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My mask was fixed in place the next morning, with my killer smile, too. I played the perfect best friend. Hair, makeup, clothes. Chatting to Anna like nothing was wrong in my world. And for a little while, I was lost in my own lie.
That strangling fist inside eased. I even caught myself actually laughing.Like, really laughing.Full belly laughter as she blushed and looked horrified, caught on the fact there were no fucking doors. I liked her…a lot.
She wasn’t like anyone else I knew. She was easy, quiet, and careful. She was…warm.Yeah,Anna was warm. I chatted to her while we got ready for our first day of classes. But the desperation was always there, hovering in the back of my mind like an unseen enemy ready with a blade.
One cut, and my smile was stolen.
One stab, and my happiness was gone.
“Wow,” Anna said from her bedroom doorway, eyeing my dress and heels. “You’re going to class inthat?”
I forced a smile. It’s what carefree Kat would’ve done. “Absolutely. I’m here to make an impression.”
There was a chuckle and the shake of her head. “In that, you’redefinitelygoing to make an impression.”
I just smiled and stepped through the doorway to her room. “You better believe it. You ready?”
She fussed, checking her hair, fixing her top. She was a fidgeter, yanking, pulling, eyes downcast with the kind of demeanor that screamedDON’T LOOK AT ME.My smile faltered. She wouldn’t last five minutes in my world.
Men like my father and Haelstrom Hale would eat her alive.
My stomach gave a howl as I snatched my clutch off the end of the bed and walked out. “Ready?”
“Ready.”
We rode downstairs and stepped out of the foyer into the perfect warmth of the Mauritius sun. God, I could almost pretend the world out there didn’t exist. I talked, about bullshit really, designer brands and perfume. The kinds of things someone like me would be consumed by. But Anna was distracted. I scowled as she checked her phone for the hundredth time. “You’re not listening, are you?”
“Sorry,” she smiled. “Distracted. Tell me again…”
I just slipped my hand free from her arm. “It’s totally fine.” I glanced at the buildings in the distance and checked my own phone “Catch you after class?”
Her steps stuttered. “Wait, you mean we’re not together?”
“I have kidnapping and ransom analysis, although,” I muttered, glancing at the other classes scheduled. “I’d much rather attendRunning your Fortune 500 Company. You?”
“Psychology.”
“Bummer.” I winced. “Maybe next time. Looks like I’m over here. Catch you later, gorgeous.”
“Later,” Anna muttered behind me, but I was already striding toward the building in the distance, my mind drawn back to the panic that was my life. I had to come up with something. I had to find a way out of that mess.
Kill them…
Blow them all up.
Expose every dark and dirty secret.
Christ, if the media caught wind of who those people really were, it’d be everywhere…forever.
I’d never escape, tainted and branded for the rest of my life. No, I couldn’t have that. I needed a different way to get away from them. I needed a better plan for escape.
I strode through the doors and across the foyer, my heels clicking on the tiled floor. God, I hated these shoes…and this dress. Heads turned toward me as I took one step at a time, and the chatter started. But I had a reputation, right? The redhaired heiress to a billion-dollar empire. I knew what they saw when they looked at me. It was an image I’d carefully crafted over many,manyyears.
Cold. Impenetrable…
I flicked my hair back and rose to the last stair, making my way toward the classroom.
“Hey, Kat.” Some six-foot giant fell in step beside me. “It’s Jake…Jake Green.”
