Page 15 of Pretty Little Psycho

I sigh. “It’s fine. I need to find out more about my family. Was hoping there might be some Blackwell archives in here.”

Jessamine gasps. “In here? That would be blasphemy. The Graves family took away anything with the name Blackwell on it decades ago.”

Now, I’m annoyed. “Seriously? Why the fuck for?”

She looks around as if we aren’t the only two people here before leaning in. “They committed horrible acts against the Graves. Unforgivable acts. You shouldn’t have come here. It’s not safe for you.”

A cold draft tickles the back of my neck. I think about Riot’s hatred of me. The rage in his eyes when he heard my last name. It’s very personal and apparently dates back hundreds of years. I feel sick.

Fucking great.

I wonder how many times I can kick myself for not registering here as Maureen Gray. My stupid fucking insecurity wins again.

I palm my face, rubbing my temples as a headache starts to form. “So what’s the story? Why is my family on Riot’s shitlist?”

“I can’t say.”

“Jessa—”

“I can’t say,” she raises her voice. “I… don’t remember. There’s gaps in my memory. Sorry.”

Fuckity, fuck, fuck. “Awesome. Well, at least point me to the books about his family then. I need to know who I’m dealing with.”

She shakes her head, her eyes glassy. “Don’t open that door, Maureen. You won’t be able to close it if you do.”

I am a lot of things, but a coward isn’t one of them. “Classes start Monday, Jessamine. I only have twenty-four hours to prepare myself for what I’m walking into. I don’t have time to sift through all of these. Please, for fuck’s sake, show me which ones are about the Graves family.”

She fists the sides of her white cotton dress, bunching the fabric in her palms. A wave of emotions seems to pass through her eyes before she shakes her head. “You won’t find what you’re looking for. This is his library, but he doesn’t keep his secrets here.”

I pinch my eyes shut as a searing pain shoots through my head. I grab onto a shelf as I lose my footing. “Fuck, I think I’m going to be sick.”

Jessamine places a cold hand on my shoulder. “You need to leave this room. It doesn’t want you here.”

Don’t need to tell me twice. My insides feel like they’re cooking from within. I nod and dart out the door. Jessamine is gone again, and I’m not surprised. It’s what she does. And she’s also right. With every breath I take, the pain dissipates. First time I’ve been rejected by an entire room.

I rush into the nearest bathroom and brace myself on the sink. I suck on my lower lip and fight the last wave of nausea. But just as I start to feel better, it’s snatched away. I look in the mirror to see Riot, Atlas, and Valentin staring back at me.

They glare daggers at me as I turn around. The edge of the sink digs into my lower back. I eye the door, calculating the distance between it and them. Fuck. I’m fucking trapped. Maybe another girl will walk in and call them out for being in here. As soon as I think that, Valentin bolts the door.

I sidestep slowly toward the door anyway as they surround me. Riot stands in the center like a beautiful monster, his blue eyes cold and vacant. “Going somewhere, Firecracker?”

My voice betrays me as I take another step back only to find myself up against the wall.

They close in.

Valentin threads his fingers through my hair. “I heard you like getting fucked in bathrooms.”

“Go to hell,” I cry out. My heart feels like it’s going to explode. I’m sure of it.

“We’re already in hell,” Atlas counters. “And it’s been less than stimulating. But now we’ve found something new to play with.” As he towers over me, nudging my chin upward with his knuckles, I almost drown in his eyes. Almost. He’s fucking gorgeous. All of them are. But I have to remind myself that they are predators.

My throat is dry. “No. That’s not who I am anymore,” I squeak out.

Valentin’s grip tightens on my strands. “I disagree.”

Atlas presses his thumb against my bottom lip. “I think she’s going to let us play… isn’t that right, darlin’? Unless you want us telling everyone all your dark and dirty secrets.”

Fuck. What do they know? Riot was at that party last Halloween. He knows what those douchebags did to me in the bathroom. But did he see me go upstairs? Does he know what I did to Chad? My heart races as I struggle to keep my breath steady.

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