Chapter 38
“What the hell is wrong with you?” Colt bellowed. “Leighton gets doused by Chloe, and you think it’s the perfect time to take advantage of her and get her clothes off?”
I squirmed, quickly righting my dress as my cheeks flamed. I could feel the gazes of the three guys behind Colt, and I wanted the earth to swallow me whole.
Declan’s eyes swirled to that beautiful silver, but fury blazed within them. “That wasn’t what happened. Just because you’re jealous doesn’t mean that you get to bulldoze in here and throw your judgment around.”
Colt’s nostrils flared. “I’m looking out for Leighton. She’s everything to me. She has been since we first met when we were five years old. Something you could never understand.”
“And whose fault is that?” Declan snapped. “You’re the one who kept us from her. You’re the one who—”
Colt’s fist snaked out so fast Declan didn’t have a prayer of blocking it. Colt connected with Declan’s jaw in a sickening crunch. And then mayhem erupted.
Ronan grabbed for Colt while Dash and Trace went for Declan. It was a flying tangle of limbs as Colt and Declan cursed each other and the guys held them back.
I skirted around them all and slipped out of the bathroom and then out of the bedroom altogether. Hurrying down the hall, I found a back staircase. I didn’t care where it led as long as it was away from them.
My heel caught the lip of a step, and I almost tripped. I cursed and quickly slipped off the stupid shoes. What had I been thinking wearing them? This dress? What had I been thinking coming to this party at all? This wasn’t who I was. Normal wasn’t ever a part of my vocabulary.
Sounds of the party pulsed in my ears, but I eyed a back door and made a beeline for it. The back porch was full of couples making out, but I successfully dodged them all. Hurrying down the back steps, I breathed a sigh of relief as my feet sank into the dewy grass.
Picking up to a run, I headed for the trees.
The moment I reached their cover, I slowed, breathing deeper.
Tears stung my eyes as I wound my way toward the water.
The moon was almost full, and it illuminated the inky black of the lake.
The scene was beautiful. But that beauty did nothing to soothe the ache in my chest.
Every time I felt like I was making progress with the guys, something would blow up. Maybe you truly couldn’t be friends with people of the opposite sex. My stomach flipped because I knew friendship wasn’t the only thing I wanted from the five of them.
But it wasn’t like there were a lot of options for friendship right now. That Sam girl had seemed nice. Maybe she was an option for a friend. Connor, too. Or I could go back to what I’d done before, disappearing into the crowd.
A twig snapped, and I whirled around.
My heart picked up speed as a figure stepped into the moonlight.
A sickly smile spread across Damien’s face. He made a tsking sound. “Those idiots left a lost little lamb wandering the woods alone.”
I swallowed hard as my pulse thrummed in my neck, but I refused to cower. “What do you want?”
His nostrils flared. “That god-awful stench off you for one.”
My brows furrowed. “Sorry that you think I stink, but you can fix that by staying the hell away from me.”
Damien laughed, but the sound was cold and ugly. “I don’t think so. They think they control everything, that they get to have everything. But they don’t.”
My breaths came faster in short, little pants. I was going to have to run. Along the shoreline was my best bet. I could scream the moment the house was in sight. If worse came to worse, I could dive into the water.
“What are you thinking about, Little Lamb?”
My gaze jerked back to him. “How this whole evil of the night thing you’ve got going on is a little much.”
Damien cackled as if that were the funniest thing he’d ever heard. “Leighton…you have no idea…”
He moved so fast he was nothing but a blur of motion. His fingers closed around my necklace chain, and he cursed as he yanked hard, breaking it from my neck.
“What the hell—?”
But it was too late. Damien grabbed me by the throat, squeezing hard. “You are going to learn your place, Little Lamb, and it’s on your knees.”
I clawed and scratched, kicking out and trying to free myself.
Damien squeezed my throat harder, cutting off my air.
Panic gripped me. This wasn’t happening. I couldn’t stop fighting.
A burst of energy surged somewhere deep, and my knee came up, landing right between Damien’s legs. He let out a yowl of pain and released me.
The moment I was free, I started running. My lungs burned as I pushed my muscles harder. I could just make out the lights from the massive lodge. Just a little further.
I opened my mouth to scream, and a hand latched onto my hair, yanking me back.
I cried out in pain, trying to escape.
“Hasn’t anyone told you?” Damien growled. “Never run from a predator.”
His mouth opened, and his canines lengthened, gleaming in the moonlight. Everything in me froze as terror coursed through me. This wasn’t happening. It had to be a nightmare, some sort of hallucination. Maybe I’d fallen and had some crazy concussion.
But then those teeth sank into my neck. Agony ripped through every nerve ending in my body. And all I could do was scream.