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The real me could never be hurt, broken...destroyed.
Especially not when I was with my daddy, and my daddy was the devil himself. I smiled up at him, and a slow smile spread across his face, as if he understood what I was thinking. He looked so handsome and strong when he smiled. He pressed a kiss to my forehead.
"My darling, precious, blade of a daughter," he murmured. "The only way anyone will ever see you as a victim again is if you want them to. And at any time, you can pull the blindfold from their eyes and show them you're always the one with the knife."
Chapter 1
Aurora
Irehearsed my cover story as I drove to college.
I’d had a cover story all my life, ever since The Demon rescued me. But this time was different. My heart sped as I turned the corner and the stone buildings and green hills of Darkwood College rose in front of me.
I had to come to a stop as I joined a long line of cars waiting to turn into the campus circle in front of the dorms. As I waited, I pulled my sunglasses off and checked my face in the rearview mirror.
I’d been getting worried the swelling and bruising from surgery wouldn’t go down in time. But it finally had; there was just the faintest puffiness that I couldn’t quite cover with makeup. I mentally amended my cover story: I’d been partying hard the night before, enjoying one last night with my dear friends.
I’d spun my cover story out of a fantasy I’d had when I was a kid, imagining I had half-a-dozen close-as-hell girlfriends who were my absolute ride-or-die besties. Now I was bringing my imaginary friends back, pretending that I’d left them in my hometown, where we’d played lacrosse together. I even had photos starring me and a couple of deep fakes, sitting on the front porch of a house I’d never been to, or standing pink-cheeked with our arms around each other’s shoulders and red Solo cups in hand.
The face staring back at me in the mirror was pretty: high cheekbones, delicate nose, large, hooded eyes that were a startling shade of violet. I’d picked my new face out carefully. But I couldn’t quite bring myself to put contact lenses over my irises, even though I knew I really should. They were the one connection I had with my birth mother, and I owed her some kind of debt.
It wasn’t like me to be so emotional. “You’re going to get yourself hurt being stupid,” I mouthed at myself, watching my bright pink lips move, before I slipped my sunglasses back on to hide the swelling.
I didn’t know then how right I was.
Half an hour later, the line of cars had finally crept forward until I was parked in front of the dorm. I checked in, then popped the trunk of my car and slung my duffel bag over my shoulder. I didn’t own much, but I’d definitely have to make more trips.
The sun was shining and the campus was beautiful. The students streaming around me while unpacking their cars with their parents all seemed so happy. It made me feel like an outsider, because I was alone. I wouldn’t have wanted to bring my father. Just imagining him in this scene was like imagining the beautiful setting slowly being infested by a dark poisonous blot.
“Let me help you.” The voice was deep and sexy, and I spun to find myself facing a tall, good-looking guy with broad shoulders and a powerful body.
He flashed me a boyish smile. “It’s a service our frat offers everyone. Whether or not they’re a pretty girl.”
He’d towed over a bright yellow rolling caddy. Behind him, another guy was pushing a caddy into the dorm while a girl and her parents walked behind him.
“I might not be a pretty girl, but I’ll take the help,” I said.
He grinned at me like he knew I knew better, then began to unload the boxes in the trunk into the cart. I stood back and watched him. There was no reason he’d open the tire well and see the weapons hidden inside, but I couldn’t help feeling wary.
“What’s your room number?” he asked.
I normally wouldn’t volunteer any additional information about myself to strangers. In my experience, being casual with your personal information was a great way to end up locked in a wooden box.
Be normal, Delilah…Aurora. Shit.
“Four-twelve,” I said, giving him a smile.
When we reached my new room, it already seemed full. A girl with long blonde hair, her parents, and a surprising number of small children seemed to fill the room.
“Oh! Get out of the way, Patrick,” the blonde girl said, tugging one of the people out of the way of the frat boy and his caddy. She smiled at me, her eyes crinkling at the corners. “You must be Aurora!”
“You must be Jenna!”
“It’s so nice to meet you!” She hugged me.
I’d exchanged a few emails with my new roommate. We weren’t really on hugging terms but I was good at adapting to what other people wanted from me. So I hugged her back and smiled. She seemed genuinely warm and sweet just within a few seconds of meeting her, although that could always be an act.
She quickly introduced me to her parents, and to her three younger siblings who had all come along to help her settle into her new dorm.
