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“No shit.” I nod, still tapping the pen on the table. “That’s all you’ve got? The Guardians get all the easy shit. Better hope like hell those frat boys fuck up at some point, so The Elders don’t think your ass is slacking.”
“Watch. Protect. All the saintly acts.” He pats his chest, grinning. “You can just call me God.”
“Fuck off.” I tap his shoulder, gently at that, but it’s enough to send him tipping back in his chair. He lands with a thud, and I laugh my ass off.
“What the fuck, you asshole!”
Lev comes through the door, pissed off, as usual. Lev is always in a pissy mood. Our fate for the year is in the hands of The Elders on the other side of that door. Lev doesn’t like direction or being told what to do, not that any of us do.
Without a word, he tosses his notepad on the table. I pick it up and read his inscription out loud. “Your target’s name will be assigned at a later date. Be available at all times.” I flip the notepad closed. “You’re such a lucky son of a bitch.” I knock his notepad away with my pen. “You get to hurt people and shit.”
Lev doesn’t push to know our assignments because he doesn’t care. In fact, Lev doesn’t care about anything at all these days. He just sort of exists in a world that keeps turning while he stands still.
“All right, fuckers,” I grumble as I stand up. “I’ve got shit to do. I’ll see ya at home.”
Maddox, Lev, and I have an apartment in our small town. Same town we grew up in. Same faces every day. It’s home for now, but in a couple of short weeks, we’ll be moving back into our dorm at BCU.
It’s a short walk from our chapter’s meeting center to our apartment. Our Society comprises of thousands of chapters all over the world. We’re everywhere. A neighbor, a colleague, a friend. We’re an untouchable force you don’t wanna fuck with.
The minute I step foot in the door of our apartment, my phone pings with a new email, and it’s a response from the confidant I reached out to. Attached is a file, a lengthy one at that, and I’m certain I’m gonna need to open this shit on a computer.
I go straight to my room and log into my laptop to start the download. Sure as shit, it’s long. But only one thing stands out to me as I begin: the pictures and names of those involved.
One face in particular catches my eye—Riley Cross.
The most beautiful girl I’ve ever laid eyes on.
* * *
Twelve Days Later
“Riley. Riley. Riley.” I whisper her name repeatedly, loving the way it rolls off my tongue.
Perched on the branch of a tree beneath gray clouds, I watch as she focuses intently on whatever she’s writing in her notebook.
Every now and then, her lips twitch, the pen stops moving, and she stares off into space before returning to her task at hand.
She’s perfection personified. An angel sent to me during one of the darkest points in my life. I didn’t want to exist anymore. Was ready to leave this world behind and face the new hell I’d entered in my next life.
Then I saw her.
I was certain they fucked me when I got my assignment—prepared to fail. Now, I can’t lose because it led me to this flawless girl. Even from here, I’m certain I can hear her heart beat and I’m convinced it’s beating just for me.
I know what she did. I know all her secrets, but now, they’re mine to keep. Fuck the oaths and fuck the promises. My only mission from here on out is to protect the girl who will one day be mine.
I shift my leg, trying to snag my pants off a hook on the branch, when a piece of the wood snaps, falling straight to the ground. With one hand holding a branch above me, I brace myself on the one I’m sitting on, keeping myself steady and secure.
Riley’s eyes shoot up from her book, scouring the area, and landing on mine. A smile lifts on my lips, and in that instant, she slams her book shut and snatches it off the picnic table.
Her feet don’t stop moving as she scurries away, every few seconds stealing a glance over her shoulder to see if I’m coming after her.
Not yet. But in time.
You can run, but you can’t hide. One day, Angel, you will be mine.
CHAPTER1
RIDGE
