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Chapter1
Kiara
START BEFORE YOU’RE READY, DON’T PREPARE, JUST BEGIN.
That is the motto I have been living my life by since I was eight years old. A shudder rolls through me at the thought of having to share a dorm with Carlina Murdoch. I’m going to have the hardest fucking time of my life being her roommate. I don’t know how the administration staff could have fucked up so bad as to room me, a scholarship kid, with the princess of the biggest mafia family in the country.
I stare at the dark wood door, reach out and grip the handle ready to push it open, then stop. What if she’s in there? What do I even say to her? This whole school is crawling with rich entitled fuckers, each and every one of them looks like their mommy and daddy still wipe their asses with gold paper. I should be happy that the school let trash like me in. I busted my ass for this full ride and I will not let any of these fuckers take it away from me. I’ll die before I ever go back to that hell hole I crawled out of!
I take a deep breath and turn the handle, shove the door open and walk in. My eyes widen and my brows jump up to my hairline when I see…pink. The whole fucking room is decked out in pink everything! The fucking walls are pink, the curtains are even pink and, fuck me sideways, both beds are decked out with pink bedding and fluffy pillows to match. This is my worst fucking nightmare!
I may be a girl but I’m not a fucking girly girl. I’m from the Bronx and the closest thing I had to something pink in my room was getting my period once a month. I trudge further into the room and claim the bed that is closest to the window. Each of us has our own desk and closet but there is only one bathroom. I drop my tiny-ass suitcase and duffle on the bed, then open the window. The room reeks of her perfume and it’s making me nauseous.
I close my eyes and inhale a breath of fresh air. I can do this, I have to do this. I won’t let the fact I am rooming with Carlina deter me and my goal. Having a school like Beckett Heights Academy on your college applications goes a long fucking way in getting you into the college you want. The sound of the door opening has me stepping back from the window and turning to face my roommate. We stand here sizing the other up. She’s changed. Her hair isn’t short, it cascades down to her waist in luscious waves. Her brown eyes still hold the innocence of a child. She has a diamond stud in her nose that I’m sure costs more than my dump of a house. The heels she wears don’t do shit for her height, she’s still short as fuck, but they suit her. Her pencil skirt and blush-colored blouse blend perfectly with her tanned skin. Carlina is the epitome of a mafia princess, even if she doesn’t know it.
“Kiara?” she whispers my name like she’s seeing a ghost. I guess for her it would seem that way. Her shock bleeds way to hurt and I start to feel like a bitch for ghosting her all these years. But, if she knew the truth, her eyes would no longer hold that innocent look.
“Hey, Car, it’s been a minute.” She places her hands on her narrow waist and cocks her hip to the side. A mask falls over her face and I know she is about to start ragging.
“It’s been a minute?” Her imitation of my voice pisses me off. “That’s what you have to fucking say to me after ghosting me for fucking years?” I fight the cringe that wants to roll through me. I can’t tell her the truth. If I do, it will be my head on a spike.
“Look––” She holds her hand up silencing me and that shit grates on my fucking nerves.
“No, I don’t want to hear your excuses, K. You fucking just up and left after everything!” Shame washes over me. Out of everyone in this world, I wish I could have turned to her but who the fuck would believe trailer trash like me?
* * *
Ileft Carlina to unpack or whatever the hell she was doing. I couldn’t stand to look at her and for her to see the betrayal in my eyes. She was my best friend. She didn’t care that I was poor or that I didn’t wear designer clothes or that I was the maid’s daughter. She just saw me. I walk around the campus aimlessly, not really seeing anything or taking in my surroundings. I know I need to pick up my lady balls and face Car if we are to spend the semester together or however long as roommates. We need to find a way to get along and put the past behind us. That is easier said than fucking done, though. What her father did shaped me into the person I am today. Tony Murdoch is the lowest piece of shit I have known in my life. He is a con artist and a snake!
Get your shit together, Kiara!
