Page 14 of The Aftermath

I lower my hand from my mouth and stand with my back straight when Simon snaps his hand out. He wraps it around my neck and squeezes it before I have to chance to move. He quickly cuts off my air as I reach up and claw at his hands.

“You’ll learn, Angel. You’ll learn how to behave for a King!” He roars in my face. I can feel my eyes bugging as spots begin to bleed into my vision. Tears slide down my cheeks as I feel myself getting weaker by the second. I jerk my eyes to Silas, but he isn’t looking at me. Just as I feel like I’m going to pass out, Simon is being ripped away from me. Rylan moves through the room quickly, as does Levi. Levi makes a noose out of a bed sheet while Rylan attaches the other end to the bedpost. I’m rubbing at my neck and coughing as Silas drags Simon toward the balcony. I shove to my feet and stumble in that direction, not knowing what the hell is happening.

“What are you doing?” I manage to ask. Silas looks over his shoulder at me and grins before turning back to the guys. Levi slides the noose around Simon’s neck, and I gasp. They aren’t going to kill him, are they?

“You can’t do that!” I snap at them. Silas jerks his head at me and Levi moves to stand behind me. I don’t pay much attention until his hand covers my mouth, preventing me from screaming. Simon begins to struggle, but Silas doesn’t let him go.

“You’re going to climb onto the fucking ledge, and you’re going to jump. Do you understand me?” Silas orders him in a deadly tone. Simon shakes his head when Silas leans in and whispers something in his ear none of us can hear.

Simon looks over his shoulder at me with wide, scared eyes before he does as he is told. I can see him trembling from here as I try to scream behind Levi’s hand. I watch in horror as Simon climbs and stands on the edge of the railing.

“Now jump, Simon. As much as I’d love to play this out a little longer, we do have a dinner to finish,” Silas tells him calmly as he checks his watch. I see Simon’s body tremble as he starts to cry.

“Now!” Silas snaps at him. Simon jolts, but then he does it. He takes a step forward and falls. I scream now behind Levi’s hand as tears roll down my cheeks. How could he do that? He forced him to jump! Silas and Rylan look over the edge to make sure he’s dead before walking back into the room as if nothing happened.

“I’ll wipe the cameras,” Rylan announces before leaving the room. Silas nods toward Levi, and he releases his hold of me. I want to run. I want to scream but the look in Silas’s eyes has me doing neither of those things. He comes closer as snot and tears mix and run down my face.

“You’re so pretty when you cry, Angel.” He wipes my face and rubs his hand down the leg of his pants before smiling at me. “He won’t bother you anymore.” My heart races. What do I say to him? I knew he was out there, and I knew he did things, but to see him actually force Simon to jump? My hands are shaking when Silas grabs them in his, and I almost jerk away, but I don’t.

“You need to calm down before we go back out there. They can’t see you like this, or they’ll think you did something to Simon.”

“What? Me?”

“He did leave the room with you,” Silas reminds me. Ice wraps around my spine as I become as still as stone. He’s right. Everyone at the fucking table saw me leave with Simon. What if they think I did this?

“What if they think I did this?” I ask, my voice trembling.

“They won’t.”

“What if they do, Silas? I’ll be killed!” I shriek. Silas reaches up and cups my cheek in his hand as he stares into my eyes.

“Do you honestly think I would let anyone hurt you except me, Angel?” I open my mouth, but I don’t know what to say. Silas shakes his head before lowering his lips to mine. He kisses me so gently it gives me whiplash. How can he go from killing someone to kissing me like this? When he pulls back, he grins at me.

“No one is going to touch you and live to tell about it, Angel. You belong to me.”

Silas leads me to the door, where I wipe my face once more.

“Go into the bathroom and wash up. Then go back to the table like nothing happened. Understand?” I nod my head. I understand perfectly.

“Good girl. That’s my little Angel,” he praises me before opening the door and ushering me out. I hurry down the hall toward the bathroom when I see Tamsyn and motion for her to follow me. She does, and we huddle inside the bathroom as I fall apart. She pulls me against her and holds on tightly as I sob.

“What the hell happened?”

“Silas forced him to jump, Tamsyn. He’s dead,” I cry.

“Who is?”

“Simon!”

“Oh shit,” she remarks casually, as if that’s not the worst thing they’ve done. Maybe it isn’t. Maybe I don’t know Silas as much as I thought I did.

Chapter 9

Silas

Poor Simon never returned from his trip to the bathroom. I told the Kings leaders I saw him storming down the hallway but I didn’t know where he went. No one went out searching for him yet.

I sit back in my seat at the dinner table, listening to some girl chatter next to me. I don’t pay her any attention as my eyes stay on Angel’s. She looks everywhere but at me. I know what she saw frightened her but she has to know what I’d do for her, the lengths I’d go to protect her.

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