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Prologue
Jagger
“What the hell is this?” I blinked rapidly, trying to clear the haze from my eyes. “Where am I?” Despite the struggle against my restraints, it took me a few seconds to realize that I wasn’t going anywhere due to the tightness of the ropes. I frantically searched around the room in an attempt to figure out where I was.
A dark chuckle bounced off the cement floor and walls. “Don’t worry, Jagger Whitlock, it’s all a part of the plan,” the disguised voice said. He peered at me through the holes in the skull mask as he paced a circle around my chair. I recognized him from the society invitation video.Fuck, what the hell did I do?
“What do you want?” Despite the chilly air against my bare chest, beads of sweat formed on my forehead. The bastards knocked me out, drug me out of the field house, and tied me to a chair. Apparently, it would have been too much for them to grab some sweatpants for me. Instead, I shivered in nothing more than my boxer briefs. I had no idea who I’d pissed off, but I mentally skipped down that long list.
“You’re one of the chosen. Try to relax and enjoy the ride.” The fucker laughed even more.
My blood boiled in my veins. The familiar feeling of fury and hatred reawakened the beast inside me.
The masked and cloaked person didn’t speak, but I felt the power bubbling beneath his skin. He might be crazier than I was. I wasn’t sure if it was a good or a bad thing.
I attempted to control my breathing, but I had no fucking clue who was behind the mask and had taken me prisoner. If I bargained for my freedom, it would tickle his ego, and I would leave wherever I was in one piece.
“A brotherhood will fight for each other, but only if they have something on the line. Something to lose. In your case, you want a pro football career. I can make that dream come true, but why should I if you have no skin in the game?”
I blanched at him. “You can get me a pro ball contract?” A sense of foreboding enveloped me. This wasn’t good. Whoever was talking to me was fucking with my head, and I strongly suspected I knew who it was.Shit. This is bad. Real bad.Until I found his weak spot, I had to play his sick game.
“If you can get me a deal with the Eagles, I’ll give you my damn soul.” Even though I realized it wouldn’t serve me well, I gave him a disbelieving snort. “What are you, the devil’s right hand?” What he didn’t know was that I was the devil’s left hand. Maybe we could work together and solve a big problem I had that refused to leave me alone.
The figure stopped in front of me and bent over, the nose of his skull mask a mere inch from mine. “I can make it happen, Jagger Whitlock, but what will you give me in exchange? I have no use for a wasted, dark soul like yours.” He straightened, staring a hole right through me.
“Name your price. Hell, I’ve done a lot of dark shit in my life. I’m pretty sure I can offer you something you’ll find valuable.”
I shivered, sweat drying against my skin and making me even colder. Minutes ticked by without another word from him.
“What should I call you? Skull? I mean, you knowmyname. That doesn’t seem fair, does it?”
He folded his arms in front of his chest. “You can call me Black Widow. I am the leader of a secret society, and if you pass the test, you’ll join us.”
I barked out a laugh. “Sorry, man. You should have led with that. You’re wasting your time. I pledge to no one. This shit show wasn’t what I signed up for.” If he wasn’t lying, it wasn’t who I thought it was, which meant this situation wasn’t as bleak as I first assumed.
A spotlight blasted through the darkness and I shrank away, trying to shield my eyes until my vision adjusted.
“It’s easy, really. I’ll make sure you have everything you want in exchange for your deepest, darkest secret.”
My heart skidded to a stop, and I reminded myself to breathe. “No fucking way,” I said quietly.
“Are you sure? You’re ready to walk away from all of your dreams?”
“I don’t know you, asshole. How am I supposed to blindly trust you?” I tugged on my wrist restraints again, as if they had magically loosened.
The light dimmed and moved, illuminating the rest of the small area. Several people stood on the other side of glass walls, all of them wearing the same skull mask and robe as the Black Widow, arms crossed over their chests in what could only be called a power stance. They looked immovable.
A voice began to filter into the room.
“Jagger,” a female said.
My throat constricted as she continued to talk. “I love you, baby. Promise me we’ll never be apart.”
“I’ll never let that happen,” I replied on the recording.
“What the fuck? How did you get that?” I yelled over the recorded conversation. Her voice sliced through me like hot knives carving out my heart and tossing it on the cold ground.
“If our parents find out, they’ll separate us,” she said.