I berate myself as I make my way back to the dorm ready to try to resolve this conflict between C and I, but as soon as I enter the room I am greeted by girlish giggles and squeals of laughter. I pause in the entryway and balk at the sight. Carlina and six other girls are sprawled out over both our beds and one sits in my desk chair. At the sound of the door closing they all turn to face me. I glare at Carlina who just rolls her eyes.
“Ladies, meet my bore of a roommate, Kiara.” One of the bitches with shit-colored hair laughs.
“She’s named afterThe Lion King?” The others laugh along with her. I clench my hands into fists at my side and take a deep breath.
“Considering her brothers are all named after chess pieces, I wouldn’t be mocking my name!” I snap at the snotty bitch. I’m used to people looking down their noses at me and my threadbare clothes but that doesn’t mean I have to stand here and take it on the chin.
“Oh, please. Youthinkbecause you read news on the internet that you actually know the Murdoch brothers?” One of the other girls snickers, the sound of her nasally voice grates on my nerves. To my surprise, Carlina actually speaks up instead of letting her posse continue to make assumptions.
“She actually doesknowmy brothers.” Their mouths drop open like those turning clown heads from the circus. Their gazes swing to me in shock.
“I know, right? How could someone like me know Bishop, King, Knight and Rook? The travesty of this situation, am I right?” Their shock bleeds way to outrage and I smirk at each of them. One of the girls hops offmybed, places her hands on her hips, flicks her red hair over her shoulder and runs her gaze over me.
“Is she the charity case your dad took in, Lina?” I scrunch my face up at the nickname. Car hated people calling her that when we were kids. I choose not to dwell on the fact she called me Tony’s charity case, that man does nothing for anyone except himself. “Look at her, there is no way your brothers would even take a second look at someone as pathetic as her.” I roll my eyes.
“Well, just for your FYI, darling,theyknow me very,verywell. Just ask about me, boo boo.” I don’t stick around. I grab my towel and head into the bathroom, locking the door behind me and resting my head against it. I had planned to keep my nose clean and stay out of trouble whilst I finish out my last year of high school. Being able to board here was the best perk. It meant I got to get away from my mother and the city she used as her playground… the corners she would stand on forwork. I may have fabricated the truth a wee bit. I know the twins Rook and Knight, they are younger so they were around Car and I more than the other two. King was around but he’s older than us so he wasn’t around as often as the twins. Bishop, well he is an enigma. A ghost in the shadows. You may not have seen him but you could feel his presence all around you. He’s the oldest of the five of them and by far the most dangerous as he is next in line to take over his father’s empire. Bishop was the star of many of my dreams. I’ve had a crush on him since the first moment I met him all those years ago.
I remember trying to catch his eye when I was younger, something about him called to the darkness inside me. On the rare occasion he was around, a sense of safety would wash over me. Bishop makes you feel safe and cared for just by him being in the same room. I’ve read the tabloids, heard the stories and rumors that people make up about him. Gone is the boy who could make you feel like he would protect you from the monsters. He’s been replaced and remodeled into the person his father wants him to be––a cold-blooded killer. I just need to survive this year and then I’m done. I can get as far away from my past as I can, where no one knows me or my mother. I just need to get the fuck away from New York and never look back. The farther I get from the Murdoch’s, the better off I’ll be.
Chapter2
Kiara
Iwake the next morning and smile to myself. This mattress felt like I was sleeping on a cloud. I turn onto my side and glower. My roommate may be a princess to the mafia but she sleeps like a fucking farmer. Her hair is wild and untamed, her mouth hangs open as small snores tumble out. I can see a small trail of dribble coming from the corner of her mouth and cringe. She may look like a man’s wet dream during the day but first up in the morning, she looks like a dogs ass. I decide not to disturb her and steal the first shower, I refuse to be late to my first class. I may come from nothing but I’mnotnothing. I’ve kept good grades my whole way through school and that won’t change now just because I go to some swanky-ass private school on the other side of town. I shower and change whilst Carlina still sleeps. I shake my head and go about making my bed.
“How did it feel sleeping on 500 thread count sheets?” I finish setting up on the cushions on the bed before turning to face Car. She’s sitting up stretching, taking her time. I check the clock on the wall and furrow my brow.
