shark house. My breath hitches.
“A girl jumped in that pool a while ago. She was all dressed. I didn’t see her come up. Oh my god, what if—”
I’m already crossing drive, alerted by Claire’s tone. She’s a pretty down-to-earth woman from what I’ve seen. If she’s saying something seems wrong, we should check.
I’m not sure the stupid code gate is still the same, but I try it. 6969. The metal lock clicks and I push it.
My heart races as I spot the mass shadowing the bottom of the lit Olympic-size pool.
“Oh my god,” Claire whispers.
Thank fuck she saw her. I was too lost in my own head to pay attention to my surroundings.
I shed my jacket and belongings before jumping into the pool, aiming straight for the body. I’ve always been an okay swimmer.
I remember hearing that drowning people could be dangerous as they strive to breach the surface, but this form inside the pool doesn’t seem to be drowning. It seems dead.
She doesn’t move at all as I wrap my arms around her shoulders, pushing off the bottom of the pool with my feet to gain momentum.
It barely helps.
The body in my arms seems to weigh a million tons; I don’t ever remember carrying anything so heavy, but I don’t let myself stop, fighting to reach the closest side.
Objectively, I realize the whole thing must have lasted minutes, if not seconds, but it feels like it could be hours, hauling the deadweight. I’m exhausted by the time I crawl to the wet pavement.
Claire helps me pull the girl by the arms. Reeling, I nonetheless focus on the body.
Dark hair, braided, terracotta skin, the longest lashes. I recognize her from last year—that party I think about way too often. She’d been there.
“She’s not breathing,” I whisper, shivering all over.
I’m only too glad that Claire takes over, checking the pulse, clearing the woman’s airway before starting CPR. I’ve watched uselessly for several seconds when I jump into motion, rushing to my bag in order to hunt down my phone to dial 911.
“He—hello,” I stutter the moment the phone connects. “I’m at the Shark House. Err—that’s on campus, Rothford Campus.”
“Good evening, miss, what’s your emergency?”
“There was a girl in the pool. She drowned. She’s—”
I’m about to say not breathing, because I refuse to use the word dead. She can’t be dead. Claire saw her jump moments ago. She was alive then, so she must be alive now. She must.
As though I’ve demanded it by sheer force of will, the girl coughs up water. Claire instinctively pushes her to the side so she doesn’t choke on it.
“Oh, thank god. She’s alive!” I scream into the phone, shaking. “She’s alive,” I repeat. “But she wasn’t breathing.”
“Stand by, miss, we will send an ambulance to your location. They should be there within seven minutes.”
“Thank you. Thank you.”
I hang up and join Claire on the ground, bringing my own jacket to the woman’s shoulder. She might have coughed up the water, but she’s not moving now. The steady rise and fall of her chest reassures me nonetheless I watch it in silence.
She could have died. She’s about my age and her life could have been over right now. I know death happens to just about anyone, anything, any time, but I’d never witnessed it. Shaken, I don’t move until the paramedics demand I give them room.
I barely even noticed them.
“That was awful.”
I turn to Claire. Has she spoken until now? I wouldn’t have noticed. “Yeah. That poor chick.”
“Do you know her?” she asks me.
“Not really. I mean, I’ve seen her around.” Only that one time. “So maybe she’s a student? I don’t know. She was fine, right? The medic said so.”
At least I think he said so.
“But she could have died. For a minute there, she was dead,” Claire whispers, just as spooked as me. “She wasn’t breathing when we got her out.”
“Yeah. Good work on the CPR, by the way. You’re definitely a handy roommate to have around.” I manage a little smile as I bring my arm to her shoulders.
She did great. It makes me want to learn CPR, too, just in case.
Now my mind’s more or less functioning, a cold awareness of the situation we find ourselves in makes me realize there’s something I need to do, little as I might like it.
“I think I need to tell Cross. I mean, this is his house. He’ll be a huge dick if he finds out I was here and didn’t tell him.
” I shudder at the thought. “Do you mind if I give him a quick phone call? Won’t be long. ”
Claire looks like a kicked puppy. She doesn’t want to be alone. And I truly get it; I don’t want to either. But I really need to make that phone call, so when she whispers a weak, “Of course,” I pretend to believe it.
I don’t walk too far, keeping my eyes on my friend, before I dial the contact for the very first time.
He answers after three beeps. “What a surprise.”
“Listen, Cross, I’m at your house.”
His voice is as smooth and velvety as caramel. “Oh?”
“I’m at your house,” I repeat, “Because we witnessed someone jumping into your pool, and staying in it. Claire and I—we got her out. She wasn’t breathing. There’s an ambulance and the police,” I rush to say.
There’s silence on the other end of the phone for several seconds. “The police.”
“I didn’t call them,” I assure him. “I—”
But even as I speak, I watch Claire chatting with a man in uniform. She doesn’t look like she’s enjoying the conversation, but she’s answering his questions.
Fuck. The only thing she should have said was I’m not involved. Let him know she’d talk in front of a lawyer if she pushed. This is one of the houses on the legacies’ private drive. Chattering about anything going on here can’t be good.
Why are the police even here? It’s not a criminal investigation, the woman just jumped.
“I didn’t talk to them,” I say on the phone, not adding anything about Claire. “But I don’t think there’s anyone here—I mean anyone who lives here. They might need one of you here.”
“I’m less than one minute away,” Cross informs me.
I hear the sound of a car approaching, doors shutting, and my eyes widen.
Claire’s still talking to that cop.
As Cross strolls through the gate, followed by Nate, his eyes seek mine first, but they do scan the entire area and narrow on Claire.
Fuck, fuck, fuck.