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“Stupid. So fucking stupid.” I snap a branch from the tree as I make my way down the trail.Why did I ever think I could reason with any of those idiots?The dry bark digs into the skin of my palm as I smack it against a tree.
Out of nowhere, Riley jumps out from behind a bush, startling me. In a knee-jerk reaction, I swing the stick, missing her face by a centimeter. “Jesus, Riley. Are you trying to get yourself killed?”
“That’s hardly a deadly weapon, but I could ask you the same thing. What were you doing at The Lawless house? Don’t you know you need an invitation to step foot on their property? Unless…” She smirks, her eyes quizzical. “Were you invited? Holy shit, Scarlett. If you’ve got a foot in that door, you have to tell me.”
“What? No,” I stammer, tossing the stick in front of me and continuing down the path. “They didn’t invite me. It was stupid. Should’ve never gone.”
Regret eats at me. If only I were the type to sit back and let things happen, I might actually be able to slide through this year unscathed. Instead, by showing up there, I’m sure I just made everything so much worse for myself. All this time I thought Neo was the worst of them all, but Crew just proved me wrong.
Riley walks in step with me down the trail and I’m still not sure why she’s here. I don’t even look at her as I talk out of fear she’ll see how worked up I am. “Did you follow me?”
She shrugs a shoulder. “I saw you sneaking down the hall and curiosity got the best of me. I had a feeling you were going there, and I wanted to make sure you were okay when you left. I know how cruel those boys are.”
“I appreciate your concern, but I can take care of myself.”
“Can you, though? I mean, it’s obvious you have some sort of history with those guys, and if there’s bad blood, I need to know.”
“Why does it matter?”
Riley goes quiet for a second, and by the time I glance over at her, I’ve already answered the question for myself. “Because you think being my roommate puts a target on your back?”
“Well…yeah. Sort of. You might be new here, but you’re not new to the rules. You know the pull those guys have, and if you know them as well as I think you do, you also know what they’re capable of. No one wants to be on their bad side. Especially someone who’s just trying to blend in and survive another year here.”
The last thing I want is to drag Riley into my mess. I think the best way to avoid doing so is by keeping my relationship with Crew, Jagger, and Neo to myself—much like I’ve done my entire life.
“Don’t worry.We’re all from the same chapter, so I’ve known them for, like, ever. There’s no bad blood.”
Before I know it, we’ve reached The Foxes' Den. The sun is setting and there’s a chill in the air that has me hugging myself.
“About that party tonight,” Riley begins. “I think you should reconsider. It'll be fun.”
“Oh, I’m going.”
Riley's smile is so big her cheekbones practically touch her eyes. “Really?”
“Yeah. I think you’re right. It’s time to embrace everything this Academy offers.”
Will I live to regret another rash decision? Probably. Do I care? Nope. My life is heavy with regret, but it’s some of those regretful decisions that gave me the backbone I have today. I need them to know I’m unaffected by their cruelty. Once they see that tormenting me isn’t as fun as they hoped it would be, they’ll stop.
If I can stay two steps ahead of The Lawless, I’ll be just fine. After all, in order for them to beat me, they have to catch me.
Riley’s excitement is uncanny. “Then I guess we better go find you something cute to wear.”
“I don’t know about cute, but I think I have just the right outfit for tonight’s festivities.”
When we get back to the room, Riley and I both stop, sharing a look as we approach the door. “Did you leave the door open when you left?”
Riley shakes her head in a subtle no. “I didn’t lock it because I wasn’t sure if you had your key, but I most definitely closed it.”
“Hmm. Weird.” I push the door open, and we both look around before entering. I shrug my shoulders and push down the strange feeling inside me. “No one’s here.”
“It was probably Melody. She’s the den leader and nosey as hell. I have no doubt she’d enter an unlocked door just to snoop.”
“I can’t believe there are no cameras here,” I say to her as I walk briskly to the one bag I have yet to unpack. I flip it onto my bed and pull the zipper. Once opened, I analyze my belongings and make sure my phone is still hidden. Everything is in place as it should be.
“Trust me, students and some parents have tried, but The Elders believe cameras ruin alibis, should we ever need one.”
“That’s the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard.” I toss my bag down on the floor and as I do, something catches my eye. Dropping to my knees, I get a better look. When I see the resort tag peeking out from under my bed, my heart splinters. My fingers caress the paper that was put on my bag the last time I went boarding. Remorse consumes me. But more than that, anger rattles my bones. How dare my dad have this bag put in my room when he knew how badly I didn’t want it.
