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“So, what now?”
“John’s going to keep looking for Lucas, and we’ll go from there once we know more. He said he passed everything on to his FBI contact in case my dad is responsible.”
“Basically, we wait. Again.” I grab the tie off my wrist and pull my hair back into a pony. “Do we continue to act normal like John suggested?”
“That’s exactly what we’re going to do. It’s Christmas Eve. We’re not going to let them ruin that, or our trip. I say we go back to your place to get your bag like we planned, then come back here to have our mini celebration.”
“Is Bentley still planning to drop by even though Reed and Ainsley are up in Oregon?”
“He said he’d be here. We’ve been doing this thing since middle school. Ainsley and Carissa started the tradition and made a big deal out of it every year. Dinner, gift exchange, Christmas movies, cookies... the works. The guys and I were just indulging them at first, but we started to enjoy it somewhere along the way. After Rissa died... Ainsley insisted on keeping up with it. She needed that normalcy, and I think Bent did, too.”
“It’s nice you guys have your own special way to celebrate.”
He brackets my hips with his palms and leans down to kiss me. “We have our own special way to celebrate. You’re part of that now.”
I link my fingers behind his neck and pull him into me for another kiss. “You wanna join me in the shower before we head out?”
Kingston flashes a toothy smile. “I definitely want to join you in the shower.”
***
“You’re sure this is everything?” Kingston holds up my overnight bag. “We’re going to be gone for two-and-a-half days.”
“Um... yeah. That’s it. Why?”
He shakes his head with a smile. “I’m just used to women packing a lot more shit. Ainsley always has at least one suitcase for her shoes alone. And she’s the lowest maintenance girl I know, behind you.”
“Yeah, but Ainsley’s really into fashion. Which is good for me, I suppose, since I have no clue what to do when I need to dress up.”
Kingston grabs the back of my head and pulls me into a kiss. “I think you’re selling yourself short. But if you ask me, you don’t need to dress up.”
“Says the boy who’s always ready to attack me seconds after seeing me in a fancy dress.”
“What can I say? I like the easy access.” He shrugs unapologetically.
“I’m so sure.” I laugh. “Well, I guess we should g—”
A blood-curdling scream pierces the air, interrupting my train of thought.
“What the hell?” Kingston rips open my bedroom door and peeks down the hall where the noise came from.
When I look over his shoulder, I see Peyton sitting against the wall across her open bedroom door. She’s crying hysterically with her knees pulled to her chest, rocking back and forth, mumbling to herself. “What happened?”
Kingston takes a few steps in her direction. “Peyton. What’s going on?”
Her watery eyes narrow on him when she snaps out of it. “Did you do this? Is this that payback you were talking about?”
Ms. Williams appears at the top of the stairs, pausing for a moment to catch her breath. “Miss Peyton. Are you okay?”
Peyton throws her hands out. “No, I’m not okay! Why would I be okay? What kind of sick joke is this? Kingston! Are you responsible for this?!”
Ms. Williams steps forward when Peyton gestures to her bedroom and peeks inside. She goes white as a sheet and stumbles backward. “Oh, my. I think... someone call the police. Now.”
Kingston closes the gap between my bedroom and Peyton’s and follows Ms. Williams’ line of sight. Once his eyes latch on to something, he, too, looks like he’s about to be sick. “Oh, fuck. Is that his.... Damn, that had to hurt.” He steps back and turns his head to the side as he cringes.
“What had to hurt? What is that awful smell?”
Kingston tries holding me back when I approach Peyton’s room, but I squirm past him and catch a glimpse. I cover my mouth, choking back bile at the horror show in front of me. In the middle of Peyton’s no-longer-pastel-pink canopy bed is Lucas Gale, naked as the day he was born, arms stretched wide, cuffed to each post. He’s lying in a puddle of blood, eyes frozen open in abject terror. I’m guessing that has something to do with the fact that his genitals are no longer attached to his body.
