AllFreeNovel
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I shake my head. “I don’t either, but we barely made a dent in what’s over there. That asylum… I know it’s the key on how to fix all of this.”
“Or maybe it’s the coffin that you keep walking straight into,” Piper snaps, her wide eyes watching the forest outside the car.
I turn on my blinker as Felix pulls into his driveway in front of me. We turn, heading down the long path that leads to his house. A place I’ve never been but have heard enough stories about. Felix’s father, all of their fathers, actually, are wealthier than my family will ever be. Though we live in a modest enough home, I know the guys live in mansions tucked gently against the cliffs of Castle Pointe. I’ve only ever been to Vera’s house, and that place is a castle. And I haven’t even been in the entire house. I don’t know if I ever will. The number of rooms and quarters make it nearly impossible to not get lost.
And driving up to Felix’s house, my jaw drops, because it’s exactly the same. If anything, maybe a little more of a monstrosity.
A large, black iron gate lifts as Felix drives through, the circular driveway in front of us leading to a four-car garage. The house is black brick, three stories tall. Dark green vines grow up the sides of it, and I have a mixture of feelings, between thinking it’s beautiful, and being scared of what could be lurking inside.
The windows are wide and tall, expanding all across the front of the home. A large balcony wraps around the second level, and as I pull to a stop, I have to wonder what it could possibly look like on the inside.
I know he’s thrown some parties here back when he was in school. He apparently has a pool in his backyard, and he’d throw nighttime pool parties. People would love it, halfway into the forest, talking about how they slept with Felix in the hot tub as rain fell on top of them. How wild the boys used to get.
They aren’t like that anymore. They’re businessmen now, quiet and reserved to outsiders, and darker and more dangerous than they used to be.
Fingers go beneath my chin as Piper closes my mouth. “Why do you look so shocked? You’ve heard the stories.”
“It doesn’t matter. Seeing their houses in person is always a bit of a slap in the face. They aren’t even nice rich people. They’re assholes,” Blaire grunts from the back seat.
I nod, not sure what to even say.
I’m speechless, and yes, maybe a little envious. Because Felix is an asshole, and though I’d never want to be wealthy like this, living in a castle that feels probably not at all like a home, it still feels like he doesn’t deserve the luxury. Memories of how cruel he’s always been come back to me, and it just causes me to grow angry at him all over again.
I watch as Felix and Malik park under the arched overhang, and I stop and park where I am, turning off my car. I reach back, gesturing to Blaire. “Hand me my stuff, will you?”
She grabs the folder and my backpack with a frown on her face, shoving them toward me. “You better find something good in that crusty folder, because if you’re dragging me back there, you’re going to have to give me a few days to recuperate.”
I nod. “Now that, I can agree with.”
I open my door, slipping outside just as a drizzle begins. Mixed with the mist, it should feel like the typical Castle Pointe evening.
But it’s not, because the air is heavy, and though I don’t hear the screams anymore, I can feel them cloaking me like coarse wool that I want to rip off my skin.
Felix and Malik help Atticus out of the back seat, who looks both pale and clammy. Vera grabs the keys from Felix, then walking up to the arched front door, she unlocks it and shoves it open. They head inside, and Levi slaps the wall, turning on the lights.
My eyes widen as I walk up the steps, making my way through the door. The entire house is decked out in black and white. Black floors, white walls, black-and-white artwork, black tables, black chandeliers. Everything crisp, clean, manly.
“Is your dad home?” Blaire asks, her voice echoing through the hallway.
“No,” Felix clips, a warning in his tone not to question it further.
My eyes glance around the foyer. The ceiling has to be around twenty feet tall. This house is beautiful. Hauntingly beautiful.
We head down the hall, and I watch as Malik and Levi plop Atticus onto the black leather couch.
“Let me see it,” Felix leans forward, tearing Atticus’s hand away from his elbow, not too gently.
Atticus lets out a growl, and I cringe when I see the bone in his elbow slightly sticking out from his skin.
Levi hisses.
“Fuck,” Felix snaps. “You need a hospital, bro. That shit is fucked.”
“Yeah, fucking obviously!” Atticus growls, slouching over on the couch, his head going to the seat. He squeezes his eyes closed, sweat dripping down his temples. “Let me just sit for a minute. I’m fucking beat.”
“I’ll take him,” Malik says, glancing at Vera. “Shouldn’t take us too long.”
Vera nods. “Where is the hospital? There isn’t one in Castle Pointe, right?”
