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Thomas scans me from head to toe, taking note of my bloody hands. Satisfied I’m not hurt, he quips, “Seems as though you’ve lightened my workload.”
Elias, Reign, and Fernando enter the living room. “A team’s been dispatched for clean up. Do we have any idea how Conner made it through the background checks?” Fernando asks, cursing under his breath in Spanish. Something about fucking turncoat weasels and how they deserve to be hung and left for vultures.
I smirk, but then I remember the men upstairs and why I was there. “Dr. Jaffri?”
Thomas’s face softens. “Safe.”
I sigh in relief. My shoulders slump as the adrenaline dissipates from my system. Elias scoops me into his arms and whispers, “Let’s get you home.”
Humming, I rest my head on his shoulder and close my eyes. “I’m going to gut that bitch,” I mumble before sleep finally takes me.
“Miss Bradford, we’ve heard your grievances,” Tamara states from across the table.
“I don’t think you have. Things aren’t getting better. They’re getting worse, and if you want me to fulfill my end of things, you’ll provide the information and support I’m seeking. I refuse to have my family looking over their shoulders for the rest of our lives,” I pause, needing to rein in my rage. “Generations of Bradfords have already done that. We won’t anymore,” I reply.
Silence hums through the room, and I begin to wonder if we are at an impasse. I won’t budge on my demands.
She smiles. “You’ll be an excellent addition to the Novus Ordo Seclorum. The Princeps chose wisely.” She stands, and I spend time admiring her. High, sharp cheekbones are highlighted in a bronzer that accentuates the reddish-gold undertones in her umber skin. Tamara’s burnt orange suit is paired with a cream silk blouse. This woman emanates power. “You’ll have your information and support when the time has come, Miss Bradford. Complete your task before the Tribunal, and we’ll handle the rest.” And without a backward glance, she exits the room.
Huffing, I sit back in my chair and rest my hand on my stomach. “Mommy is going to open the gates of hell to protect you.” I feel flutters against my palm, and tears build in my eyes. The guys will either get on board or get run over. Their fiancée, however, is a bitch on borrowed time.
41
LEV
Music blares through the speakers. The bass vibrates off the walls. “Are you sure this was the only place she could meet us?” Sebastian asks as he has to stave off the attention of another sorority girl.
“They’re like an invasive species,” Owen grumbles as we move through the room.
I wait until we reach an alcove, awarding us some amount of privacy, before I answer Sebastian. “We are running out of time with the engagement party being next week. This is our best shot.”
I stop speaking as another group of giggling sorority girls approaches. They preen, pulling their shoulders back and widening their smiles. They must recognize our disinterest quickly because they frown as they scurry past, making no attempts to engage us in conversation.
“This is the only place remotely safe enough. Samantha wouldn’t step foot into a Groveton party, much less one the Jacobis are throwing,” I explain, and shiver at the memory of her after tonight’s game. We were, once again, subjected to the unfortunate circumstance of pretending to be happily betrothed.
Senator Baker, along with several other high-ranking businessmen, attended tonight’s game, forcing us to pretend to be happy partners. Samantha took advantage of our predicament by trying to rub herself against Owen, of all people. Wes had to grab her hand and hold it before Owen lost it and cut off her entire arm. Her sly smirk was all the evidence necessary to show she knew precisely what she was doing.
“Why exactly is she afraid of the Jacobis?” Wes inquires, pulling me from my thoughts.
I turn to meet his gaze. “Let’s just say they didn’t take Samantha’s bullying of Eva kindly.”
We walk deeper into the packed Sigma Alpha Psi fraternity house. It’s one of the many parties being thrown tonight on Groveton’s Greek Row. The premise is simple. Each house—fraternity and sorority—throws a themed party, and students from everywhere attend. This house is masquerade-themed—the perfect place to meet with Teagan. The annual event is hosted by the winner of the prior year’s football game. Next year, it’ll be at Lincoln-Wood.
I smile, remembering our win. It was third down, and we just received a penalty pushing us back fifteen yards, landing us at the thirty-five-yard line and out of the red zone. We just left the huddle with our play, quickly getting into position before there could be a delay of game. After the snap, Groveton expected us to go long, and they were correct, but I pretended to hand off the ball to one of our running backs. Groveton’s defense responded by running in, leaving our receivers more room to move. That’s when I sailed the ball down the field to a tight end for a touchdown.
“How long before Teag gets here?” Sebastian leans over to ask. He’s not thrilled that this is where Teagan decided to meet. The original plan was to meet at Le Toucher on Halloween night, but she needed more time.
Peering into the sea of bodies, I spot who I’m looking for. “As soon as the room is completely distracted,” I reply and tip my head, silently instructing them to follow.
We barely make it three feet before a girl stands in our path. She isn’t that much taller than Ariah, but her curly hair hangs loosely past her shoulders. The majority of her face is hidden behind an elaborate mask, exposing her scarlet-stained lips and the lower portion of her face. “Lev, you have to get me out of here,” she implores, placing her hand on my bicep.
Her voice sounds familiar, but I can’t think past the pounding in my ears. My eyes lock with hers before trailing down to the offending limb touching me, and I have to fight not to grip her throat and shove her off of me. I try to blink my vision back in focus as my lungs constrict, stealing my air.
“Get the fuck off him unless you have plans never to make it to the next stage in your life.” Someone says, but the noise in the room triples, making it too loud for me to hear anything. But I know the moment her touch is gone. The vice around my airway slowly loosens, and I suck in a lung full of air. Awareness of my surroundings gradually returns. My hands are on my knees, and I spin, staring at four pairs of feet shielding me from view before I can finally stand.
The party is still in full swing, but there’s at least a ten-foot perimeter between me and the partygoers. “What have you been doing, Princess?” Colt whispers into, who I now know is, Eva’s ear.
“I. . . I. . . I was jus. . . just trying to, um, say hello,” Eva lies, and a guy I don’t recognize tsks.
