Chapter 2
For the next few hours, I watch the clock in the small room they have me locked in. I’d drank my small paper cup of water hours ago and I've counted every tiny crack I can find in the plastered walls at least ten times. Just when I'm at the point of driving myself completely insane by mentally replaying what happened with Jenna over and over again, the door opens. The male officer that I'd seen in my dorm room earlier walks in and takes the seat opposite me at the table. “Sorry to keep you waiting Miss Banks,” he says, laying a paper folder out on the table. He opens it and begins to read through it in silence. The seconds tick by and I start to get fidgety in my seat at the uncomfortable silence. Just as I open my mouth to break the silence the door opens again and a tall man wearing an expensive-looking suit walks in holding a briefcase. The man looks down at me in an assessing way. He is extremely good-looking and exudes dominance in a way that makes him hard to look at. “Is this her?” he says in an almost snort, jerking his chin in my direction. “Yes, Sir,” the police officer nods, motioning for the newcomer to sit next to him. He takes his seat and reads through the paperwork the officer hands to him. I study his face as he reads. He's one of those ageless guys. His serious, no-bullshit demeanour makes him seem like he's much older, but his face is young. My guess is he could be anywhere between twenty and forty. He must feel me looking at him as his eyes flick up to mine over the paper and he holds my gaze. Everything in me screams at me to look away, to break the eye contact, but I don't. I won't be bullied by some stuck-up detective. His eyes grow intense and then I swear I see the flash of a smirk before he slams his hand down on the table, making me jump back in fright. “Are you trying to challenge me Miss Banks?” he asks in a deeper voice than he'd used with the other officer. “Challenge you?” I snort and raise an eyebrow, trying to use my attitude to mask how much he had scared me. “I suggest you learn to submit, and quickly, because at the place you are going, the people won't be as tolerant as I am,” he says, closing the folder and putting it into his briefcase before turning to the officer and nodding. My heart pounds in my chest and panic grips me as I watch the two men shake hands. “I’ll take her from here,” the stuck-up detective tells the officer. “No,” I manage to rasp out. “Please, I didn't mean to hurt her. I can't go to prison. I can't!… Don't I get a solicitor?… A phone call?” I plead with the officer as he leaves the room. I turn my attention back to the suited man. “Please sir, it was an accident,” I sob. “Not so tough now are we?” he smirks at me. “Let's go, Miss Banks, I have a very busy schedule and don't have time for your tears,” he sighs and heads towards the door. I remain seated, frozen in fear and shock. “You have two seconds to follow me, otherwise I will leave you here and let the police throw you in prison,” he snaps. “Wait, what?” I gasp and turn to look at him. He gestures to the open doorway he is standing in and without too much thought I scramble to my feet and rush to his side. “That's what I thought,” I hear him remark under his breath. He walks down the corridor with large strides that I struggle to keep up with. “Where are we going?” I whisper to him as we pass police officers who don't seem to pay any attention to us. He ignores me like the rude asshole that he is and doesn't even look at me until we reach the elevator. He presses the button and turns to face me whilst we wait for the doors to open. “Tell me, Miss Banks, are you prone to panic attacks?” He asks. “Huh?” I respond, a little taken aback at this whole situation. “Your file says you passed out from a suspected panic attack at the scene, and you seem to be on the brink of another panic attack now. So what I am asking, little girl, is if I’m going to have to hold your hand through our journey?” He snarks. Anger flares in me at his words. “Well I’m sorry Mr Perfect, I’ve had a hell of a day so do excuse me if I’m a little upset!” I hiss at him, crossing my arms to let him know how much of a badass I am. He gives me another of his barely there smirks and a nod in what seems like approval. The elevator dings at that moment, signalling the doors opening and he steps forward without another word. I follow the smarmy asshole in and stand beside him. I watch as the doors close, with a strange sense that they're closing on my old life. “Collins,” he says, snapping me out of my strange thoughts I turn to give him a questioning look. “It's Mr Collins,” he says in a barely there whisper as he steps dangerously close and looks down at me. So close that when I take a breath my chest touches his. The air suddenly feels charged as I stare up into Mr Collins’ eyes. The arm holding the briefcase snakes around my back and he pulls me flush against his chest, causing me to gasp. Holy shit balls this man is hot. He brings up his other hand and gently strokes my cheek with a secret smile, then in a flash he grips my chin hard. “Sleep,” he demands, his