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And when his eyes connect to mine, I know this won’t end well for me.
“Everyone back to their houses. Show’s over,” he announces to the crowd gathered to watch the fire, but his eyes are still locked on me.
“Tilda, I’ll leave this to you,” he says.
Tilda gazes at the firefighters. “Can I borrow this just a second?”
They nod. “One minute.”
She takes the item and walks over to me. “Penelope … I’m sorry, but you can’t stay in our sorority anymore.”
My eyes widen. “What? You’re kicking me out?”
When she nods, Dylan steps in. “Hey, she didn’t do anything.”
Tilda holds up the item. It’s a piece of fireworks, badly burned, but a piece of laminated plastic is stuck to the shell. Beneath it was a piece of paper with my first name written.
This has to be a cruel joke.
It just has to be.
“What?” I mutter.
“Since your name is on this, we have no choice.”
I’m incensed. “You’re accusing me of setting this fire? I wasn’t even here.”
“She was with us,” Felix says from the back, folding his arms.
Tilda briefly acknowledges him with a glance. “We don’t know who did,” Tilda says with a stern voice. “But your name is on this thing, and I cannot take the risk.”
“That isn’t fair to her at all,” Dylan interjects, but I raise my hand to quiet him.
I don’t need them to fight for me. I can do that myself.
“I’m sorry, Penelope. But enough is enough. You’ve already broken the rules, and I warned you there was a limit to my patience,” she says. She turns around and hands the fireworks back to the firefighters before returning to me. “I need you to leave the property. When the house is open again, you may return to get your things. But you won’t be allowed to join us again.”
It hurts so bad that tears sting my eyes, but I refuse to let them fall.
I’m not the culprit of this blazing fire, but I sure as hell will go down from it with honor.
“Fine. If that’s the way you want to deal with this,” I turn away from her, closing my eyes as I walk away.
Kayla and Crystal follow suit. “Wait, Pen, you can’t be serious, right?” Crystal says.
“You’re just gonna let Tilda kick you out?” Kayla adds. “I know you didn’t do it.”
“I didn’t, but that won’t matter to her. She needs someone to blame, so I’ll play the fucking martyr.”
I look at the boys. Those boys whose influence reaches far beyond the walls of this university. Whose deadly encounters leave behind countless enemies, all set on revenge.
It’s because of them, and they know this. I can see it in their eyes.
I take in a deep breath.
“They aimed for my sister’s room,” I say. “So it’s a vendetta against us both. That, or they aimed wrong.”
“Doubt it,” Dylan says from a few feet away.
“Are you telling me they were trying to … kill you?” Crystal asks, her face turning as pale as snow.
“It’s a possibility,” Felix fills in for me, and he steps forward. “Which is why she’s coming with us.” Felix’s fingers slowly dig into my shoulder as he grips me tightly. “She’ll be safe at the Skull & Serpent Society.”
Kayla snorts. “I find that very hard to believe.”
Dylan’s whole body tenses up. “If anyone ever tries to put a finger on Penelope, I will fucking gut them myself.”
Kayla’s pupils dilate, and Crystal holds her gasp.
They’ve never said it out loud before, especially not in front of my friends.
And it’s as if the world has gone completely silent.
Felix squeezes my shoulder again. “C’mon. Let’s go.”
“Wait.” I pull free from his grasp to hug Kayla and Crystal.
“I just want you to be okay.”
“I’ll be fine, don’t worry about me,” I reply as I lean back. “Talk later.”
“Text me every day so I know they haven’t murdered you,” she says.
I chuckle as we stop hugging and I make my way back to the boys. “Will do.”
“Murder … her?” Crystal repeats with a shaky voice.
“I was joking,” Kayla muses, but I can tell from the way she’s looking at me as I walk off she definitely was not. But Crystal doesn’t have to know.
PENELOPE
The boys drive me back to the Skull & Serpent Society and park the car on the property before hopping out. Dylan opens the door for me and holds out his hand. “Milady.”
I snort. “That’s awfully chivalrous, even for you.”
When I take his hand, he says, “I thought it’d be a nice contrast after I just rearranged your guts.” He pulls me close to him, too close, and I can barely breathe when he smirks in my face. “Do you like it?”
I don’t even know how to respond. “Um… Yes?”
His eyes narrow. “Are you getting flustered, Pen?”
Fuck. Now I really can’t stop the heat from flooding my face.
