Page 99 of Callous Shot

My chest heaved as I struggled for breath, completely unprepared for this confrontation, but all he did was lift my headphones from my ears, throwing them to the ice. Music came faintly from where they’d been thrown, but it was overridden by my fast, shallow breaths as the masked figure drew his arm back.

“Dan.”

“No,” he snarled, slamming his fist into my stomach. Pain exploded in my body as I flew backwards across the ice, Daniel following me, sending us both tumbling down to the frozen surface. We grappled, and this time, I was fighting for my life, already exhausted, already at my limits, and Daniel was out for blood.

“Let me talk,” I gasped out between punches, rolling away from his fist as it came at me again. “Please.”

“There’s nothing to talk about. You fucking betrayed me!”

“I— It wasn’t like that! Let me explain!”

“No! You absolute callous fucking bastard! You’re going to pay for what you did to me!” His voice cracked, and my heart stuttered, fresh misery radiating through my body at the utter agony in his voice.

Fuck. He wouldn’t listen to reason, and that only left me with one course of action. Gathering up all my remaining strength, I rolled, throwing myself onto his body and getting his arms pinned above his head. We were both breathing hard, our chests pressed together, and I suddenly felt like crying. This was so fucking miserable, and I hated that he hated me again.

Swallowing back my tears, I lowered my head to his ear. There was only one thing I could try, and I put everything I had into it, willing my voice to come out commanding, instead of a shaky mess. “Shut your fucking mouth and stay still.”

He immediately stilled, and I flexed my gloved hands, removing one from his wrist. “Stay. Still. I mean it. Don’t even think about moving.”

A sharp inhale came from beneath the mask, but he remained in place, and I removed one glove, then another, before carefully easing the mask from his face.

It clattered onto the ice next to us, but neither of us paid it any attention, our eyes connecting for the first time.

Fucking. Hell. Daniel was even paler than usual, his lips bitten and chapped, and his eyes swollen and sore. It was his empty expression that did me in, though. His normally bright blue eyes were dull and lifeless as he stared up at me.

“What have I done?” I whispered.

“You made me hate you,” he said tonelessly. “Just like you wanted.” All the fire from a moment ago was gone, completely extinguished, and my lip trembled.

“I didn’t want that. I don’t want that.”

“I can’t believe I was so fucking stupid. I bet you were having so much fun laughing at me behind my back. What was your goal? Your family finally getting the Hoytons locked up where we belong? You got something out of it too, I bet. A nice monetary bonus from Daddy? A cushy house when you graduate? A⁠—”

“Shut the fuck up,” I rasped, getting my hand around his throat and squeezing. “Don’t you fucking dare.”

He swallowed around my tight grip, staring up at me defiantly. “What’s the matter, Bellingham? Can’t handle me speaking the truth? Or is it the knowledge that deep down, you’re no better than me? No…that’s a lie. I would never sell out anyone I cared about. Never.”

Abandoning all caution, I dived down and slammed my mouth over his.

For a second, everything was okay again.

For a second, he kissed me back.

For a second, I was home.

Then he bit down, hard, and pain bloomed across my lip, the metallic tang of blood filling my mouth. He scrambled away from me, getting up onto his knees and then skating away as fast as he could.

“No!” I scrambled to follow him, skating faster than I’d ever skated in my life, but I still wasn’t quick enough to catch up with him. Until the man who was always surefooted on the ice, always graceful…stumbled.

My momentum carried us both into the boards, slamming our bodies up against the tempered glass, the breath punched from our lungs. I didn’t even pause, getting my arm around Daniel and wrenching him around to face me, his skates scraping over the ice as his body twisted.

He bared his teeth. “Let me go, or I will fucking stab you.”

I licked across my lips, swiping away the blood, and his eyes darkened. Something inside me eased a little. If I could still get a reaction from him, then maybe I could get him to listen to me.

“Let’s make a deal. You hear me out, and if you still want to stab me afterwards, I’ll let you try.”

“Try.” He laughed humourlessly. “I will fuck you up so badly, even your own parents won’t recognise you.”