Chapter 33
SUMMER
I haven’t seen Luca to speak to for several days since the cafeteria incident. I’m not certain how I feel about that. On the one hand, I’m glad. It was one of those experiences I have dreamed of and yet sparked terror inside my soul.
He is trouble.
Why do I crave trouble like some crave candy? I’m a lost cause and I still haven’t got the courage to enter my name to The Claiming challenge. I’m aware that spots are like gold. You add your name to the list and it’s a lottery who receives the message to show up in the dungeon on Friday night.
I’m brooding over my predicament at breakfast and find myself unusually alone. Willow Tree House is usually heaving with chatter, but for some reason they are still sleeping.
I’m guessing because it’s five am.
However, I’m not the only person up this morning and I jump when Imogen joins me, the door opening, distracting me from my problem.
“Hey.” I note the dark shadows under her eyes and smile sympathetically. “Can’t you sleep either?”
“What’s sleep?” She groans as she reaches for the coffee jug.
“Thank God for coffee. That’s all I can say.”
“Do you want to talk about it?”
She nods. “It may help.”
She refills my mug and joins me at the counter, and lowers her voice.
“The Claiming challenge.”
“What about it?”
“Jesse told me to put my name down.”
“Because?”
She blushes. “Because he wants to claim me.”
“And you don’t like that idea.”
“No–” She sighs. “I hardly know him, Summer. Aside from a few conversations, we haven’t spoken much and yes, I’m attracted to him, but signing up to be his girl for the entire semester is a lot.”
“So, don’t do it.”
“Then I would be a bitch.”
I laugh out loud. “You, a bitch? I wonder what that makes me?”
She laughs softly. “You’re not a bitch, Summer. Far from it.”
“Then ask him for more time. The Claiming lasts half the semester—he should be around more if he expects you to commit.”
“But I don’t want to. Not really.”
“Then what’s the issue? Just let him down gently.”
“It’s complicated.”
She’s holding something back. I weigh my words carefully before speaking.
“Is it something else, another reason perhaps that you want to help him?”
She glances around and whispers, “He told me something in confidence, and it’s a lot.”
“But how can claiming you in the challenge help with his problem?”
“It removes him from the game.”
“By entering another one?”
I huff with frustration. “Listen, Imogen, you are talking in riddles and I can reassure you that you can trust me with the secret. I’m not one of those girls who goes and tells everyone with the prefix, ‘don’t tell anyone I said this but–’ and before you know it, it’s a secret that everybody knows about. ”
Imogen laughs and I detect a little relief in her voice as she whispers, “Okay, but if it gets out, I’m holding you responsible.”
“It won’t.”
I smile my reassurance because I can be trusted to hold secrets to the grave if I must, and Imogen obviously needs someone to confide in.
“Jesse comes from a town that isn’t like any other.“ She wraps her hand around the coffee mug and appears deep in thought.
“He told me that he is expected to graduate and marry a local girl and live on a farm for the good of the community.”
“What century do they live in?” I shake my head. “That sucks.”
“It does. So, he told me he went a little wild when he came to Rockwell and kind of overindulge with the girls.”
“Disgusting. That’s no excuse.”
I roll my eyes and she nods. “I agree, but then he got involved with somebody he shouldn’t.”
I say nothing and she whispers, “A teacher.”
“Fuck.”
“I know. It’s bad. Apparently, Jesse says it’s a lot. She’s a little unhinged, and he wants out.”
“Then get out. I don’t see the problem.”
Imogen sighs. “It’s not that straightforward. She’s blackmailing him. She told him she would call his folks and tell them he is out of control. That he is drinking, taking drugs and promiscuous.”
“So what? He can counteract that by telling the bitch he’ll report her to the principal. She has more to lose than he does.”
“It’s not his word against hers, Summer. She’s got video evidence of him off his face on drugs and alcohol and naked with a–” Disgust flares on Imogen’s face.
“A what?”
“A guy.”
“No way.” I stare at her in shock. “Jesse is gay.”
“No.” She shakes her head. “He says she’s made it look that way, but if you look closely, you’ll see he’s out cold.
She set the whole thing up to control him and he has no recollection of the event.
He told me she is wild and when they meet up, she offers him alcohol and drugs along with depraved sex. ”
Imogen’s lips twist in derision. “He wants out, Summer. He told me it’s gone too far, and he hates the woman, but she won’t let him go.”
“But how will The Claiming save him? I still don’t understand.”
“To give him a reason to break ties with her. He will tell her he has a steady girl and she will realize he’s telling the truth. Word spreads fast around campus and if she sees him with me, she’ll back off.”
“Have those drugs messed with his mind? That won’t stop her from carrying out her threats. It will only antagonize her more.”
“He assures me it won’t. She targets guys with no ties. Difficult home lives and guys with no morals. If she believes he’s happy and settled, he will be of no further use to her.”
“So, who is this psychotic teacher, then?”
“He won’t say, but he needs my help because he told me I’m the only girl he’s met who he wants to do this with. That he likes me and although a little unconventional, he is doing this for the right reasons. To get to know me better.”
“And you believe him—that he’s not merely using you?”
“I do.” Imogen’s pretty face is etched with worry and I hate how she has already gone from the sweet girl with no cares or concerns to somebody who appears to be carrying the world’s problems on her shoulders.
Fuck, Jesse, what’s he playing at because he is obviously using her for his own agenda?
She is such a kind girl she will want to help him and I’m not happy about this at all.
“What about you, Summer?” Imogen changes the subject. “Why can’t you sleep?”
It reminds me I have my own decision to make regarding that challenge, and I shrug. “Same as you. Somebody has asked me to sign up to The Claiming and I have a feeling it won’t end well.”
“Then don’t sign up.”
“But I want to.” I roll my eyes. “You see, I want to explore things with this guy, but my brother may not be happy about it.”
“Who is it?”
“Luca Romano.”
“Fuck, Summer.” Imogen stares at me in horror. “And I thought I had problems.”
We share a smile and I reach for her hand. “Then fuck it. Let’s sign up and see where it takes us. If we like the guys and want to experience what it’s like to be part of something that could be good, we owe it to ourselves to give it a try.”
“You’re right.”
Imogen appears more relaxed now.
“I do like Jesse and I want to help him, but more than that, I want to experience what it would be like to be someone’s girl.”
“Me too.”
I reach for my phone.
“It’s time to set the cat among the birds.”
As I send the message to The Claiming WhatsApp group, Imogen does the same and I sigh. “I doubt my name will ever make it on that list because it’s Frankie’s show and yet you can’t blame a girl for trying.”
“Good luck, Summer.” Imogen smiles. “I have a feeling we are both gonna need a lot of it to survive what happens next.”