eyes flashing blue as he speaks. My last thought before my body shuts down is that I'm going to knee this jerk in the balls as soon as I get the opportunity.Chapter 2“Wake up, Miss Banks,” a smooth voice says, the tone washes over me like a loving caress, and for the first time in a very long time I feel safe and it's not something I want to wake up from just yet. I nuzzle my face into the warmth against my cheek. A sweet, buttery and woodsy kind of scent hits my nose and I give an approving hum at the pleasing smell. A grunt of disapproval ruins my contentment right before I am dropped unceremoniously onto my back. The landing is soft but still unpleasant. “What the hell!” I curse, rushing to sit and take in my surroundings. I'm on a couch in a dimly lit room, bright light suddenly floods the room making me squint against it. I shift my attention to the source of the light, fighting the urge to hiss at it like a feral vampire. A large figure is framed by the beaming sunlight that is flooding the room through a window that spans the entire wall. The figure is fussing with the curtains that he's just opened and I quickly recognise him as
Chapter 4“I thought I heard voices in here. Is everything okay Dee?” a very attractive woman who looks to be in her thirties says as she walks into the room with a beaming smile. Her hair is jet black and shines as the sunlight hits it. It's the sort of hair that should be in shampoo ads and just enhances her stunning blue eyes and flawless skin. She wears a skin-tight black dress that shows off her hourglass figure and black stilettos, with her finger and toenails painted bright red. She is the kind of woman that makes you feel insecure as soon as you see her. “Yes. Clarrisa, this is Josie Banks, a new student I've just picked up from the human realm. Could you please assign her one of the single dorm rooms in Ruby,” Mr Collins says, whilst he takes out the file from his briefcase that the police officer had given him earlier and holds it out to Clarrisa.“Are you sure? There's plenty of space for her in Amber or Saphire,” Clarrisa says, giving me an assessing look up and down befo
Chapter 5I stand in the doorway of my new room open-mouthed. This must be a mistake. This is nothing you'd expect of a dorm. This is more like a hotel suite. The bed is huge, king-size at least, and the pillows are like plush clouds that I just want to jump into. There is a dressing table with a mirror and a walk-in wardrobe that's almost as big as my entire dorm room at Mount University. The large window is framed by bookshelves, stacked with books of every genre you could wish for, and there's a cosy window seat with cushions and a blanket. I almost squeal in excitement. There's a small countertop with tea and coffee-making facilities and a mini fridge. In the bathroom, there's not only a shower but a full-size bathtub. The whole place is a luxury that I've only ever seen on TV and I have no idea how I am going to pay for it because I don't think a part-time job around my studies is going to cut it. I catch a glimpse of myself in the bathroom mirror and cringe. My hair is a mess, a
Chapter 6My vision returns as fast as it left. Theo is on the floor at my feet groaning.“What was that?” I demand, stepping back from Theo and clutching my hand. “The spark,” Theo groans out, and then he starts laughing. “What does…” I start, but I'm cut off by my door shattering into pieces. Making me shriek and jump back further. A very angry-looking man stands in my doorway, breathing heavily. He takes in the scene in front of him. Dark hair hangs over his eyes but it doesn't hide the fury peeking out behind the dark locks. His hand shoots out towards me and his fingers strain as if he is gripping something, then my oxygen is cut off. I scratch at my neck, trying to remove whatever is wrapped around it that's stopping me from breathing but there's nothing there. “Mason stop, I'm fine,” Theo croaks out and pushes himself to his feet before knocking the dark-haired man's arm down. Precious air fills my lungs and I collapse to my knees in relief. “Josie, are you okay?” Theo asks
Chapter 1“Good Morning ladies!” The dorm senior, Jenna, shouts as she makes her way down the corridor of the dorms, banging on each door as she goes. I roll over with a groan and stretch to pick up my phone. I read the time and then rub my eyes before checking the time again because there’s no way I read it right. Glancing around the room I feel confident that my eyes are now working correctly and check the time again.“Mother fluffer!” I curse under my breath. I was right the first time. It’s 5:30 AM! That confirms my suspicions that perfect Jenna with the too-friendly smile is evil. It’s the first day of university and classes start at 9 AM. Why on earth is she waking the whole dorm up at 5:30? I can hear grumbling and cursing from the other girls through the paper-thin walls as Jenna loudly announces that it’s shower time. I grab the pillow and press it over my head to try and block out the noise. I had my alarm set for 8 AM, which would have given me plenty of time to shower and