Chapter 37
CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN
Eve
I’m still reeling from my conversation with Christian as I trudge across campus toward Rush House. It’s dark, and cold, and I suddenly wish I hadn’t left my cloak back at the office. Thankfully, I have my searing anger at Christian to keep me warm.
The literal audacity of him. I’m so fucking infuriated, I can hardly think straight. I should stab him again. And this time, I won’t miss.
The worst part, though, is that I allowed myself to fall for him, even knowing what he is.
The Sacred Sons are brutal, cold-blooded monsters.
My aunt is a bitch, but she was right about that.
Halfway back to Rush House, I’m deep in thought, when a tingle skips up my spine. I pause and turn to glance over my shoulder. Is someone following me? I peer into the shadows, watching for movement, but there’s nothing. Only stillness and the sound of crickets and waves crashing in the distance.
You’re being paranoid.
But, just in case, I pick up my pace, my bare feet slapping against the pavement as I hurry toward the Rush House spire that’s peeking up over the trees like a dark shadow against the night sky.
Still, every muscle in my body is tight, and I’m scanning the buildings around me, plotting out an escape route if someone were to lunge at me.
Then I hear it. The faint sound of footsteps behind me.
I slow to a stop, my breathing shallow, heart hammering as I turn around. This time, I can see the silhouette of someone—a man—just a short distance away on the same path I’m walking.
“I know you’re following me,” I call out.
Silence. Waves crashing. My own heartbeat in my ears.
He keeps walking toward me, slow, steady, until he reaches a pool of light from an overhead lamp. My breath catches for a split second before I see who it is.
I push out a heavy breath. “Lowe,” I say, hand to my chest. My heart is still pounding like a jackhammer. “My God. You scared me.”
“Sorry,” he says, walking up. “I was told to make sure you get back to Rush House safely.”
By Christian, no doubt.
I don’t even try to mask my annoyance. “I don’t need a babysitter.”
Lowe glances around the deserted area. “The cops were crawling around campus not too long ago. A couple of them could still be patrolling.”
“Did they arrest anyone?” I ask.
Christian said Sin wasn’t shot, but that’s all I know.
Lowe shakes his head, his eyes still scanning the shadows surrounding us. “Nah. The Shadow and Ash guys were long gone by the time the cops got down to the beach.”
Small miracles.
“Well, as you can see, there’s no one around. I’m fine,” I turn around and continue walking. Lowe is still following me, but he has the decency to do it at a distance, at least.
As Rush House comes into view, I see a bunch of people gathered out on the lawn. As I approach, a figure breaks from the crowd and rushes toward me. It’s so dark, I can’t see who it is until she gets closer. Skye. Before I can prevent it, she pulls me into a tight hug.
“Oh, my God, Eve. You’re okay.” When I don’t return her hug, she pulls back and searches my face, brows pinched in concern. “ Are you okay? Did you get the book?”
“Are you asking so you can report it back to Christian?” I ask, my tone accusatory.
I witness, in real time, as all the blood drains from Skye’s face. She swallows and glances away, then quickly pulls it together. “Report it back? What are you talking about?”
I roll my eyes. “Save the performance for someone who actually gives a fuck,” I snap. “I was hiding under the desk when you came to the office with Christian.”
“We were looking for you,” she says defensively. “After the attack, I wanted to make sure you were okay—so, yeah, I told Christian where you were. I’m sorry.”
I shake my head and press my lips together. “Anything else you want to mention? Anyyything at all?”
She laughs and glances around, like she’s expecting someone to jump out of the bushes and yell psych any second. “Are you okay, Eve? Seriously. This isn’t like you.”
Wow, that gets me. That statement right there. “What’s not like me, Skye? The fact that I’m angry? The fact that I’m confronting you about lying to my face?”
She shakes her head. “I don–”
“I saw the emails, Skye,” I say, cutting her off. “I know you were reporting everything back to Christian. I know me coming to Rush House was all his idea, but it was you who manipulated me into doing it...”
Her face falls, like someone who knows they’ve been caught and has no defense. “I’m sorry, Eve?—”
“Why?” I ask sharply, cutting her off again. Because the truth is, I don’t give a fuck about her apologies. “That’s all I want to know.”
Tears gather in her eyes, and she glances down at her feet. “I’ve wanted to join the Burning Crown for a really long time, and…Christian allowed me to initiate under the condition that I help him,” she says quietly, tripping over the words like she’s ashamed of them. “I thought it would be easy. Harmless. But as time went on, I don’t know…” She shrugs, her eyes darting away. “I started to think you and I could really be friends.”
I blink back my own tears—no tears of sadness, but of fury. Rage. “Even if it started out that way,” I say slowly to keep my anger in check. “A real friend wouldn’t have let me walk into a trap.”
Her eyes meet mine, pleading. “I’m so sorry, Eve. I really am. It was shitty, I know that. But I really did try to help you along the way. There were certain things I never told Christian…”
“Do you remember what you told me when I first arrived at Rush House?” I ask with a level of calm that I absolutely do not feel.
Tears stream down her face, but she doesn’t say anything.
“You said, ‘We look out for each other,’ and…” I shake my head, remembering that moment. “...I was comforted by that, because as scary as the situation was, I knew I wasn’t alone. I had someone in my corner.” I narrow my eyes at her. “But it was all a lie, an illusion. None of it was real—not my friendship with you, or my connection with Christian. You both were just using me.”
Rivulets of tears stream down Skye’s face. “I never told him anything important, I swear.”
I push out a sigh. I could yell at her, lash out, call her a cunt, but….honestly, I don’t need to do any of that. Her selfishness will reap its own karma.
“I trusted you, Skye. With everything. And you chose this ,” I motion to the house, the people on the lawn. “Enjoy it while you can, because they’re going to fuck you over eventually. That’s what The Burning Crown does. They use people up, then throw them away.”
Without waiting for a response, I turn and walk to the house. I keep my head down as I weave through the kitchen and mount the back staircase. When I reach Christian’s bedroom, I step inside and lock the door.
Only when I’m completely alone—surrounded by Christian’s things, his scent—do I finally let go. With my back against the door, I drop the envelope and slide down to the floor. Sobs bubble up in my throat as everything catches up with me—all the lies and manipulation. This whole toxic mess my heart’s gotten tangled up in.
And, honestly, the worst part of betrayal isn’t the lying. It’s not even the sting that chases it. It’s that hollow feeling that settles in your chest when you realize there’s no one you can trust. You’re completely and utterly alone…