Page 54 of Pretty Little Psycho

“No,” Riot sneers. “Send them away. Maureen comes back with us tonight. We’re going to teach her a little lesson.”

Fuck. He’s beyond furious that she insulted him. But he’s also frustrated that she can get under his skin the way she does. I think it’s hilarious but also disturbing. Maureen and Riot will destroy each other if they aren’t careful.

I nod. “Fine. I’ll go deal with my cousin and the Crane girl.”

Valentin snickers. “I’ll call a meeting at Nocturnus. Elder members only.”

Riot bares his teeth at her, his grin twisting into something sick and depraved. “You want to know what I am? What we are? Tonight, you’re going to find out.”

Maureen backs away from him. “No. Let me go. I don’t want to know anymore. Please, just let me leave with my friends.”

“Too late for begging, Firecracker. You’ve pushed me too far this time,” Riot snaps.

Libra is easy to send away but the other one, Villette, gets in my face in a way that rubs me the wrong way. She’s lucky we don’t want any beef with her family, otherwise I’d shove a bottle of poison down her throat and drop her body in the fucking river.

After Riot pays for the dress and gets Maureen back in her regular clothes, we have to drag her to the car kicking and screaming. Which fuck, I’d be a liar if I said that didn’t make my cock hard again.

The drive back is eerily quiet. Maureen sits as far away from Riot as she can get in the back seat of Valentin’s car. The ravens fly alongside us, squawking the entire way. They know they are getting fed soon. We all are. And our little firecracker is going to be the meal.

Maureen

I never should’ve left Wickford Hollow. Raven’s Gate… Tenebrose… is fucking cursed. Every nerve in my body stands on edge as Riot, Atlas, and Valentin ride in silence. All of my deepest fears resurface as they steer me closer toward their depraved world. I may not survive tonight. So why do I feel more alive than I ever have?

Nocturnus House has an ethereal glow about it tonight. Muted light flickers through its iron-barred windows. It feels different. I feel different approaching it. I can still smell the hemlock in the air but breathing it in doesn’t hurt my chest as badly as it did the last time. Maybe Atlas’s micro-dosing is already working.

My stomach flips when I see the hooded figures lined up in the driveway. What the fuck? They’re all wearing masks. I want to run. I didn’t sign up for this level of insanity. But Riot drags me out of the car before I can even think about bolting.

“If you run, I’ll hunt you down like the fucking predator I am. Maybe I should let you try. Nothing gets me harder than the chase.” He has a crazed look in his eyes. A look that means he’s either going to torture me to death or fuck me so hard I won’t remember my own name. Moisture gathers in the crevices of my thighs despite how terrified I am. It’s a sickness. This addiction to their brutality. I hate that I crave it. That I need it.

The interior also looks different without the crowd of drunken students and full staff serving them whatever they desire. Now it’s just me and the guys and their seemingly mindless initiates. Chills sweep up my back as they guide me down a staircase that goes so far down below the house, I wonder if I’ll ever breathe fresh air again. It’s dark and damp and musty. The humidity clings to my skin like burnt honey.

When we finally get to the bottom, I find myself in a circular room with stone walls lined with iron sconces. There’s what looks like an altar in the center, stained with blood and other substances I can’t place.

My stomach knots, and I have to breathe deeply through my nose to keep from vomiting. Fuck. I’m in so much fucking trouble.

“Riot,” my words echo through the hollow room, causing me to jump. I lower my voice to a whisper, “Please tell me what’s going on.”

He nods at two of his initiates and within seconds they grab my arms and pull me toward the altar.

Oh fuck. No.

Panic spreads in my chest as I try to swallow and almost choke. “Wait, what the fuck are you doing?” I cry out. “Let me go.”

My heart races as I feel the cool metal shackles enclose around my wrists. I try to pull away but it’s no use. I’m alone with all of them. And I’m at their mercy, even though they have none.

“Atlas, don’t let him do this to me,” I beg.

“We are doing this to you, Firecracker. No one here is going to save you.” There’s a more sinister tone to Atlas’s voice. It matches the others’, so now I know I’m completely screwed.

Once the initiates finish chaining my wrists to the altar, they do the same to my ankles, before getting back into formation with the others.

Riot stands over me and glares down. He licks his lips as his gaze travels over every inch of my body. “Time for penance, Firecracker.”

I can’t stop trembling as I glance around the room. The fact that I can’t see their faces is unnerving. I feel like I’m about to hyperventilate. Fuck.

Riot slowly unbuttons my shirt and pulls it back. It’s deliberate and agonizing. I feel my chest heave with each flick of his wrist. One of his initiates hands him a knife and he uses it to cut my bra off.

“Riot, stop. I’m sorry I insulted you earlier,” I plead.

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