I catch sight of Tamrin the second Nathan calls her over, her face cautious, her eyes bouncing between Celeste and me. I force a polite smile as she approaches, but inside, I’m grinding my teeth. Her showing up means we’re back to pretending—like everything between Celeste and me is just casual, like she’s not the only person on my mind right now. I know Celeste feels it too; the forced smile she gives Tamrin is too practiced, too stiff. The whole scene feels like a well-rehearsed lie, and I hate it.
Without saying a word, I start walking toward the Ferris wheel, letting my steps make my frustration known. It’s high up there, away from prying eyes and hushed whispers, a place where maybe, for a few moments, we don’t have to act. I dig into my pocket, pull out a few crumpled bills, and pay the attendant for a cab big enough for all of us. I glance back, calling them over.
They gather around, and as we settle into the cabin, it’s
I stand at the cotton candy stand with Presley, the smell of spun sugar in the air, debating whether to get pink or blue. Presley leans into her choice, laughing, and I almost forget how tangled everything feels these days. I turn around to scan the crowd, hoping to spot a familiar face—anything to take my mind off everything with Tamrin and Celeste. Then I see them, a cluster of faces in the distance, laughing and close. My stomach drops.Tamrin is standing with Celeste, Nathan, and Liam. And they’re not just standing around, either—they look like they’re together, sharing that easy, familiar vibe you only have when you're close. My gasp is barely audible, but Presley catches it. She turns to look where I’m staring, her eyes narrowing as she sees the group for herself.“What the…? Tamrin?” Presley says, clearly stunned, her face hardening as she takes it all in. It’s like watching something surreal unfold. I can b
The Ferris wheel's gentle hum fades behind us as we step off, and for a moment, everything feels calm, like the world’s giving us a break. Celeste’s laughter hangs in the air, Tamrin and Nathan’s chatter filling the space around us as we walk toward the food court. It’s a perfect night—just the four of us, blending into the crowd, no one looking twice at us, no one questioning who we are. For once, it feels like I can breathe.Then my phone buzzes, jolting me back to reality. I glance at the screen and feel my heart drop. The name flashing there is one I’ve dreaded seeing tonight. For a second, I think about ignoring it, letting it fade, but I know that’s not an option.“Be right back,” I say, stepping away from the table. I catch Nathan’s eyes as I move off to the side, and he gives me a slight nod. He knows better than to ask, but I can see the concern in his eyes.As I answer, the voice on the other
The warehouse is buzzing when I arrive, but it’s not the usual controlled chaos. It’s tense, electric. I can feel it in the air before I even step out of the car. Men are pacing, muttering, looking over their shoulders like shadows might suddenly turn into threats. The second I walk in, the room quiets, their eyes darting toward me like they’re waiting for an explosion.I don’t blame them. I’m furious.I move through the crowd, heading straight for the back office where I know Eric, one of my most reliable runners, is waiting. He shouldn’t even be here. From what I’ve been told, he barely made it out of the ambush alive. He should be in a hospital bed, getting stitches and painkillers. Instead, he’s slumped in a chair with his arm in a makeshift sling, his face pale and slick with sweat.“Eric,” I say, my voice sharper than I intended. “Tell me everything.”He winces as he shifts in the chair, his hand trembling as he runs it through his hair. “It—it was supposed to be a simple pick-u
The warehouse feels suffocating. The air is thick with tension, and every sound—footsteps, whispers, the scrape of crates being moved—grates on my nerves like nails on a chalkboard. My fists are clenched so tightly my knuckles ache. Every cell in my body is screaming for release, for violence, for something to break.I sit at the edge of the makeshift desk, staring at nothing, replaying Eric’s words over and over in my head. They’re coming for more. They’re going to take everything from you. My empire is being chipped away, and all I can think about is how much I want to make whoever did this pay.A shuffle of hesitant footsteps behind me pulls me from my thoughts. I don’t turn around. “What?” I snap, my voice low but sharp enough to cut through the room.The kid—barely old enough to shave, one of the newer runners—steps forward. He’s holding a clipboard, shifting awkwardly from foot to foot. &ldq
The office feels too small, like the walls are closing in on me. I can’t sit still. Every step I take feels like I’m walking a tightrope, my mind racing with possibilities, each one darker than the last. Travis sits on the worn leather couch in the corner, his expression unreadable. He’s calm, the way he always is, but I know him well enough to see the tension in his jaw.“Liam,” he says, his voice measured. “You need to breathe. This isn’t helping.”I ignore him, my boots thudding against the floor as I pace. “How does this happen, Travis? A clean pickup. No cops. No outside eyes. And yet my product is gone, my guy’s in the hospital, and there’s a message waiting for me like it’s a damn game.”Travis leans forward, resting his elbows on his knees. “You’re not going to figure it out by pacing holes into the floor. Sit down. Let’s think this through.”I st
The night is thick with shadows, and I stay hidden in plain sight, leaning casually against a streetlamp with a cigarette in hand. I’ve been watching her for over a month now. Celeste. She’s Liam’s weakness, though I doubt she even realizes it. She’s always surrounded by people, especially that annoying shadow of his—Nathan. Liam’s brother never leaves her side, like some overprotective lapdog. It’s irritating, but not unexpected. Liam plays his cards close, and Nathan is just another pawn in his meticulous game.Still, every pawn has its limits.Celeste is standing at the curb now, laughing at something Nathan said. The sound is soft, light, so painfully out of place in a world like ours. She has no idea the storm she’s standing in the middle of. She’s oblivious, a delicate flower in the middle of a battlefield. And I’ll admit—there’s something almost amusing about it.But it’s not am
I’m sitting on the edge of my bed, staring at my phone like it’s some kind of ticking time bomb. The screen is dark, but her name feels burned into the back of my mind: Celeste. I want to call her. Hell, I need to call her. But my hand feels like it’s made of lead every time I think about pressing her name.The room is too quiet, too still. Normally, I’d drown out nights like this with noise—music, the sound of a girl’s laugh, anything to fill t
The night air bites at my skin as I stand outside Liam’s gate, hugging myself tightly against the chill. What am I even doing here? The question echoes in my mind for the hundredth time. My heart is pounding so hard it feels like it might leap out of my chest.I regret this. Every single step that led me here feels like a mistake now. I should turn back. I glance down the empty street behind me, shadows pooling under the dim glow of the streetlights. My stomach churns with embarrassment. But my feet stay planted.I fumble for my phone, hesitating before dialing his number. The phone rings, and every second feels heavier than the last. He answers after the third ring, his voice low and rough. “Celeste?”I swallow the lump in my throat. “I’m at your gate,” I blurt out, my voice shaky and small.There’s a pause. Too long. My face burns, humiliation prickling at my skin. Then, without another word, he hangs up.The silence afterward is deafening. My fi
The sunlight burns my eyes the second we step outside. I wince, squinting hard as I try to adjust, but it’s too much, too fast. After hours—or was it days?—of nothing but darkness, the brightness feels like an assault. The air is thick, humid, carrying the scent of salt and earth, and for a second, I forget I’m walking beside a monster.The yard is massive, overgrown with trees and flowers, a wild, untamed jungle wrapped around a nightmare. It should feel peaceful, but nothing about this place feels safe. Every step I take, I’m hyper-aware of Trevor at my side, his grip firm on my arm, guiding me like I might run.Maybe I should.But where would I go?My mind is fogged, my body weak, but I force myself t
There’s nothing quite like this moment. The anticipation. The thrill. The satisfaction of seeing her exactly where s
The box in front of me is open, and the smell of blood is thick in the air.My me
My back is screaming, my knee feels like someone took a knife to it, and my arms are stiff from being stuck in the same p
I don’t know how many hours have passed. The walls of this room feel like they’re closing in on me. No windows, just a single door that’s been locked since they threw me in here. My body aches from sitting on the hard floor, and my throat is raw from screaming at no one.And then, finally, the door creaks open.Trevor walks in like he owns the world.Something inside me snaps.I lunge at him before I can think, before I can feel the terror crawling under my skin. I’m screaming, my fists pounding against his chest, his arms, his face—anywhere I can reach.He doesn’t flinch.He doesn’t stumble.He doesn’t even try to stop me at first, just stands there while I throw everything I have at him.Then, with nothing but a flick of his wrist, he shoves me off. Effortless.I hit the floor, hard. My palms scrape against the rough wood, but I don’t care. I push up and charge at h
I step into Celeste’s house, and the first thing I notice is the silence. A thick, unnatural kind of quiet that presses against my ears. It’s wrong. All of it is wrong.I’ve been calling her for five hours. Nothing.She’s gone. I know it in my gut. Trevor took her.I exhale slowly through my nose, grounding myself before my anger can swallow me whole.The men I put here to watch her—gone. Haven’t checked in. Haven’t answered. I already know what that means. They’re dead, or they were smart enough to run. Either way, they failed me. They failed her.
My hands are shaking. My whole body is ice-cold, but my face is burning. My stomach twists so hard I feel like I’m going to t
Celeste trembles beneath my touch. Good. That means she understands.I slip the hood over her head, my fingers brushing against the soft strands of her hair. She flinches, and I almost laugh. Like she has a choice in any of this.Then, with a heavy thud, the wooden crate hits the ground. The sound alone is enough to send a ripple of fear through her—I can feel it in the way her breathing quickens. I lean in close, my lips just a breath away from her ear."If you scream, I will slit Tamrin’s throat and make you watch.”She stiffens instantly, and a shiver runs through her body. Ah, there it is. That beautiful moment when someone realizes just how powerless they really are.Satisfied,
I can’t move.I can’t breathe.My whole body is frozen as I watch them—Trevor’s men—move around my house like ghosts, erasing every single trace of themselves. Of me.The coffee mug I dropped? Gone.The chair that got knocked over? Upright, perfectly in place.The rug that shifted in the struggle? Smoothed out like it was never disturbed.They’re meticulous. Careful. Like they’ve done this before. Like they know exactly how to make it seem like nothing ever happened.Like I was never here.Trevor stands a few feet away, watching me with something